Researchers at ArticuLab, part of the communication and engineering schools at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, are studying how humans communicate with and through technology and are helping autistic children participate in conversations by using virtual peers, life-sized, computer-animated children capable of carrying on realistic conversations. Virtual peers invite autistic children to interact and play games. Studying the effects of virtual peers may help researchers understand the underlying mechanisms of communication in autistic children and help children build communication skills.

Read the full story from The Globe and Mail (Toronto).