Roboticists Unveil Mobile, Morphable Liquid Compound
Bringing us all one step closer to being murdered by a gooey Robert Patrick, Japanese roboticists have unveiled a "morphable" chemical compound able to move on its own.
The goal, according to the group based at Tokyo's Waseda University, is to craft a material that can not only move under its own power, but also change color and shape, and perform relatively simple calculations.
Eventually the group hopes to use the compound in the creation of robots.
New Scientist offers a video of the gel [http://brightcove.newscientist.com/services/player/bcpid2227271001?bctid=20949472001] in action, inching its way across a surface like some kind of molten caterpillar.
Normally this is where I'd make a glib observation about the inevitability that a liquid robot will assume the form of a linoleum floor moments before ruining your coffee break with a severe case of murder, but honestly I'm kind of worried about angering this thing.
For all I know my girlfriend is a hyper-malleable death machine, and she's scary enough without being able to turn her arms into spears.
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Bringing us all one step closer to being murdered by a gooey Robert Patrick, Japanese roboticists have unveiled a "morphable" chemical compound able to move on its own.
The goal, according to the group based at Tokyo's Waseda University, is to craft a material that can not only move under its own power, but also change color and shape, and perform relatively simple calculations.
Eventually the group hopes to use the compound in the creation of robots.
New Scientist offers a video of the gel [http://brightcove.newscientist.com/services/player/bcpid2227271001?bctid=20949472001] in action, inching its way across a surface like some kind of molten caterpillar.
Normally this is where I'd make a glib observation about the inevitability that a liquid robot will assume the form of a linoleum floor moments before ruining your coffee break with a severe case of murder, but honestly I'm kind of worried about angering this thing.
For all I know my girlfriend is a hyper-malleable death machine, and she's scary enough without being able to turn her arms into spears.
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