Ratbots
Abstract
“Robot" as an "apparently human automation, intelligent but impersonal machine..."
A ratbot or roborat is a rat controlled through implants in its brain.
Guided rats controlled through implants in their brains could one day be used to search for landmines or buried victims of earthquakes..
An extraordinary experiment has seen researchers steering five rodents - so-called ratbots - through an obstacle course by remote control.
Writing in the journal Nature, the scientists say the ratbots could reach places inaccessible to humans or machines.
"One can think of the guided rat as a very good robot platform capable of traversing terrain that modern robots are unable to do," Dr Talwar said
The rodents in the first experiment wore a small electronics backpack that linked to electrodes in their brains. They received radio commands from a laptop that would stimulate sensations in their whiskers and reward/pleasure receptors to manipulate them into following pre-programmed routes. Some researchers propose using them to search for landmines or buried victims of earthquakes, as they can much more efficiently scout such areas than human rescuers or existing robots.
The rats also quickly learnt to associate the stimulation of their brains ' reward centres with simply walking forwards, even if this involved climbing or descending ladders or steps, or moving into the centre of a brightly lit room - something that most rats would avoid.
INTRODUCTION
Rat - common name for any large member of a family of rodents, with dull - colored, coarse fur; long tails; large ears; and a pointed snout. Rats have extremely powerful teeth, with which they often gnaw through wooden planks to get at stores of food, and they have even been known to bite holes in lead pipes. They are usually nocturnal and live in human habitations, in forests, in deserts, and on seagoing ships. They are extremely prolific, breeding 1 to 13 times a year and producing 1 to 22 young in
“Robot" as an "apparently human automation, intelligent but impersonal machine..."
A ratbot or roborat is a rat controlled through implants in its brain.
Guided rats controlled through implants in their brains could one day be used to search for landmines or buried victims of earthquakes..
An extraordinary experiment has seen researchers steering five rodents - so-called ratbots - through an obstacle course by remote control.
Writing in the journal Nature, the scientists say the ratbots could reach places inaccessible to humans or machines.
"One can think of the guided rat as a very good robot platform capable of traversing terrain that modern robots are unable to do," Dr Talwar said
The rodents in the first experiment wore a small electronics backpack that linked to electrodes in their brains. They received radio commands from a laptop that would stimulate sensations in their whiskers and reward/pleasure receptors to manipulate them into following pre-programmed routes. Some researchers propose using them to search for landmines or buried victims of earthquakes, as they can much more efficiently scout such areas than human rescuers or existing robots.
The rats also quickly learnt to associate the stimulation of their brains ' reward centres with simply walking forwards, even if this involved climbing or descending ladders or steps, or moving into the centre of a brightly lit room - something that most rats would avoid.
INTRODUCTION
Rat - common name for any large member of a family of rodents, with dull - colored, coarse fur; long tails; large ears; and a pointed snout. Rats have extremely powerful teeth, with which they often gnaw through wooden planks to get at stores of food, and they have even been known to bite holes in lead pipes. They are usually nocturnal and live in human habitations, in forests, in deserts, and on seagoing ships. They are extremely prolific, breeding 1 to 13 times a year and producing 1 to 22 young in
References: www.wireheading.com www.rense.com www.infowars.com Encarta-reference library Magazine-The New Scientist