Fish-driven robot!
Fish-driven robot! avatar

By , on April 10th, 2011 7 comments   Vessels and Equipment   , ,  

Via Aili C-F, who asks “What happens when the dolphins discover this technology and then the dolphin robots attack???” Well, it might look something like this. In the words of Dr. James Aoki, “I believe I speak for the entire human race when I say, ‘Holy fuck.”

Manned or Unmanned?
Manned or Unmanned? avatar

By , on February 3rd, 2010 4 comments   Vessels and Equipment   , , , , , , , , , , ,  

The internets is consumed recently with the Obama administration’s choice to cut funding for NASA manned space exploration. Manned missions to the moon or development of the technologies needed to go mars…gone. A lot of people are quite distraught about this decision believing it a poor course for the future. ”The decision has been condemned . . . → Read More: Manned or Unmanned?

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And speaking of autonomous underwater robots…
And speaking of autonomous underwater robots… avatar

By , on September 15th, 2009 Leave a comment   New Research, Vessels and Equipment   , , , , ,  

how about this little gem from (video) the US Office of Naval Research. ONR recently conducted tests with a developmental ship hull grooming robot, called the Robotic Hull Bio-inspired Underwater Grooming (HULL BUG) tool. The HULL BUG is similar in concept to a autonomous robotic home vacuum cleaner or lawn mower and incorporates the use . . . → Read More: And speaking of autonomous underwater robots…

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Transformers Into the Deep
Transformers Into the Deep avatar

By , on May 7th, 2009 2 comments   Expeditions, Vessels and Equipment   , , , , , , , , ,  

From BBC News… If successful, Nereus will be the first autonomous vehicle to visit the 11,000m (36,089ft) Challenger Deep in the Pacific Ocean. Only two other vehicles have ever visited the spot before, both of them human operated. The $5m submarine will make the attempt in late May or early June after a series . . . → Read More: Transformers Into the Deep

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Bionic Penguins Will Wipe Out The Penguin Race
Bionic Penguins Will Wipe Out The Penguin Race avatar

By , on April 30th, 2009 Leave a comment   Gadgets & Gear, Industry & Government, Pictures and Movies   , , ,  

‘Nature demonstrates how maximum performance can be achieved with minimum energy consumption,’ a Festo spokesman said. DON’T DO IT!!!! We’ve all seen Terminator! We know what will happen! The Daily Mail reports: “The life-size bionic birds are hydrodynamic and can turn like real penguins because of the flexible glass fibre rods that control their heads. . . . → Read More: Bionic Penguins Will Wipe Out The Penguin Race

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TGIF: Robo Octopus Biomimetics
TGIF: Robo Octopus Biomimetics avatar

By , on April 3rd, 2009 One comment   Cephalopods, Gadgets & Gear   , , , , ,  

Biomimetics is the field of study where animals provide the inspiration for engineering designs that can be exploited by us, quite literally “life mimicking”. It goes to show there is so much basic organismal biology that we don’t know and so much we can learn from observation and experimentation! Read the full article in New . . . → Read More: TGIF: Robo Octopus Biomimetics

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Robot glider to make Trans-Atlantic journey
Robot glider to make Trans-Atlantic journey avatar

By , on January 31st, 2009 One comment   Gadgets & Gear, Organisms, Scientist!, Vessels and Equipment   , , , , , ,  

Sea turtles do it. Ocean liners do it. Charles Lindbergh did it. Even a Zeppelin can do it. Can an autonomous robot do it, across the North Atlantic Ocean… underwater? The journey across the Atlantic has always been an historic one. Now marine scientists are preparing what may be the first autonomous crossing by an . . . → Read More: Robot glider to make Trans-Atlantic journey

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