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🦾 Robotic hands that move like human hands, a transatlantic cable between America and Europe, halting the creation of “mirror bacteria
Plus: South Korean company launches lightweight robotic suits for rehabilitation
A milestone has been reached: robotic hands have been manufactured that can move like human hands.
Sanctuary AI, a Vancouver-based company, developed this innovation to perform complex industrial tasks requiring fine motor skills. Thanks to an advancement in hydraulics, the milestone achieved advances a larger movement in robotics to manufacture general-purpose humanoid robots.
“Dexterous capability is directly proportional to the size of the addressable market for general-purpose humanoid robots.” Must-Read.
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The dexterous robotic hands are powered by miniaturized hydraulic values, which offer higher density over cable and electromechanical systems.
In an innovative actuation process, they miniaturized actuators and valve systems to coin-sized dimensions. This enabled stronger, faster movements with millimeter-level finger precision. Furthermore, they achieved extremely low power consumption, exceptional cycle life, and precise controllability, all within a compact human-sized hand and forearm.
The firm claims that this latest advancement in hydraulic actuation and precise in-hand manipulation will pave the way for robots to handle a wider range of high-value tasks in industrial settings.
A new paper from a UK energy think tank found that linking the European and North American electricity grids via a transatlantic power cable could lead to an efficient energy transition to renewable electricity.
More importantly, it would also link two of the largest and most interconnected continental grids, allowing for the exchange of deep energy flows and more efficient market operations across both regions.
And it could have a disruptive impact on existing energy markets.
Scientists are calling for a full stop to the creation of “mirror bacteria” because the threat is “unprecedented.”
Life on Earth is built on molecules with a structural asymmetry that dictates their interactions. By producing a “mirror effect” that reverses this natural “chirality,” these altered organisms could evade immune defenses and disrupt ecosystems.
They would simply exist outside the current system of life that naturally checks and balances everything inside of it. These findings have sparked a global debate about the future of synthetic biology and its ethical limits.
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