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Robots Assimilate Into Cockroach Society

Posted by Zonk on from the good-to-see-the-robots-making-new-friends dept.

sufijazz writes "Scientists have gotten tiny robots to not only integrate into cockroach society but also control it. 'This experiment in bug peer pressure combined entomology, robotics and the study of ways that complex and even intelligent patterns can arise from simple behavior. Animal behavior research shows that swarms working together can prosper where individuals might fail, and robotics researchers have been experimenting with simple robots that, together, act a little like a swarm.' The BBC also has a video story on this."

1 of 107 comments (clear)

  1. Get the cockroaches out of the house! by Simonetta · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    So, ahh, after all this research, do they have a program that will actually get the robot cockroaches to lead the bio-roaches OUT of the house? Or into a poison trap where they can all be killed?

        I used to live in New Orleans. They have cockroaches there that are as big as your finger. They hang out on light bulbs. When you turn on a light in a dark room, you learn to put your hand in front of your face because the instant light causes the giant roaches to blast off the light bulb and often right at your face.

        Killing these roaches by the hundreds of thousands would really improve the quality of life. Along with getting the carcinogens out of the drinking water, making the levees stronger, and a whole lot of other things.

        Still getting a fleet of robot cockroaches to lead bio-roaches to their doom somehow would be wonderful. Then we can start to work on the termites and the rats, then the republicans and the Klan.