[Robotgroup] Local kids and robots

[Glenn]

Some pointers to robot related information.

For a full sized truck that drives itself
(No driver, no remote control)  see:

http://www.austinrobot.com/cms/

Several RG members were on the team.

--

I highly recommend reading anything written by:
Hans Moravec

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Moravec

His book "Mind Children"  discusses artificial life.
He makes a good case for robots to eventually be
our "children".  Rather than attempt to summarize
further, please consult the book.  This guy is one
of the top people in robotics.  He has some pretty
wild ideas, and he backs them up with stunning
insight, and detailed explanations.  Just as developing a
formal mathematical proof can be very difficult,
but once figured out, can be followed and verified by others,
Moravec makes the leap, and if you read his book,
you can go along for the ride.

"Mind Children" has done much to shape my views on robotic,
and is the genesis of some of my earlier remarks regarding
anthropology.

Moravec has another book called
"Robot: Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind"
More superbly done, mind shaping book.

In 1977 Carl Sagan's book
The Dragons of Eden: Speculation on the Evolution of Human Intelligence

http://www.amazon.com/Dragons-Eden-Speculations-Evolution-Intelligence/dp/0345346297

I cannot recommend this highly enough.

A roommate of mine at the time received this book in the mail.
The cardboard shipping cover was badly torn, but upon inspection,
the book looked OK.  I opened the book, began to read, and read it
cover to cover in one uninterrupted sitting.  I took a a short break,
and began to reread the book, this time taking notes.  luckily it was
a Friday evening and I could stay at it.  At dawn Saturday morning,
I finally decided I needed a nap.  You can usually find copies of it
at Half-Priced books.  I used to buy extra copies and hand them out
to people who expressed an interest in robots, and intelligence,
human, robot or otherwise.

Dr. Sagan wrote a lot of other good stuff, and his "cosmos" TV program
series was/is quite good, but nothing he did later taught me more or
impressed me more.

These books and the early robot science fiction stories by Isaac Asimov
provide a broad and firm foundation for the study of robotics and 
intelligence.

A number of the things I have posted to this group are heavily influenced by
having read these books.  Many of them probably are of limited value, out of
context.

The ideas and insights have held up for years as new research is published.
And they are available to all for a mere pittance for such gems. 
Check with those that distribute words printed on dead trees,
and revel in the riches.

Cheers,

-Glenn