US scientists' new robot has 20,000 brain cells

It is remarkable the progression in technology with Robots:

US scientists' new robot has 20,000 brain cells
New York | November 06, 2005 2:15:05 PM IST

Scientists in US have built a robot that is operating on biological principles and without any pre-specified instruction.

Researchers at the Neurosciences Institute (NSI) in La Jolla, California have developed 'Darwin VII' a trashcan-shaped robot that has just 20,000 brain cells.

The infant crawls across a floor strewn with blocks, grabbing and tasting as it goes, its malleable mind impressionable and hungry to learn, reports New Scientist.

It is already adapting, discovering that the striped blocks are yummy and the spotted ones taste bad, the report said.

Its exploration is driven by instincts: an interest in bright objects, a predilection for tasting things, and an innate notion of what tastes good.

Darwin VII consists of a mobile base equipped with a CCD camera for vision, microphones for hearing, conductivity sensors for taste, and effectors for movement of its base, of its head, and of a gripping manipulator, university researchers Jeffrey L. Krichmar Gerald and M. Edelman write in a paper.