Mechanical Bugs Infest Toy Stores

I don't usually talk much about toys, except for maybe that weird robotic cat and game consoles (oh, come on, you know they're toys). This one, however, is pretty interesting just because of the technology it uses. The little creepy crawlers, called B.I.O. Mechanical Bugs (Bio-mechanical Integrated Organism) from the WowWee Toy division of Hasbro are on the street (or floor or whatever) in retail stores across the U.S. as of today. What's interesting about the Bugs is that they incorporate "nervous networks" artificial intelligence technology. They can autonomously act by themselves, identify friend or foe and avoid or climb over obstacles in their path. "Nervous networks" technology was developed more than ten years ago and has been used by the U.S. government to create robotic creatures. 'Nervous net' is to these robotic bodies what a spine is to an organism - it serves to connect functions together. So, rather than think about the task at hand, they react to the stimuli they confront. Robotic physicist Mark W. Tilden performed experiments and conducted extensive research using nervous net at Los Alamos, N.M. His research and findings were featured in scientific journals and as part of televised documentaries about robotics, and eventually caught the attention of toy makers. So, I guess science can be fun (and profitable). There are four different B.I.O. Mechanical Bugs species. Each one is a different color and has its own defining characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. Predator is red, Stomper is blue, Destroyer is green, and Acceleraider is yellow. Destroyer for example, has the ability to operate over rough terrain while Acceleraider moves quickest over smooth surfaces. If you don't want to let your bug act autonomously, you can control its action with a wrist transmitter. The bugs are priced at $39.99. I'll bet a gang of these things could whoop that mechanical cat.