A news article discusses the potential of robots to address loneliness, focusing on the experiences of Beatrice Aird, an 89-year-old retired nurse and military wife. After her husband died 20 years ago, Aird moved to Windsor, a small town in upstate New York, to live with her adult son and granddaughter. She felt isolated when her roommates began working irregular hours at McDonald’s, leaving her alone a lot. The article references a tabletop robot companion named ElliQ, which is shown with Aird at her home and with Bill Castellano, 90, in Orlando, Fla., earlier this year. The piece is written by Julia Hotz, a journalist and author of “The Connection Cure” who also works as the fellowship manager at the Solutions Journalism Network.