Learning Autonomic Robots

Daath writes "The 27th of March, Professor Noel Sharkey et al starts a colony of living robots. 15 predators and 6 prey. It's an experiment in artificial evolution out of the Creative Robotics Unit at Magna. Here's a quote: 'The Living Robots have one goal, to obtain enough energy to survive and breed. The prey find their food from light sensors within the arena, while the predators feed off prey by stalking and chasing them before sucking away their power.' Magna has two articles, 'Predator and Prey Robots set up home at Magna' and 'Ground breaking Robotics experiment previewed'. "

Comments

Artificial Life

[MoobY]

If you want to know more about artificial living creatures (either robots, within computers or art, ...), visit Artificial Life Online.

Re:Living Robots?

[Atrahasis]

Have you read both articles? The robits breed by uploading their "genes" (control strategies) to a central computer. If they survive past a certain age, then all of the surviving robots get paired off randomly, and their control strategies are randomly mixed, with an added random mutation. The new generation of robots is then assigned new control regimes from those generated. Its a study in evolutionary behaviour, and not physical change.

Is anybody else a little bit wary of the third evolution thread in a few days?

Re:Only behavioural evolution

[Atrahasis]

Replication is going on - read both articles.

Re:Why not simulations?

[mikerich]

What's not been made clear is that MAGNA is a science museum with lots of hands-on exhibits. Physical robots are much more attractive to visitors than a simulation.

Perhaps one of the kids watching the robots zoom around will take some interest in AI and go on to do something more useful.

Best wishes,
Mike.

Re:Some other interesting work

[quantaman]

Sorry, I was rushed last time and didn't get a chance to get the link working here's a link to some wired interviews (I coudn't link directly to one) and here's some pics of the actual robots.