When a disaster of any kind has occurred, saving human lives is a top priority for rescuers. Especially those who could possibly be trapped under rubble of a collapsed building, even areas that have been affected by nuclear radiation. Time is always of the essence and sometimes take rescuers hours to find survivors.
The cockroach has always been known as the toughest insect of all, supposedly been able to survive a nuclear bomb even. Any housewife’s nightmare as their is no space, or appliance for that matter, that they are unable to get in to. It therefore comes as no surprise that this creature was chosen by scientists from Texas A&M University to research and develop robotic roaches that can be remote controlled to manoeuvre through tight places to find these survivors where humans or other small-scale robots may not be able to access. So cockroaches can save lives but how does this technology work?
The roach is implanted with electrodes that stimulate the nerves in it’s antennae, and carry a battery-powered controller which is connected to it’s nerve cells called pro-ganglion also located in the antennae. This is how scientists are able to manoeuvre and control the cockroach via a remote.
It wouldn’t be the first time that scientists experiment using technology on animals etc. Rats, for example, have been used for their sensitivity towards smells and are trained to hone in on humans. Scientists connect a radio transmitter to it’s brain that reacts when the rodent identifies a smell that it is familiar with.
We look to the future of cyborg technology with great interest, with the possibility that one day dire tragedies of disaster by loss of human life could be lessened as rescues become more advanced with the aid of the most unsuspecting creature – cockroaches can save lives.