While on a recent trip to Japan, President Obama spent a little time playing a friendly game of soccer with none other than ASIMO the robot. During his brief visit to the Tokyo Miraikan Science Expo, the Commander in Chief encountered ASIMO the robot, a human robot created by Honda. ASIMO stands for Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility. The robot first bowed to the President prior to kicking the ball in his direction.
Honda’s innovative new robot was something that was in the making for approximately 14 years. Though it was first introduced to the world in late 2000, Honda researchers and engineers have improved the robot dramatically in the recent past. Improvements include the ability to talk, to run, to recognize faces and even to pour a cup of juice and walk up a flight of stairs.
Despite the fact that President Obama briefly engaged in a game of soccer with the robot and even compliment its soccer skills as well as carry on a brief conversation with the robot, he stated that he finds it a little scary. Describing it as too lifelike, the President followed up by giving a short speech to Japanese students.
President Obama spoke of the importance of science and math in education, both in the United States and Japan. He explained to students that with their access to technology and power, they have more resources than the greatest inventors and innovators in all of history, which would provide them with absolutely no limit to what they can achieve in life.
No one said the President of the United States has to be all business all the time, though whether or not he enjoyed his brief soccer encounter with ASIMO the robot is unknown. It can certainly be said that it’s not something he’ll likely do on a regular basis, but more as a once in a lifetime type of experience. Check out the video below:
(Photo Source: AP Images Carolyn Kaster/Associated Press)
