vaguely related: MENACE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matchbox_Educable_Noughts_and_...
Ah, so that's where Fred Saberhagen got the gimmick for his first Berserker story - "Without a Thought" / "Fortress Ship", 1963.
(A spaceman uses a pet that plays with beads to simulate not being temporarily incapacitated by a 'mind beam' attack.)
Thank you.
"A Tinkertoy computer that plays tic-tac-toe" - https://tcm.computerhistory.org/Timeline/TinkerToy.pdf and https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/X39.81
"Great Tinkertoy Computer" - https://www.science20.com/brain_candyfeed_your_mind/great_ti...