Lego Mindstorms NXT

When I was a wee lad, I played with Legos. To me, Legos were those little plastic blocks that came in different colors and sizes; the sky (or dinner bell in my case) was the limit on what you could build. Well, it appears as though Lego’s have become a little more advanced in the past 15 years. Case and point: the new Mindstorms NXT Robot Kit ($350). The kit allows you to build fully-functional robots– the heart of the concept is the USB friendly computer-controlled ‘brick,’ ‘featuring a 32-bit microprocessor, LCD display, sensor ports, motor ports, a loudspeaker and control panel, this ultra-sophisticated motion/light-sensitive block brings your creations to life and offers countless design/functionality permutations.’ Reportedly, it can even ‘go back in time and destroy the mums of people you don’t like very much.’ Warning to parents out there: be careful– if you buy this ‘toy’ for your kids, they may surpass your intelligence level in less than a week.