Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Prof. Hoorn’s study highlights music as a key enhancer of empathetic communication in human-robot interaction. (CREDIT: PolyU) ...

BEIJING — Humanoid robots hip-hop danced, performed martial arts and played keyboard, guitar and drums at the opening ceremony of the first World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing on Thursday evening.

When soft music is playing in the background, a brief exchange with a robot can evoke unexpected feelings of intimacy. Researchers were surprised to discover how much of a role the background music ...