Like Life

A research group at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA, is at work on a scheme to devise robots that would evolve both their electronic brains and their bodies to meet each user's prescribed needs. The robots would then build themselves by a rapid production method like 3D printing or rapid prototyping, a method of manufacturing objects, usually by depositing and curing successive layers of material. According to the researchers, the machines would not have to be built on an assembly line and thus have the potential to replicate exponentially, bringing down their production costs and making them more readily available. The research program at Brandeis is called the Genetically Organized Lifelike Electro Mechanic, or Golem, Project. A robot in the Golem Project starts out as a computer program. The software iterates its mechanism through matching parts, looking for the combination that will allow the robot to best move on its own for its intended application {CE: Please check whether this edit suits well for this sentence.}. The successful matches continue to mutate and improve. The computer search can be compared roughly to the process of natural selection.