Robot with a Biological Brain

[Canabots]

I find it amazing that they can use a living rat neuron culture in order to control a robot.

Here's the link to the article:
http://www.reading.ac.uk/about/newsandevents/releases/PR16530.asp


The video can be found at the top link on the page

Canabots

[Webbot]

Good old Reading University Cybernetics Dept. - that's where I spent my under grad years. Prof Warwick is 'keen as mustard' having had electronics implanted into his arms etc to become a Cyborg when they plug him in. Forget mobile phones - here is a guy that everyone knows where he is at any time of the day because the building can sense where he is.

They have also done some good work on robot swarms.

[Rockyboy53]

How'd they do that?  I don't get much of biology.  I failed that class.

[mergatroidal]

Sure, every bit of research could lead to a discovery, but Mssrs. Warwick and Whalley will have been dead for hundreds of years at the pace they're going about to find out what causes cogntion.

The neurons of an arachnid have created a unitary thing in the back of its eyes that coordinates everything, sort of like that thing in the back of the eyes reading and making comprehensible these words I post at societyofrobots. What is causing that "thing in the back of your eyes" that the biologics of neurons have created? Warwick and Whalley will never know; they're comfortably playing with their toys, and are having too much fun to care.
 

[nadogggg]

The video wont load

[TrickyNekro]

I like the idea of people being helped by technology, people with diseases or other problems...
I don't like the idea of being watched....

I simply don't know... I leave in a rather free country... with little cameras on the streets that I would like to get some bullets in them...
But... I don't know... Technology is evolving but human is still in the darkage....

[Webbot]

The video wont load

Apparently there is a version of it on YouTube here http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=wACltn9QpCc

[mergatroidal]

It's a collection of neurons and the researchers conclusions are meaningless. I mean, so what if the robot did continue to bump into the wall? What would a bunch of neurons care or be concerned if the robot the neurons are connected to continued to bump into the wall over and over and over again? doing so until the batteries of the robot ran out of juice. Nothing is being learned. Nothing is being accomplished except that these guys have learned how to wire a robot through these neurons. The neurons have "learned" nothing; there are no memories being created. I'm impressed with their investigating environment. The conclusions of the researchers I'd respond a bit critically to. 

[emusan]

Submitted to Digg(I'm suprised no one did this before, awesome story):

http://digg.com/general_sciences/University_of_Reading_Robot_with_a_Biological_Brain_new_r