Table Of ContentFrom Bricks to Brains
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 1 29/04/10 8:05 PM
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 2 29/04/10 8:05 PM
Bricks Brains
from to
The Embodied Cognitive Science of LEGO Robots
Michael R.W. Dawson
Brian Dupuis
Michael Wilson
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 3 29/04/10 8:05 PM
© 2010
michael dawson, brian dupuis, and michael wilson
Published by AU Press, Athabasca University
1200, 10011 – 109 Street
Edmonton, ab t5j 3s8
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
From bricks to brains : the embodied cognitive science of LEGO robots
/ editors, Michael Dawson, Brian Dupuis, Michael Wilson.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Also available in electronic format (978-1-897425-79-4).
isbn 978-1-897425-78-7
1. Robots–Programming. 2. Robots–Dynamics. 3. Cognitive science.
4. Robots–Design and construction. 5. Artificial intelligence. 6. LEGO
toys. I. Dawson, Michael Robert William, 1959- II. Dupuis, Brian, 1984-
III. Wilson, Michael, 1987-
TJ211.F76 2010 629.8’92 C2010-901786-2
Cover and book design by Natalie Olsen, kisscutdesign.com.
Printed and bound in Canada by Marquis Book Printing.
This publication is licensed under a Creative Commons License, Attribution-
Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Canada, see www.creativecommons.org.
The text may be reproduced for non-commercial purposes, provided that credit
is given to the original author. Please contact AU Press, Athabasca University at
[email protected] for permission beyond the usage outlined in the Creative
Commons license.
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 4 29/04/10 8:05 PM
Acknowledgements
chapter 1
1
Mind Control — Internal or External?
1 1.0 Chapter Overview
2 1.1 Our Special Intelligence
3 1.2 Rodents that Engineer Wetlands
1.2.1 Castor canadensis
1.2.2 The Cognitive Beaver?
5 1.3 The Instincts of Insects
1.3.1 The Instinctive Wasp
1.3.2 Umwelt and Control
Contents
7 1.4 Paper Wasp Colonies and Their Nests
1.4.1 Colonies and Their Nests
1.4.2 Scaling Up
8 1.5 The Towers of Termites
1.5.1 Termite Mounds
1.5.2 The Thinking Termite?
10 1.6 The Rational Insect?
1.6.1 Computational Theory of Mind
1.6.2 Are Insects Representational?
11 1.7 Insect as Superorganism?
1.7.1 The Intelligent Whole
1.7.2 Colonial Intelligence
13 1.8 The Ultimate Democracy
1.8.1 Emerging Problems
1.8.2 From Whence Organization?
14 1.9 Programs for Nest Construction
1.9.1 An Inherited Program
1.9.2 Testing the Theory
16 1.10 The Environment as Program
1.10.1 A Complex Environment
1.10.2 Stigmergy
17 1.11 Stigmergy and the Synthetic Approach
1.11.1 The Synthetic Approach
1.11.2 Wasp Nest Examples
19 1.12 Stigmergy and the Parable of the Ant
1.12.1 Intelligence and Stigmergy
1.12.2 Are Mammals Stigmergic?
20 1.13 Embodiment and Posthumanism
1.13.1 Posthumanism
1.13.2 Embodiment
22 1.14 Stigmergy and Classical Cognition
1.14.1 Classical Control
1.14.2 Externalizing Control
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 5 29/04/10 8:05 PM
chapter 2
25
Classical Music and the Classical Mind
25 2.0 Chapter Overview
26 2.1 The Boolean Dream
2.1.1 Cognitive Science
2.1.2 Logicism
2.1.3 The Boolean Dream
28 2.2 Classical Cognitive Science
2.2.1 A Classical Device
2.2.2 Three Key Characteristics
29 2.3 Classical Views of Mind and Music
2.3.1 Mind and Music
2.3.2 A Classical Analogy
31 2.4 Musical Logicism
2.4.1 Musical Formalisms
2.4.2 Sonata-Allegro Form
32 2.5 A Harmonious Narrative
2.5.1 Representational Explanation
2.5.2 Musical Expressions
34 2.6 The Nature of Classical Composition
2.6.1 The Disembodied Mind
2.6.2 The Thoughtful Composer
35 2.7 Central Control of a Classical Performance
2.7.1 Central Control
2.7.2 Conductor as Central Controller
2.7.3 The Controlling Score
37 2.8 Disembodiment and the Classical Audience
2.8.1 Disembodiment
2.8.2 Audience and Composition
38 2.9 Classical Reactions
2.9.1 Reacting to Music
2.9.2 Classical Competitors
40 2.10 Modern Music
2.10.1 Out with the Old
2.10.2 In with the New
41 2.11 Dodecaphony
2.11.1 Tonality and Atonality
2.11.2 The Twelve-Tone Method
43 2.12 Reactions to Atonal Structure
2.12.1 From Structure to Structure
2.12.2 Reducing Central Control
45 2.13 Control and Emergence in Cage’s Music
2.13.1 Silence
2.13.2 Chance and Emergence
46 2.14 Emergence in Minimalist Music
2.14.1 Tape as Medium
2.14.2 It’s Gonna Rain
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 6 29/04/10 8:05 PM
48 2.15 A Minimalist Score
2.15.1 In C
2.15.2 Minimalism and Stigmergy
49 2.16 Musical Stigmergy
2.16.1 Musical Swarms
2.16.2 The ReacTable
51 2.17 From Hot to Cool
2.17.1 The Conduit Metaphor
2.17.2 Audible Processes
52 2.18 The Shock of the New
2.18.1 Classical Value
2.18.2 A Tradition of Improvisation
54 2.19 Musical Methods and the Mind
2.19.1 Characteristic Questions
2.19.2 The Synthetic Approach
chapter 3
57
Situated Cognition and Bricolage
57 3.0 Chapter Overview
58 3.1 Three Topics to Consider
3.1.1 Review to This Point
3.1.2 New Headings
59 3.2 Production Systems as Classical Architectures
3.2.1 The Production System
3.2.2 Classical Characteristics
61 3.3 Sense–Think–Act with Productions
3.3.1 An Early Production System
3.3.2 The Next ACT
63 3.4 Logic from Action
3.4.1 Productions and Logicism
3.4.2 Logic as Internalized Action
65 3.5 An EPIC Evolution
3.5.1 Productions, Sensing, and Action
3.5.2 The EPIC Architecture
66 3.6 Productions and Formal Operations
3.6.1 Sense–Think–Act
3.6.2 Formal Operations
68 3.7 Evidence for Sensing and Acting Without Thinking
3.7.1 Classical Modularity
3.7.2 Visuomotor Modules
69 3.8 Action without Representation?
3.8.1 Multiple Visual Pathways
3.8.2 Blindsight
71 3.9 A Need for Action
3.9.1 Incorporating Action
3.9.2 Advantages of Action
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 7 29/04/10 8:05 PM
72 3.10 The External World and Computation
3.10.1 Worldly Support for Cognition
3.10.2 Scaffolding
74 3.11 Some Implications of Scaffolding
3.11.1 The Leaky Mind
3.11.2 Group Cognition
3.11.3 Specialized Cognition
76 3.12 Stigmergy of Thought
3.12.1 Environmental Import
77 3.13 Bricolage
3.13.1 Resource Allocation
3.13.2 Thought as Bricolage
79 3.14 The Power of Bricolage
3.14.1 The Savage Mind
3.14.2 Power from Non-linearity
80 3.15 The Society of Mind
3.15.1 Agents and Agencies
3.15.2 Explaining Mental Societies
82 3.16 Engineering a Society of Mind
3.16.1 Reverse Engineering
3.16.2 Forward Engineering
83 3.17 Synthesis in Action
3.17.1 Cricket Phonotaxis
3.17.2 Robot Phonotaxis
85 3.18 Verum-Factum
3.18.1 Synthetic Psychology
3.18.2 Vico’s Philosophy
87 3.19 Mind and Method
3.19.1 Mind
3.19.2 Method
88 3.20 Synthesis as Process, Not as Design
3.20.1 Synthesis Is Not Design
3.20.2 Synthesis as Process
90 3.21 Building Bricoleurs
3.21.1 Cartesian Alternatives
3.21.2 Students as Bricoleurs
chapter 4
93
Braitenberg’s Vehicle 2
93 4.0 Chapter Overview
94 4.1 A Robot’s Parable
4.1.1 Path of a Robot
4.1.2 Analysis and Synthesis
95 4.2 Braitenberg’s Thought Experiments
4.2.1 A Thought Experiment
4.2.2 Goals
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 8 29/04/10 8:05 PM
97 4.3 Foraging for Parts
4.3.1 Parts and Foraging
4.3.2 Robot Bricolage
98 4.4 Chassis Design (Steps 1 through 4)
4.4.1 General Design
4.4.2 Initial Chassis Construction
99 4.5 Constructing the Chassis (Steps 5 through 7)
4.5.1 General Design
99 4.6 The NXT Interactive Servo Motor
4.6.1 The Evolution of LEGO Motors
4.6.2 The NXT Servo Motor
100 4.7 Adding Motors to the Chassis (Steps 8 and 9)
101 4.8 Adding a Front Slider (Step 10)
4.8.1 Passive Front Support
4.8.2 Constructing the Front Slider
102 4.9 Constructing Rear Axles (Step 11)
4.9.1 Wheel Axle Design
4.9.2 Constructing the Wheel Axles
103 4.10 Attaching the NXT Brick (Step 12)
4.10.1 The NXT Brick
4.10.2 Attaching the Brick
103 4.11 Attaching Light Sensor Supports (Step 13)
4.11.1 Sensor Mount Design
104 4.12 Adding Light Sensors (Step 14)
4.12.1 Mounting Light Sensors
105 4.13 Wheels and Cable Considerations
4.13.1 Completing the Robot
106 4.14 Sensing, Acting, and the NXT Brick
4.14.1 The NXT Brick
107 4.15 NXT Light Sensor Properties
4.15.1 The LEGO Light Sensor
109 4.16 Programming the NXT Brick
4.16.1 Programming Steps
4.16.2 Programming Environment
110 4.17 A Simple Main Task
4.17.1 The Main Task
4.17.2 Defining Variable Names
4.17.3 Miscellaneous Syntax
111 4.18 Linking Light Sensors to Motors
4.18.1 Two More Tasks
112 4.19 A Complete Program
114 4.20 Exploring Vehicle 2 Behaviour
4.20.1 Three Test Environments
4.20.2 A Simple World
4.20.3 A More Complex World
4.20.4 Complexities via Embodiment
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 9 29/04/10 8:05 PM
115 4.21 Further Avenues for Bricoleurs
4.21.1 Exploring Embodiment
4.21.2 Manipulating Environments
4.21.3 Modifying Code
4.21.4 Bricolage, Not Design
chapter 5
117
Thoughtless Walkers
117 5.0 Chapter Overview
118 5.1 Analysis vs. Synthesis
5.1.1 Synthetic Methodology
5.1.2 Analytic Methodology
5.1.3 Complementary Methodologies
119 5.2 Biomimetics and Analysis
5.2.1 Natural Technology
5.2.2 Early Analysis of Locomotion
121 5.3 From Motion Analysis to Walking Robots
5.3.1 Modern Motion Analysis
5.3.2 Biologically Inspired Robots
122 5.4 Analysis That Constrains Synthesis
5.4.1 Passive Dynamic Walking
5.4.2 Search and Construct
124 5.5 A LEGO Passive Dynamic Walker
5.5.1 Synthesis after Analysis
5.5.2 Parts and Foraging
125 5.6 Building a Straight-Legged Hinge
5.6.1 Centre Post
5.6.2 Support Legs
126 5.7 Weighting the Walker
5.7.1 The Need for Weights
5.7.2 LEGO Weights
127 5.8 A Specialized Environment
5.8.1 The Need for Holes
5.8.2 Building a Ramp with Gaps
128 5.9 Raising the Ramp
5.9.1 Reinforced Ends
5.9.2 Elevating the Platform
129 5.10 From Talking the Talk to Walking the Walk
5.10.1 Passive Dynamic Walking
5.10.2 Implications
131 5.11 Synthesis in Aid of Analysis
5.11.1 The Opposite Direction
5.11.2 Analytic Intractability
132 5.12 Ashby’s Homeostat
5.12.1 Homeostat Design
5.12.2 Behaviour of the Homeostat
FromBricksToBrains_Interior.indd 10 29/04/10 8:05 PM
