Robotic insect: World's smallest flying robot takes off

[xchrom]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-22380287


Scientists in the US have created a robot the size of a fly that is able to perform the agile manoeuvres of the ubiquitous insects.

This "robo-fly", built from carbon fibre, weighs a fraction of a gram and has super-fast electronic "muscles" to power its wings.

Its Harvard University developers say tiny robots like theirs may eventually be used in rescue operations.

It could, for example, navigate through tiny spaces in collapsed buildings.

[MattBaggins]

1. No it will be used to spy on people

[KG]

2. 'rescue operations.'

[coffeenap]

3. C'mon, you know they are already here. Just last summer,

we were calmly relaxing on our back deck, staring dreamily into the woods, watching two chickadees and a rabbit scamper about, when a bumblebee joined us. It hovered steadily, for five minutes, looking first into our kitchen window, then sauntering (in a bumblebee kind of way), to three feet away from me, face-to-face at eye level, then over to my son, then down to the basement window, then over to my daughter-facing her, then off it went. The next day (it was a calm weekend), back on the comfy reading chair on the deck, I looked up and staring at me was my neighborly bumble bee, once again.... I went upstairs to change my clothes, looked over at the bedroom window, and, yes, there again it was, hovering for at least a minute, staring in. I waved, said hi to the CIA or whomever, and put on my jeans.

I'm telling ya, it's already happening.

We had two beautiful days last week...it was baaack....

[Victor_c3]

4. Kind of beat me to it

I wonder how long it'll be after it is fully developed until someone sends one of these into a women's bathroom...