With ‘smart home’ devices like the Amazon Echo starting to get more popular, that means we’re one step closer to robot butlers finally being a thing. I, for one, cannot wait to order WALL-E or whatever to get me a beer from the fridge before folding my laundry. That’ll be cool.

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I’ve played around with a friend’s Echo a couple times, and they’re pretty nifty for playing music, jotting down a list, checking the weather, or asking Alexa (the friendly, robotic voice of the Echo) a random question. I’m still not 100% sold on them, since it’s mostly a swanky luxury gadget for now. But as companies and developers find more uses for these devices, I can definitely see them becoming more of a mainstay.

Enter Mayo Clinic, who is now providing a free First Aid program for Amazon Echo users. This is a really cool feature that allows you to ask Alexa medical-related things like “how to treat a cut,” “tell me about spider bites,” or “instructions for CPR.” That could really help out in a pinch, even though Mayo is advising users not to rely on the program for life-threatening medical emergencies. That’s when you can still rely on the good ol’ fashioned 911 to do the job.

Still, it’s another feature that makes a smart home device like the Amazon Echo just a little more appealing to me. I doubt I’ll jump on board yet, but it’s tempting. And it’s very cool to see Mayo looking towards the future.

Source: Star Tribune

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