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Autonomously Schooling Robofish Will Become Cylons of the Sea
Posted by Gizmodo US Edition at 8:30 AM on June 9, 2008
One day in the near future, when humanity has killed off all the fish in the sea, we'll be able to replace every single on of them using the research of University of Washington UW assistant professor Kristi Morgansen. That's because Morgansen, with her 10,000-gallon UW test tank, has almost perfected an autonomous robofish, which needs only other robofish and a basic set of commands to operate wirelessly underwater. They'll be Cylons of the Sea. Like tuna, with nukes.
Morgansen designed the robofish to explore the deepest depths of the ocean, as well as seek out other locations where the environment is deadly to human beings. They'll do this all without any intervention from people, other robots or even satellites. The group would perform just like an organic fish and form a school, with dominant personalities leading the way even if certain robofish received incomplete or garbled instructions.
"In schooling and herding animals, you can get much more efficient maneuvers and smoother behaviours than what we can do in engineering right now," Morgansen said. "The idea of these experiments [with schools of live fish] is to ask, 'How are they doing it?' and see if we can come up with some ideas."
Schooling also helps fight the effects of water on wireless communication. Optimal underwater data transfer rates are approximately 80 bytes, or about 32 numbers, per second, but the robofishes' simple two-command memory structure (swimming in the same direction or swimming in different directions) mean tasks get done anyway. The robots use fins and a tail, instead of a propeller, because they're more maneuverable and create lower drag. [University of Washington]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
frigg
Posted 8:49 AM 9/6/08
@shamoononon: damn you said it before I could.
@Michai: ever read "Flock?" It's kinda "shlock," but it's about what you said.
frigg
fxb
Posted 8:46 AM 9/6/08
umm, like a tetnitly, umm i think you mean chicken...
fxb
Michai
Posted 8:43 AM 9/6/08
Research like this is hugely under popularized. The study of collective autonomous robo-communication will become key in nano tech scale operations, pushing self assembly even closer to reality.
Michai
shamoononon
Posted 8:41 AM 9/6/08
Uhhhhhhhhh.
shamoononon
JymmyZ
Posted 9:26 AM 9/6/08
swarm ai ftw
JymmyZ
Technogen
Posted 9:22 AM 9/6/08
Nuclear Tuna, would make an awesome band name, and these would make awesome perimeter defense for boats.
Technogen
fxb
Posted 9:12 AM 9/6/08
hey shamoo shamoo, sorry ;^) lol
fxb
snakepliskin
Posted 9:10 AM 9/6/08
Wtf why are researchers doing more work on ai and less work on making me into a cyborg to fight the autonomous robots when they go rogue? I mean thats the only way we'll be able to beat the machines is if we become part machine... or all machine...
snakepliskin
klew
Posted 9:45 AM 9/6/08
I wonder how the electrics will interfere/attract sharks or other creatures that can sense EM fields. It could also be hilarious/devastating for the school of robofish to be caught in a net or swallowed by a whale.
klew
frigg
Posted 9:44 AM 9/6/08
@frigg: oops - I meant "Prey" by Michael Crichton.
frigg
shamoononon
Posted 9:35 AM 9/6/08
@fxb:
[www.oceanmammalinst.org]
shamoononon
snakepliskin
Posted 10:00 AM 9/6/08
@frigg: Haha that cleared things up alot better. I was like "Flock? Wtf is that?"
Prey was kind of goofy though, just imagining it in my head kind of made me laugh.
snakepliskin
Kaiser-Machead's Macbook has been taken hostage by LindsayJoy br
Posted 10:32 AM 9/6/08
Do not want Mecha aquarium. Only keep Orga. That is The Law.
Kaiser-Machead's Macbook has been taken hostage by LindsayJoy brb
Nick_Bentley
Posted 11:35 AM 9/6/08
Yeah I guess, but power is going to be a problem. Sending those down 5 miles into a trench is one thing, but it's so cold and dark there to film it, it would take a lot of juice. Maybe they can pack small air bag to bring them back up, that would save a lot of power.
Nick_Bentley
CaptainIndia
Posted 12:12 PM 9/6/08
@Nick_Bentley:
That's easy. Just send down smaller autonomous fish for those fish to eat. And the circle of life continues.
CaptainIndia
dingus
Posted 12:35 PM 9/6/08
Frackin' fryers.
dingus
blatnym
Posted 12:21 PM 9/6/08
I am starting a campaign to get these robotic researchers to focus on the most urgent need, robots that do laundry.
Yes, washbots or laundautomotons must be developed now. The first nation that perfects the robot that washes, dries and folds will dominate in the twenty-first century.
blatnym
Hiphopopotamus
Posted 1:00 PM 9/6/08
I for one welcome our future aquatic overlords!
Gurgle Gurg Gurgle, Gurgle!
Hiphopopotamus
hybrid8
Posted 1:50 PM 9/6/08
I'm still waiting for someone to announce the robo-chips to go with this fish.
Maybe someone should also tell the researcher that "autonomous" machines shouldn't require remote controlling...
hybrid8
InsidiousTuna
Posted 1:59 PM 9/6/08
Good, good... They suspect nothing of our nuclear proliferation.
InsidiousTuna
shamoononon
Posted 2:41 PM 9/6/08
BACON
shamoononon
ugar
Posted 4:46 PM 9/6/08
What strikes me funny is that with all of these underwater Autonomous robots being created to explore, observe, and do tasks; what're they doing to prevent these things from being eaten by bigger animals/creatures, or at least be safe if they are.
ugar
DigitalSciGuy
Posted 8:47 PM 9/6/08
If they do end up being the aquatic Cylons, at least we now know through the epic historical videos of Battlestar Galactica that all we have to do to keep them from resurrecting is destroy their Hub!
DigitalSciGuy
Shai
Posted 10:08 PM 9/6/08
Not impressed:
[www.battleduck.com]
Shai
bms
Posted 11:20 PM 9/6/08
"Jim and I used gene therapies
to increase their brain mass.
Larger brain means more protein.
As a side effect, the sharks got smarter."
Deep Blue Sea, anyone?
bms
Navin R Johnson
Posted 1:39 AM 10/6/08
Is it just me or do none of these comments make sense? I think they were all posted by artificially intelligent fish.
Navin R Johnson
sakko
Posted 5:44 AM 10/6/08
"They'll do this all without any intervention from people, other robots or even satellites."
Until they run out of batteries.
sakko
equatorlounge
Posted 5:12 PM 9/6/08
since im a graphic designer, that dude should contact me for the fish to look like a fish, but nice work indeed!!!
equatorlounge
Deivion
Posted 12:58 PM 9/6/08
I wonder how the sharks will feel after eating a few of those robofishes.
Deivion
NWdude83
Posted 12:57 PM 9/6/08
SORRY GIZZY, ALREADY BEEN DONE! BY JAPAN NO LESS...
NWdude83