Angelo Cangelosi and Matthew Schlesinger: Developmental robotics

Cangelosi and Schlesinger’s new book is the first comprehensive overview of the relatively young interdisciplinary field of developmental robotics. On page 4 they define developmental robotics as ‘‘the autonomous design of behavioral and cognitive capabilities in artificial agents (robots) that takes direct inspiration from the developmental principles and mechanisms observed in the natural cognitive systems of children’’. Cangelosi and Schlesinger are well positioned to provide an insider’s view of this emerging field, having published extensively, chaired conferences, and edited journals on the topic. The authors had three goals (which they largely met) in writing their book. First, it should be easily understood by a wide audience: from philosophers to engineers, as well as from undergraduates to graduate students. Second, each robotic model should have a direct counterpart in human baby/infant development. Third, it should demonstrate the interdisciplinary nature of the field. The first chapter provides a concise review of some of the fundamental ideas from developmental psychology, and then lays out the core principles of developmental robotics. The second chapter is much longer (perhaps a bit too long), and provides a general background to robotics, before giving a review of the many different robots and simulators that have been used in developmental robotics research. The middle chapters (3–8) focus on particular developmental topics, such as intrinsic motivation, making sense of perception, acquiring motor skills, and learning first words. Each of these experimental chapters is self-contained and could potentially be read in any order. The final chapter summarizes the state of the field, pointing out where gaps remain and where future work should be focused. Each chapter ends