 The prime ministers of Japan and the Czech Republic have had an unusual dinner companion as they met for a state dinner in Prague.
A talking robot named Asimo walked into the dining room at the city's Hrzansky Palace and shook hands with the two leaders. The robot then said in Czech: "I have arrived in the Czech Republic, where the word robot was born, together with Prime Minister Koizumi as a Japanese envoy of goodwill." Asimo, the world's most advanced humanoid robot - can also speak Japanese as well as being able to walk upstairs and recognise voices. Japanese leader Junichiro Koizumi decided to bring the robot - made by the Japanese company Honda - as a tribute to the Czech writer Karel Capek. Capek invented the word "robot" in his 1921 play RUR (Rossum's Universal Robots), when he introduced the concept of human-like creations capable of doing dull repetitive tasks. Robot comes from the Czech word robota, which means drudgery. As well as honouring their Czech hosts, the Japanese delegation were hoping Asimo would provide light relief from the diplomatic purpose of Mr Koizumi's trip. The prime minister's two-day visit to the Czech Republic is the final stage of a week-long European tour, which has also seen him visit Poland and Germany. (Agencies) | 日本首相和捷克總理在布拉格舉行的國宴上有一位不同尋常的陪同。 一個會說話的機器人Asimo走進Hrzansky宮殿的宴會廳，分別和兩位領導人握手。 隨后機器人用捷克語說道：“我作為日本的親善大使，和小泉純一郎首相一起來到捷克共和國--這里也是機器人這個詞誕生的地方。” Asimo是世界上最先進的人工智能機器人，它不僅能說日語而且還能上下樓和識別不同的聲音。 日本首相小泉純一郎打算將這臺日本本田公司制造的機器人作為禮物送給捷克作家卡雷爾·卡佩克。 卡佩克在其1921創作的舞臺劇《羅森的全能機器人》中創造了“機器人”這個詞，他提出了創造與人類相似的機器人的概念，機器人能夠做枯燥重復的勞動。 機器人這個詞來源于捷克單詞“robota”，它的意思是苦差事，單調乏味的工作。 日本代表團希望在向東道主捷克表示敬意的同時，讓Asimo為小泉首相此次出訪的外交目的增加幾分愉快的氣氛。 日本首相小泉對捷克共和國為期兩天的訪問是他一周歐洲之旅的最后一站，此前他已經訪問了波蘭和德國。 （中國日報網站譯） |
Updated: 2003-08-25 01:00
