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Underwater Bot Finds Surprisingly Thick Antarctic Ice

SeaBED uses sonar to map the hard-to-reach ice, which is as thick as 65 feet

(Newser) - Until now, scientists have measured ice thickness using satellite images, visual estimates, and by drilling holes in the ice itself. But in Antarctica, much of the floating ice is actually underwater, with ice so thick that drilling and satellite images just don't work. For the past four years, a...

Scientists Make a Robot With a Worm's 'Mind'

Lego invention moves without being programmed

(Newser) - They're not quite at the point where they can implant a human brain into a robot—but scientists have taken a step closer. They've simulated the simple and well-studied nervous system of the Caenorhabditis elegans roundworm and stuck it in a robot, the Smithsonian reports. First, they mapped...

How a Paralyzed Groom Walked Down the Aisle

Matt Ficarra relied on a bionic exoskeleton

(Newser) - There weren't many dry eyes when Matt Ficarra walked down the aisle with his new wife, Jordan Basile—and not just because the occasion was his wedding. The Syracuse, NY, man has been paralyzed from his chest down since he broke his neck in a boating accident in 2011....

Scientists Create Biggest-Ever Robot Swarm

Harvard researchers get 1K little ones to work together

(Newser) - At about the size of a quarter, these little guys aren't the robot overlords of sci-fi lore, but they're pretty impressive all the same. Harvard researchers programmed 1,024 of the "kilobots" to work in tandem with each other to form complex shapes, a feat being hailed...

Korea Baseball Team So Bad Its 'Fans' Are Actual Robots

South Korea's Hanwha Eagles let humans watch from home

(Newser) - If you're a fan of the Hanwha Eagles, you can be a part of the crowd without even going to the game. That's thanks to the team's army of robots, who sit in the stadium and broadcast the game to viewers at home—all while cheering for...

Watch Out: By 2029, Robots Will Be Smarter Than People

Even the smartest people, says artificial intelligence expert

(Newser) - If you're concerned that robots might one day gain sentience and rise up against the humans, a recent proclamation from Google's director of engineering probably will not calm you: Ray Kurzweil says that by 2029, computers will be smarter than even the smartest people. Kurzweil, a leading artificial...

Google Robot Wins Pentagon Competition

Completes Fukushima-inspired obstacle course

(Newser) - One of Google's recent robotics acquisitions cruised to victory in a Pentagon obstacle course meant to simulate a robot rescue. The Schaft robot, by a Japanese firm Google recently bought, was the top scorer in the eight-task event, held Friday and Saturday, the BBC reports. Coming in second was...

Google's Latest Buy: Military Robot Firm

Boston Dynamics contraption is world's fastest robot runner

(Newser) - Google has purchased its eighth robotics company of the year, and its latest acquisition makes the fastest-running robot on the planet. Boston Dynamics, inventor of the Cheetah, gets US military funding to make mobile robots, the BBC reports. Along with the Cheetah—which can run 29mph—company projects include BigDog,...

New Robo-Cop: 'R2-D2's Evil Twin'

300-pound Silicon Valley robot aims to keep an eye on things

(Newser) - Its makers don't like to compare it to "RoboCop or Terminator"—but it's hard not to. The K5 Autonomous Data Machine is an electronic security guard developed in Silicon Valley by a company called Knightscope, Fox News reports. It's five feet tall, weighs 300 pounds,...

Florida Guy's Crime: Shooting Robot Deer

Decoy used to catch poachers

(Newser) - Florida officials use a bit of technological trickery to catch potential poachers: They set out real-looking robotic deer in areas they think are attracting illegal hunting, Outside reports. The tactic—also used in Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Utah—seems to be effective, the Smithsonian notes. After a Florida man pulled over...

Japan Sends Robo-Astronaut to Space Station

Launch is 'one giant leap for robots'

(Newser) - Japan may have been nowhere near putting the first man into orbit or on the moon, but today it sent the first robot "astronaut" to the International Space Station. Tucked among some 5 tons of supplies headed to the ISS is a 13-inch-tall talking humanoid robot named Kirobo, reports...

FDA Tightens Scrutiny of Surgical Robot

Move comes after increase of reports in problems

(Newser) - You may not have heard of the da Vinci surgical robot, but your local hospital surely has. The $1.5 million robot is a hot item in the medical world, having been used in 367,000 US surgeries last year. Now, however, the FDA is talking a closer look after...

Robot Can Change Colors, Disguise Itself

Researchers use squid, not mammals for their inspiration

(Newser) - Inspired by the camouflage skills of octopuses and squid, scientists have created a rubbery, silicon robot that can change colors to hide in almost any environment, reports the BBC . While most robots "are basically built on the body plan of a mammal," said George Whitesides, the paper's...

Robotic Legs Take Big Step Forward

Robolegs accurately mimic human gait

(Newser) - Robotic legs have taken a big and biologically accurate step into the future thanks to a team from the University of Arizona. The team has developed legs that it says mimic the human gait more effectively than any other, with an electronic version of the message system in the spinal...

Lab Creates Unbeatable Rock, Paper, Scissors Robot

(It cheats)

(Newser) - It's official, robots have crossed the final frontier. First it was chess, then Jeopardy , and now it's that most human of games: rock, paper, scissors. Scientists at the University of Tokyo have created a robot that literally cannot be beaten at the ancient art of roshambo, the Telegraph...

Holy Grail of Robots: One to Debone a Chicken

Apparently, it's harder to design than it seems

(Newser) - It would be the "Holy Grail" of robots, a real "game-changer," experts say: a robot that can … debone a chicken?! Yes, though robots can already fly planes, locate bombs, and help with surgeries, apparently years of technological advances have still failed to produce a robot that...

Meet the Robot You Control With Your Mind

Paralyzed people could soon have robot avatars

(Newser) - It sounds like an idea out of science fiction: Paralyzed people using mind-controlled robot bodies to interact with the world. But a team of Swiss scientists yesterday demonstrated a robot that could do just that. They tapped into the brain of partial quadriplegic Mark-Andre Duc, who was in a hospital...

Science Project Fuels Airport Bomb Scare

11 briefly detained over college student's robot

(Newser) - A college student's science project prompted a panic at Dallas Love Field airport yesterday, with authorities evacuating hundreds of people and detaining 11 passengers. As college students and their professor exited a Southwest Airlines plane that had flown in from Kansas City, one left a "robotic device" on...

Military 'Cheetah' Breaks Robot Sprinting Record

DARPA prototype can go 18mph

(Newser) - Someday, the US may fight wars with an army of creepy robotic cheetahs. That's right, a Pentagon-funded robo-cheetah has been successfully tested, setting a new land-speed record for a machine with legs, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency has announced. The cheetah hit a speed of 18mph, which makes...

Nevada OKs Robot Cars
 Nevada OKs Robot Cars 
Feb 17, 2012 1:19 PM CST

Nevada OKs Robot Cars

New rules allow companies to begin testing

(Newser) - Nevada drivers might be sharing the road with robots someday. The state's Department of Motor Vehicles has approved regulations allowing self-driving cars to hit the street, PC Mag reports. The rules govern test vehicles—like the one Google has already built —and will eventually apply to those released...

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