Robots have become a more common topic of conversation in recent years. Our society is rapidly industrializing itself, and that includes the use and the implementation of robots into our daily lives. Automated machines now dispense money to us, eliminating the need to pay a bank teller, and machines dispense our change and ring us up at the grocery store, taking someone’s minimum wage job. Robots are also being produced by companies like Tesla and may be introduced to the market soon. They are all around us, but the good news is that we, as humans, are in control of what these robots do- aren’t we?
As concerning as this may sound, that may not be the case. While we like to think that we are in control, the likelihood of that is slim. As technology and the science of robots advances, so do the robot’s capabilities. The first reproducing robots have now been identified, reproducing in ways not observed in plants or animals.
These robots are called Xenobots and are C-shaped collections of stem cells from the African clawed frog. These Xenobots are fascinating because they can act in groups, they can heal themselves, and they can move freely. The way that Xenobots reproduce is by gathering loose stem cells into a pile, compressing them until they form and fuse together to produce another viable Xenobot. This form of reproduction is known as “kinetic replication” and is very rarely observed outside of the molecular level. Aside from moving inside of a petri dish and collecting stem cells, the Xenobots have no real applications outside of the lab as of right now, but this technology can sure spark some debate. Is this considered an organism since it can produce offspring? Where do we draw the line when it comes to robots and what they’re capable of? What if this technology falls into the wrong hands? These are the questions that scientists must have the answers to before making this information known to the public. What starts as harmless fun in a petri dish may explode on the global scale.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/29/americas/xenobots-self-replicating-robots-scn/index.html
Hannah Krzyszton (8)
Hello Hannah, wow! This is such an interesting topic to read about. I agree with you that the topic of robots is much more common now. I didn't know about Xenobots and what they're capable of doing. I think to be considered an organism, they have to have other qualities, not just reproduction. Hopefully, these don't fall into the hands of the wrong person/group.
ReplyDeleteKristina Baldeo
Hey Kristina!
DeleteI agree, I don't really think that these can be considered as organisms, and I think that it requires a lot more than just the capability to reproduce.
Hello Kristina,
ReplyDeleteThis blog post was really fascinating because I have never heard of anything like this. It reminds me a little of ai programs that reproduce in order to make a better program. Technology has come a long way in being able to copy living organisms.
This is a really interesting topic. I agree, it will be very important that this technology doesn't fall into the wrong hands. I wonder what this means for potentially at one point having some type of robotic species similar to humans being able to reproduce on its own?
ReplyDelete- Zach Conant
Hey Zach,
DeleteI feel like thankfully we still have a very long way to go before that happens. Hopefully we use this technology in other ways before we move towards human reproduction.
Hi Hannah,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post and your topic choice was interesting. Your questions at the end remind me of questions that I had after reading 1984, where similarly there was a concern on how technology could take any individuality or control one had. In this case, I think there could be a lot of beneficial effects of Xenobots, but it definitely would be smart to question how far we take it.
Hey Timinte!
DeleteI love your connection to 1984, that's a cool connection that I did not think to make myself. This is a topic that I think will help address the boundaries that we need to respect when it comes to science.
Hi Hannah!
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I did not know that the robots were made using stem cells from African clawed frogs.
Sarah Conant
Hi Sarah!
DeleteI didn't know either and I was honestly quite taken aback; It's incredible what we can do with stem cells and the advances that can be made.
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