Hundreds of roboticists have since risen to the agency's challenge, entering bots built from sports cars, motorcycles, even their wives' minivans.

FORBES: Magazine Article

Modified with help from roboticists at Stanford University, the car travelled about as fast as one driven by an average driver.

ECONOMIST: Inside story

Zombies occupy what roboticists and animators call "the uncanny valley" in human perception though decidedly not human, they are so close to being human that they prompt instant revulsion.

WSJ: Why Zombies Are Everywhere

This, said Dr Waibel, made it very difficult for roboticists to share knowledge or for the field to advance rapidly because everyone started off solving the same problems.

BBC: Robots to get their own internet

Without access to such a database, roboticists fear machines will be restricted to working in very tightly controlled environments such as production lines and never live easily alongside humans.

BBC: Web-based 'brain' for robots goes live

Both amateur and professional roboticists entered their creations (which curiously, were required to house a small animal -- don't ask us) in one of two obstacle courses designed to simulate either combat driving or building infiltration -- tasks which were made even more difficult due to the fact that mission specifics were not revealed prior to the event.

ENGADGET: German army hosts military bot "competition"