Leonardo da Vinci created plans for a “mechanized knight,” – a robot-like creation reliant on a system of pulleys. When these plans were found almost 500 years later and built according to Leonardo’s specifications, the design worked perfectly.
In 1770 a man invented a machine that could play a strong game…
In 1770 a man invented a machine that could play a strong game of chess against a human opponent. The “android” that played the game was nicknamed The Turk (as was the machine itself). It wasn’t until 1857 that it was revealed to be a hoax (a chess master was hiding in the machine).
A robot recently performed the world’s first autonomous…
A robot recently performed the world’s first autonomous soft-tissue surgery without any assistance from doctors, and did so while outperforming human doctors by every metric except for speed.
In 2012, NYU-Poly constructed a robotic fish and placed it…
In 2012, NYU-Poly constructed a robotic fish and placed it in a tank of golden shiners. After simulating the tail movements of a leader fish, the robotic fish was eventually accepted and became their leader.
There is a factory in Japan which can run unsupervised for 30 days at a time…
There is a factory in Japan which can run unsupervised for 30 days at a time. Robots build other robots at the rate of 50 per 24-hour shift. Such factories are called “lights out” factories because no human presence is needed. FANUC, the Japanese robotics company, has been operating this autonomous factory since 2001.
A worm’s mind has been mapped, replicated, and placed…
A worm’s mind has been mapped, replicated, and placed inside a Lego robot.