The historic Norwegian tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl set sail for San Francisco from the Port of Seattle on Monday, marking the end of and another stop on the to support a sustainable future at sea.

The ship, built in 1914, boasts three towering masts and hails from Bergen, Norway. During the inaugural One Ocean Week Seattle, organized by , it docked at Pier 66 to welcome attendees and members of the public aboard to explore and learn.

The drew hundreds of people to Seattle to discuss marine ecosystems, the seafood industry, shipping and renewable energy, and more. 天美影视传媒 scientists joined policymakers, educators and industry leaders to define and address priorities in stewardship and ocean science.

, a UW affiliate professor and research scientist at the Center for Ecosystem Sentinels, served as a panelist on the 鈥淐oast to Coast Collaboration in Research鈥� aboard Statsraad Lehmkuhl on Friday morning.

Moore contributed her expertise as a marine mammal ecologist to help launch the in the Pacific Arctic in 2010, leading to an international effort to establish a network of observatories in the Arctic to track ecosystem health amidst physical changes to the region.

The panel, part of a series hosted by , offered a chance to discuss shared goals as melting ice opens the Arctic up to more traffic.

鈥泪迟 was an important opportunity for international collaboration and public engagement regarding rapid ecosystem changes in Arctic, and local, waters,鈥� Moore said.

, a UW professor of mechanical engineering, helped lead a 鈥渂ehind the scenes鈥� lab tour hosted by the , which joins researchers at UW, Oregon State University and the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

During the tour, researchers showcased marine energy monitoring projects at the , including videos and sonar documenting interactions between marine life and tidal energy turbines, sensors to detect underwater collisions, and systems to monitor how much noise is produced by the devices that help harness energy from waves and currents.

鈥淭hese tools help us identify and minimize environmental effects associated with harnessing energy from waves, tides and rivers,鈥� Polagye said.

, a UW principal research scientist of aquatic and fishery sciences participated in a panel discussion, where he shared his work on habitat in , which borders downtown Seattle. Toft鈥檚 lab studies how shoreline development impacts habitat value for young salmon.

鈥淎lthough the shorelines of Elliott Bay have been heavily modified, restoration efforts have had positive results,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he panel gave us a chance to discuss the importance of maintaining a healthy shoreline along a major urban working waterfront.鈥�

Despite the density of human activity along the shores of Elliott Bay, these waters are home to key species, including kelp, orcas and salmon. Maintaining functionality without losing habitat is a challenge, requiring input from various stakeholders, and creativity.

, a coastal hazards specialist at , provided an update on observed and projected sea level rise during a Friday workshop bringing together coastal managers and tribes around the Puget Sound region.

鈥淭he opportunity to meet in person with that many people who all came for the workshop was invaluable,鈥� he said.

To connect with a UW expert in ocean or environmental science, contact Gillian Dohrn in UW News at gdohrn@uw.edu.

Bee experts wouldn鈥檛 have previously expected to find the likes of Osmia cyaneonitens, Dufourea dilatipes and Stelis heronae in Washington. But this year, researchers added eight new bee species to a list of the state鈥檚 native pollinators.听

While collecting pollinators in Chelan County to study how climate and wildfires affect native bee populations, , a 天美影视传媒 research scientist of biology, discovered never recorded in Washington and 100 species that had not previously been documented in Chelan County. Expert taxonomists from Utah to British Columbia helped her identify the bees, which were photographed in high resolution for her research.听

鈥�鈥泪迟鈥�s a really exciting moment. Sitting with an expert taxonomist to determine the identity of an undocumented bee filled me with awe,鈥� said Maust, who completed this research as a UW doctoral student of of environmental and forest sciences. 鈥淭hey cited subtle characteristics that I would not have even known to examine. The findings also have important implications for biodiversity. It’s difficult to conserve a species when we don鈥檛 know its name or native range.鈥�

Taxonomists refer to detailed sets of characteristics to differentiate bees by family, genera and species. The morphological qualities of bees are incredibly diverse, and individual species can vary in small but significant ways.鈥� Bees can be distinguished from each other by the shape and structure of wing veins, hair color on the 鈥榯erga鈥� 鈥� plates forming the bee鈥檚 abdomen 鈥� and the location of 鈥榮copa,鈥� or pollen carrying hairs.

If you are interested in bees, Maust said, the trains volunteers to find, collect and identify native bees. Individuals can also share bee photos and observations on sites like where the data is made available to researchers.听

Depicted below are a few of the new-to-Washington bees Maust observed and the characteristics scientists focused on for classification. Click the image to see the full resolution photo.

The scopa on the abdomen of this female bee and its heavily pitted 鈥榯erga鈥� with inflated edges helped Maust to identify it as Dianthidium singulare.

This fierce-looking female Osmia cyaneonitens has huge mandibles (teeth) and flashy blue coloring. Osmia, in the mason bee family, use their large mandibles to move mud or cut leaves or petals to build nests. Their bodies are often metallic blue and green.

This Dufourea dilatipes Maust collected belongs to a rare group of the Halictidae family, commonly called 鈥榮weat bees鈥� because they are attracted to the salt and moisture in the sweat of mammals. All members of this family have a strongly arched basal vein on the forewing. Dufourea dilatipes exclusively forages on Calochortus flowers for pollen and nectar.鈥�

Black and brown coloration on the head, abdomen and thorax is one trait of Melissodes nigracauda. This one was caught in a soap/water trap, which Maust said can result in a spiky hairdo sometimes smoothed by 鈥渞elaxing鈥� the bee and giving it鈥� a blow dry before pinning.听

Stelis heronae, at 4 to 5 millimeters long, is so small it was hard for Maust to pin. It wasn鈥檛 described by any taxonomists until 2024, which made it tricky to identify. Stelis heronae is distinguished from other species by the maculations, or colored markings, on its terga. It is a cuckoo, or parasitic, bee that lays its eggs in the nests of other bees. Maust pointed out that female Stelis lack scopal hairs under their abdomens because, like other parasitic bees, they do not gather pollen but instead rely on the pollen stores of their hosts.

For more information, contact Maust at amaust@uw.edu.听

Every year, undergraduates at the 天美影视传媒 start their college experience, often in cavernous classrooms, learning alongside dozens, if not hundreds, of their peers. Research shows that taking these courses 鈥� some prerequisites and other classes on popular topics 鈥� can make students feel isolated, scared and not up to the task.

To confront loneliness and promote student well-being, the UW is piloting a two-year project called 鈥淔ive for Flourishing鈥� that provides instructors with five simple academic interventions to support students and help them succeed. Sponsored by the , the and the Provost鈥檚 office, Five for Flourishing鈥檚 initial cohort 鈥� 13 instructors of large classes from all three UW campuses 鈥� will use the strategies to help welcome students, show compassion and support them in their academic journeys.

鈥淎ddressing mental health and well-being on a college campus requires a comprehensive approach,鈥� said , director of the Resilience Lab, whose mission is to promote well-being among UW students, faculty and staff. 鈥淭his is an intervention where we can activate the learning environment for undergraduate students in large classes with minimal effort by the instructors and make a difference.鈥�

Inspired by similar, but more intensive programs at other institutions, Philip Reid, vice provost of Academic and Student Affairs, and Marisa Nickle, senior director of Strategy & Academic Initiatives, saw an opportunity for the UW鈥檚 students. What emerged is a simple turnkey program that provides instructors with interventions to work into their curriculums.

“We know that students, especially incoming first-year students, can experience anxiety and stress at times,鈥� Provost Tricia Serio said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e so excited to offer our instructors a program that welcomes students and helps set them on a path to succeed in the classroom and on campus, while acknowledging that they may be navigating these challenging feelings.鈥�

In 2020, the Resilience Lab published an for instructors that outlined a number of interventions to support student well-being. By contrast, Five for Flourishing is designed to be a streamlined, simple tool for instructors to add to their teaching plan.

Here鈥檚 how it works: Five for Flourishing begins by adding a message to course syllabuses that welcomes students, creates a sense of belonging and normalizes asking for support, even when students are stressed by factors outside the classroom.

Next, Five for Flourishing provides a quarter鈥檚 worth of welcome-to-class slides specific to each UW campus that point to wellness resources, cultural happenings, ways to participate in democracy, and opportunities for students to connect with one another.

Instructors will encourage students, especially before and after exams or big assignments, to adopt a growth mindset 鈥� the notion that these academic tasks aren鈥檛 a reflection of their self-worth or intelligence, but rather a method to determine a student鈥檚 strengths and areas for additional learning.

鈥淭his builds on a lot of research on the misperception that intelligence is fixed,鈥� said , director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. 鈥淭he reality is that intelligence isn’t fixed and that people can grow.鈥�

Research also shows that when students connect with one another, they鈥檙e more likely to do well academically and socially, which in turn makes them more likely to graduate. Five for Flourishing instructors will place students in small groups and invite them to discuss course material, build their professional communication skills and experience group problem solving. The students鈥� only assignment is to take notes on their discussions and share those with the instructor.

鈥淭his builds on the idea that prompting students to get together in really low-stakes environments helps establish a secondary support network that they can tap when they run into trouble,鈥� Moon said. 鈥泪迟 overcomes the idea of just going into class and looking straight ahead and not looking sideways.鈥�

Finally, Five for Flourishing instructors conduct a mid-quarter check in with their students to ask what鈥檚 working well and what could be better, what鈥檚 helping them to learn and what鈥檚 hindering their success.

鈥淢any of the professors at UW have real compassion and care for students, and this project helps them to channel that compassion and care in really productive ways,鈥� Moon said.

Every student will be asked to complete a survey at the beginning and end of the quarter. That data will inform how to adjust and continue to scale the program. Instructors will also receive a small stipend for participating.

, a teaching professor in the School of Engineering and Technology at UW Tacoma, is in the inaugural Five for Flourishing teaching cohort. He鈥檚 already been using similar academic interventions for all his classes, including high-enrollment courses like popular games programming. Building upon his existing tools, he鈥檚 excited to see these student supports scale up and reach more undergraduates.

鈥淓very single faculty member that I’ve had a chance to chat with, all of them care so deeply about student experience, that is also what I care about,鈥� Marriott said. 鈥淪preading this out to more faculty, after we have some data and feedback, is going to be awesome.鈥�

In Seattle, also plans to use Five for Flourishing in her Intro to Medical Anthropology course, with 225 students, and Comparative Study of Death, with 80 students. While she too had compassionate components to her teaching, she appreciates the framework of Five for Flourishing, the training she鈥檚 received, and, as a scientist, she鈥檚 looking forward to seeing the data from the student surveys to see what is and isn鈥檛 working as intended.

She鈥檚 seen students who struggle with anxiety and loneliness, students who are afraid to walk into class, or are balancing long commutes, family demands and academics. Programs like Five for Flourishing establish universal accommodations to uplift and support the entire student body.

鈥淭he University, in doing this Five for Flourishing, is setting a stone, a ground stone, to say to our community, 鈥楲ook, we do have a problem here, and this is one way to solve it,鈥欌�� Saravia said.

Helping students understand that they are not alone will have benefits for their entire lives.

鈥淔eeling lonely has social impacts. If you feel lonely, you’re less engaged. And if we are less engaged, we have less possibilities of a thriving democracy. If we don’t know how to talk to one another, how to find common ground, or how to set boundaries, or how to see a problem together, how to even think about it together 鈥� If we don’t have that, we are in trouble as a society,鈥� she said. 鈥淚’m very hopeful that Five for Flourishing will give all of us a strong start to change that and to inspire students to learn from one another, to see each other. I’m hopeful, too, that engagement with one another will build community, and teach them to have effective engagement with the world.鈥�

At first, some parents were wary: An audio chatbot was supposed to teach their kids to speak positively to themselves through lessons about a superhero named Zip. In a world of Siri and Alexa, many people are skeptical that the makers of such technologies are putting children鈥檚 welfare first.

Researchers at the 天美影视传媒 created a new web app aimed to help children develop skills like self-awareness and emotional management. In Self-Talk with Superhero Zip, a chatbot guided pairs of siblings through lessons. The UW team found that, after speaking with the app for a week, most children could explain the concept of supportive self-talk (the things people say to themselves either audibly or mentally) and apply it in their daily lives. And kids who鈥檇 engaged in negative self-talk before the study were able to turn that habit positive.

The UW team in June at the 2023 Interaction Design and Children conference. The app is still a prototype and is not yet publicly available.

The UW team saw a few reasons to develop an educational chatbot. Positive self-talk has shown a range of benefits for kids, from to . And previous studies have shown children can learn various tasks and abilities from chatbots. Yet little research explores how chatbots can help kids effectively acquire socioemotional skills.

鈥淭here is room to design child-centric experiences with a chatbot that provide fun and educational practice opportunities without invasive data harvesting that compromises children鈥檚 privacy,鈥� said senior author , an associate professor in the UW Information School. 鈥淥ver the last few decades, television programs like 鈥楽esame Street,鈥� 鈥楳ister Rogers,鈥� and 鈥楧aniel Tiger’s Neighborhood鈥� have shown that it is possible for TV to help kids cultivate socioemotional skills. We asked: Can we make a space where kids can practice these skills in an interactive app? We wanted to create something useful and fun 鈥� a 鈥楽esame Street鈥� experience for a smart speaker.鈥�

The UW researchers began with two prototype ideas with the goal to teach socioemotional skills broadly. After testing, they narrowed the scope, focusing on a superhero named Zip and the aim of teaching supportive self-talk. They decided to test the app on siblings, since research shows that when they use technology with another person.

Ten pairs of Seattle-area siblings participated in the study. For a week, they opened the app and met an interactive narrator who told them stories about Zip and asked them to reflect on Zip鈥檚 encounters with other characters, including a supervillain. During and after the study, kids described applying positive self-talk; several mentioned using it when they were upset or angry.

By the end of the study, all five kids who said they used negative self-talk before had replaced it with positive self-talk. Having the children work with their siblings supported learning in some cases, but some parents found the kids struggling to take turns while using the app.

The length of these effects isn鈥檛 clear, researchers note. The study spanned just one week and the tendency for survey participants to respond in ways that make them look good could lead kids to speak positively about the app鈥檚 effects. Future research may include longer studies in more natural settings.

鈥淥ur goal is to make the app accessible to a wider audience in the future,鈥� said lead author , a UW doctoral student in the iSchool. 鈥淲e鈥檙e exploring the integration of large language models 鈥� the systems that power tech like ChatGPT 鈥� into our prototype and we plan to work with content creators to adapt existing socioemotional learning materials into our system. The hope is that these will facilitate more prolonged and effective interventions.鈥�

Other authors are , a research scientist at Meta Reality Labs who graduated from the UW iSchool; , a UW research assistant in the iSchool; , a UW masters student, and , a UW doctoral student, both in the human centered design and engineering department; and , a masters student at the University of Southern California who did undergraduate work at the UW iSchool. This research was funded by the Jacobs Foundation and the Canadian Institute for Advanced Researchers.

For more information, contact Hiniker at alexisr@uw.edu and Fu at chrisfu@uw.edu.

Picture a bench. Maybe you imagine the wooden seat of a picnic table, the metal of a bus shelter, the plastic of a school cafeteria.

Different materials, different locations, same basic purpose: to welcome more than one person.

This spring quarter, in Architecture 231: Making and Meaning, that was the essential mission of the culminating project: Build a bench, create a social opportunity.

鈥淎rchitecture is taking an idea and turning it into a reality that someone can experience,鈥� said co-instructor .

And so, this month, there were some two dozen benches, scattered around both Gould Hall and Architecture Hall in a pop-up demonstration of student work. There were benches with backs, with ramps, with steps and shelves and swings. Benches in the shape of an L, or a C, or an ocean wave. Nicholls encouraged students to find places that were underused, or even overused, and 鈥渉elp them out with a bench.鈥�

The class started with small, individual projects, made of reclaimed and found materials, such as cardboard and sticks, to teach scale and structure. Then came the bench project, a team endeavor that involved planning and sketching, trial and error, and use of the College of Built Environments鈥� Fabrication Lab to cut and assemble the lumber.

Sophomore Jasmine Madrigal was part of a group that constructed a bench with squared-off, V-shaped legs and a corner shelf.

鈥淚鈥檝e learned about the materials, that not everything will stay the same as you first conceptualize it, and we sometimes had to compromise our ideas in order to develop it further,鈥� Madrigal said.

That鈥檚 the point of the class, co-instructor and Architecture alum said 鈥� to learn process, collaboration and attention to detail.

鈥淪tudents come into the class having an idea and think it鈥檚 built automatically,鈥� Leanos said with a smile.

While a few benches may find a permanent home at Gould or Architecture Hall, most will be taken apart, so the materials can be used again, in a future class.

These nocturnal flying mammals live in cities and rural areas and in most climates around the world – and maybe even in your own backyard.

, a 天美影视传媒 professor of biology and curator of mammals at the , explains that there are over 1,400 species of bats spanning an incredible diversity. Only three of the species are vampire bats which feed on the blood of birds or mammals. Most bats feed on insects, but diets vary from lizards, birds or mice to fruit and nectar. Bats play a vital role in ecosystems by controlling insect populations, pollinating plants as they move from bloom to bloom, and spreading seeds as they fly and poop.

One focus of Santana鈥檚 research is how bats have evolved to have different abilities and specializations. Bats are the only mammals that fly by flapping their wings (compared to gliding). Their handlike, membraned wing structures are incredibly maneuverable in tight spaces. Flying has enabled bats to access a lot of different food sources, she explains, which has probably shaped their diversity over time.听

Bat skulls, for example, have different shapes. Fruit-eating bats tend to have a shorter skull, optimized for a stronger bite, whereas a nectar bat鈥檚 long snout houses a long tongue. But they鈥檙e not limited to foraging with their mouths. Many bats will scoop up insects with a membrane that stretches between their hind legs like a sail while flying.听

Even vampire bats, who sidle up to their animal prey to make a small incision with sharp teeth and lick the resulting blood, have evolved to hop and scoot using their legs and folded wings to get away quickly from their victims. After a big meal, it turns out, they can be too heavy to fly.

Santana hopes people will get past bats鈥� scary reputation.听

鈥泪迟 would make sense that because we can’t quite discern what these animals are at night, we might be a little scared of them. But if you see the faces of bats – some flying foxes look like little puppies – you realize they can be super cute.鈥�

For more information, contact Sharlene Santana / ssantana@uw.edu

For five days in April, jazz music echoed through the Meany Hall Studio Theatre.听听

But the sounds of collaboration didn鈥檛 end there.听听

In between playing, students and faculty engaged in listening sessions and conversations about the recording process. That was the format for this year鈥檚 , held annually through the 天美影视传媒 School of Music.听

Typically, the project brings in guest artists to work with students and put on public performances. This year, the event had a different focus as recording engineer offered students an in-depth experience focused on the performance and engineering sides of recording. The new format allowed students and faculty to gain experience with UW鈥檚 new mobile recording system. While teaching fundamental recording and audio skills, Boucher also worked with students and faculty to document new works and experiment with techniques.听

鈥淵ou become a better musician by becoming a better recording engineer,鈥� Boucher said, 鈥渁nd vice versa.鈥�听

Boucher has credits as an engineer, mixer and producer. He鈥檚 worked with a variety pop and rock musicians, including Andrew Bird, Madison Cunningham and Rufus Wainwright. He has also worked on motion picture soundtracks, earning engineering credits on 鈥淔rozen鈥� and 鈥淓ncanto,鈥� among others.听

, associate professor of jazz studies, is the faculty advisor for the Improvised Music Project. The program, which will return to its original format in 2023, is open to any students and faculty members across the School of Music.听

鈥淩ecording is about our ability to listen deeply and listen to greater levels of detail and respect that detail,鈥� Poor said. 鈥淵ou get this other perspective that you can鈥檛 naturally have when you鈥檙e playing by yourself.鈥�听

听For more information, contact Poor at tedpoor@uw.edu.听

Who do you talk to when you have a problem?听

“For a student, it’s most likely a friend,” said Jennifer Laxague, assistant director of LiveWell & Campus Health Promotion at the 天美影视传媒. Because young people tend to talk first to someone in their peer group, created a Peer Health Education program where trained students teach other students about taking care of themselves and each other.听

are current undergraduate and graduate students who give interactive workshops on health and wellness topics such as mental health, sleep, healthy relationships and alcohol use. Sharing evidence-based knowledge, skills and campus resources, these workshops are aimed at promoting life-long behaviors that support health, self-growth and meaningful connection. Workshops can be requested for UW students by anyone 鈥� faculty, staff, students, registered student organizations or departments.

New this year is the launch of a one-on-one peer coaching program that is free to UW students at the Seattle campus. sessions teach students to identify their strengths and personal-change goals, learn useful and effective skills for personal development and self-management, and work toward the transformations they want to see in themselves, their relationships and their lives. Peer wellness coaches are students who receive additional in-depth training and supervision and are available for appointments online or in person.

Peer Wellness Coaching isn’t a replacement for professional psychological counseling that should be provided by a licensed professional, Laxague said. Rather, it’s a learning space for students looking for ways to solve problems and to grow their self-efficacy.

鈥淭his type of self-learning will serve students not only in college but throughout their future lives,鈥� Laxague said.

With the coronavirus still a concern this fall, a UW class that normally is about air pollution and emissions has pivoted to focus on another airborne health hazard 鈥� coronavirus aerosols.

Air pollution expert听, a UW professor of civil and environmental engineering, is leading his class in building and testing low-cost, DIY air purifiers. The MERV filters used in their design can remove common pollutants from the air, plus virus particles 鈥� and can be used to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission.听

These types of homemade air purifiers have already been successful at removing particles found in wildfire smoke from the air.听

As part of the class project, the students are designing various configurations of the purifiers and testing how effective they are. Initially, the students built a “one fan, one filter” device. Then they built larger devices with two to five filters in triangular or three-dimensional box shapes. Students will be testing their听devices to see whether having the fan push or pull air through the filter is better, how noisy the purifiers are and how effective they are at removing particles from the air.听

For more information about the class and project, contact Marshall at jdmarsh@uw.edu.听For video, contact Kiyomi Taguchi at ktaguchi@uw.edu or 206-685-2716.

Chatting with a robot is now part of many families’ daily lives, thanks to conversational agents such as Apple’s Siri or Amazon’s Alexa. has shown that children are often delighted to find that they can ask Alexa to play their favorite songs or call Grandma.听

But does hanging out with Alexa or Siri affect the way children communicate with their fellow humans? Probably not, according to a recent study led by the 天美影视传媒 that found that children are sensitive to context when it comes to these conversations.

The team had a conversational agent teach 22 children between the ages of 5 and 10 to use the word “bungo” to ask it to speak more quickly. The children readily used the word when a robot slowed down its speech. While most children did use bungo in conversations with their parents, it became a source of play or an inside joke about acting like a robot. But when a researcher spoke slowly to the children, the kids rarely used bungo, and often patiently waited for the researcher to finish talking before responding.

The researchers in June at the 2021 Interaction Design and Children conference.

“We were curious to know whether kids were picking up conversational habits from their everyday interactions with Alexa and other agents,” said senior author , a UW assistant professor in the Information School. “A lot of the existing research looks at agents designed to teach a particular skill, like math. That’s somewhat different from the habits a child might incidentally acquire by chatting with one of these things.”

The researchers recruited 22 families from the Seattle area to participate in a five-part study. This project took place before the COVID-19 pandemic, so each child visited a lab with one parent and one researcher. For the first part of the study, children spoke to a simple animated robot or cactus on a tablet screen that also displayed the text of the conversation.

On the back end, another researcher who was not in the room asked each child questions, which the app translated into a synthetic voice and played for the child. The researcher listened to the child’s responses and reactions over speakerphone.

At first, as children spoke to one of the two conversational agents (the robot or the cactus), it told them: “When I’m talking, sometimes I begin to speak very slowly. You can say ‘bungo’ to remind me to speak quickly again.”

After a few minutes of chatting with a child, the app switched to a mode where it would periodically slow down the agent’s speech until the child said “bungo.” Then the researcher pressed a button to immediately return the agent’s speech to normal speed. During this session, the agent reminded the child to use bungo if needed. The conversation continued until the child had practiced using bungo at least three times.

The majority of the children, 64%, remembered to use bungo the first time the agent slowed its speech, and all of them learned the routine by the end of this session.听

Then the children were introduced to the other agent. This agent also started to periodically speak slowly after a brief conversation at normal speed. While the agent’s speech also returned to normal speed once the child said “bungo,” this agent did not remind them to use that word. Once the child said “bungo” five times or let the agent continue speaking slowly for five minutes, the researcher in the room ended the conversation.

By the end of this session, 77% of the children had successfully used bungo with this agent.听

At this point, the researcher in the room left. Once alone, the parent chatted with the child and then, as with the robot and the cactus, randomly started speaking slowly. The parent didn’t give any reminders about using the word bungo.

Only 19 parents conducted this part of the study. Of the children who completed this part, 68% used bungo in conversation with their parents. Many of them used it with affection. Some children did so enthusiastically, often cutting their parents off in mid-sentence. Others expressed hesitation or frustration, asking their parents why they were acting like robots.

When the researcher returned, they had a similar conversation with the child: normal at first, followed by slower speech. In this situation, only 18% of the 22 children used bungo with the researcher. None of them commented on the researcher’s slow speech, though some of them made knowing eye contact with their parents.

“The kids showed really sophisticated social awareness in their transfer behaviors,” Hiniker said. “They saw the conversation with the second agent as a place where it was appropriate to use the word bungo. With parents, they saw it as a chance to bond and play. And then with the researcher, who was a stranger, they instead took the socially safe route of using the more traditional conversational norm of not interrupting someone who’s talking to you.”

After this session in the lab, the researchers wanted to know how bungo would fare “in the wild,” so they asked parents to try slowing down their speech at home over the next 24 hours.

Of the 20 parents who tried this at home, 11 reported that the children continued to use bungo. These parents described the experiences as playful, enjoyable and “like an inside joke.” For the children who expressed skepticism in the lab, many continued that behavior at home, asking their parents to stop acting like robots or refusing to respond.

“There is a very deep sense for kids that robots are not people, and they did not want that line blurred,” Hiniker said. “So for the children who didn’t mind bringing this interaction to their parents, it became something new for them. It wasn’t like they were starting to treat their parent like a robot. They were playing with them and connecting with someone they love.”

Although these findings suggest that children will treat Siri differently from the way they treat people, it’s still possible that conversations with an agent might subtly influence children’s habits 鈥� such as using a particular type of language or conversational tone 鈥� when they speak to other people, Hiniker said.

But the fact that many kids wanted to try out something new with their parents suggests that designers could create shared experiences like this to help kids learn new things.

“I think there’s a great opportunity here to develop educational experiences for conversational agents that kids can try out with their parents. There are so many conversational strategies that can help kids learn and grow and develop strong interpersonal relationships, such as labeling your feelings, using ‘I’ statements or standing up for others,” Hiniker said. “We saw that kids were excited to playfully practice a conversational interaction with their parent after they learned it from a device. My other takeaway for parents is not to worry. Parents know their kid best and have a good sense of whether these sorts of things shape their own child’s behavior. But I have more confidence after running this study that kids will do a good job of differentiating between devices and people.”

Other co-authors on this paper are and , both of whom completed this research as UW undergraduate students majoring in human centered design and engineering; , a UW doctoral student in the iSchool; , an assistant professor at the University of Michigan Medical School; , a senior user experience researcher at Duolingo who previously received a doctorate degree from the UW; and , an assistant professor at George Mason University. This research was funded by a Jacobs Foundation Early Career Fellowship.

For more information, contact Hiniker at alexisr@uw.edu.