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It took the members of Styx 35 years to come to terms with a song that tore the 1970s rockers apart at the seams. But last year, James “JY” Young, Tommy Shaw and the rest of the band started playing “Mr. Roboto” again in its entirety. It came down to the fans. Whenever they bought a T-shirt from the concert merchandise booth or passed the lighting console within earshot of the longtime lighting director, fans would bemoan the fact that the band skipped the song. “The merch guy who’s worked with us for years selling t-shirts got five to 10...

Music video by Styx performing Mr. Roboto. (C) 1983 A&M Records

KUWAIT today held the first regional camel race using robots as riders after child jockeys were banned from the lucrative sport following criticism by human rights groups. Teams from the six Gulf Arab states participated in the race held on the dusty tracks of a racing club outside the capital Kuwait City. "We hope this sport, which is part of our cultural heritage, will be spared from suspicion,"said Kuwait's Energy Minister Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah who opened the five-day championship. The remote-operated robots are shaped like small boys. Rights groups said thousands of boys, some as young as four, worked...

Hitachi unveils 'fastest robot' Pal and Chum impressed with their chat and fast moves Japanese electronics firm Hitachi has unveiled its first humanoid robot, called Emiew, to challenge Honda's Asimo and Sony's Qrio robots. Hitachi said the 1.3m (4.2ft) Emiew was the world's quickest-moving robot yet at 6km/h (3.7 miles per hour). Two wheel-based Emiews, Pal and Chum, introduced themselves to reporters at a press conference in Japan. They will be guests at this month's World Expo. Sony and Honda have both built robots to showcase engineering. Explaining why Hitachi's Emiew used wheels instead of feet, Toshihiko Horiuchi, from...