Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Experimental study
Cells
Kinematic self-replication in reconfigurable organisms
29-Nov-2021
Team builds first living robots that can reproduce
SCIENTISTS AT UVM, TUFTS, AND HARVARD DISCOVERED A NEW FORM OF BIOLOGICAL REPRODUCTION—AND CREATED SELF-REPLICATING LIVING ROBOTS. MADE FROM FROG CELLS, THESE COMPUTER-DESIGNED ORGANISMS GATHER SINGLE CELLS INSIDE A PAC-MAN-SHAPED “MOUTH”—AND RELEASE XENOBOT “BABIES” THAT LOOK AND MOVE LIKE THEMSELVES. THEN THE OFFSPRING GO AND DO THE SAME—OVER AND OVER. Credit: Editing by Ian Thomas Jansen-Lonnquist & Cody Silfies; footage by Douglas Blackiston & Sam Kriegman
Additional Media
Xenobots are an invention of and collaborative research effort by (from left): Josh Bongard, University of Vermont; Michael Levin, Tufts University and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University; Douglas Blackiston, Tufts University; and Sam Kriegman, Tufts University and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University. Credit: Tufts and ICDO
An AI-designed, Pac-Man-shaped “parent” organism (in red) beside stem cells that have been compressed into a ball—the “offspring” (green). Credit: Douglas Blackiston and Sam Kriegman
Keywords
Article Information
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Method of Research
Experimental study
Subject of Research
Cells
Article Publication Date
2021-11-29
Article Title
Kinematic self-replication in reconfigurable organisms
Contact Information
How to Cite This Article
APA:
University of Vermont. (2021, November 29). Team builds first living robots that can reproduce. Brightsurf News. https://www.brightsurf.com/news/L3RR6WQ8/team-builds-first-living-robots-that-can-reproduce.html
MLA:
"Team builds first living robots that can reproduce." Brightsurf News, Nov. 29 2021, https://www.brightsurf.com/news/L3RR6WQ8/team-builds-first-living-robots-that-can-reproduce.html.