Researchers at MIT, Harvard University, and Seoul National University have successfully engineered an autonomous robot that can crawl across surfaces like an earthworm, which they’ve named Meshworm.
They also stepped on it and beat it with a hammer.
It…lived.
They were able to mimic real worms by creating an “artificial muscle” of nickel and titanium wire, which they wrapped around a mesh-like tube. The wire responds to electrical current, stretching and contracting with heat, allowing the robot to move.
Apparently, this Meshworm may be used for the endoscopes and prosthetics of tomorrow. And, potentially, become the founding member of the Army Of Robotic Earthworms that will rise against humanity in 2043.
