Sound may teach fish to catch themselves

BOSTON - Call them Pavlov's fish: Scientists are testing a plan to train fish to catch themselves by swimming into a net when they hear a tone that signals feeding time. If it works, the system could eventually allow black sea bass to be released into the open ocean, where they would grow to market size, then swim into an underwater cage to be harvested when they hear the signal.

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Shape-shifting robot forms from magnetic swarm

Swarms of robots that use electromagnetic forces to cling together and assume different shapes are being developed by US researchers. The grand goal is to create swarms of microscopic robots capable of morphing into virtually any form by clinging together. Seth Goldstein, who leads the research project at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, in the US, admits this is still a distant prospect. However, his team is using simulations to develop control strategies for futuristic shape-shifting, or "claytronic", robots, which they are testing on small groups of more primitive, pocket-sized machines. These prototype robots use electromagnetic forces to manoeuvre themselves, communicate, and even share power.

One set of claytronic prototypes were cylindrical, wheeled robots with a ring of electromagnets around their edge, which they used to grab hold of one another. By switching these electromagnets on and off, the so-called "claytronic atoms" or "catoms" could securely attach and roll around each other (see video, top right). The robot's wheels were not powered, so they had to rely entirely on their magnets to manoeuvre themselves around. "These were the first mobile robots without any moving parts," says Goldstein.

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Repeal Denied: Moore's Law extended for another 15 years

"When will Moore's Law be repealed? For the 30+ years I have been in and around the computer industry I have heard that question asked. The reason is obvious: this seemingly magical doubling of computing power per dollar every 18 months has been taking place since the early 1960s and surely has to stop sometime, right? Not yet, it doesn't. Thanks to some clever new ways of making CMOS chips, it looks like Moore's Law will remain in effect for at least another 15 years. This week's column is my attempt to explain why this is so and to give some idea what it means to us all."

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The biggest creche on earth

Fascinating photos - what do you think this is?


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