Biology: General Biology: Marine Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ecology: Sea Life Engineering: Robotics Research Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Jellyfish-like robots could one day clean up the world's oceans      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Roboticists have developed a jellyfish-inspired underwater robot with which they hope one day to collect waste from the bottom of the ocean. The almost noise-free prototype can trap objects underneath its body without physical contact, thereby enabling safe interactions in delicate environments such as coral reefs. Jellyfish-Bot could become an important tool for environmental remediation.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: General
Published

Vaccine printer could help vaccines reach more people      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have designed a tabletop-sized vaccine printer that could be scaled up to produce hundreds of vaccine doses in a day and deployed anywhere vaccines are needed. The vaccine doses are contained within microneedle patches that can be stored long-term at room temperature and applied to the skin, avoiding the need for injections.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Engineering: Robotics Research Physics: Acoustics and Ultrasound Physics: Optics
Published

Versatile, high-speed, and efficient crystal actuation with photothermally resonated natural vibrations      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Mechanically responsive molecular crystals are extremely useful in soft robotics, which requires a versatile actuation technology. Crystals driven by the photothermal effect are particularly promising for achieving high-speed actuation. However, the response (bending) observed in these crystals is usually small. Now, scientists address this issue by inducing large resonated natural vibrations in anisole crystals with UV light illumination at the natural vibration frequency of the crystal.

Biology: Marine Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

X-ray analysis sheds new light on prehistoric predator's last meal      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We now know more about the diet of a prehistoric creature that grew up to two and a half meters long and lived in Australian waters during the time of the dinosaurs, thanks to the power of x-rays. Researchers used micro-CT scans to peer inside the fossilized stomach remains of a small marine reptile -- a plesiosaur nicknamed 'Eric' after a song from the comedy group Monty Python -- to determine what the creature ate in the lead up to its death.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Team designs four-legged robotic system that can walk a balance beam      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have designed a system that makes an off-the-shelf quadruped robot nimble enough to walk a narrow balance beam -- a feat that is likely the first of its kind.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Multi-compartment membranes for multicellular robots: Everybody needs some body      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

We typically think of robots as metal objects, filled with motors and circuits. But the field of molecular robotics is starting to change that. Like the formation of complex living organisms, molecular robots derive their form and functionality from assembled molecules stored in a single unit, i.e., a body. Yet manufacturing this body at the microscopic level is an engineering nightmare. Now, a team has created a simple workaround.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Biology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Apes may have evolved upright stature for leaves, not fruit, in open woodland habitats      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Anthropologists have long thought that our ape ancestors evolved an upright torso in order to pick fruit in forests, but new research from the University of Michigan suggests a life in open woodlands and a diet that included leaves drove apes' upright stature.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Research in Japan shows the way toward tactile and proximity sensing in large soft robots      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

To make human-robot interactions safer and more fruitful, robots should be capable of sensing their environment. In a recent study, researchers developed a novel robotic link with tactile and proximity sensing capabilities. Additionally, they created a simulation and learning framework that can be employed to train the robotic link to sense its environment. Their findings will pave the way to a future where humans and robots can operate harmoniously in close proximity.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Starting small and simple -- key to success for evolution of mammals      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The ancestors of modern mammals managed to evolve into one of the most successful animal lineages -- the key was to start out small and simple, a new study reveals.

Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Toward a safer 'artificial muscle' material      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Whether wriggling your toes or lifting groceries, muscles in your body smoothly expand and contract. Some polymers can do the same thing -- acting like artificial muscles -- but only when stimulated by dangerously high voltages. Now, researchers report a series of thin, elastic films that respond to substantially lower electrical charges. The materials represent a step toward artificial muscles that could someday operate safely in medical devices.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

It's all in the wrist: Energy-efficient robot hand learns how not to drop the ball      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have designed a low-cost, energy-efficient robotic hand that can grasp a range of objects -- and not drop them -- using just the movement of its wrist and the feeling in its 'skin'.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Environmental: Ecosystems Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Woolly mammoths evolved smaller ears and woolier coats over the 700,000 years that they roamed the Siberian steppes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of researchers compared the genomes of woolly mammoths with modern day elephants to find out what made woolly mammoths unique, both as individuals and as a species. The investigators report that many of the woolly mammoth's trademark features -- including their woolly coats and large fat deposits -- were already genetically encoded in the earliest woolly mammoths, but these and other traits became more defined over the species' 700,000+ year existence. They also identified a gene with several mutations that may have been responsible for the woolly mammoth's miniscule ears.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Robots predict human intention for faster builds      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Humans have a way of understandings others' goals, desires and beliefs, a crucial skill that allows us to anticipate people's actions. Taking bread out of the toaster? You'll need a plate. Sweeping up leaves? I'll grab the green trash can. This skill, often referred to as 'theory of mind,' comes easily to us as humans, but is still challenging for robots. But, if robots are to become truly collaborative helpers in manufacturing and in everyday life, they need to learn the same abilities. Computer science researchers aim to teach robots how to predict human preferences in assembly tasks, so they can one day help out on everything from building a satellite to setting a table.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: Encryption Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

New cyber software can verify how much knowledge AI really knows      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

With a growing interest in generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems worldwide, researchers have created software that is able to verify how much information an AI farmed from an organization's digital database.

Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Nature Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: General
Published

Analysis of dinosaur eggshells: Bird-like Troodon laid 4 to 6 eggs in a communal nest      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An international research team has determined that Troodon, a dinosaur very close to modern birds, was a warm-blooded animal (an endotherm), but had a reproductive system similar to that of modern reptiles. The scientists applied a new method which allowed for accurate determination of the temperature when the egg's carbonate shell was formed. Furthermore, the researchers showed that Troodon laid 4 to 6 eggs per clutch. As nests with up to 24 Troodon eggs had been found, the scientists conclude that several Troodon females laid their eggs in communal nests.