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MIT Robot Walks On Water

Posted by timothy on from the just-not-evenly-distributed dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Researchers at MIT have solved the mystery of how water striders propel themselves across water surfaces and in the process have created a robot called Robostrider that mimics the behavior. With cool stuff like this, it's no wonder MIT is number one in engineering."

18 of 283 comments (clear)

  1. Case of the Mondays by MhzJnky · · Score: 3, Informative

    Slashdot had a case of the mondays and frogot itself

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    1. Re:Case of the Mondays by Saeger · · Score: 5, Informative
      Actually, it did. The 2nd link talked about the MIT strider bots.

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  2. I heard of this ages ago. by rokzy · · Score: 1, Informative

    I think in the print edition of new scientist a couple of weeks ago. ffs catch up.

    robot news is boring. please set up a robot category so I can filter it.

    1. Re:I heard of this ages ago. by 1u3hr · · Score: 2, Informative
      ffs catch up.

      They did; this is the rerun.

      Posted by michael on Friday August 08, @08:55PM
      from the good-junkyard-wars-challenge dept.
      capt.Hij writes "There is an interesting article at the Christian Science Monitor about how water skimmers are able to move the way they do. This new theory debunks the previously accepted theory and answers why smaller, younger water skimmers are also able to move the same way as their elders: 'As he looked into the question, he adds, he learned that the reigning explanation leaves an unsolved puzzle: If these tiny insects propel themselves in the way many researchers think they do, then baby water striders should go nowhere fast.'" There's also a BBC story with pictures.
  3. Dupe by Saeger · · Score: 5, Informative
    This water strider story was posted two weeks ago, but because the way it was worded this time, the focus of the posts will probably be on robots (and dupe flaming) rather than the Christian Science Monitor being remarkably unbiased. :)

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  4. Mirror by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    In case the site is slow, here's a mirror to the link in the article.

  5. Re:Eh?? by dollargonzo · · Score: 4, Informative

    it's no mystery as to how they stay afloat. the big question was how they propel themselves

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  6. Re:Eh?? by thelen · · Score: 4, Informative

    The question is about propulsion, not weight-to-surface tension ratios sufficient for flotation. This research gives a better explanation of the mechanism by which the water skimmers move with such great efficiency (namely by created subsurface vortices with their middle pair of legs) and puts to rest the notion that it is attributable to the waves themselves created by a rowing action.

  7. correction.. by linuxislandsucks · · Score: 2, Informative

    The actual measure of the number one school engineering is the school with the highest number of graduates as actual astronauts serving with NASA..

    That record past and present is held by Purdue University...

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    1. Re:correction.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      Err, you might want to check you facts. I think MIT put out 31 astronauts, more than Purdue's 20?

      Then again the article is from June 2001.

      MIT Astronauts

  8. 3-link Swimmer by frantzdb · · Score: 2, Informative

    Just to save everyone the trouble, the third robot the fluids lab appears to be working on is a 3-segment swimmer.

  9. Re:Censored photos of waterstrider sex? by RebelWithoutAClue · · Score: 3, Informative

    This guy _might_ have been trying to make a point about censorship in the world, or maybe just trying to crack a joke ? :)

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  10. Re:Censored photos of waterstrider sex? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    Note he also protected the anonymity of the insects by blacking out their faces.

    It's a joke!

  11. Re:Point of note by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    I think some of your facts are wrong..

    If I remember correctly Minsky showed that a two layer linear neural network is not very capapable recognizer (and two 2-layer linear networks == one 2-layer linear neural network,(matrices: AB = C)). From which he made the wrong assumption that neural networks with non-linear neural responses wouldn't be very good either.

  12. Re:Point of note by qewl · · Score: 2, Informative

    Why the apostrophe in "nazi's"? Yea, you're also forgetting that the question mark should be inside the quotes there!

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  13. Re:Point of note by 1u3hr · · Score: 2, Informative
    He probably confused the idea of adding an apostrophe on for things like 10's, et. al.

    Which is also wrong. You don't need an apostrophe before a plural s unless there is some chance of confusion. There isn't when adding an s to a figure, so you don't need one there.

  14. Re:Eh?? by The+Only+Druid · · Score: 2, Informative

    In oversimplified english, sub-surface vortices are swirls in the water immediately below the surface of the water.

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  15. Gecko robots by jdfox · · Score: 2, Informative

    And yet they haven't made a robot that can walk up walls like a gecko.

    No, MIT haven't made a wall-walking gecko-robot yet, but Berkeley have, and so have DARPA.