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Fungus learns to drive in "biohybrid" robots | A new kind of “biohybrid” robot moves in response to signals from the nervous system of a fungus.


Autonomous vehicles are said to be safer than human drivers – but would you trust a mushroom behind the wheel? A new kind of “biohybrid” robot moves in response to signals from the nervous system of a fungus.

The idea is that living systems are naturally great at responding to multiple inputs like light, heat, and pressure, where synthetic versions would need individual, specialized sensors for each. “This paper is the first of many that will use the fungal kingdom to provide environmental sensing and command signals to robots to improve their levels of autonomy,” said Rob Shepherd, senior author of the study. “The potential for future robots could be to sense soil chemistry in row crops and decide when to add more fertilizer, for example, perhaps mitigating downstream effects of agriculture like harmful algal blooms.”

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