Growing Up with Lucy: How to Build an Android in Twenty Easy Steps [Hardcover]

Steve Grand (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0297607332 | ISBN-13: 978-0297607335

Steve Grand is a self-taught scientist who has deliberately eschewed large public grants and laboratory affiliation so as to give himself the freedom required to put his revolutionary theories on artificial intelligence to the test. The result is Lucy, one of the most advanced research robots in existence, and it is Lucy's successes and failures which stand as indicators of the present state of robotics. The compelling story of Lucy's creation, all done in Steve's own home, is a fascinating mixture of human perseverance and cutting edge scientific endeavour.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Growing up with Lucy takes the reader through Grand's work to date. He relates the pleasures and frustrations of working from home on a shoestring budget and explains his ideas about how the human brain functions... Grand's engaging style always carries you along. And Lucy is a fascinating project." NEW SCIENTIST "Growing up with Lucy is a long and chatty newsletter from the friendliest artificial intelligence researcher you could wish to meet." -- Graham Farmelo THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH "Fiercely dedicated and passionate about his subject... essential reading." FOCUS "never less than interesting" -- BRYAN APPLEYARD NEW STATESMAN "cheerfully self-deprecating but hugely inspiring." DAILY TELEGRAPH

From the Publisher

For many scientists, artificial intelligence is the Holy Grail; but will we ever be able to combine the knowledge, skills, and ideas needed to create a complete living being? This was the question that inspired Steve Grand when he set out to build “Lucy.” Regarded as an unscientific charlatan by some, a naïve fool by others, this “self–taught” tinkerer deliberately eschewed grants and laboratory affiliation to allow himself as much freedom as possible to pursue his revolutionary ideas. This is his account of battling the odds to create one of the most advanced robots in existence. Steve Grand is the inventor of the groundbreaking computer game, “Creatures.” He was nominated by THE SUNDAY TIMES as one of “The Brains Behind the 21st Century.” --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Orion Publishing (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0297607332
• ISBN-13: 978-0297607335
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,299,547 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A New View of a lot of Thought Processes, January 15, 2005

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Growing Up with Lucy: How to Build an Android in Twenty Easy Steps (Hardcover)

With a subtitle of How to Build an Android in Twenty Easy Steps, this is a most interesting book. But you do need to understand two things: One this is not an Android in the sense of what you see on television or in the movies, and Two, while there are twenty chapters in the book, some of them aren't all that easy. ==This is not a description of how to build an android, instead it is some thinking on how some aspects of mental processes might best be implemented using today's electronic technology. He presents some thoughts on how we perceive sound and how our mind processes visual images that are different in both concept and implementation than I've seen before. They certainly seem in conflict with descriptions from other writers. I haven't studied this book enough yet to have formed opinions as to the validity of his views. Sometimes just looking at things a bit differently is enough to open other doors in your mind. At any rate, this makes a very interesting read, and may point some of us in other directions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Don't judge a book by its title., November 4, 2011

By 

John R Dawson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Growing Up with Lucy: How to Build an Android in Twenty Easy Steps (Paperback)

This book is not what is sounds like. It's moderately interesting in its own right, but it's not what the title suggests. The author even alludes to this in the introduction, tongue-in-cheek. However, I don't find anything funny about misleading people as to the contents of your book. I think the 3 I've given it is incredibly generous.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars funny, December 18, 2007

By 

InannaMouse "InannaMouse" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Growing Up with Lucy: How to Build an Android in Twenty Easy Steps (Paperback)

I love Steve Grand's writing voice. He not only writes clearly and in a conversational style, but he makes the information both accessible and entertaining!