For a robot to help scientists truly understand marine life it must engage underwater environments without disturbing them. Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers report in Science Robotics this week their agile, undulating soft robotic fish does just that, having observed and recorded aquatic life along coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean at depths of up to 18 meters. A product of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), the robot exchanges information with human divers via an acoustic communication modem and propels itself using a motor-powered water pump rather than more disruptive and less agile water jets or propellers that chase away the fish researchers want to study.
Related Video

Lesser Prairie Chickens Show Greater Dance Moves in the Spring
12 minutes ago — bioGraphic
How Do Earthquake Warning Systems Work?
April 16, 2018 — Kelsey Kennedy

Why Do Bananas Change Color?
April 11, 2018 — Tim Palmieri

IDs for Bees: Tracking Bumble Bee Behavior
April 4, 2018 — Nature Video

Blood, Rats and Anticoagulants: The Story of Warfarin
March 16, 2018 — Nature Video

Stephen Hawking: 3 Publications That Shaped His Career
March 14, 2018 — Nature Video

If You Think It's Love, Switch to Decaf: How We Misinterpret Emotional Arousal
March 7, 2018 — Tim Palmieri

Scaly Plastic Snakeskins Inch Immobile Robots Forward
February 22, 2018 — Tim Palmieri
For a robot to help scientists truly understand marine life it must engage underwater environments without disturbing them. Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers report in Science Robotics this week their agile, undulating soft robotic fish does just that, having observed and recorded aquatic life along coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean at depths of up to 18 meters. A product of MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL), the robot exchanges information with human divers via an acoustic communication modem and propels itself using a motor-powered water pump rather than more disruptive and less agile water jets or propellers that chase away the fish researchers want to study.