Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, in Canada, have created nanobots that can be driven and steered remotely using a magnetic resonance imaging machine. The bots are comprised of two parts: a swimming bacteria and a microscopic bead -- kind of a bacteria-borg.
You might think that the bead was the magnetic part, but actually each bacteria naturally contains a chain of magnetic particles inside its body that forms a sort of natural compass. The team, lead by Sylvain Martel, used the MRI machine to change the magnetic field around the swimming bacteria, thereby directing which way the little critter swam. So what's the bead for? It's actually a kind of trailer in which, eventually, the scientists would like to ship a cargo of therapeutic drugs. A specific drug could be directed toward cancerous cells and unloaded at the site.
Photo: Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, NanoRobotics Laboratory
It's one thing to get microscopic robots to work together, performing the same function. It's quite another to get them to work together, by performing different tasks at the same time.
That's because controlling tiny robots is not easy. They're too small to accommodate microprocessors that would otherwise drive them in different ways. And it doesn't make practical sense to tether them to an external processor.
Bruce Donald and his team at Duke University seem to have found an interesting solution. Their microrobots -- each one shaped like a spatula and 100
times smaller than any previous designs -- receive the same electrical (wireless) signal, but use it to perform a different task.
I asked Prof. Donald how the robots do it. Here's his answer. Donald: All robots receive the same power delivery and control signal. How can they behave differently then? The answer is, in a matter, analogous to the way that cells or proteins do. They'll receive the same signal but they respond differently because either they have different physics or have different stored internal state. For example fundamental to the actuation of these devices are cantilevers at the microscopic scale. They can be built with different stiffnesses so that the voltages required to raise or lower them are different.
Me: How many can work together differently? Donald: ...five (sometimes) and four
(reliably).
The video below gives some good explanation and also shows the microrobots in action. According to Donald, the robots will eventually be sued to position very tiny electrodes -- made from carbon nanotubes -- into the brain neurons of animals to record neural activity, which would help scientists better understand how the brain works.
It seems to me, Donald has a pretty cool job and so I asked him what he likes best about it. Donald: There are three things that are tied in coolness. First, I think what is valued most in my job is creativity. Creativity is what I value most as well so it's a good fit. Second, working with young scientists from all over the world is stimulating and exciting. Third, since my laboratory focuses on basic biological and biomedical science, everything we are doing is ultimately important -- we hope -- to our understanding of disease mechanisms and human health.
For more info about the project, consult the other videos, figures, and papers at the top of this Web page.
Well. It's happened. The world of micro-robots has finally entered the rap culture. The little fellers are wearing their jeans low to expose their microscopic boxer shorts, while sportin' some nano-bling. (Is "bling" still in?) This song is by the Australian band The Ruderalis, named after a wild strain of hemp. Enjoy.
I'm not big on panel discussions. But after watching the four-minute intro to the Power of Small, a three-part series about nanotechnology, I had to check for times when it was airing on my local PBS channel (WGBH). The station describes the series thusly:
"Nanotechnology — the science of manipulating matter at the molecular level — may one day turn cities greener, make food healthier, and even help people live longer. But the trade-offs of these new technologies may compromise or outweigh any potential advances. When scientists work with single atoms and molecules 80,000 times smaller than a human hair, there exist both great promise and critical concerns."
Wouldn't you know it, though? It was on tonight at 7 pm. (It's now 10:30.) Argh. It will be on again and it's a three-parter, so I have another chance.
Watch the intro yourself and see if you aren't intrigued.
Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, in Canada, have created nanobots that can be driven and steered remotely using a magnetic resonance imaging machine. The bots are comprised of two parts: a swimming bacteria and a microscopic bead -- kind of a bacteria-borg. 
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