Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

Liars and Heroes and Robots, Oh My!

This article has a fascinating story about the evolution of artificial life. Robots were started off in an environment that offered them options for energy and hazards, with random programming on how to survive there. Then the most successful programs were propagated. They quickly became more efficient at surviving -- and developed some startling strategies.
Tags: news, science
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  • 3 comments
morningdove3202

Wow, Liars, Cheaters and Heroes.......

morningdove3202

March 8 2008, 10:15:24 UTC 13 years ago


You know I built a simple robot once with my dad from a Heath kit...but the idea of programmable genes is just the coolest combo of technology and biology...

I wonder though, if their original program included a sense of "survival of the species", because without it why would the the individuals care if others survived? Or did a sence of "survival of the species" evolve?
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Wow, Liars, Cheaters and Heroes.......

ysabetwordsmith

March 8 2008, 17:19:52 UTC 13 years ago

From what I could tell, the initial programming was pretty much random. Some robots (the "hero" set) evolved a concept of species survival, sacrificing themselves for the others. Some robots (the "liar" set) did not, and instead evolved selfishness, benefitting themselves at the expense of others. I am completely fascinated that those two hallmarks of organic life so quickly appeared in technolife; that suggests they are hallmarks of life, period.

Are these robots alive? Not quite, not yet. They can't reproduce or transmit genetic data on their own, and those are crucial hallmarks of life. But once they're made and programmed to behave as if alive, they are doing that very well. Some earlier studies have involved virtual life, with programs inside a virtual environment. Those have also produced fascinating results.

As observed in one of the greatest dinosaur movies of all time, "Life finds a way." It is a syntropic force, creating order out of chaos. Certain patterns are laid into the foundation of the universe, and with the right approach they can be revealed ... like taking a rubbing off a monument to reveal lines too faint to read with the naked eye.