Robot Stingray Is Powered By Rat Heart Cells

An anonymous reader writes: Harvard researchers report in the journal Science this week that they've built a "bio-inspired swimming robot that mimics a ray fish [and] can be guided by light." The robot's body consists of "a cast elastomer body with a skeleton of gold, along with a single layer of carefully aligned muscle fibers harvested from neonatal rat hearts." The fibers were genetically modified to respond to pulses of blue light and structured along the body of the robot such that contractions result in a repetitive undulating motion, propelling the robot forward. "About 200,000 live rat heart cells form the muscle layer that powers the robot, which has a body 16.3 mm long and weighs just over 10 grams," reports IEEE. "At full tilt, it can swim at a speed of 3.2 mm/s, which isn't bad for such a tiny thing." You can watch the video that shows the robot being led through a 250 mm long obstacle course.

Re:

[Big Hairy Ian]

I'm just waiting for the robot Steve Urwin

Re:

[negRo_slim]

We're dividing out time amongst Hacker News, Reddit, Soylent, 4chan, Fark and Ars Technica. All while ensuring we post to Twitter and Facebook only the choicest nuggets of web to make ourselves look in-the-know and super smart. Where are you?

Robot Stingray

[fustakrakich]

Is this another FBI thing [slashdot.org]? Do cell phone even work under water?

Re:

[Opportunist]

Considering the creatures that usually claim they got abducted, I can only see this as a good thing.

The bad thing is that the aliens find out just WHAT they got and send them back.

Stingray = Shark, Light = laser

[retroworks]

[Oblig] How long before the fricking lasers get attached to the heads of the fricking sharks?

Frankenstein's monsters?

[gatzke]

I, for one, welcome our new zombie rat-stingray overlords.

Seriously, add some fiber optics, LEDs, and a Raspberry Pi and we have some awesome robots. Think BigDog / PetMan but organically actuated. Encapsulate the fibers in the special fluid that keeps them alive and we have a cool metal-free actuator (that currently only lives a week). Still very cool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]

Re:

[Megol]

We aren't supposed to as the motivation is still unknown.

Mashine or life-form?

[Bristol_92]

It’s a stunning creation. Hope that in nearest future this bio-engineering technology will be used for creation new organism and for peaceful purposes only. And I want to traverse one subject. This robot built of living animals cells. It forces a question: Is it alive?

Echoes of BSG

[mridoni]

Can you say Cylon Raider?

Skeleton of gold?

[Jogar the Barbarian]

Was it infinitely improbable that it would also have a heart of gold?

Next up

[ThatsNotPudding]

The Joy Can!!*







* - Orphan's heart not included

Venture Brothers

[Ugmo]

This reminds me of the invention that Rusty makes that is powered by the heart and soul of an orphan boy. It is a little creepy.

Sales talk can make anything sound good.

[OpenSourced]

-We use only the finest baby rats, dew picked and flown from Iraq, cleansed in finest quality spring water, lightly killed, and then sealed in a succulent Swiss quintuple smooth treble cream milk chocolate envelope and lovingly frosted with glucose.

-That's as maybe, it's still a rat.

- What else?

Crunchy Rat

[OutOnARock]

did you at least take the bones out?

if we took the bones out it wouldn't be crunchy

Robot Stingray Is Powered By Rat Heart Cells

[PopeRatzo]

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going to pretend I didn't just read that headline and go on with my day as if nothing happened.

I love seeing this on videos posted to large sites

[tickticker]

"This video is unlisted. Be considerate and think twice before sharing."

Way to go, Slashdot!