Biology To The Rescue Of Robotics Stephen Fung March 9, 2007 Extras Spurred by initial research in the US and based on biological experiments, scientists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland, have built a meter-long salamander robot controlled by an artificial spinal cord that mimics the real animal’s behavior. Although the switch between walking and swimming currently needs to be remote-controlled, such a robot is an important step towards more complex devices and — why not? — future androids. A robotic salamander with an electric “spinal cord” that controls both its walking and swimming has been developed by US researchers. It could be a forerunner of robots with movements coordinated by an artificial nervous systems, they claim. Source: New Scientist Share This With The World!