Robots + Us, a new exhibit at the Manitoba Museum, has something for everyone.

The travelling exhibit, from the Science Museum of Minnesota, has two primary goals. The first is to highlight “what robots are and what they do.” The second is to demonstrate “how they help us, change us and teach us about ourselves,” Scott Young, manager of science communication at the museum, said by phone last week.

Real robots and props from science fiction movies are included amongst the eye-catching displays.

Young is expecting the exhibit to be a very popular attraction for all age groups and interests because of its nearly two dozen interactive components.

One segment of the exhibit, “From the Mind of Ants,” allows participants to observe the tiny creatures navigating their way through a maze in a quest for food, using their problem solving abilities and determination to travel great lengths to achieve a common goal.

Young said that he compares the functions of ants and robots with humans because they are simple on their own, but together can complete complicated processes such as “building homes, raising young and finding food.”

Activities that should also excite participants include racing a robot to finish a puzzle or guiding them around a maze using only a flashlight.

Other guests will enjoy Robotuna who mimics a swimming tuna, Troody, the dinorobot inspired by the “feathered but flightless meat eating dinosaur,” Troodon formosus, or Spring Flamingo, a robot that looks similar to a heron or a flamingo and can walk, even up and down inclines.

“Sensor Garden” is yet another component of the exhibit sure to stimulate those interested in observing robots trained to respond to one kind of stimuli, which is similar to the human eye or ear.

Not only does the exhibit present real robots and allow viewers to construct, play and experiment with several of them, it also presents the history of robots and the the idea of creating intelligent machines has evolved over time.

This evolution ranges from the novel, Frankenstein, to Elektro – the robot created for the 1939 New York World Fair – a robot that could walk, talk, tell jokes and smoke cigarettes.

The exhibit also highlights the history of robotics and artificial intelligence, the idea that computers can compete with human intelligence.

Young said the exhibit argues that science is still “far from achieving anything like the adaptive intelligence we demonstrate every day,” however it still reflects on how “human dreaming and tinkering have long inspired one another.”

For those who choose to wander down memory lane or chat with a robot, there is a component called “Artificial Friends,” that displays mechanical companions from years past such as Furby, Nano and My Real Baby.

“The Android Café” has a robot on display to engage even the shyest people in conversation.