Though fluid dynamicists have long theorized about the hydrodynamic benefits of fish swimming in schools, nailing down the actual physics has been quite difficult. Fish rarely swim exactly as an Keep reading
Tag: biorobotics
Insect-Inspired Flight
Insects are incredibly agile and resilient fliers, capable of colliding and recovering without damage. Engineers are only beginning to capture these characteristics in their robots. Here, engineers use a soft Keep reading
Mimicking Insect Flight
There’s an oft-repeated tale that science cannot explain how a bumblebee flies. And while that may have been true 80 years ago, when engineers assumed they could apply their knowledge Keep reading
Morphing Wings Using Real Feathers
Although humanity has long been inspired by bird flight, most of our flying machines are nothing like birds. Engineers have struggled to recreate the ease with which birds are able Keep reading
Review: “How to Walk on Water and Climb Up Walls”
“An eight-year-old girl kicked her feet back and forth on the seat of a Long Island Railroad train. I beckoned her to cover over and pointed to the top of Keep reading