Nearly a dozen miles off the California coast on a foggy October morning, a crane lifts a boxy yellow robot off the deck of the research vessel Rachel Carson and lowers it into Monterey Bay’s choppy ...
In the same way that terrestrial life evolved from ocean swimmers to land walkers, soft robots are progressing, too, thanks to recent research in battery development and design.
“Jellyfish ‘swim’ by contracting and relaxing their muscles at the margin of their bells. By contracting these muscles, they tighten the bottom of the bell which forces water out and propels ...