UK scientists building robot village -- can we come?

We've had it with all these sucky carbon-based lifeforms we have to smell and talk to every day. Some scientists at University of Abertay in the UK are setting up a four-year study of 60 miniature robots in a "village" setting, and we're hoping they've got room for a blogger or two. The bots will be split into groups and programmed to observe and imitate one another performing different tasks. Since the imitations will be slightly different each time, the scientists hope to be able to develop a sort of robot "culture" to try and understand how culture emerges in natural and artificial societies. Then things will get really crazy, nerd style. The scientists will alter conditions -- don't say we didn't warn you -- to see how the robots will adapt, and will alternate between states several times over a period of months to see just how much they can screw with the hapless bots. Perhaps this doesn't sound like so much fun after all, we're out. If you see a small, disgruntled army of 60 or so miniature bots wandering around your corner of England in the next few months, we suggest you run.

[John Doe @ Apr 24th 2007 8:59PM]

Ahh Charles in Charge....Good lord has it been that long?!

[Justin @ Apr 24th 2007 9:07PM]

one word:

Train Wreck in slow motion.

[Chocolate Starfish @ Apr 24th 2007 9:21PM]

Odds are pretty good the robot "life-forms" will be somehow carbon based as well. Even if it's just the coal burned to power them.

[Alexander Pink @ Apr 24th 2007 9:35PM]

westworld?

[JooBlixlarz @ Apr 24th 2007 9:49PM]

sounds kinda like electroma, if anyone knows what that is

[Dennis @ Apr 24th 2007 10:32PM]

robot big brother! woohoo!
is there gonna be a live 24 hour TV broadcast for this as well so its easier for me to waste more time?

[chris.ismael @ Apr 24th 2007 10:41PM]

Uh oh, pretty soon it'll develop into Zero One. A robot will rebel, and we're in deep sh..

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

[Bryan @ Apr 24th 2007 11:17PM]

As soon as someone takes their eye off those robots, they will begin
to replicate themselves and.. Well, I for one welcome our miniature
robot overlords. That is until they come together to form VOLTRON.

[Martin @ Apr 25th 2007 3:32AM]

Err, Abertay is not in England. It's North of the border in sunny Scotland :-)

[jon3276 @ Apr 25th 2007 7:44AM]

http://www.engadget.com/2007/04/24/uk-scientists-building-robot-village-can-we-come/ Isn't it about time you Americans studied a little more worldly geography? Step out of your bubble every now and again and take a look around.

[jan rosencrantz @ Apr 25th 2007 12:23PM]

As with the two comments above, I humbly request you edit out England for Scotland. Different country n'all that. Just in case you didn't already know, Edinburgh University is also in Scotland.

Otherwise: jolly good work again, chaps :)

[GeoFan49 @ Apr 26th 2007 11:57PM]

Portmeirion?

[MarkG @ Apr 25th 2007 8:03AM]

I wonder how long it will take for them to develop a religion?

(And yeah, but an atlas. We Scots don't take kindly to people equivocating England with the UK)

[pete @ Apr 25th 2007 10:54AM]

I don't quite get the Charles in Charge reference, but I had such a crush on Sarah Powell (Josie Davis), who btw is now uber-hawt-
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004861/

[John Stracke @ Apr 25th 2007 11:36AM]

So how long will it take before the robots figure out that the best way to adapt to changing conditions is to leave?

[BlackSpy @ Apr 25th 2007 4:50PM]

Yeah, in Scotland.

[some person @ Apr 25th 2007 10:06PM]

Let us know there progress, ok?

[Matthew @ Apr 26th 2007 12:12AM]

Scotland!!! I go to Abertay BTW, never noticed any robots walking around the place though.

[Matthew @ Apr 26th 2007 12:17AM]

P.S. The link to the story on the bbc website even has Scotland in the url.

[ken lewis @ Apr 26th 2007 7:32AM]

Abertay is in Scotland, not England. If I see a gaggle of 60 or so bots wandering about my corner of England's green and pleasant land, I'd know they had escaped.

As an Englishman, I'm up for winding up the Scots about Scotland being within England. But that's okay because England has been owned by Scotland since the succession of King James VI and I in 1603.

[Matthew Simpson @ May 4th 2007 6:17PM]

You mean when King James came down from Scotland to rule the whole of Britain instead? Scotland owns England.

[Harlo @ Apr 26th 2007 9:21AM]

If it's not Scottish.... it's CRAP!!

[Paul @ May 11th 2007 6:06AM]

I'd like to see the robot spec. I'm not convinced the robot's will be capable of expressing much emotion and surely it is emotion that has the most effect on human communities. Anyone wasted hours watching Castaway lately?