Robonauts - The next generation of space explorers will look -- and act -- more like people than probes

In 1989, using an insect-like robot named Genghis, Rodney Brooks pitched a bold vision for exploring space: Send up an army of small, cheap machines to rove around on a distant planet and beam back data.

Read more:http://www.boston.com/news/globe/health_science/articles/2006/01/09/robonauts/