Science Nation: Robobees--Design Poses Intriguing Engineers, Compute Science Challenges

Harvard University, electrical engineers Rob Wood and Gu-Yeon Wei, and computer scientist Radhika Nagpal created the “RoboBee,” a miniature flying robot, inspired by the biology of a bee and the insect’s hive behavior. With support from the National Science Foundation and a program called Expeditions in Computing, Wood put together a diverse team of collaborators to get the RoboBee project off the ground. Ultimately, the researchers hope to build a colony in which the RoboBees interact, using their hive as a refueling station. They say RoboBees have the potential to be useful in a number of ways, including search and rescue missions, traffic monitoring, and weather mapping. Part of the National Science Foundation Series "Science Nation."

(Source: DCMP)