Everyone looks forward to progress, whether in one’s personal life or in the general society. Progress indicates a person’s ability to change the way he is living at the moment. Progress must lead to a better life and a better way of doing things. All these, however, remain true only in so far as people want to accept technology and move forward by finding new and more efficient ways of doing things.

However, at the back of the minds of many people, especially those who miss the “good old days”, efficiency comes with a price. When communication becomes more efficient, people are able to contact one another no matter where they are and at whatever time they wish .The click of a button allows people miles apart to talk or to see each other without even leaving their homes. With the communication gadets, such as mobile phones and ipads, people often do not take the effort to visit one another personally. A personal visit carries with the additional feature of having to be in the person’s presence for as long as the visit lasts. We cannot unnecessarily excuse our selves or turn the other persons off.

With efficiency also comes mass production. Such is the nature of factories and the success of industrialization today. Factories have improved efficiency. Unskillful tasks are left to machines and products are better made and produced with greater accuracy than any human hand could ever have done. However, with the improvements in efficiency also comes the loss of the personal touch when making these products. For example, many handcrafts(手工艺品) are now produced in a factory. Although this means that supply is better able to increase demand, now that the supply is quick and efficient, the demand might fall because mass production lowers the quality of the handcraft and it is difficult to find unique designs on each item.

Nevertheless, we must not commit the mistake of analyzing progress only from one point of view. In fact, progress has allowed tradition to keep up. It is only with progress and the invention of new technology that many old products can be brought back to their old state. New technology is required for old products to stay old.

It is people’s attitude towards progress that causes the type of influence that technology has on society. Technology is flexible. There is no fixed way of making use of it. Everything depends on people’s attitude. The worst effects of progress will fall on those who are unable to rethink their attitudes and views of society. When we accept progress and adapt it to suit our needs, a new “past” is created.

Humans have a way of understanding others’ goals, desires and beliefs, a crucial skill that allows us to anticipate people’s actions. Taking bread out of the toaster? You’ll need a plate. Sweeping up leaves? You’ll grab the green trash can. This skill, often referred to as “theory of mind”, comes easily to us as humans, but for robots it still has a high mountain to conquer.

In a recent study, computer science researchers made the robot “watch” the human complete the task using a camera placed directly above the assembly(组装)area, looking down. To detect the parts operated by the human, the system used AprilTags, similar to QR codes, attached to the parts. Then, the system used machine learning to learn a person’s preference based on their orders of actions in the task. “Based on how a person performs the small assembly, the robot predicts what that person will do in the larger assembly,” said Nemlekar. “For example, if the robot sees that a person likes to start the small assembly with the easiest part, it will predict that they will start with the easiest part in the large assembly as well.”

In the researchers’ user study, their system was able to predict the actions that humans will take with around 82% accuracy. “We hope that our research can make it easier for people to show robots what they prefer,” said Nemlekar. “By helping each person in their preferred way, robots can reduce their work, save time and even build trust with them.”This technology could also be useful in industrial settings where workers are tasked with assembling products in large numbers, saving time and reducing the risk of injury or accidents. Additionally, it could help persons with disabilities to more easily assemble products and maintain independence.

“Our goal is not to replace humans on the factory floor. I expect similar findings in other applications as well,” said Nikolaidis. “A robot that can quickly learn our preferences can help us prepare a meal, rearrange furniture or do house repairs, having a significant impact on our daily lives.”