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neurobots

·April 30, 2024·5 min read

Robot Masters Terrain with Animal-Like Gait Transitions

Researchers leveraged deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to enable a robot to adaptively switch gaits, mimicking animal movements like trotting and pronking, to traverse complex terrains effectively. Their study explores the concept of viability—or fall prevention—as a primary motivator for such gait transitions, challenging previous beliefs that energy efficiency is the key driver.

This shows a robotic spider and a real spider.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 29, 2024·6 min read

Robots vs. Animals: Who Wins the Race in Natural Settings?

Researchers explored whether modern robots can outpace biological organisms in speed and agility. The study concludes that despite advances in engineering, animals still surpass robots in locomotive efficiency in natural settings.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·April 28, 2024·5 min read

Tiny Robotic Nerve Cuffs Promise Breakthrough in Neurocare

Researchers developed innovative, flexible devices that can gently wrap around nerve fibers, potentially transforming the diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders. These tiny, flexible "nerve cuffs" employ soft robotics and flexible electronics to interface with peripheral nerves without causing damage.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 11, 2024·5 min read

Revolutionizing Softness Perception in Robotics

Researchers developed SORI, a groundbreaking Softness Rendering Interface that can accurately simulate the perception of softness, addressing a long-standing challenge in robotics. By distinguishing between cutaneous and kinesthetic cues, SORI can replicate the softness of various materials, from marshmallows to beating hearts, offering vast applications in medicine, deep-sea exploration, and robot-assisted agriculture. This innovation not only advances the field of robotics but also provides a novel way to digitally transfer the sensation of touch, bridging a gap in human-robot interaction.

Featured Neuroscience

·January 29, 2024·5 min read

AI-Powered Robot Reads Braille Twice as Fast as Humans

Researchers developed a robotic sensor using artificial intelligence to read braille at a remarkable 315 words per minute with 87% accuracy, surpassing the average human reading speed. This sensor employs machine learning algorithms to interpret braille with high sensitivity, mirroring human-like reading behavior.

Featured Neuroscience

·November 30, 2023·9 min read

Anthrobots: Tiny Biobots From Human Cells Heal Neurons

Researchers developed 'Anthrobots,' microscopic biological robots made from human tracheal cells, demonstrating potential in healing and regenerative medicine. These self-assembling multicellular robots, ranging from hair-width to pencil-point size, show remarkable healing effects, particularly in neuron growth across damaged areas in lab conditions.

Featured Neuroscience

·September 8, 2023·5 min read

Brainless Robots Navigate Mazes

Researchers designed a "brainless" soft robot that can autonomously navigate through complex environments using physical intelligence. Unlike their previous model, which could only turn upon encountering obstacles, this robot can turn on its own.

This shows a hand in a robotic glove playing piano.

Featured Neuroscience

·June 30, 2023·5 min read

Harmonizing Recovery: Robotic Glove Helps Stroke Survivors Relearn Music

A 'smart hand exoskeleton', a custom-made robotic glove, can aid stroke patients in relearning dexterity-based skills like playing music. The glove, equipped with integrated tactile sensors, soft actuators, and artificial intelligence, can mimic natural hand movements and provide tactile sensations.

Featured Neuroethics Neuroscience

·May 25, 2023·3 min read

Rights or Rites? Reimagining Robots’ Moral Status through Confucian Lens

As robots become more pervasive in our society, the question of whether they should be granted rights is a subject of increasing debate. A new analysis challenges this view. Instead of rights, researchers propose we view robots as 'rites bearers', drawing on principles from Confucianism that emphasize social harmony and role obligations.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·May 22, 2023·5 min read

Charismatic Robot Voices: A Boost for Team Creativity?

Robotic voices with a charismatic tone can positively influence the creative performance of teams. Researchers designed a social robot's speech to sound charismatic, employing a confident, passionate tone and tested its effects on students during a creativity task.

This shows the researchers in the snow with the EELS robot.

Featured Neuroscience

·May 10, 2023·6 min read

JPL’s Serpentine EELS Maneuvers Through Uncharted Robotics Terrain

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is developing an autonomous, snake-like robot named EELS (Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor) that can explore previously inaccessible terrains. Initially inspired by the objective of exploring oceans below the icy crust of Saturn's moon, Enceladus, EELS has evolved into a highly adaptable robot capable of traversing a wide variety of terrains on Earth, the Moon, and beyond. The robot uses screw threads for propulsion, traction, and grip, and employs an array of sensors and navigation algorithms to autonomously sense its environment, calculate risk, and determine the safest path forward. The team behind EELS emphasizes rapid iteration—build quickly, test often, learn, adjust, repeat—to continuously refine both the hardware and software, allowing the robot to tackle unprecedented challenges in robotic exploration.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 29, 2023·5 min read

New Pill Regulates Appetite by Modulating Ghrelin Release

A new pill, called FLASH, has been developed to regulate appetite without drugs or invasive procedures. Researchers designed the pill to deliver electrical impulses to the stomach lining, modulating hunger-related gut hormones. The pill has been shown to affect the release of appetite hormone ghrelin in pig trials. FLASH could potentially treat various disorders related to metabolism and eating without pharmaceuticals or surgery. The researchers are now conducting additional preclinical testing and aim to start human trials within five years.