Human fails Turing Test

New Scientist has often reported on researchers' attempts to build machines that pass the Turing Test, a benchmark for a robot's ability to think. But yesterday there was talk online of a human failing the test.

1. Turing Test - The Turing test, developed by Alan Turing in 1950, is a test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human.

2. Robot - A robot (also called a droid) is a machine - especially one programmable by a computer - capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically.