The computer called, it said to get off the couch

BERKELEY, California - Fitness research shows that when a recording reminds them, even people who rarely exercise can be persuaded to get off the couch.

Researchers at Stanford University, who studied sedentary people for a year, found that automated exercise reminder phone calls had about the same get-up-and-go power as calls from human counselors.

"The recording had a very nice, kind of cheerleader voice. It sounded very natural...