STEM Saturday on the Steem blockchain, Week #52: Robotics and marine biology

STEM Saturday Digest - May 20, 2023

One year of STEM Saturdays!

Today's promoted posts come from the areas of robotics and marine biology.

Please visit the /promoted page to view this week's STEM Saturday post promotions.

This was the 52^nd week of our post promotions for STEM Saturday on the Steem blockchain, and our little community now occupies the top of the /promoted page for the 52^nd consecutive Saturday. This week, I promoted four Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) posts by three authors.

If you are a STEM enthusiast, please consider following the authors that you'll find in this article and also consider joining our community. If you would like your own post to be considered for STEM Saturday post promotion, please see the guidelines at the end of this post.

This week's promotions included the following posts (in alphabetical order, by author). Each author has been set as a 5% beneficiary on this post. All posts were passed through three different online plagiarism checks and three different checks for AI detection.

NASA is working on EELS, the "exobiology surveyor of existing life" to search for life on Saturn's moon, Enceladus. The snake-like robot has also proven itself on sandy, snowy, and icy terrain, and is designed for autonomous operation and risk analysis. Although the primary mission is to explore Enceladus, the robot may also have uses on Mars, the moon, and even on Earth. The first prototype was developed in 2019, and the team hopes to be ready to propose their mission to Enceladus by the end of 2024. Click through to read more and to watch a video of the robot in operation.

Rockefeller University's Eric A. Ramos led a team of researchers who observed a captive octopus named Costello using 3 cameras for a period of several months. During this time, they saw repeated occurrences where the octopus' skin changed colors while sleeping in ways that parallel its color changes during wakefulness. Such changes lasted from 44 seconds to 769 seconds. In addition to changing colors, the octopus also moved in ways that were suggestive of predator evasion, including "flaring" to appear bigger and random movements that looked like evasive maneuvering. As a result, the team theorized that the octopus was having nightmares of being chased by a predator. The relative frequency of these sorts of dreams remains unknown. Visit the post to read more about it and see the video.

In a recently released video, Tesla showed off the capabilities of its humanoid industrial robots. These automatons are able to navigate indoor and outdoor areas, make maps of their environments, and move small objects around. They can even learn new actions by imitating humans. The first prototypes of these robots were introduced in September, 2022, and this latest video was presented for the annual shareholder meeting on May 16. Tesla CEO, Elon Musk estimates that future demand for this type of robot could reach 10 or 20 million units. Read the rest and see the video, here.

Sophia, from Hanson Robotics was unveiled at the SXSW festival in 2016. With realistic features and an expressive face, she incorporates advanced capabilities from robotics and artificial intelligence, including the abilities to carry on a conversation, interpret emotions and to recognize faces. After the 2016 introduction, Sophia has participated in a number of conferences and interviews, and continues to inspire curiosity and ethical debates. The author argues that robots like Sophia can make a positive impact in areas like health care, customer service, and education, but also that development must be done in a responsible manner. Read the rest, here.

The Community

The Popular STEM community is intended to be a place for accessible STEM conversations (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). If you have an interest in STEM topics, please come join us!

About STEM Saturday

If members would like to have your own STEM content considered for future promotions, please come join us and start contributing. I don't know how long I'll be continuing the tradition, but while I do, here are the minimum requirements for consideration (subject to change without notice ;-).

1. Original, plagiarism-free content
2. Minimum word count: currently 300 words, but this may be adjusted.
3. The content must not be cross-posted on other web sites or blockchains. Correct use of the #steemexclusive tag is encouraged.
4. English language. (sorry, it's the only one I know)
5. Because a post leaves /promoted at payout time, posts created shortly before STEM Saturday may be more likely to be chosen than older posts.

All community members are invited to create original and exclusive content that can be considered for future promotions.

Please help grow the science & technology audience on the Steem blockchain by following the Science and Technology on the Social Blockchain Facebook page then liking & sharing our links!

Visit the /promoted page and #burnsteem25 to support the inflation-fighters who are helping to enable decentralized regulation of Steem token supply growth.)