Jelly plays Pong and gets better at with practice

August 25, 2024 Imma Perfetto

A hydrogel has learned to play the 1970s video game “Pong” and improved its ability to hit the ball by 10% with some practice.

Dr Hayashi, a biomedical engineer at the University of Reading in the UK, says: “Our research shows that even very simple materials can exhibit complex, adaptive behaviours typically associated with living systems or sophisticated AI.  

“This opens up exciting possibilities for developing new types of ‘smart’ materials that can learn and adapt to their environment.” 

The research is described in a paper published in Cell Reports Physical Science.

Video link, an example run of a hydrogel playing Pong.

https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6360855643112

Credit: Cell Reports Physical Science/Strong et al.

What is a hydrogel?

A hydrogel, like gelatine or agar, is made of a 3D network of polymers that become jelly-like when water is added.

The hydrogel in this study is an “ionic electro-active polymer”, where the media surrounding the polymer matrix contains charged particles, in this case hydrogen ions.

As a result, it can deform when an electric current is applied to it.

Stimulation by an electric field causes the hydrogen ions migrate and, as they move, drag water molecules with them, causing areas to swell.

“The rate at which the hydrogel de-swells takes much longer than the time it takes for it to swell in the first place, meaning that the ions’ next motion is influenced by its previous motion, which is sort of like memory occurring,” says first author and University of Reading robotics engineer, Dr Vincent Strong.

“The continued rearrangement of ions within the hydrogel is based on previous rearrangements within the hydrogel, continuing back to when it was first made and had a homogeneous distribution of ions.”

It’s this property the researchers exploited to teach the hydrogel to play Pong.

How does a hydrogel play Pong? (snip-More on the page)

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Balloon carrying telescope at poles to spot exoplanets: get EXCITEd

August 23, 2024 Ellen Phiddian

NASA is about to launch a helium balloon carrying a telescope, to test its ability to see exoplanet atmospheres.

The Exoplanet Climate Infrared Telescope (EXCITE) is eventually destined to fly around the poles, collecting data above much of the Earth’s atmosphere, but its first test flight is due to happen from the USA in the next few months.

It will be launched for the first time from the Columbia Scientific Ballooning Facility in New Mexico.

“EXCITE can give us a three-dimensional picture of a planet’s atmosphere and temperature by collecting data the whole time the world orbits its star,” says principal investigator Peter Nagler, from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. (snip-More on the page)