Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Robotic Mold

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the he-slimed-me dept.

Canis Lupus writes to mention that researchers from the University of West England are designing the world's first biological robot, constructed from mold. The robot, "Plasmobot," will be created using vegetative slime mold called plasmodium (Physarum polycephalum) that is commonly found in forests, gardens, and most damp places in the UK. "This new plasmodium robot, called plasmobot, will sense objects, span them in the shortest and best way possible, and transport tiny objects along pre-programmed directions. The robots will have parallel inputs and outputs, a network of sensors and the number crunching power of super computers. The plasmobot will be controlled by spatial gradients of light, electro-magnetic fields and the characteristics of the substrate on which it is placed. It will be a fully controllable and programmable amorphous intelligent robot with an embedded massively parallel computer."

118 comments

  1. robotic fp by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    doesn't run on linux!

  2. The picture in the article ... by neonprimetime · · Score: 2, Funny

    ... is amazing! Kinda looks like my son took 2 of his matchbox cars and drove them thru his dinner plate. :-P

    1. Re:The picture in the article ... by Hatta · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I'm just glad this goo is orange and not grey.

      --
      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
  3. Good marketing team by captaindomon · · Score: 2, Funny

    "...number crunching power of super computers... It will be a fully controllable and programmable amorphous intelligent robot with an embedded massively parallel computer." I don't think that means what you think it means...

    --
    Just because I can hook a shark from a boat, I do no offer to wrestle it in the water.
    1. Re:Good marketing team by Brian+Gordon · · Score: 1

      Seriously sounds legit to me. From TFA:

      It propagates and searches for sources of nutrients and when it finds such sources it branches out in a series of veins of protoplasm. The plasmodium is capable of solving complex computational tasks, such as the shortest path between points and other logical calculations

    2. Re:Good marketing team by blackraven14250 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So, how is this different from putting some mold on or near a bunch of moldfood and letting it work its magic?

    3. Re:Good marketing team by PotatoFarmer · · Score: 5, Funny

      I don't know about you, but we've tried our own implementation of this phenomenon in our office fridge, and haven't gotten any good computational output. Sure, the General Tso's Chicken came up with a fairly solid quicksort implementation, but that Greenish Liquid That May or May Not Have Been a Salad At One Time still hasn't figured out basic pointer arithmetic, much less decent memory management.

    4. Re:Good marketing team by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Pour that liquid on the General Tso's Chicken and you'll get a TRS-80

    5. Re:Good marketing team by Nigel+Stepp · · Score: 2, Informative

      It's not really much different from that, which is exactly why it is interesting! Natural phenomena solve some of the hardest problems in computation, just by doing what they normally do.

      The trick is controlling that process to get it to solve things we are interested in.

      --
      4096R/EF7BAFA6 79E1 DF98 D09D 898F 9A11 F6F0 DDDC 23FA EF7B AFA6
    6. Re:Good marketing team by Chris+Burke · · Score: 1

      Sure, the General Tso's Chicken came up with a fairly solid quicksort implementation

      "Kill em all, let the ancestors sort 'em out"?

      I like it. O(n) and easily executed in parallel. :)

      --

      The enemies of Democracy are
    7. Re:Good marketing team by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It doesn't need memory management; all it needs is BRAAIINNNSss.....

  4. I, for one... by Tsar · · Score: 1

    ...am completely grossed out.

  5. Molderama by thethibs · · Score: 1

    Now that is funny! British wit at its best.

    --
    I'm a Programmer. That's one level above Software Engineer and one level below Engineer.
    1. Re:Molderama by Jmanamj · · Score: 1

      I dunno, I kinda think this was done a while ago by El Goonish Shive...

      http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?arcid=3

      (obligatory)

    2. Re:Molderama by mcgrew · · Score: 3, Funny

      I noticed a tiny mistake in TFS. Since it's British, they should have spelled it "mould", becauuse American mold is so different. British mold doesn't even have color -- it has colours.

      --
      Free Martian Whores!
  6. And? by Kell+Bengal · · Score: 2, Interesting

    And what exactly do they intend to use it for? Does this have any practical applications where it would be superior to an inorganic robot that isn't at risk of being eaten by the first moderately complex organism that thinks mold looks tasty?

    --
    Scientists point out problems, engineers fix them
    altslashdot.org: The future of slashdot.
    1. Re:And? by oldspewey · · Score: 4, Funny

      Rest assured, your Dungeon Master will come up with something interesting.

      --
      If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
    2. Re:And? by tacarat · · Score: 3, Funny

      You're sitting in a bar. The vid screen is barely audible over the sounds of the loud patrons hammering back their brews and celebrating the end of the day and beginning of the night. With some effort, you tune your cybernetic hearing enhancement to hear the newscaster.

      "Hackers used banned mould robots to conquer cheese factories in Wisconsin and France. News at Eleven.

      Looking down, the plate of nachos you ordered suddenly doesn't look so appealing. It looks less appealing as it leaps up from the plate, tortilla chips poking your eye and jalapenos forcing their way down your throat.

      Roll for initiative, please.

      --
      "Common sense will be the death of us all"
    3. Re:And? by pla · · Score: 2, Interesting

      And what exactly do they intend to use it for?

      Nice and simple answer to that FTA: "Researchers have received a Leverhulme Trust grant worth £228,000 to develop the amorphous non-silicon biological robot".

      At the risk of getting modded "redundant", this really doesn't sound like much of a "discovery", much less a "robot". At best, IF they came up with a novel way to arrange food around it to solve NP-complete problems, you could call it a type of massively parallel processor. Possibly, with a real stretch of the imagination and some polymer science voodoo, a self-arranging scaffold for 3d modelling. But a robot? Just because it moves doesn't make it a Porche.

    4. Re:And? by neonsignal · · Score: 2, Informative

      Hmmm, this tastes like slime mold juice.

    5. Re:And? by Abstrackt · · Score: 1

      Crap, I rolled a 1....

      --
      They say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, but it's not one half so bad as a lot of ignorance. - Terry Pratchett
    6. Re:And? by tacarat · · Score: 1

      /roll/
      Ok then. Everybody looks around as you begin choking on cyber-hacked cheddar cheese. Somebody has the sense of mind to come behind you and start giving you the Heimlich maneuver.

      /rolls again/

      Corn chip shrapnel sprays out of your mouth and onto the crowd. Disgusted patrons glare at you as they wipe the hacked orange cheese goo from their faces.

      /lots of dice/

      Abstrackt. Please roll to save versus hacked cheese mind control. And you might want to pray that the leather clad bald guy coming towards you with the switchblade fails his roll in time...

      --
      "Common sense will be the death of us all"
    7. Re:And? by oldspewey · · Score: 1

      /lots of dice/

      All time best way to speed up a conversation and get the PCs moving: roll a bunch of dice and start scribbling on a sheet of paper, followed by "so are you guys still standing there under that tree?"

      --
      If libertarians are so opposed to effective government, why don't they all move to Somalia?
    8. Re:And? by Chris+Burke · · Score: 2, Funny

      Roll for initiative, please.

      Man, if there's ever a situation where I'd be okay with the GM assuming I'm caught off guard, it's when my own plate of nachos leaps up and attacks my face. The only way I could be more surprised would be if the Long Island Ice Tea I bought tried to sober me up.

      --

      The enemies of Democracy are
    9. Re:And? by NewbieProgrammerMan · · Score: 1

      Mmmmm....delicious cave mold!

      --
      [b.belong('us') for b in bases if b.owner() == 'you']
    10. Re:And? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I always found myself getting queasy when any of my characters ate a [Dried King Bolete] that they'd looted off some manky undead. Mmmmm, corpse mushrooms!

  7. AD&D Comes to Life by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wow real Advanced Dungeons and Dragons green slime. Now we just need it in MONSTER SIZE

    1. Re:AD&D Comes to Life by drseuk · · Score: 3, Funny

      Translation for our readers in New Zealand, he means "monster size".

  8. Not Really a Robot by Garrett+Fox · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The article explains what's meant by saying that the "robot" will compute: "Most people's idea of a computer is a piece of hardware with software designed to carry out specific tasks. This mould, or plasmodium, is a naturally occurring substance with its own embedded intelligence. It propagates and searches for sources of nutrients and when it finds such sources it branches out in a series of veins of protoplasm. The plasmodium is capable of solving complex computational tasks, such as the shortest path between points and other logical calculations. Through previous experiments we have already demonstrated the ability of this mould to transport objects. By feeding it oat flakes, it grows tubes which oscillate and make it move in a certain direction carrying objects with it. We can also use light or chemical stimuli to make it grow in a certain direction."

    That's like saying that the bamboo plant on my desk is a robot. It, too, transports substances in a direction determined by light input, and computes the optimal direction for approaching a light source. I could even claim that I'm adding "logic gates" to it by covering or pruning certain leaves.

    Says the article, the mold robot has "the number crunching power of super computers" because it carries out computing tasks. That claim is also pretty silly. The A* algorithm can find the shortest distance between paths, and it doesn't require anything that could be called a supercomputer today.

    So, this thing is a "robot" in the sense that pointing at random objects and calling yourself a master of "found art" is art.

    --
    Revive the Constitution.
    1. Re:Not Really a Robot by sonnejw0 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Exactly. In fact, plasmodium does not compute optimal distances, it has no senses to detect objects at a distance. It detects chemical concentration gradients and moves to or from higher concentrations of chemicals it likes or dislikes. It does not compute. In fact, if you've ever seen one move, it wriggles around a lot. It has to, in order to detect its immediate environment.

      What is the point of this article?

    2. Re:Not Really a Robot by tacarat · · Score: 1

      To inspire researchers. If somebody will fund that, you can find somebody to fund your beer pyramid project if you polish the proposal enough.

      --
      "Common sense will be the death of us all"
    3. Re:Not Really a Robot by blackraven14250 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I have better projects involving certain plants in mind.

    4. Re:Not Really a Robot by cstacy · · Score: 1

      The article explains what's meant by saying that the "robot" will compute..."
      So, this thing is a "robot" in the sense that pointing at random objects and calling yourself a master of "found art" is art.

      The real test is whether the entire AI can be implemented in a single Twitter.

    5. Re:Not Really a Robot by tacarat · · Score: 1

      Your proposal intrigues me. Let us discuss it over cheetos and... everything else in reach.

      --
      "Common sense will be the death of us all"
    6. Re:Not Really a Robot by MetalPhalanx · · Score: 1

      Oh hey, brownies!

    7. Re:Not Really a Robot by Tolkien · · Score: 1

      By your description it sounds like this would be the beginnings of some sort of primordial ooze, if it weren't for us messing with it.

      --
      how is babby formed?
    8. Re:Not Really a Robot by sonnejw0 · · Score: 1

      LOL, I am at a loss. I'd mod you Funny if your comment wasn't so Insightfu, or should I say Informative.

    9. Re:Not Really a Robot by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was written by the mould :)

    10. Re:Not Really a Robot by internettoughguy · · Score: 1

      Sounds like the Random Walk. Which isn't to far from my Post-JÃgermeister dancing style.

    11. Re:Not Really a Robot by khakipuce · · Score: 1

      It's that time of year - University Clearing, all the minor universities in the UK are trying to get their names in the media so that potential students who didn't get into a major university may pick them instead of a gap year.

      --
      Art is the mathematics of emotion
    12. Re:Not Really a Robot by Pranadevil2k · · Score: 1

      This article details exactly how the creators were able to swindle some investors out of £200,000 by using big computer words to describe common mold.

    13. Re:Not Really a Robot by mikiN · · Score: 1

      "To tweet or not to tweet, that's the question. I tweet therefore I am, so I am part of a question looking for an answer: to assert myself."

      --
      The Hacker's Guide To The Kernel: Don't panic()!
  9. Controlling them? by gmuslera · · Score: 3, Funny

    The previous attemp contained in papers stored in the head, using hebrew text as programming language.

  10. Cold Sweats by mindbrane · · Score: 1
    >"It will be a fully controllable"

    >"and programmable amorphous intelligent robot with an embedded massively parallel computer."

    Now see, it's that bit, the bit about it being fully controllable that makes me nervous. Why did they feel the need to put that bit in. Slimy mold; intelligent, massively parallel processing robot... fully controllable, yes but by whom and for how long.

    --
    ideopath @ play
    1. Re:Cold Sweats by Zocalo · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think it can be summed up best as "what could possibly grow wrong?"

      --
      UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
    2. Re:Cold Sweats by natehoy · · Score: 0, Troll

      I, for one, will welcome our robotic overslimelords.

      As a welcoming present, I present this extra jumbo can of Athete's Foot spray to you in the interests of peaceful coexistenc.. FFFFFFSSSSHHH!!!!!

      Can empty, problem solved.

      --
      "This post contains words, known to the State of California to cause thought. Wash brain thoroughly after reading."
    3. Re:Cold Sweats by PinkyGigglebrain · · Score: 1

      Makes me wonder if Shogoths started out as a little orange mold in a petri dish.

  11. All hail mold...... by pcman · · Score: 1

    All is well and good until it develops AI and we bow before it. I figured technology would get us eventually but, and I must admit, yielding to our new mold masters was not what I had in mind. You will become one with the slime!!!

  12. Real Research by beringreenbear · · Score: 3, Informative

    Adamatzky I'm already familiar with, citing his Chemical Computer in a senior paper to finish my CS degree. This is no more crazy than using electrostatic foam to compute.

  13. Allergies! by smallshot · · Score: 2, Funny

    Great, now I'll be allergic to my electronics too. Nature I can escape, but mold in my computer??

  14. What about insurance? by macbeth66 · · Score: 1

    Will Old Glory Insurance provide a policy for this new menace?

    In the meantime, I am putting my medicine under lock and key!

    1. Re:What about insurance? by space_jake · · Score: 1

      On the plus side, you should be able to break free of its grip since it isn't made of metal.

    2. Re:What about insurance? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Note the line "We can use light or chemical stimuli to make it grow in a certain direction." I believe Chemical Stimuli is another word for "Old People's Medicine".

  15. Umm... by coolsteve · · Score: 2, Insightful
    From the article:

    This mould, or plasmodium, is a naturally occurring substance with its own embedded intelligence. It propagates and searches for sources of nutrients and when it finds such sources it branches out in a series of veins of protoplasm.

    Does this worry anyone else?

    1. Re:Umm... by Yvan256 · · Score: 1

      Two words: Trapper Keeper.

    2. Re:Umm... by blackraven14250 · · Score: 3, Informative

      No, this sounds like it's a normal mold.

    3. Re:Umm... by clone53421 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yeah. Sounds about as interesting as using sunflower heads to keep solar cells pointed at the sun. Sure, you can probably do it, but does it accomplish anything practically?

      I.e., tell me when they've done something interesting. In the meantime, they're just watching mold do what mold normally does.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    4. Re:Umm... by pthisis · · Score: 2, Interesting

      No, this sounds like it's a normal mold.

      Nope, normal molds are fungi. Slime molds aren't molds at all. They used to be considered in the now-defunct Protist kingdom, but that's not a monophyletic grouping, so it's been split up into several different kingdoms (although the exact classification is still the subject of some debate).

      The most popular current taxonomy puts slime molds into several kingdoms, with plasmodial slime molds (the case at hand) in the kingdom Amoebozoa alongside amoebas (among others) and decidedly not in the kingdoms of plants, animals, or fungi.

      --
      rage, rage against the dying of the light
  16. overhyped by jacktherobot · · Score: 1

    this is just another article about someone getting research money.

    1. Re:overhyped by mcgrew · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Why is it lately that every time there's any slashdot story about any research whatever, somebody has to pipe in that it's "just another article about someone getting research money"?

      What's the matter, can't get your project funded?

      --
      Free Martian Whores!
    2. Re:overhyped by blackraven14250 · · Score: 1

      I'm not a good enough bullshitter.

    3. Re:overhyped by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      Then hire a bullshitter! Or come up with an interesting hypothesis you want to test.

      --
      Free Martian Whores!
    4. Re:overhyped by jacktherobot · · Score: 1

      I'm not trying to knock the guy for getting research money. I'm a researcher myself. I just think that getting funding for research isn't news. Discovering something as a result of your research is.

    5. Re:overhyped by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      True.

      --
      Free Martian Whores!
  17. Super Mario Bros movie by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Am I the only one getting flashbacks to the Super Mario Bros. movie, I know it was fungus but still....

  18. Note to self: by space_jake · · Score: 1

    Stock up on liquid nitrogen and multiple hand-held fire extinguishers for inevitable fight with the blob.

  19. Bender by Yvan256 · · Score: 2

    Bite my slimey moldy ass!

  20. Interesting Background Material by DynaSoar · · Score: 5, Interesting

    From an unlikely source: PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez

    Search terms "plasmodium Physarum polycephalum"

    I went looking for negative stuff, knowing plasmodiums were behind malaria. Couldn't find any for this stuff, but I did find some juicy bits from biomedical science regarding its computational ability, or rather its internal processes that can be used as such. Not many will be able to get the referenced material, but just the abstracts are tasty.

    --
    "I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid." -- Bishop 341-B
    1. Re:Interesting Background Material by Archaemic · · Score: 5, Interesting

      The plasmodium behind malaria is not the same kind of plasmodium. IIRC, malaria is caused by a sporozoan, which is completely different from a slime mould. In fact, plasmodium is not even a kind of slime mould. In reference to slime moulds, plasmodium is just the macroscopic form of any slime mould.

    2. Re:Interesting Background Material by reverseengineer · · Score: 5, Informative

      Yeah, the reason slime molds are referred to as plasmodium is because the slime mold colony lacks defined cell walls or membranes between what would normally be considered individual cells. The mold can essentially be thought of as a single cell with many nuclei, since cytoplasm is continous throughout the entire colony. As the parent notes, this type of structure (a lifecycle stage, really) has nothing to do with the protozoa which cause malaria, which just happen to be of genus Plasmodium.

      --
      "FDA staff reviewers expressed concern about the number of patients who were left out of the study because they died."
    3. Re:Interesting Background Material by pthisis · · Score: 2, Informative

      In reference to slime moulds, plasmodium is just the macroscopic form of any slime mould.

      Not _any_ slime mold. Plasmodial slime molds are one small grouping of slime molds.

      Dictyostelids, for instance, are unicellular slime molds. Plasmodiums have many (often millions) nuclei in one cell membrane. Dictyostelids maintain cellular structure--their macroscopic form is not a plasmodium, though they do form a "pseudoplasmodium" that kind of looks like a plasmodium.

      And that's just the plasmodials and the dictyostelids, two kinds of slime molds in the Amoebozoa kingdom--there are 3 other kingdoms that contain other kinds of slime molds, many with macroscopic forms that are not plasmodiums.

      --
      rage, rage against the dying of the light
    4. Re:Interesting Background Material by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "malaria is caused by a sporozoan"

      To be fully accurate, we actually call them "apicomplexans" now...

  21. GPF Software by snspdaarf · · Score: 1

    Fooker, is that you?

    --
    Why, without your clothes, you're naked, Miss Dudley!
  22. Slime Mold by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    > Quaff potion
    > Tastes like Plasmobot juice!

  23. I believe Rudy Rucker has IP on this idea already. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    In his Ware Trilogy

  24. Tagging the story? by lavaforge · · Score: 1

    How do you put a "Shoggoth" tag onto a story? This sounds like something straight out of "At the Mountains of Madness".

  25. Meh by uberjack · · Score: 3, Funny

    This plasmodium doesn't hold a candle to my plasmondilium

  26. Nothing new by Nick+Fel · · Score: 1

    Saw a talk on this last year from some guys at Southampton who'd already done it: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biosystems.2006.09.016 Zauner is on a Microsoft Research fellowship though, so no doubt Slashdotters won't like it ;)

  27. Well I, for one... by morgan_greywolf · · Score: 2, Funny

    I, for one, welcome our new smelly, slimy, moldy robotic overlords....ewww....

    --
    My blog
  28. I'm rich!!! by Perp+Atuitie · · Score: 2, Funny

    My bathroom has enough slime and mold to corner the market with. I knew I was keeping it for something big.

  29. Cough, cough by hyades1 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Is it appropriate to lichen this bizarre construction to a robot? And I have to wonder whether it would be constructed from custom built components, or would they would have to come from a mold.

    --
    I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
    1. Re:Cough, cough by Comboman · · Score: 1

      Those puns are great. You must be a real fun-guy.

      --
      Support Right To Repair Legislation.
    2. Re:Cough, cough by hyades1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      In spite of what some sour little "toad's tool" with mod points and a lack of morels seems to believe, Slashdot always has shroom for a little humour.

      --
      I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
    3. Re:Cough, cough by mikiN · · Score: 1

      There is mush room for humour on slashdot, but sadly, some don't give a pig's ear. Others have missed their chance or blewit. Mods who can't take it are just arrogant puffballs.

      --
      The Hacker's Guide To The Kernel: Don't panic()!
  30. Sci-Fi Plot? by cashman73 · · Score: 1

    This sounds like the makings of a great Sci-Fi flick. Oh wait, I think it was recently just done,... Or maybe that was just a SyFy flick, so it really doesn't count,...

    1. Re:Sci-Fi Plot? by clam666 · · Score: 1

      Apparently you didn't bother to watch Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus. When the mold can jump up and eat a plane at 30,000 feet I'll be more concerned.

      --
      I'm a satanic clam.
  31. April 1? by wagr · · Score: 1

    April 1 at the end of August? Misuse a word and call it newsworthy?

  32. ObNethack by HonestButCurious · · Score: 5, Funny

    .........
    ..@F.....
    .........
    You hit the brown mold.  You are suddenly very cold!

    1. Re:ObNethack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sweet! I'd forgotten rogue / nethack. Genocide the mould!

  33. As seen on TV by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Didn't I see this same "intelligent" slime mold on Eureka a few weeks ago?

    WTF is up with attention whoring in academics today? Humility courses ought to be mandatory.

  34. Beowulf cluster... by MadFarmAnimalz · · Score: 2, Funny

    or moldy loaf of sliced bread? You decide!

    --
    Blearf. Blearf, I say.
    1. Re:Beowulf cluster... by Pflipp · · Score: 1

      The best IT jobs will get you both.

      --
      "We can confirm that Debian does *not* ship the version with the trojan horse. Our version predates it." [CA-2002-28]
  35. Whoa by Joe+Jay+Bee · · Score: 1

    Does this mean I can legitimately claim that the mould on my bathroom walls counts as advanced technology? Awesome!

    --
    I write bullshit
  36. Just wondering by Me!+Me!+42 · · Score: 1

    Is it April Fool's Day in England? Perhaps something lost in the translation?

    --
    -- My apologies if the above facts contain any opinions, or vice versa! --
  37. Cyborg? by DrWho520 · · Score: 1

    Is this a robot or a cyborg? Sounds more like cybernetic gray goo to me. Who knew it would literally be gray goo?

    --
    The cancel button is your friend. Do not hesitate to use it.
  38. Mold Brains? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "It might also be possible for thousands of tiny computers made of plasmodia to live on our skin and carry out routine tasks freeing up our brain for other things" ....So it could do our breathing for us so we can think harder?

  39. Seefa Schnee isn't involved with this one, right? by argent · · Score: 1

    Just so long as it's not used to create a nanovirus that infects people with creativity-enhancing Tourette's syndrome, I think we're OK.

  40. Physarum boats: If plasmodium sailed . . . by grshutt · · Score: 1

    Professor Andy Adamatzky has published a number of papers on plasmodium computing. See his web page at UWE Bristol:

    http://uncomp.uwe.ac.uk/adamatzky/

    and the video complimentary material for the article "Physarum boats: If plasmodium sailed it would never leave a port" at:

    http://uncomp.uwe.ac.uk/adamatzky/physarumboat/

    The video requires a Intel Indeo 5 decoder plugin.

  41. Spelling. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Mould*

  42. Grey Goo by aaaantoine · · Score: 1

    I came here to see if there was a greygoo tag. I was not disappointed.

  43. Who says techies are lazy? by WheelDweller · · Score: 0

    This is a great scam: "OK, the mold is at work- I need silence and more BEER!" :>

    --
    --- For a good time mail uce@ftc.gov
  44. Am I the only one.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ... who read that like "Robotic Maid"?

  45. Re:I believe Rudy Rucker has IP on this idea alrea by Bohnanza · · Score: 1

    I can't believe he was actually right. "Moldies" seemed a most unlikely Sci-fi idea.

    --

    -----

    Sorry, I'm only a 1336 h4x0r.

  46. Paging Dr. Spengler by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You're going to LOVE this!

  47. Green skin by sea4ever · · Score: 1

    "It might also be possible for thousands of tiny computers made of plasmodia to live on our skin and carry out routine tasks freeing up our brain for other things." - In the future we will all be covered in slime, is this human evolution? A time may come when bathing goes out of style in order to accumulate more processing power..

    1. Re:Green skin by Xerolooper · · Score: 1

      "It might also be possible for thousands of tiny computers made of plasmodia to live on our skin and carry out routine tasks freeing up our brain for other things." - In the future we will all be covered in slime, is this human evolution? A time may come when bathing goes out of style in order to accumulate more processing power..

      And they call me a disgusting slob for not bathing. I am just way ahead of my time.

      --
      "The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget." -Thomas Szasz
  48. If I Only Had A Brain by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What the plasmodium robot needs is an AI Mind. Then it will be an artificially intelligent Cyborg (cybernetic organism).

  49. Announcing Tomatobot! by sdguero · · Score: 1

    By placing a wire cage around my tomato plant I can alter the direction that the plant grows in making it capable of determining the fast route to the sun and moving small objects of my desire. The plant is able to grow, and can even transform carbon dioxide into oxygen! I call it tomatobot and I expect the government to give me a $500k grant to work on further development.

  50. ohshit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    won't be long before they rise up and take out all the mushroom farmers.. first

  51. Quick...call Hollywood! by MillenneumMan · · Score: 1

    You know...this article would make a great basis for rebooting the movie "The Blob"

  52. Still doesn't look like this robot by Master+of+Transhuman · · Score: 1

    http://blog.hdscreencaps.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/summer_glau_0002.jpg

    http://www.celebroundup.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/summer_glau.jpg

    http://www.mindfield.be/rommel/pictures/summerglau.jpg

    http://film-book.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/summer-glau-terminator-the-sarah-connor-chronicles-7.jpg

    --
    Richard Steven Hack - This sig is TOO GODDAMN SHORT TO DO ANYTHING USEFUL WITH! MORONS!
  53. Maybe I should stop showering by Rog-Mahal · · Score: 1

    and see if this will happen: from TFA: "It might also be possible for thousands of tiny computers made of plasmodia to live on our skin and carry out routine tasks freeing up our brain for other things." Enter the reign of the moldborgs.

  54. Beware of the Blob... by rogerdr · · Score: 1

    I see absolutely no chance of this going wrong. Perhaps they could send it out after all the kudzu... My god, men, think of what you're doing!!! :p

  55. top blog by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Congratulations! Our selection committee compiled an exclusive list of the Top 100 internet Blogs, and yours was included! Check it out at http://thedailyreviewer.com/top/internet

    You can claim your Top 100 Blogs Award Badge at http://thedailyreviewer.com/blog/553

    Cheers!

    Angelina...

  56. WARNING by dontmakemethink · · Score: 1

    DO NOT TAUNT PLASMOBOT

    --

    War as we knew it was obsolete
    Nothing could beat complete denial
    - Emily Haines
  57. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Comment removed based on user account deletion

  58. Is it just me? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Or I misread it as Robotic Maid