I log onto a computer at the doctor's office to say I have arrived and then wait until a voice calls me into the examination room. There, a robotic nurse 1 me onto the scales and then takes my blood pressure. Some time later, in steps the 2 , who is also a robot. He notes down my 3 and gives me a prescription (处方). I pay for my4 using a credit card and return home without having met another human being. This is my nightmarish vision of the 5 ， which hasn't happened 6yet.
I should say I really do like many aspects of7. I am a big fan of air conditioning in summer and heaters in 8. But I am writing this because I don't want machines to 9.
When I call my dentist's office and actually get a human being on the line, I am 10. And when I see the introduction of yet more selfservice checkout stations at the grocery store, I feel like 11, "When it comes to cashiers, make mine a(n) 12, please!"
After all, human cashiers sometimes 13you a store coupon (优惠券) for items you are14. Even more than that, reallife cashiers often take an interest in particularly cute children, which can 15young mothers' day. A cashier may also show compassion for an elderly person 16 to get that last penny out of his purse.
Machines can be 17 and costeffective and they often get the job done just fine. 18 they lack an element so important to everyday life.
Call it the spirit, the soul or the heart. It is 19 no machine will ever have. It is human being that 20 us to smile at others, which may be what they need at that moment.
