Crave freelancer Tim Hornyak is the author of "Loving the Machine: The Art and Science of Japanese Robots." He has been writing about Japanese culture and technology for a decade. E-mail Tim. Japanese ...

Worshippers at a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan, are read sermons and Buddhist scriptures by a robot modeled after the Buddhist goddess of mercy, Kannon. Inside Kodaiji Temple is a 6-foot-4-inch and ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - Dressed in a kimono and smiling, Aiko Chihira greets shoppers at the entrance of Tokyo's Mitsukoshi department store. But Chihira is no regular employee -- she is a humanoid robot.