Space Robo-Chimp! An Actual Thing, Not a Syfy Movie
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Giant steps are what you take, walking on the moon. It’s good to be a robot ape, walking on the moon.
A German research center has determined that for unmanned lunar missions, the optimum robot shape would be that of a chimp, which can walk on both two legs and all fours. So they went and made one, with a fully articulated spine. It can carry some weight, and choose based on terrain whether, as George Orwell put it, four legs good, two legs better in any given situation.
So I’m not entirely clear why their next models are going to be a mantis and a scorpion, except maybe that someone in Germany is basing space travel science on their personal collection of Zoids.
h/t Gallen_Dugall
About The Author
Luke Y. Thompson has been writing professionally about movies and pop-culture since 1999, and has also been an actor in some extremely cheap culty and horror movies you will probably never hear much about (he is nonetheless mostly proud of them, as he met his wife on one). As editor of The Robot's Voice since 2012, he can take the blame for the majority of the site's content, all of which he creates because he loves you very, very much. (Although he loves nachos more. Sorry.) Prior to TRV, Luke wrote for publications that include the New Times LA, Los Angeles CityBeat, E! Online, OC Weekly, Geekweek, GeekChicDaily, The L.A. Times, The Village Voice, LA Weekly, and Nerdist