Collaborate Disseminate
Not only do cockroaches give many people the creeps, but often when you step on one of the critters, it just keeps on scurrying. Such resilience would be a good feature for mini-robots designed to scout disaster sites – among other applicatio… Continue reading Cockroach-inspired robot survives being stepped on
Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories led by computational neuroscientist Frances Chance are looking to the common dragonfly for clues to develop smaller, more efficient missile defenses. By replicating the predatory insect’s brain in a… Continue reading Dragonfly brains could make missile defenses faster and more accurate
In a demonstration that less can be more, EPFL scientists are working on simple robots that behave and cooperate like ants. The 10-g (0.35-oz) Tribots are simple, tetherless, reconfigurable three-legged robots that are folded like origami, bu… Continue reading Tiny ant-inspired Tribots embrace collective intelligence to tackle big tasks
A team of engineers in Germany has created a tiny jellyfish-inspired robot, which can not only swim, but transport objects, mix fluids and even bury itself. It’s hoped the five-millimeter tetherless “jellyfishbot” could help us understand the… Continue reading "Jellyfishbot" could shed light on ocean environments and deliver drugs inside the body
We’ve been following the exploits of Harvard’s tiny Robobee for a few years now, from its first controlled flight, then learning to swim and perch, and rising out of the water with style. Until recently, it’s been powered via a wire tether, b… Continue reading Solar-powered Robobee flies without a tether
While we’ve already seen that large-scale wind turbine blades which are shaped like humpback whale fins can be more efficient, what works for big turbines doesn’t necessarily work for little ones. In fact, a new study suggests that for small-… Continue reading Seagull-inspired blades could give small-scale wind turbines a power boost
We’ve already heard about water-repellant materials that copy the structure of the lotus leaf. Now, however, scientists have created a flexible optical plastic that wards off liquids even better, and it was inspired by something else – the hu… Continue reading Mushroom-inspired material gives liquids the slip
For years now, scientists have marvelled at the insulating qualities of polar bear fur, suggesting that it could inspire manmade heat-retaining materials. Well, Chinese researchers have now developed just such a substance, which reportedly ou… Continue reading Polar bear fur-inspired insulation is even better than the real thing
“Solar steaming” is an eco-friendly form of water purification in which sunlight is used to heat tainted water, turning it to steam which condenses back into liquid. That clean liquid is then collected as drinking water. A new system offers i… Continue reading Rosy tech offers better, cheaper water purification
Because sloths move very slowly – when they move at all – they burn relatively few calories, thus requiring little food. Scientists have now applied that principle to a sluggish but energy-efficient robot, known appropriately enough as the Sl… Continue reading Sloth-inspired robot saves power by taking things slow