A computerized ‘baby’, trained to howl, demand food and mark its parents on how well they look after its needs, is the latest weapon in the battle to cut down on teenage pregnancies in the UK. Schoolgirls at a school in Tayside, Scotland are being given the doll called Toby to take home and look after in a bid to convince them that parenthood is no easy life. A health visitor brought the $380 device to the school after pupils recorded the highest teenage pregnancy rate in Scotland. Designed by a Nasa scientist, Toby demands food at random intervals and can be programmed for easy, normal or difficult behavior at weekends. Toby also marks those looking after it on their parental skills.
