Did the mushroom learn to control a robot, or did the scientists figure out how to connect a robot to a mushroom in such a way as to make the regular processes happening inside the mushroom trigger a set of robot legs? Because the article makes it seem like the mushroom is intelligent and has agency, and was thus far only lacking the proper robot body in order to express that; but the video makes it look like the legs were all pumping in unison, and the resulting movement was more or less coincidental.
The article actually explains that the mushroom is essentially being hijacked for some of its sensory abilities, like light and heat. The mushroom is connected to an electronic circuit. The electronics make decisions about what to do based on the mushrooms’ sensory observations.
It’s a clickbait title, but the article does clarify.
Robot uses mushrooms as living sensor would have intrigued me
Right? Why lie. Using mushrooms as a living sensor is cool as hell. Mushrooms can span miles through mycelium with multiple fruiting bodies. If you could take input from one body and get information from all the fruiting bodies that could be a cool way to get aggregate data across an area with little effort. Especially since mushrooms can grow in irradiated or otherwise dangerous locations.
The mushroom learned to ride a Gundam with the determination of revenging humans for the damage we have done to mother earth. Trust me bro I’m the scientists.
It just using mushrooms as a sensor. The mushroom senses light, that causes an electrical response in the mycelium, electronics sense that electric signal and use it as a trigger to perform whatever.
The cool part comes from these living components added to robots having the potential to be better and cheaper than the regular tools we use for the job but unfortunately no sentient mushroom robots to party with yet.
I would more think of the fungus from The Last Of Us. This fungus really exists (maybe not to this scale pictured) and it controls ants after infecting them. It directly controls their muscles, while growing a fruit body out of the ant’s head.
The fungus senses light and humidity. Therefor it climbs plants up and down. The ant is just a vehicle, like a robot body.
Damn. Why didn’t you say that sooner. Now I understand how it works! Thank you.
If you dumb it down enough that’s exactly what humans do with our legs
Yes.
They should give the robot suction cup feet so it can walk on my-ceiling-um. Myceli- er, nevermind.
Almost stuck the landing on that one, I guess you didn’t give yourself mushroom, but points for being a good spore(t).
I tip my cap to both of you
Ergotamine set of puns there, amanita minute to catch up.
+1up
So this is how the end of humany starts. Fungi with robot bodies…
Like this, just more spores then arms and legs…
How could Last of Us get any scarier? Make all the infected also the corrupted machines from Horizon Zero Dawn. Awesome.
Seasons don’t fear the reaper
Behold Fungus Robungous!
Someone took their Nintendo games a little too seriously.
and so it begins
This is how you get 40k Orks
They watched too much StarTrek discovery.
“Mushroom given robot body” is a better story than “cordyceps mutated”.
I, for one, welcome our new robotic fungal overlords!
Soon it will be the mushrooms frying us in garlic butter
