I am amazed by how quickly "Science-Fiction" technologies are being deployed in the real world.
This Tumblr focuses on advances in Robotics, Biotech, Nanotech, Artificial Intelligence, Wearable Computing and Cyborg technology that are in the prototype stage and/or nearing deployment.
UPenn Team Develop Coordinated Flying Methods for Aerial Drones:
A robotics research team at the University of Pennsylvania has designed a system to coordinate a number of small quadcopters, a step toward coordinating multiple robots for tasks such as surveillance or searching areas after a disaster. The General Robotics, Automation, Sensing, and Perception (GRASP) lab at UPenn yesterday posted a video on You Tube with nano quadcopters showing remarkable agility and ability to perform as a team. The quadcopters are able to flip over and maintain flight. More amazing (unnerving?) is their operation in formation. Based on commands, 16 quadcopters change direction, land, navigate past obstacles, and even fly in a figure eight formation. Coordinating the action of multiple robots is one of the big technical challenges in robotics research now. Small robots, such as these nano quadcopters, could be well suited for certain missions but people need methods for programming small, inexpensive robots in large groups rather than manually configuring each one.
(via Nano quadrotor robots assemble and roll out (video) | Cutting Edge - CNET News)
