Replicating experiments in “detour behavior” with artificially evolved robots: An a-life approach to comparative psychology

Abstract

To be useful in psychology “artificial organisms” have to perform tasks comparable to those performed by animals. One way to achieve this is to replicate actual animal experiments. Here we reproduce an experiment showing “detour behavior” in chicks - a behavior usually explained in terms of “cognitive maps” or other forms of internal representation. We artificially evolve software-simulated robots with a “generic” ability to detour. Sensor-motor physics are carefully calibrated with data from a physical robot. Robot architecture is constrained to exclude internal representation. The evolutionary process rewards exploratory skills as well as detour behavior. Robot performance matches the results achieved in the original experiment. This proves that internal representations are not a necessary condition for primitive detour behavior and suggests that “detouring” evolves naturally from simpler behaviors. Future research will show whether it is possible to evolve more complex detour abilities using a similar bottom-up strategy.