can mushrooms control robots? a robot combining fungi and computers is born | technology watch
2024-09-04
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cover news reporter che jiazhu
a "five-legged robot" shaped like a starfish moves slowly on the wooden floor. miraculously, this robot is not powered by batteries or a power source, but is controlled by signals from mushrooms. this scene that seems to appear only in science fiction movies is becoming possible.
earlier, according to science and technology daily, researchers at cornell university in the united states successfully developed a "biohybrid robot" composed of fungi and computers. this robot can convert the electrical signals of fungi into digital instructions, and the relevant paper was published in the latest issue of science robotics.
fungal "biohybrid robot" source: cornell university, usa
how do mushrooms control robots?
the robot moves after being exposed to light and generating electrical pulses
pleurotus eryngii is easy to grow and maintain, and is more suitable for use in robots. therefore, the researchers first cultivated mycelium from pleurotus eryngii, that is, connecting the underground part of the mushroom to form a filamentous network that can communicate between them, and guiding the mycelium to grow on a 3d printed support filled with electrodes. the interconnected mycelium will emit electrical pulses in response to environmental changes, just like the pulses emitted by neurons in the brain to communicate with each other.
the mycelium network is connected to electrodes whose electrical impulses can communicate with a computer interface. the computer then converts these electrical impulses into digital commands that are sent to the robot's valves and motors, telling them what to do, such as move forward or move backward.
the idea of computers converting electrical impulses into commands is inspired by the way animal neurons work, which convert electrical impulses from our brains into motor functions, such as moving limbs. when this approach is applied to the fungus-computer interface, it enables communication between the mycelium and the robot. when the researchers shine external light on the mycelium, the mycelium emits electrical impulses and responds, causing the robot to move.
“mushrooms don’t like light, they grow in dark places,” said robert shepherd, an engineer at cornell university and one of the authors of the study. “because they really don’t like light, this provides a strong signal.” by shining more ultraviolet light on the fungus-computer interface, the electrical signal that the fungus responds to becomes stronger, making the robot move faster.
mycelium under a microscope source: screenshot from the internet
biohybrid robots
an emerging research area
it is reported that "biohybrid robots" is an emerging research field that involves combining plant, animal and fungal cells with synthetic materials to make robots. however, the high cost of using animal cells and the ethical issues it brings, as well as the slow response of plant cells to external stimuli, have always been challenges facing this field, and fungi may be the key to solving these problems.
fungi can cope with extreme conditions, said anand mishra, an engineer at cornell university and another author of the study. fungal cells can survive in very salty water or extreme cold, which could allow fungal biohybrid robots to outperform animal or plant biohybrid robots in extreme environments.
in the field of environmental monitoring, this fungal "biohybrid robot" has shown extraordinary potential. its extremely high environmental sensitivity gives it an incomparable advantage over traditional synthetic robots when detecting chemical pollutants, poisons or pathogens in farmland. in addition, the tenacious vitality of fungi, such as the ability to survive in extremely salty water or cold environments, gives these robots the unique ability to operate in extreme environments, whether it is detecting radiation or going deep into dangerous areas.
the advent of fungus and computer combined robots has also opened up new ways to build more sustainable robots.
