Soft Robot Tentacle Can Lasso an Ant Without Harming It

jan_jes writes: A soft robot tentacle, developed by a team from Iowa State University, can curl itself into a circle with a radius of just 200 micrometers. It was capable of capturing an ant without harming it, and the tentacle was also able to grasp the egg of a fish. Such miniature soft robots could be useful for microsurgery. The lassoing motion and low force exerted by the tentacle could be an advantage in endovascular operations, for example, where the target for surgery is reached through blood vessels. They describe their findings in Scientific Reports.

Internet rule 34

[Doug Otto]

So how long before it shows up on a porn site?

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[Atrox666]

Japanese porn will enter a new golden age and the eels can be saved for sushi.

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[xxxJonBoyxxx]

>> ...how long before it shows up on a porn site?

A corollary of Rule 34 could be that any site that allows user content could be a porn site. See also "Brazzers meme"...

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[antiperimetaparalogo]

So how long before it shows up on a porn site?

Just read some /. comments...and...! [slashdot.org]

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[ArcadeMan]

You could always drink it [jlist.com]...

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[ITRambo]

Antman porn using menacing micro-robot tentacles might make a good movie.

News...

[LewekLeonek]

Now! That's the news I've been waiting for today.

Microsurgery...

[FizzyP]

Microsurgery. Suuuure... that's why they were researching "soft tentacle" technology. I can't think of any other use.

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[Immerman]

Soft tentacle robots have been around for decades, it's the *micro* part that's new. I don't think getting below the centimetre scale would be an advantage in the applications you're obviously not considering.

I, for one...

[jeffb (2.718)]

...DO NOT welcome our new, tentacular, inner-body-exploring robotic overlords. Ick.

But if they turn out to be the effective solution for a life-threatening health condition, I'll find a way to cope.

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[deadweight]

Damn you meme ruining poster. I was going to go for "I for one ...."

Easier than in RDR

[rodrigoandrade]

I guess it's easier than lassoing wild horses in Red Dead Redemption. I still haven't managed to catch the American Standardbread or the white one with black face.

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[rogoshen1]

fucking racist video game horses. My god, this day in age we still have to deal with Minstrel Shows?

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[rogoshen1]

well if they were truly progressive, inclusive, and wanted to foster a sense of diversity it would have been an arabian or some other under-represented breed of horse.

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[xxxJonBoyxxx]

>> Do Robotic Tentacles Need Passports?

Wasn't that covered in Maniac Mansion way back in the 1980s?
http://www.selfsimilar.org/ima... [selfsimilar.org]

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[account_deleted]

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[Thud457]

Ooooohhhhhh, missed it by >< that much!

What is this? Tentacle porn for ants?

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[cyberchondriac]

I bet there's a deleted scene in the upcoming Antman movie you might want to see..

what about flies?

[Anonymous Coward]

Ya but can it tie a fishing line to a fly?

A soft robot tentacle

[PopeRatzo]

I think we all know where this is going.

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[account_deleted]

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OK

[koan]

*obligatory tentacle sex joke here*

At last!

[ljw1004]

At last! I've been looking for a use for my soft robot tentacle!

-- or --

At last! I've been looking for a way to lasso ants without harming them!