Why people treat devices like humans; saying nice things to a machine to protect its "feelings." When BMW introduced one of the most sophisticated navigation and telematics systems into its 5 Series car in Germany a decade ago, it represented the pinnacle of German engineering excellence, with great advances in accuracy and functionality. While this might seem like a story of men's weird attachment to cars or gender stereotyping run amok, a growing body of research suggests that there is something much deeper at work: People respond to computers and other technologies using the same social rules and expectations that they use when interacting with other people. These weren't overly sensitive people: They were graduate students in computer science and electrical engineering, all of whom insisted that they would never be polite to a computer. One of the most reviled software designs of all time was Clippy, the animated paper clip in Microsoft Office.