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Robotic Nanotech Swarms on Mars... in 2034
Roland Piquepaille writes "NASA is testing a shape-shifting robot called 'TETwalker' for tetrahedral walker, because it looks like a flexible pyramid. It has been tested in the lab and at the McMurdo station in Antarctica to test it under conditions more like those on Mars. Now, it is on the way to be -- really -- miniaturized by using micro- and nano-electro-mechanical systems. These robots will eventually join together to form 'autonomous nanotechnology swarms' (ANTS). When it's done, in about thirty years, these nanotech swarms will 'alter their shape to flow over rocky terrain or to create useful structures like communications antennae and solar sails.' So in 2034, nanotechnology will land on Mars. Read more for other details and references about the TETwalker and the ANTS project."
For those who are curious...e rs/ants.html
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/roboticexplor
It's been interesting watching the discussion evolve from "This is neat in theory" fifteen years ago to "Today we've got a prototypical nanocomputer" months ago. To think that such great things will be accomplished with machines so tiny and technology inconceivable a decade ago. It's been a pleasure to watch the intelligent design of these electronic critters by benevolent creators from the ground up and has given me shall we say ample room to consider the possible origins of biological life.
And now we're talking about terraforming, or making a world to suit ourselves, with this irreducibly complex material. Heady stuff, to say the least.
Try not. Do or do not, there is no try.
-- Dr. Spock, stardate 2822-3.
Here. The page has more details and link to movies.
The relevant original links:
Here and Here.
Check your facts. A pyramid can have any polygon for a base. The Egyptian pyramids (among others) happen to have square bases.
Could be a bad idea... don't forget the concept of "Grey Goo".
What is the concern with this blog? It's the absolute dearth of original information.
Let's look at the composition of a few recent blog entries, in characters:
Note that most of the "self-written" portions are vapid statements such as "But where is nanotechnology involved in this project?"
So, we have 52% of the text coming from plagiarism, ~ 23% of the text coming from introducing / pointing out links, and ~ %25% of the text coming from saying the obvious. That's the problem with the blog.
The technique used on the site is barely better than the spam search engines that link to (and excerpt from) Wikipedia.
It all goes downhill from first post
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I for one welcome our new Roland Piquepaille overlords !
You CAN arrange them (command them to arrange themselves) into planar sheets, or any other structure type.
It is almost like magic: submicroscopic gadgets lie around in dirt, unseen, then when you hit the remote, a metal construction begins to emerge, slowly though, but if they are programmed to recursively build larger and larger mechnical manipulators as needed, then speed of construction rises toward the end...Besides, constructions made out of minute and inteligent identical parts may "self-cure" (gracefuly degrade, by rearrangement) if damaged!
At first glance, future developing efficent procedures for building macroscopic technical systems of nanobots seems like a very big new area of interdisciplinary engineering expertise - something like a cross between programming, architecture, mechanical engineering and organisational/management sciences, perhaps chemistry and biology, too. Before we have that idea tools in our pocket, nanobots for themself don't mean much, but we will need them (or at least a software to simulate them in 3D) to practice and develop new skills. This may prove to be the ultimate engineering method, one for everything, real Santa Claus machine(...-let, a swarm of them, that is), held back only by its cost.