Researchers have bridged the gap between mushrooms and machines. Cornell University and University of Florence engineers demonstrated how a mushroom's mycelium, the thread-like networks comparable to roots, can be woven into electronics. The mycelium generate electrical signals in response to light that are translated into control commands for the robot.
"In this case we used light as the input, but in the future it will be chemical," said Cornell professor Rob Shepherd of the Organic Robots Lab.
"The potential for future robots could be to sense soil chemistry in row crops and decide when to add more fertiliser, for example, perhaps mitigating downstream effects of agriculture like harmful algal blooms."
Somewhere in there is a fun science fiction story of robots controlled by Psilocybe cubensis,
Previously:
• Here's why we don't have robot butlers yet
• Squishy robots learn to bend, stretch and squirm on command
