More on the hardware side of things: Look what I found on YouTube this morning. It's a little robot that wheels around the room and is steered by, yes, a cockroach.
The little critter is walking on what appears to be a pingpong ball, thereby moving the ball; the principle seems to be similar to that of a ball mouse from the good olde days.
(More on YouTube as a copyright sink later, when I have time. )