No. 10 — The Hugging Algorithm
- Miriam Tocino
- Aug 25
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 4
Algorithms are born from experience: good logic comes later.
Some things feel so natural, we don’t even realize we follow steps to do them.
Brushing your teeth. Making a sandwich. Giving a hug.
But behind each of them, there’s a pattern — a simple set of steps that makes everything flow.
Computers follow steps too.
They need instructions, given in order, to do what we ask. That’s called an algorithm.
This story is about that.
About finding logic in everyday moments. And learning that even something as human as a hug… can start with just four lines of code.
Because algorithms don’t just live in computers — they start in us.
The Hugging Algorithm
It all started with an idea: Zerus wanted to build a robot that could give hugs.
But not fake hugs — the kind that last less than a sneeze. Real hugs. The kind that make your whole day better.
“Hammer, wrench, and screws ready!”
Zerus held up his screwdriver like it was a lightsaber.
“Operation Hugbot is a go!”
Ra-ta-ta. Ra-ta-ta. Tá!
The sound of the screws turning was music to his ears.
“Ona, the left arm is ready!”
“Ra-ta-ta! Tá!” Ona echoed. “Right arm too, Zerus!”
They bumped elbows — their special way of celebrating important moments. But the best part was still to come: Zerus pulled a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket, and Ona sharpened her pencil like a spear.
“It’s time to design our algorithm!”
Algorithm? Sounds like a magic spell, right? But no — an algorithm is just a recipe, only for computers. Step-by-step instructions. Because if you don’t tell a computer exactly what to do… it gets confused.
“Then… let’s begin!” declared Ona.
STEP 1:
Open your arms wide.
(Zerus opened his so wide he almost knocked over a flower vase.)
STEP 2:
Lean forward fifteen degrees.
Ona grabbed a ruler. Measured. Adjusted. Perfected.
STEP 3:
Close arms. Clack! Both of them hugged the air.
“Perfect!” Ona cheered. “Let’s test it on Hugbot!”
Hugbot followed the algorithm.
Arms opened. Leaned forward. Closed them around Zerus.
But that hug felt like hugging a fridge…
“Ona, I think this algorithm is missing one more step.”
“Another step?” she raised an eyebrow.
Zerus nodded.
“I’ve seen it with grandmas — they always squeeze when they hug.”
Ona blinked, then sent the instruction like she’d just discovered a secret formula.
STEP 4:
Squeeze… with twenty percent softness!
Zerus grinned.
“And no cracked ribs!”
Hugbot ran the new algorithm.
Open. Lean. Close. Squeeze!
And suddenly… it wasn’t just a robot anymore.
Hugbot was a hug on wheels!
“Now it’s perfect, Ona.”
“Perfect how?”
“Now our robot really knows how to give a hug.”
Big Questions for Small Thinkers
What are some things you do every day that could have their own algorithm?
Do you think a machine can learn to do something with care? Why or why not?
If you invented a robot, what would you teach it to do — step by step?
