A robot named “CKbot,” built by Penn engineers, has become a YouTube star.
Conceived by Penn Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics Mark Yim and his colleagues at the General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Lab, CKbot boasts a unique talent: It is capable of re-constructing itself after being demolished. The robot is built from 15 individual modules split into three clusters of five modules each. Each module is equipped with a 20-frames-per-second camera, a blinking LED, and an accelerometer that enables the robot to reconstruct itself using magnets. The modules also carry an embedded computer, proximity sensors and a motorized joint with a rotational range of 180 degrees.
In the hit YouTube video—which had been viewed nearly a half-million times by mid-June—CKbot is kicked over and broken into the three separate clusters. Then, bit by bit, the robot puts itself back together. CKbot’s success, the team says, is a small step forward for researchers working to create self-assembling robots.
Novel plant-based approach to a better, cheaper GLP-1 delivery system
Research led by Penn Dental’s Henry Daniell investigates the use of a lettuce-based, plant-encapsulated delivery platform as a new oral delivery of two GLP-1 drugs previously approved by the FDA in injectable form.
No brain, no gain: Neuronal activity enhances benefits of exercise
Research led by Penn neuroscientist J. Nicholas Betley and collaborators finds that hypothalamic neurons are essential for translating physical exertion into endurance, potentially opening the door to exercise-mimicking therapies.
In honor of Valentine's Day, and as a way of fostering community in her Shakespeare in Love course, Becky Friedman took her students to the University Club for lunch one class period. They talked about the movie "Shakespeare in Love," as part of a broader conversation on how Shakespeare's works are adapted.
In Becky Friedman’s English course Shakespeare in Love, undergraduate students analyze language, genre, and adaptation in the Bard’s plays through the lens of love.
Beating the heat: Designing cooling for bodies in motion
Dorit Aviv, director of Weitzman’s Thermal Architecture Lab, studies how humans, technology, and design intersect, paving the way for the development of novel approaches to cooling people efficiently.
