1.0The Escapisthttps://www.escapistmagazine.comJim Rossignol Legacy Authorhttps://www.escapistmagazine.com/author/jimrossignol/rich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="Ac4nJmfwM3"><a href="https://www.escapistmagazine.com/a-brief-history-of-artificial-life/">A Brief History Of Artificial Life</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://www.escapistmagazine.com/a-brief-history-of-artificial-life/embed/#?secret=Ac4nJmfwM3" width="600" height="338" title="“A Brief History Of Artificial Life” — The Escapist" data-secret="Ac4nJmfwM3" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script type="text/javascript"> /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(c,d){"use strict";var e=!1,o=!1;if(d.querySelector)if(c.addEventListener)e=!0;if(c.wp=c.wp||{},c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage);else if(c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if(!t);else if(!(t.secret||t.message||t.value));else if(/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret));else{for(var r,s,a,i=d.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),n=d.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),l=0;l<n.length;l++)n[l].style.display="none";for(l=0;l<i.length;l++)if(r=i[l],e.source!==r.contentWindow);else{if(r.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message){if(1e3<(s=parseInt(t.value,10)))s=1e3;else if(~~s<200)s=200;r.height=s}if("link"===t.message)if(s=d.createElement("a"),a=d.createElement("a"),s.href=r.getAttribute("src"),a.href=t.value,!o.test(a.protocol));else if(a.host===s.host)if(d.activeElement===r)c.top.location.href=t.value}}},e)c.addEventListener("message",c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),d.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",t,!1),c.addEventListener("load",t,!1);function t(){if(o);else{o=!0;for(var e,t,r,s=-1!==navigator.appVersion.indexOf("MSIE 10"),a=!!navigator.userAgent.match(/Trident.*rv:11\./),i=d.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),n=0;n<i.length;n++){if(!(r=(t=i[n]).getAttribute("data-secret")))r=Math.random().toString(36).substr(2,10),t.src+="#?secret="+r,t.setAttribute("data-secret",r);if(s||a)(e=t.cloneNode(!0)).removeAttribute("security"),t.parentNode.replaceChild(e,t);t.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:r},"*")}}}}(window,document); </script> A mechanical monk in the court of the Holy Roman Emperor in 1560: a miraculous construction of clockwork, carved wood and lacquer. A videogame NPC on your screen in 2009: a mathematical mannequin of bits and bytes. These two distant constructs are more similar than you might think. The automaton, the manmade approximation of a living creature, is almost as old as civilization itself. “Self-operating systems” have been recorded as far back as Ancient Greek times, and have popped up, whirring and clicking, ever since. On the isle of Rhodes, which historians believe may have been the source of the […]