May 30, 2011 10:44 pm EDT

Japanese scientists create giant metal cilium, relief for Voltron's giant metal lungs (video)

Why would a group of researchers develop a table full of rods that mimic the movements of microscopic hairs? It's a fair question, and Keio University's Yusuke Kamiyama certainly doesn't offer up much in the way of real world applications for such technology. He is, however, happy to demonstrate the cool functionality of the metallic cilium, which appear to drift around as though underwater, until coming into contact with an external stimuli. The rods react to touch by congregating near the area of contact, with movements executed by biometal rods that communicate with an external PC. Scientists hope that research from the project will be useful at some point, but in the meantime, at least we know where to turn if we get a major mucus blockage. Video after the break.

Continue reading Japanese scientists create giant metal cilium, relief for Voltron's giant metal lungs (video)

Japanese scientists create giant metal cilium, relief for Voltron's giant metal lungs (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 May 2011 18:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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