While seeing the ability to incorporate new behavior into a robot dog is sort of cool, it does make me cringe a little at the thought that it could one day learn to simulate using the couch as a bathroom like a real dog…

It could be a dream or a nightmare — scientists have created a robotic dog that tells you when it’s time for your daily walk.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States plan to recruit Sony’s “canine entertainment robot” Aibo into the obesity police.

The dog would be connected by radio to the bathroom scales, a pedometer and a personal organizer in which the owner would note his daily food intake, New Scientist magazine reported on Wednesday.

Asked “How am I?” the robot would either jump excitedly, play funky music and flash colored lights, or flop down and play a dirge, according to whether its owner has followed his or her diet. [Read the rest]