"As long back as I can remember, I wanted to invent a machine that could walk and look like a human being," says Wu. He says that he felt this deep desire to create such a machine even before he had heard of the concept of - let alone the word for - "robot." "Thirty years ago in this place, no one could have dreamed that such a thing as robots can exist," he says. "I had no idea that elsewhere, such machines had already been invented. There was no news here of the outside world at all."

　　Wu was in his mid-20s by the time he built the first of his robots, made entirely of scrap metal, rubber bands, broken wire and cardboard. It could shuffle its feet but wasn't able to lift its legs. "I had no money and no access to proper resources. No teacher to help me, no books to consult. Just instincts and imagination," says Wu. He spent hours working out the mechanics in his mind and then more hours patiently experimenting until all of a sudden, something clicked and his rudimentary collection of jangly wires and metal literally kicked into motion.

　　"Our friends and family thought that Wu was wasting his time," says Wu's wife with a toss of her head. "When I married him, people warned me that he was a fool and that he would care more about his inventions than me or my children." As time went by, she found the warnings to be all too true, she adds with a rueful smile. "He cares far more for his robots, whom he calls his children, than his real children. Even when our sons were ill or needed money for their education, Wu would spend everything we had on buying more materials for his robots! We quarreled about it, but in the end he always got his way."

　　Indeed, beneath his gentle demeanor Wu possesses an obstinate streak that has not allowed him to give up his passion even in the face of overwhelming hurdles. He proudly shows off the scars on his left hand. "I burned myself while building 'Lao Wu' (fifth child) a few years ago," he says. "I was in the hospital for weeks."

　　Once out of the hospital, the first thing Wu did was to lock himself up in his work shed, working every spare minute to finish Lao Wu. Today, the robot is his pride and joy, his favorite "child." Like a proud parent, Wu has typed up a special list of all of Lao Wu's accomplishments, which include the ability to light candles and cigarettes; present flowers; fetch and carry household items; pour tea and water and even install light bulbs.