75. Size Matters: Tiny Biomimicry Leads to Big Breakthroughs
Hosts Daniel and Forbode discuss biomimicry breakthroughs from the University of Washington and Harvard, focusing on dandelion-inspired sensors and microscale robotic cilia. The University of Washington team created 24-milligram solar-powered sensors using Microchip's A20 Tiny processor and Kapton parachutes to deploy environmental monitoring networks via drones. Meanwhile, Harvard researchers developed self-propelled cilia from photo-responsive liquid crystal elastomers, enabling complex, programmable motion for applications in drug delivery and physical encryption.