Questões de Inglês - Grammar

How robot carers could be the future for lonely elderly people

Alessandro Di Nuovo

December 6, 2018

    The film Robot and Frank imagined a near-future
where robots could do almost everything humans
could. The elderly title character was given a “robot
butler” to help him continue living on his own. The
robot was capable of everything from cooking and
[5] cleaning to socializing and, it turned out, burglary. This
kind of science fiction may turn out to be remarkably
prescient. As growing numbers of elderly people
require care, researchers believe that robots could be
[10] one way to address the overwhelming demand. But
even though robots might be able to provide care and,
in some cases, social interaction, many wonder if they
really are the right solution to this uniquely human
issue.

[15]    Loneliness and social isolation are already
problems for many seniors and are even linked to
cognitive decline and a higher death rate. With the
population of seniors expected to rise, many worry
that experiences of loneliness will increase, especially
[20] if access to care is even more limited.

    But despite concerns, early studies already show
that social robots – autonomous robots trained to
interact and communicate with humans – really could
address issues of care and social interaction. The
[25] majority of robotics researchers are largely in favour
of introducing robotic technology on a wider scale
and believe it could reduce loneliness and increase
independence in elderly patients. The Japanese
government even supports introducing robots in
[30] care homes to solve the country’s ageing population
problem. However, many strongly recommend
carefully balancing the care benefits against the
ethical costs.

    A class of social robots – mobile robotic
[35] telepresence systems (MRTs) – have already been
shown to generate positive social interactions with
elderly patients. MRTs are essentially video screens
on wheels raised to head height that can be controlled
remotely using a simple smartphone app. They allow
[40] relatives and social workers to “visit” elderly people
more often, even if they live in rural or distant places.
Elderly patients don’t need to operate the device,
leaving them free to interact with their social worker
or family. Communication still happens through a
[45] computer screen, but the robot’s physical presence
mimics face-to-face interaction for elderly people.
Research has shown that people reacted more
positively when talking with someone through an MRT

    than through a regular video call or computer avatar –
[50] especially lonely people. However, MRTs still require
a human operator, which limits the amount of social
interaction seniors can have daily.

    To tackle this, developers worldwide have
started creating robot companions programmed with
[55] advanced artificial intelligence (AI), which can interact
with people on their own. Some examples include
pet-like companion robots, including Aibo and Paro,
which are made by Japanese developers, and MiRo,
which is manufactured in the UK. Other humanoid
[60] robots, such as the Care-O-bot and Pepper, are able
to provide more complex and comprehensive care.
Though “pet” robots offer limited interaction, they
have proved as effective – or even more so – than
real pets in reducing loneliness for elderly people in
[65] care homes. Robotic dogs introduced in one UK care
home this year were reported to bring happiness and
comfort to residents.

    On the other hand, humanoid robots are already
advanced enough to provide much-needed care to
[70] elderly people. These robots can pick things up and
move independently, and have a more natural, human
way of interacting, for example, using arm and hand
gestures. More advanced versions have additional
sensors and devices, including touchscreens. Many
[75] elderly people, finding the touchscreens hard to use,
preferred giving spoken commands to the robot and
reading its response off the screen. But for those with
age-related hearing loss or vision impairment, having
the option to use the touchscreen was indispensable.
[80] Humanoid robots are still being developed, so their
capabilities are still limited. Moreover, studies of
humanoid robots have mainly focused on evaluating
how well the technology functions without really
considering the social impact. There is also a general
[85] assumption that it will naturally reduce loneliness.

    Though research into social robots is just
beginning, we do know they can provide some solutions
to the challenges mounted by ageing populations, and
could even help reduce social isolation and loneliness.
[90] At this point, humans are still better in providing care
and social contact to the elderly, but robots might
be able to fill any gaps, especially as technologies
continue to improve. However, before social robots
can be fully integrated into care homes, researchers
[95] and service providers must address public anxiety
and make it clear that robots are designed to assist
social workers, not replace them. As long as humans
remain in full control to prevent any danger, robots
might well be the future of care.

Available at:https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgetsand-tech/features/robot-carer-elderly-people-lonelinessageing-population-care-homes-a8659801.html. Retrieved on: July 2, 2019. Adapted.

Read the cartoon and answer question

“I find the easiest way to expand my vocabulary is to make up words.” 

Pidgins and creoles

Pidgin Languages

  A pidgin is a system of communication which
has grown up among people who do not share a
common language, but who want to talk to each other,
for trading or other reasons. Pidgins have been
[5] variously called ‘makeshift’, ‘marginal’, or ‘mixed’
languages. They have a limited vocabulary, a reduced
grammatical structure, and a much narrower range of
functions, compared to the languages which gave rise
to them. They are the native language of no one, but
[10] they are nonetheless a main means of communication
for millions of people, and a major focus of interest to
those who study the way languages change.
  It is essential to avoid the stereotype of a
pidgin language, as perpetrated over the years in
[15] generations of children’s comics and films. The ‘Me
Tarzan, you Jane’ image is far from the reality. A
pidgin is not a language which has broken down; nor
is it the result of baby talk, laziness, corruption,
primitive thought processes, or mental deficiency. On
[20] the contrary: pidgins are demonstrably creative
adaptations of natural languages, with a structure and
rules of their own. Along with creoles, they are
evidence of a fundamental process of linguistic
change, as languages come into contact with each
[25] other, producing new varieties whose structures and
uses contract and expand. They provide the clearest
evidence of language being created and shaped by
society for its own ends, as people adapt to new social
circumstances. This emphasis on processes of change
[30] is reflected in the terms pidginization and
creolization.
  Most pidgins are based on European
languages – English, French, Spanish, Dutch, and
Portuguese – reflecting the history of colonialism.
[35] However, this observation may be the result only of
our ignorance of the languages used in parts of
Africa, South America, or South-east Asia, where
situations of language contact are frequent. One of
the best-known non-European pidgins is Chinook
[40] Jargon, once used for trading by American Indians in
north-west USA. Another is Sango, a pidginized
variety of Ngbandi, spoken widely in west-central
Africa.
  Because of their limited function, pidgin
[45] languages usually do not last for very long –
sometimes for only a few years, and rarely for more
than a century. They die when the original reason for
communication diminishes or disappears, as

communities move apart, or one community learns
[50] the language of the other. (Alternatively, the pidgin
may develop into a creole.) The pidgin French which
was used in Vietnam all but disappeared when the
French left; similarly, the pidgin English which
appeared during the American Vietnam campaign
[55] virtually disappeared as soon as the war was over. But
there are exceptions. The pidgin known as
Mediterranean Lingua Franca, or Sabir, began in the
Middle Ages and lasted until the 20th century.
  Some pidgins have become so useful as a
[60] means of communication between languages that they
have developed a more formal role, as regular
auxiliary languages. They may even be given official
status by a community, as lingua francas. These cases
are known as ‘expanded pidgins’, because of the way
[65] in which they have added extra forms to cope with the
needs of their users, and have come to be used in a
much wider range of situations than previously. In
time, these languages may come to be used on the
radio, in the press, and may even develop a literature
[70] of their own. Some of the most widely used expanded
pidgins are Krio (in Sierra Leone), Nigerian Pidgin
English, and Bislama (in Vanuatu). In Papua New
Guinea, the local pidgin (Tok Pisin) is the most
widely used language in the country. 

(CRYSTAL, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language, 3rd ed., 2010, p.344).