'''Article:''' Exploring the Use of a Mobile Robot as an Imitation Agent with Children with Low-Functioning Autism by Audrey Duquette, François Michaud, and Henri Mercier

'''Introduction to paper:'''

One non-verbal and one pre-verbal child was paired up with a robot, and one non-verbal and one pre-verbal child was paired up with a human mediator. Both human and robot performed the same exercises with the children. Children showed more shared attention with the robot mediator. Pre-verbal children were better in respect to shared conventions (i.e. imitating the mediator's expressions).

'''Application to personal research:'''

According to this information, children with ASD might more readily look at Pleo than a human, but will probably be able to imitate the M.E. Department's humanoid robot better than they'll be able to imitate Pleo.

'''Questions:'''

• Do children with ASD realize how their bodies are shaped similar to other humans and humanoid robots even if they don't recognize other humans as more than just objects?
• How hard will it be for them to make the connection that a leg on Pleo is similar to their own leg? (I assume these all depend on their level of ASD)

'''Additional notes from paper:'''

• Robots are good because they're interesting to children, and yet controllable by a therapist
• Autistic children prefer animated objects over inanimate ones (ex. robot vs. toy truck)
• 6 parts of familiarization stage: present but powered-down, lit-up but not moving, moving but not near child, moving near child, touching child, fully-animated and vocalizing.
• Shared focused attention: two individuals focusing attention on each other
• Shared conventions: imitating each other “with the purpose of sharing and communicating”
• Once children learned that the robot was controlled by someone, they wanted to interact more with that person (they realized the source of control)

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