Prof. Takashi Takumi

(b. 1947)

Position: Technical Support / Maintenance for the New League of Heroes

Prof. Takashi a world-renowned roboticist, known for his pioneering work on the emotional response of humans to non-human entities, as well as for his views on religion and artifical life.

Born in Tokyo and attending Hibiya High School, he graduated from Yokohama National University, and received a Ph.D from Tokyo Institute of Technology where he later took professorship. He remained a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering for many years, winning many national and international awards for his writings and robot designs.

In 1991, Spikedriver offered Takashi a position as head of the robotics development division of Clayton Industries. The offer of full control over the development of commercial robots and the charisma of the young entrepreneur proved irressistable. Having lost his wife and teenage daughter in a car accident two years before and restless in his position at the university, Takahashi was ready to leave Tokyo and travel to the United States.

Takahashi was instrumental in Clayton Industries' commercial designs. He also consulted on the design of a versatile android to be used by NASA in planetary exploration. The prototype, which developed a low-level of sentience, would later become the hero Xenon. Most recently, Takashi headed a team that developed a series of guard robots for the government superprison known as Stronghold.

During the events of World in Flames, however, Brainchild mind-controlled Takahashi into introducing a subroutine into the robot's programming that caused them, at a specified time, to aid prisoners in a massive breakout from the facility orchestrated by Doctor Destroyer. An investigation discovered the sabotage and, although Takahashi was formally vindicated by a panel of mentalists (consisting of Redeemer, Psyche, and Dementia), Takashi still takes more responsibility than he deserves for the breakout, the injuries inflicted on Stronghold personnel, and the damage to Clayton Industries. Although only 60 years old and still at the top of his field, Takahashi insisted upon retiring from Clayton Industries.

Since his retirement, he has devoted himself to his personal projects, repairing his collection of vintage automobiles, his Buddhist practice, and the development of his philosophical speculations regarding the nature of robotic consciousness and the intersection of science and religion. In 2006, he was offered a part-time lecturer position at MIT. Seeing an opportunity to influence a new generation of robotocists with his theories, he accepted and moved his life to Boston.

At Spikedriver's urging, Takashi also agreed to lend his wide-ranging technical expertise to the New League of Heroes whenever it is needed. He also decided to pursue an experiment of his own, by allowing the use of the android Kami as the receptionist for the League's headquarters at Boston City Hall.

Personality

Takahashi is a friendly, kind and quiet man. Even so, he doesn't have much use for small talk and formalities, preferring to talk only about matters he thinks are important, and otherwise to politely remove himself from a conversation. Some find him a bit distant, but his approach to the people around him might be better described as a benevolent indifference.

He is very loyal and highly ethical, holding himself to strict standard of conduct that he is not always able to meet. As a result, he is prone to bouts of melancholy. Even in his darkest moments, however, his eyes can flash with a new insight into a technical problem or a new speculation on the nature of artificial life.

Appearance

Takahashi is a balding Japanese man with sharp eyes and a self-composed, benevolent smile. Since his retirement, he has taken to wearing jumpsuits--they're comfortable and suitable for working on his beloved cars, robot construction in his workshop, and any hands-on repairs the League might need. Besides, Takahashi stopped caring a long time ago what people think of his appearance.