Reading — 2026 Jan–Apr Recall Set 62

Silk, a natural fibre produced by a particular worm called a silkworm, has been used in clothing for many centuries. When silk was first discovered in China over 4,500 years ago, it was reserved exclusively for the use of the emperor, his close relations and the very highest of his dignitaries. Within the palace, the emperor is believed to have worn a robe of white silk; outside, he, his principal wife, and the heir to the throne wore yellow, the colour of the earth. Gradually silk came into more general use, and the various classes of Chinese society began wearing tunics of silk. As well as being used for clothing and decoration, silk was quite quickly put to industrial use, and rapidly became one of the principal elements of the Chinese economy. It was used in the production of musical instruments, as string for fishing, and even as the world’s first luxury paper. Eventually even the common people were able to wear garments of silk. During the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), silk ceased to be a mere fabric and became a form of currency. Farmers paid their taxes in grain and silk, and silk was used to pay civil servants and to reward subjects for outstanding services. Values were calculated in lengths of silk as they had previously been calculated in weight of gold. Before long, silk became a currency used in trade with foreign countries, which continued into the Tang dynasty (616-907 AD). It is possible that this added importance was the result of a major increase in production. Silk also found its way so thoroughly into the Chinese language that 230 of the 5,000 most common characters of Mandarin have ‘silk’ as their key component. Silk became a precious commodity, highly sought after by other countries from an early date, and it is believed that the silk trade actually existed before the Silk Road was officially opened in the second century BC. An Egyptian mummy with a silk thread in her hair, dating from 1070 BC, has been discovered in the village of Deir el Medina near the Valley of the Kings, and is probably the earliest evidence of the silk trade. During the second century BC, the Chinese emperor Han Wu Di’s ambassadors travelled as far west as Persia and Mesopotamia, bearing gifts including silks. A range of important finds of Chinese silks have also been made along the Silk Road. One of the most dramatic of these finds was some Tang silk discovered in 1900. It is believed that around 1015 AD Buddhist monks, possibly alarmed by the threat of invasion by Tibetan people, had sealed more than ten thousand manuscripts and silk paintings, silk banners and textiles in caves near Dunhuang, a trading station on the Silk Road in north-west China. Some historians believe the first Europeans to set eyes upon the fabulous fabric were the Roman legions of Marcus Licinius Crassus, Governor of Syria. According to certain accounts of the period, at an important battle near the Euphrates River in 53 BC, the Roman soldiers were so startled by the bright silken banners of the enemy that they fled in panic. Yet, within decades Chinese silks were widely worn by the rich and noble families of Rome. The Roman Emperor Heliogabalus (218-222 AD) wore nothing but silk. By 380 AD, the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus reported that the use of silk, which was once confined to the nobility, had now spread to all classes without distinction—even to the lowest. The desire for silk continued to increase over the centuries. Despite this demand, the price of silk remained very high. In spite of their secrecy about production methods, the Chinese eventually lost their monopoly on silk production. Knowledge of silk production methods reached Korea around 200 BC, when waves of Chinese immigrants arrived there. Shortly after 300 AD, it travelled westward, and the cultivation of the silkworm was established in India. Around 550 AD silk production reached the Middle East. Records indicate that two monks from Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), capital of the Byzantine Empire, appeared at their emperor’s court with silkworm eggs which they had obtained secretly, and hidden in their hollow bamboo walking sticks. Under their supervision the eggs hatched into worms, and the worms spun silk threads. Byzantium was in the silk business at last. The Byzantine church and state created imperial workshops, monopolising production and keeping the secret to themselves. This allowed a silk industry to be established, undercutting the market for ordinary-grade Chinese silk. However, high quality silk textiles, woven in China especially for the Middle Eastern market, continued to achieve high prices in the West, and trade along the Silk Road continued as before. By the sixth century the Persians, too, had mastered the art of silk weaving, developing their own rich patterns and techniques. But it wasn’t until the 13th century that Italy began silk production, with the introduction of 2,000 skilled silk weavers from Constantinople. Eventually, silk production became widespread throughout Europe. World silk production has approximately doubled during the last 30 years in spite of manmade fibres replacing certain uses of silk. Before this period, China and Japan were the two main producers, together manufacturing more than 50 per cent of world production each year. After the late 1970s, however, China dramatically increased its silk production, and once again became the world’s leading producer.

A The development of robots that interact socially with people and assist them in everyday life has been an elusive goal of modern science. Despite impressive advances in the mechanical aspects of this problem, producing robots that bond and socialize with people for sustained periods of time has proven difficult. The most successful robots so far have been storytellers, but they have only been able to maintain human interest for a limited time and typically rely on the robot telling stories that change over time. In practice, commercially available robots seldom cross the 10-hour barrier (i.e., individual users tend to spend less than a combined total of 10 hours with the robots before losing interest). This observation is in sharp contrast to the long-term interactions and bonding that commonly develop between humans and their pets. B In a recent study, researchers from the Institute for Neural Computation in California introduced a state-of-the-art social robot into a classroom of 18-to-24-month-olds for five months as a way of studying human/robot interactions. The researchers, including Fumihide Tanaka and Javier R. Movellan, introduced a toddler-sized humanoid robot into a classroom at a childhood education center. One of the QRIO series of robots, the 58 cm machine, was originally developed by Sony. ‘Children of toddler age were chosen because they have no preconceived notions of robots,’ according to Tanaka. One of the goals of the study was to establish whether it was possible for social robots to maintain the interest of children beyond the 10-hour barrier. C The researchers sent instructions to the robot about every two minutes to do things like giggle, dance, sit down, fall down, or walk in a certain direction. The 45 sessions were videotaped, and interactions between toddlers and the robot were later analyzed. The results showed that the quality of those interactions improved steadily over 27 sessions. The interactions deteriorated quickly over the next 15 sessions, when the robot was ordered to behave in a more limited, predictable manner. Finally, the human/robot relations improved in the last three sessions, after the robot had been instructed to display its full range of behaviors. D ‘Initially, the children treated the robot very differently from the way they treated each other,’ Tanaka said. ‘Early in the study, some children cried when QRIO fell. But a month into the study, the toddlers helped QRIO stand up by pushing its back or pulling its hands.’ ‘The most important aspect of interaction was touch,’ Tanaka said. ‘At first, the toddlers would touch the robot on its face, but later on they would touch it only on its hands and arms, like they would with other humans. Another robot-like toy named Robby, which resembled QRIO but did not move, was used as a control in the study. While hugging of QRIO increased, hugging of Robby decreased throughout the study. Furthermore, when QRIO laid down on the floor, caretaking behaviors were frequently observed toward QRIO but seldom toward Robby.’ E The study concluded that after 45 days of immersion in a childcare center over a period of five months, long-term bonding and socialization occurred between toddlers and a state-of-the-art social robot. Overall, the interaction between children and the robot improved over time and the children progressively treated it more as a peer than a plaything. ‘To my knowledge, this is the first long-term study of this sort,’ said Ronald Arkin, a roboticist at the Georgia Institute of Technology in the US. F Tanaka and Movellan are now developing autonomous robots for the toddler classroom. ‘It could have great potential in educational settings, assisting teachers and enriching the classroom environment,’ Tanaka said. The researchers hope that more advanced versions of robots like QRIO could become personalized tutors to assist teachers in classrooms. A robotic tutor could react on the spot to social cues and approximate social skills like facial expression and eye gaze, they said. ‘It is becoming clear that, to achieve this goal, we are going to endow machines with something similar to emotion, not just traditional forms of intelligence,’ said Movellan. G Associate Professor David Powers, an expert in artificial intelligence and cognitive science at Flinders University in South Australia, commented, ‘In this study, it is clearly demonstrated that a limited range of robot behaviors, however impressive, is nowhere near as important to human/robot interaction as being able to make appropriate responses from a broad repertoire of behaviors.’ Ronald Arkin was not surprised by the affection demonstrated by the toddlers toward the robot. ‘Humans have a tremendous propensity to bond with artifacts, whether it be a car, a doll, or a robot,’ he said. But he also cautioned that researchers do not yet understand the consequences of increased human/robot interaction. ‘Studying how robots and humans work together can give us insight into whether this is a good thing or a bad thing for society,’ Arkin said. ‘We need to find out what the consequences are of introducing a robot into a cadre of children. How will that enhance, or potentially interfere with, their social development? Do we really understand the long-term impact of having a robot as a childhood friend?’

As an eighteen-year-old living in the small Australian island state of Tasmania, moving to the 'mainland' could not happen soon enough. Now, ten years later, I look forward to going home. This is probably because I've grown up, but also perhaps because the cultural landscape of Tasmania has matured. The latest addition to Tasmania's cultural scene is David Walsh's Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), a museum that has established Hobart, the capital city of Tasmania, on the global art circuit. This building is an example of how art and architecture can have an instant impact on the social and cultural reputation of a place. Andrew Bain of The Sydney Morning Herald wrote, "In a virtual blink, Hobart's cultural landscape has been transformed, with art, wine, fine food and stylish accommodation becoming integral features of the city.... If Hobart's makeover has an origin, it's the opening of MONA— the Museum of Old and New Art." MONA is said to have been solely instrumental in the reinvention of Hobart as a cultural hub. MONA made the national press and international blogs before it opened. After that, Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania's chief executive, Luke Martin, claimed that MONA was proving so popular it was underpinning the tourism industry in Tasmania. However, MONA's effect on Hobart has broader ramifications for Tasmania's tourism industry. As reported in Hobart's local paper, The Mercury, there is concern about how long people are staying in Tasmania. Rather than spending a week in the state and hiring a car to experience the beauty of the Tasmanian landscape, people are making short stays in Hobart only to visit the gallery. The next challenge for the state is how to entice holiday makers to stay longer, and to venture further afield. Tasmania is more than a one-hit wonder. According to Martin, possibilities for packaging up MONA with visits to other galleries around Tasmania are being investigated. Although not directly related to these investigations, the 1891 Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery at Royal Park in Launceston is currently being restored to its original condition. It is hoped that a coordinated cultural tourism strategy will encourage longer stays and wider exploration. Nevertheless, the success of MONA is undeniable. Visitor numbers have consistently exceeded projections, and its unique approach—blending ancient artifacts with contemporary works in a labyrinthine, subterranean setting—has drawn praise and curiosity worldwide. Walsh's vision was not merely to create a gallery, but to provoke thought and conversation, a goal that seems to resonate powerfully with both locals and international tourists. The museum's effect extends beyond tourism, fostering local pride and stimulating economic activity in once-quiet suburbs of Hobart. Some argue, however, that this rapid cultural shift risks overshadowing Tasmania's other historical and natural attractions.