HANGZHOU-Chinese internet giant Alibaba on Tuesday opened a hotel loaded with artificial intelligence (Al) and robots, automating a series of procedures like check-in, lights control and room service.

FlyZoo Hotel, opened in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, where Alibaba is headquartered, is known as the company's first "future hotel". Customers can check into the hotel by simply scanning their faces. The facial recognition system installed in the hotel also enables customers to use their faces as key cards to open doors and access other hotel service. Users can also control the lights, televisions and curtains in the room via Alibaba's voice-activated digital assistant, while robots are deployed to serve dishes, cocktails and coffee. Hotel bookings and check-out can also be done with a few clicks on mobile through an app. "The Al-based solution can help customers save time and relieve hotel employees from repetitive work," said Wang Qun, CEO of FlyZoo Hotel. The hotel is the latest example of Chinese tech companies' attempt into traditional industries such as the hotel industry.

E-commerce giant JD. com announced in October its strategy to put smart home and electronic devices sold on its platform into hotels, in an effort to improve online sales.

In July, Baidu teamed up with Intercontinental Hotels Group in Beijing to allow guests to use its voice-controlled assistant to adjust room temperature and order room service at ease.

Before that, social media giant Tencent introduced QQfamily, a similar tech solution for hotel operators, in the southern city of Zhuhai last year.

We’ve all been there: in a lift, in line at the bank or on an airplane, surrounded by people who are, like us, deeply focused on their smartphones or, worse, struggling with the uncomfortable silence.

What’s the problem? It’s possible that we all have compromised conversational intelligence. It’s more likely that none of us start a conversation because it’s awkward and challenging, or we think it’s annoying and unnecessary. But the next time you find yourself among strangers, consider that small talk is worth the trouble. Experts say it’s an invaluable social practice that results in big benefits.

Dismissing small talk as unimportant is easy, but we can’t forget that deep relationships wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for casual conversation. Small talk is the grease(润滑剂) for social communication, says Bernardo Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University Southeast. ＂Almost every great love story and each big business deal begins with small talk,＂ he explains. ＂The key to successful small talk is learning how to connect with others, not just communicate with them.＂

In a 2014 study, Elizabeth Dunn, associate professor of psychology at UBC, invited people on their way into a coffee shop. One group was asked to seek out an interaction with its waiter; the other, to speak only when necessary. The results showed that those who chatted with their server reported significantly higher positive feelings and a better coffee shop experience. ＂It’s not that talking to the waiter is better than talking to your husband,＂ says Dunn. ＂But interactions with peripheral(边缘的) members of our social network matter for our well-being also.＂

Dunn believes that people who reach out to strangers feel a significantly greater sense of belonging, a bond with others. Carducci believes developing such a sense of belonging starts with small talk. ＂Small talk is the basis of good manners,＂ he says.

Hobbies Help Cure Addiction to the Internet

While some parents have expressed concerns about the amount of time their children spent surfing the Internet during the summer break from school, it wasn’t a problem for Yin Qiming.

Instead, the 37-year-old Shanghai resident and his daughter divided their vacation between cyberspace and the 8-year-old’s other interests.

“My daughter has many hobbies and I and her mother respect her choices, so we accompany her to classes she enjoys, such as learning to play the drums and drawing,” he said.

“She loves to play outside with her friends, so she doesn’t think the Internet is a must-have thing in her life.”

Yin added that he rarely imposes a time limit on his daughter’s online activity.

“She sometimes uses WeChat (a popular instant-messaging tool) on my mobile phone, but only to contact her mother,” he said. “Once she has her own plans every day and realizes that the internet is just a part of life, she won’t become addicted to it.”

Li Lin, a primary school teacher from Liaoning province, expressed a similar opinion.

“We do some homework online, including reciting stories, and the children use the Internet frequently every day of their lives,” she said, noting that the children’s online activity is limited to 30 minutes a day at school.

“We should make better use of the Internet to provide children with more knowledge and help them to grow up,” said Li, who has a 10-year-old son.

The key to preventing children, especially those at primary and middle schools, from becoming addicted to the Internet is to limit the time they spend online and to ensure that they know cyberspace cannot replace traditional forms of communication, she said.

Mao Feizhu, a psychologist from Fujian province in southeast China, said people overestimate the influence of the internet.

“Many people, even some parents, believe the Internet plays a big role in our daily lives, and many things can be completed online, but that’s not completely right,” she said.

“We can use social applications to talk or play basketball games, and even share what we are thinking about, but sometimes it’s impossible for our emotions to be accurately reflected in this way. What children need is emotional communication and real physical exercise. After all, love cannot be bought on the net,” she said.

Perhaps, the best way to stop young netizens spending too much time online is to encourage their other interests but also accompany them when they go online: “We should use the Internet, not become its slaves.

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