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Robot Piloted by a Slime Mold
Posted by
ScuttleMonkey
on Tue Feb 14, 2006 12:34 AM
from the blob-of-borg dept.
from the blob-of-borg dept.
TeknoHog writes "Robotics researchers from the UK and Japan have linked up a slime mold to remotely control a six-legged robot. The mold, which is naturally light-sensitive, is able to hide the robot in dark corners, and the scientists expect to further this technology for use in smaller, autonomous units. There is also a preprint of the research paper available from the University of Southampton."
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well, i for one welcome our... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:well, i for one welcome our... (Score:2)
well, at least they don't have to drill into a mammal's brain to do this one. The molds are cool though; a neighbor once panicked when a bright orange one appeared on wood chip mulch in his garden, until I told him what it was. "It's harmless and it eats bacteria" seems to be one of the more reassuring things you can tell someone about a creeping slime.
Re:well, i for one welcome our... (Score:2)
Well, whatever it was, I squished it.
Re:well, i for one squish our... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:well, i for one welcome our... (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Re:well, i for one welcome our... (Score:3, Funny)
You know, basically a robot that sleeps all day then suddenly has to be in another room *right the hell now*.
Re:well, i for one welcome our... lost stuff? (Score:3, Funny)
``Honey, where's the hammer?''
``Oddly enough, when I was vacuuming, I found it under the desk in the bedroom. I could have sworn it was scurrying.''
Re:well, i for one welcome our... lost stuff? (Score:5, Funny)
That's your problem. You only have one. My dad taught me (by example) that if you can't find a tool, it means you don't have enough instances of that tool and you need to buy another one. Once you have thirty or so hammers, you won't have any trouble finding one around the house within 5 minutes or so.
Same goes for socket sets, screw driver sets, drills, etc.
Parent
I must say... (Score:5, Funny)
That's nothing (Score:4, Funny)
Re:That's nothing (Score:2)
Klaus-Peter Zauner's most recent publication. (Score:4, Informative)
is there some reason that... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:is there some reason that... (Score:4, Interesting)
Simple:
"Robot controlled by light sensitive electronics seeks corner" gets a quick nod before someone realises eight year olds have been doing it with the basic Lego Mindstorms kit for years.
"Slime mold remotely controls six legged robot" gets the quirky and weird headlines. Quirky and weird headlines can be claimed as public interest. Public interest can be parlayed in to additional funding for your otherwise unfundable project.
So, whilst it's not really any more exciting, it does get the trivia audience - which gets the funding. Thus, for PhDs who can't get Google to hire them, it's essential to use a cockroach or slime mold or something similarly quirky to keep you in tweed jackets and leather elbow patches.
Parent
Re:is there some reason that... (Score:5, Insightful)
Think about it... a slime mold, while naturally light-avoidant, won't naturally know how to manipulate robotic appendages. Rather than sneering dismissively, you might realize this is a significant step forward to creating hardware and software that can directly interface with your nervous system. Such technology has many awesome as well as frightening implications.
Parent
wikipedia says... (Score:5, Informative)
Slime Moulds [wikipedia.org] are basically single celled organisms, and while they can achieve some interesting feats, they don't have a nervous system that could in any way be called central.
Fascinating things though... never knew anything about them before just now :)
Parent
Re:wikipedia says... (Score:3, Funny)
Re:is there some reason that... (Score:4, Insightful)
Our task is to learn from nature, and that is what is being done here. People might want this to be more exciting, but great research is basic. They took two systems that were well-studied and well-understood (light-sensitive robots and single-celled organisms), smooshed them together, and found out just how well (or not well) we understood them to begin with.
Parent
Re:is there some reason that... (Score:2)
Not impressed! (Score:5, Funny)
The mold in my shower has been doing this kinda stuff for years!
http://religiousfreaks.com/ [religiousfreaks.com]Re:Not impressed! (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Living brain controls flight simulator (Score:5, Interesting)
http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/11/02/brain.dish/ [cnn.com]
Re:Living brain controls flight simulator (Score:3, Informative)
Biological sensors are and are not new... (Score:5, Interesting)
Already, they are training bees (in minutes) to sense out things that takes months of training for dogs. This type of bio-sensor systems will hopefully make such work even easier to achieve. I can see that one day, a search and rescue helicopter can drop a truck load of independent water robots that seek out and locate humans in the middle of the ocean, saving lives by finding them faster than current methods, and bio-sensors may be the ticket to such advances.
That's my take...
Re:Biological sensors are and are not new... (Score:3, Interesting)
What happens when a bio-sensor based robot walks into a cloud of chlorine gas? (e.g. chemical plant explosion/fire).
What about high-temperature environments?
What about cold/icy ones (e.g. avalanche)?
Radioactive areas? (e.g. dirty-bomb explosion)
Biological agents (viruses, pollen, etc)?
Wouldn't it also be difficult to maintain live cells in a machine? (e.g. what about food, water, oxygen, etc)?
Re:Biological sensors are and are not new... (Score:2, Funny)
Oh, great, just what I need. A pack of ra
pilot? (Score:2, Funny)
In other news... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:In other news... (Score:3, Funny)
I dunno, from what I hear the Element [honda.com] is selling pretty well.
meh (Score:5, Funny)
Employment Opportunity: (Score:4, Funny)
Currently most human beings and other vertebrates have declined the oportunity.
Perhaps dark seeking slime molds could fulfill this roll. Cephalopods could also apply.
Let me guess... (Score:3, Funny)
Just what we need (Score:5, Funny)
Am I the only one that finds this somewhat creepy?
Re:Just what we need (Score:2)
All the others were ambushed and killed by robots lurking in dark corners.
One of a kind.... (Score:5, Funny)
whoops.
They *WHAT* the mold? (Score:2)
Threw away the mold - 2,140 hits
Where do you people come up with this stuff? It's broke I say, broke!
It wont be long (Score:2)
Slime-controlled robot overlords can have my... (Score:4, Funny)
What they don't say (Score:2)
Doh... (Score:2, Funny)
Cue Dr. Who music. (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Cue Dr. Who music. (Score:4, Funny)
Parent
Re:Cue Dr. Who music. (Score:3, Interesting)
It's not just a slime mold.. (Score:5, Funny)
Um... this sounds familiar... but from where?... (Score:5, Interesting)
You hit the slime mold.
The slime mold hits you.
The slime mold's robot hits you.
You hit the slime mold.
The slime mold hits you.
The slime mold's robot hits you.
You miss the slime mold.
The slime mold hits you.
The slime mold's robot hits you.
You are dead.
-hit spacebar for high scores-
Re:Um... this sounds familiar... but from where?.. (Score:5, Funny)
What do you want to throw? [adfh or ?*] h
In which direction? 6
The slime mold hits the robot.
The slime mold takes control of the robot!
The robot hits!
Parent
Poor guy is going to get his research hijacked (Score:3, Funny)
It's just a matter of time before Davros hijacks his research to create the Daleks.
Coming soon... (Score:5, Funny)
Sorry, that's all I have.
Already predicted! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:One's in office (Score:4, Funny)
Parent