AI and robotics demystify the workings of a fly's wing

Machine learning and robotics have shed new light on one of the most sophisticated skeletal structures in the animal kingdom: the insect wing hinge.
Unlike birds or bats, which evolved wings by adapting existing limbs, insect wings are wholly original appendages, and understanding how the complex hinge that links the insect wing to its body works has been a challenge.
But now a team of researchers have combined cutting edge imaging, machine learning and robotics to build a model that is shedding new light on the structure.
Read the paper: www.nature.com...

[@highvoltage47]

top notch production quality, especially visualizing the wing hinge shows just how insanely complicated even the smallest creatures are

[@minsapint8007]

@WhosWhointheZoo123 Proof at last that the Flying Spaghetti Monster is real.

[@galaga00]

@WhosWhointheZoo123 how dare you insult the Flying Spaghetti Monster. He doesn’t living under the bed he lives in your heart and mind through blind faith.

[@riley1636]

@WhosWhointheZoo123yeah, the creator of "natural selection" lol

[@myhandle__]

Appreciating nature for publishing videos too rather than research paper alone.

[@gabedarrett1301]

Genetic engineering, neural networks (AI), and aerospace engineering are what's required to solve this extremely challenging problem. Humans can do anything when they work together!

[@myhandle__]

Absolutely

[@Gailon1000]

casually making muscles of flies glow. You know, as you do :D

[@aquaticape68]

Fantastic and amazing- insect flight should be seen as the genuinely original flight system- with birds and bats a crude subset.

[@StainlessHelena]

This is beyond amazing! I wonder if there will ever be a functional manned aircraft with insect-inspired wings.

[@28704joe]

My guess is not because tha propulsive/lift wing mechanism will have to be huge compared to the mass its transporting. A jet engine is a small percentage of the volume of a passenger plane displaces. But that's going to stop no one from thinking outside the box!

[@nichtrichtigrum]

Technically, they exist already. Helicopters are inspired by dragonflies.

[@cardinal9009]

Dunepilled

[@davidebic]

@@28704joe (totally not thinking of dune 2) I think they might make some sense in other planets where there's not enough oxygen in the atmosphere to be able to run a combustion engine. I still doubt we'd use this design tho. Rotating parts are just better but living organisms can't have them.

[@28704joe]

@@davidebic I would agree with you on the oxygen thing, never thought of that.

[@urimtefiki226]

I used to watch insects for half hour or more, many insects different ones. Since my childhood I used to play with them especially bees, butterflies.

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩🧩

[@user-gz1hu5px1z]

I still do.☺

[@sjkba]

That is such incredible engineering! Insane performance per neuron!

[@footfault1941]

Perhaps a poster child of a modern era. Technology behind the scene stays behind, but explicit inevitably.

[@ralphmck6369]

Excellent presentation, only spoiled by the absurd suggestion that this incredible design is some chance evolutionary result! This is so obviously Intelligent Design, the possibility of it happening by chance in far less than zero.

[@kellymoses8566]

genetically engineering flys to be able to record muscle activation during flight, then recording 3D motion of the wings during flight, and then training a neural network based on the data is amazing.

[@ExopMan]

Ornithopters incoming

[@l_a_h797]

or maybe entomopters?

[@rizkyadiyanto7922]

helicooter insects.

[@footfault1941]

An impessive anatomical details in motion! Beauty means this. Technology behind the scene can't be missed, either.

[@johncollins8304]

I'd like models of their flight over different periods of time -- 5 secs, 10 secs, etc. -- maybe in a perspex cube.

[@dimzen5406]

Construction of fly wing system well known for 50 years and easily can be found in biological textbooks. All we need is understand how it can be implemented in modern technology. I've spended 15 years on it and only now reached the final row. But it will takes at least 10 years more to get industry ready result.

[@tempname8263]

We need great artificial muscles for this. That and microscopic multimaterial 3d printers.

[@TeslaAtoms]

@dimzen5406 Me too, at it since 2005! Where are you researching at?

[@johncollins8304]

​@@TeslaAtoms"at"!!??

[@ozloop69]

Does an insect wing on its own provide any lift like an aircraft wing provide lift as it’s been pushed through the air insect wings that lift characteristic because of its shape?

[@Arct0dus]

"so they made insects, that flouriscate when muscles are contracted" normal monday evening activity xD

[@HILLBILLYMORON]

All that about how flies fly without a single mention of halteres.

[@cddvdblurayful]

So interesting to imagine new air vehicles

[@kylanacus2407]

Funny that the fly the researchers choose to examine is like one of the tiniest flies.

[@ecmswagger]

The best attack drones are the smallest.

[@urimtefiki226]

Science is moving fast recently.

[@johncollins8304]

Are there other animals that are named by their method of locomotion?

[@l_a_h797]

I'm sure there are lots. Grasshoppers, for example... nightcrawlers... sidewinders... why do you ask?

[@johncollins8304]

​@l_a_h797 Thanks. Just interesting that of all the animals that fly, only one is called 'fly'. So why 'fly? Why aren't fish called 'swims', or ... kangaroos 'hops'... or snakes ',wiggles', ducks 'paddles'. Your 'grasshoppers' comes close.

[@jacktringoli3299]

Is this info publicly available? I have some ideas 🙃

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Oh what the fuck ever dude 🧩👌🏼

[@takudzwamashamba7453]

God, the best designer to ever do it.

[@anon3118]

they genetically engineered insects to glow when they move their muscles? just as a part of the process? That's crazy.

[@mikeyjohnson5888]

I wonder how long these joints could last on a flying insect with an extended lifespan. Thats a lot of wear and tear though maybe at those sizes it negligible. If so that would be amazing for future mechanisms. Imagine manmade chitinous mechanisms....

[@temporaladvisor3958]

Okay, so I'm a bit apprehensive regarding AI, but darn it, if it advances our scientific knowledge, I guess I'll be willing to climb onboard. This display was quite impressive.

[@kikijewell2967]

The issue is this: If you buy a robot to do your job, you collect the paycheck and relax. If a rich person buys a robot to do your job, they just took away your means to live. AI is the robot. Who should be in control of it? Who should use it to produce more efficient work?

[@temporaladvisor3958]

@@kikijewell2967 Like I said, I'm still apprehensive about this whole AI/Robot stuff. Not so much for myself, I'm old, but for generations coming up.

[@chrisklugh]

So your telling me the aircraft in Dune might not be that far fetched?

[@mantchova]

This discovery of how wing joints work is very interesting. But this being integrated into a flying robot is a bit too unreal. Remember when men made airplane wings in the shape of bird wings?

[@remsrems3980]

Interesting, although it looks like a lot of funding went into that research. Who funds this ? For what application ?

[@Settiis]

Every discovery is a step towards a better future.

[@anonymouspenguin2173]

@@Settiis Think before you speak

[@Settiis]

@@anonymouspenguin2173 Are you talking to yourself?

[@anonymouspenguin2173]

@@Settiis Hell nah!

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

@@anonymouspenguin2173haha this fuckin guy lmao wtf

[@atenrok]

This is bananas 😱

[@vaakdemandante8772]

Do flies get arthritis? ;)

[@scottstensland]

cool ... notice the computer on right side is running Ubuntu linux at time 1:19 ... Woot

[@ivanruiz2218]

bug shaped air craft in 300 years

[@eugenes9751]

12 neurons for control.... I am so terrified for when we build ai controlled, self-reproducing insects.

[@chrisb6791]

Wow. Very interesting!

[@komillz]

what kind of research is this called?

[@MrChatmoon]

Excellent

[@Kruk1975]

Genetical engined to produce a protein that causes fluorescence. One of the wildest sentences i have ever heard in my life. What the fuck

[@EMY.sr.]

Beautiful

[@johncollins8304]

Why don"t they go from A to B 'as the crow flies'?

[@That_Freedom_Guy]

Cool! 👍

[@johncollins8304]

How do they make the sound when they're 'living up to their name' -- presumably it's the sound of their wings 'cos when it stops, it stops. But let's have a vido.

[@mcRydes]

why do all the shots of the tests look like the fly version of the matrix dystopia

[@StevenMP1993]

Amazing!

[@marcomonti5758]

Very cool!!

[@Superchunk-k2h]

I'm always interested in how these scientists determine the materials they use as analogues for the insects wings, because obviously they aren't using proteins like keratin or chitin for their machines, and insects have to transport things like blood through their wings while their machines don't need these vein structures, so how do they determine the geometry?

[@frojojo5717]

Insect wings don’t have haemolymph flow. Wings are essentially dead, like nails and hair.

[@cogoid]

These models are trying to reproduce the aerodynamics but not all of the details of the wing. So they make the wing out of Plexiglas or some other plastic, and instead of air use water. When it is done correctly, then the flapping of a large wing in water closely matches the flapping of a tiny wing in the air.

[@cogoid]

@@frojojo5717 This is just not true. Hemolymph circulation in essential in maintaining wing function in insects.

[@frojojo5717]

@@cogoid Thank you! I didn’t know that, my mistake.

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Fake Stunt Brain over here is worse than the religious fruits tryna take this shit over.

[@tentimesful]

tiny fruit flies and tiny spiders are the only insects in my house what a shame I have them... I think a satellite is making them in my house as all doors are closed everytime and they come in my kitchen and toilet... that is for summers in the winter they disappear.

[@practicalengineering6965]

God is awesome it took humans some time to realize one mechanic xD

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

They let you type this from your padded cell?

[@kuwaitman]

My brain is telling me if there is a design, there must be a designer ..

[@fubuorelse]

shhh! just wait til u find out what is required for any of the systems that need to be in place for origin of life - mind boggling and a complete shocker to researchers

[@Sutanreyu]

This is bonkers.

[@mjay4700]

Nice so now instead of high pitched whining drones with propellers we'll be hearing loud buzzing of drone wings.

[@mahmudashik]

Well, this reminds me of DUNE!

[@Welovefoodseverywhere]

I know that human, even insects and animals now can be directed/monitored by a computer. Where is the human right to decide how are we going to be?

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

🧩🤓

[@victoriashaw324]

Cool

[@nunyabiznis3595]

I am pleased at how far I had to scroll before "god did it" made an appearance.

[@augustwest-e8l]

it is heartening....

[@johncollins8304]

Seconds in, "all evolved wings". How do you know? Just say 'all had wings".

[@RandyJames22]

Stunning graphics!

[@Privacityuser]

Wow 🤯 🤯 three body problem in those articulations! + Brownian motion in synthesising mRNA for neurotransmitter adjusting neural optimal movements in real flyer!

[@techcafe0]

Biomimicry 👍

[@davideskridge3906]

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for your inspiring and magnificent creation.

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Imaginary friend*

[@bruinflight]

Say 'so long' to the era of humans making discoveries and leaps of knowledge...

[@dielaughing73]

Why? We just did, using our most sophisticated tools. New technologies have always helped increase our knowledge.

[@bruinflight]

@@dielaughing73 there will be no new discoverers, it will all be done by machines, humanity will become lazy, (more) stupid and die out.

[@thoughte2432]

Evolution eh?

[@rjung_ch]

👍💪✌

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

🧩🧠🧩

[@praxitelispraxitelous7061]

Evolution did it. As always...

[@MrAmitkr007]

World is much more complex than we give credit for or our brains are ready for

[@festo8885]

I'd disagree

[@王大牛-b6o]

Oh my gosh, nature created such an exquisitely simple yet effective creation hundreds of millions of years ago, and it’s only been a few hundred years since we invented wings. Wings like these are only seen in movies.🙄

[@tm6196]

فَتَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ أَحْسَنُ الْخَالِقِينَ So blessed be Allah, the Best of creators!

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Sand Autist 🧩🕋🧩

[@Irobert1115HD]

well apparently insect wings are not original structures but reworked gills. also most if not all of the movements where already known for decades so where is the need for AI in this?

[@BIONICman1983]

I guess the simulation of a mechanical model that reproduces the forces and laws of physics.

[@ThreeChe]

They use the genetically engineered flies to generate training data for an AI to be able to model the entire motion in a high accuracy simulation program that can be input into a robotic model to test aerodynamics. Knowing about something generally versus having the exact motion data points for simulation modeling are two very different things. They can now use the model to test performance in a wide variety of simulation environments to build better high performance robotics.

[@agungnizam3695]

"knowing" something and knowing that it's true is different. They need to gather data with advanced tools then testing it before they can prove that insect wings work like this

[@Irobert1115HD]

@@ThreeChe you know that the motion of insect wings was discovered with high speed wings and that scientist build a rather crude fake fruit fly suspended in molasses or some other syrup to visualise how their wings work?

[@Irobert1115HD]

@@agungnizam3695 ever heared of slow mo cameras?

[@paradhoax]

Demystify?!!! 😂😂😂 In you dreams.

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

“You dreams” 🧩🧩🧩

[@paradhoax]

@@SchmelvinMoyville Phone typo Ms orthographic cop 😩.

[@kaiseraugustus1393]

And the conclusion is?.... yes, there was no evolution

[@ricardorivas9880]

Fly spy

[@BeAhre]

No evolution involved.Gen 1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Gen 1:25 And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

[@evanrasyid9183]

We can learn how, but not why.

[@R2D21844]

Once again science looks to God's creation to see how best to develop, not science science came up with something on its own through research. an example of this is shock absorbers are improved by studying woodpeckers and how they handle 1000g's of force without his eyes popping out or him going home to is wife with the preverbial headache at night. 🙂

[@ArktinenJenkki]

Nope, not an example of creation magic.

[@R2D21844]

@@ArktinenJenkki it is

[@jamesgonzales6838]

It shows the miracle of God of his creation

[@victoraraoz75]

human consciousness is obssed with knowing. it's unhealthy already

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Proud of you for sharing. I’m sure it’s hard to get a cell phone in the psych ward

[@ozaninanyagc2991]

@@SchmelvinMoyville

[@Minimalist9_]

The Holy Quran Al-Hajj 22:73 O humanity! A lesson is set forth, so listen to it ˹carefully˺: those ˹idols˺ you invoke besides Allah can never create ˹so much as˺ a fly, even if they ˹all˺ were to come together for that. And if a fly were to snatch anything away from them, they cannot ˹even˺ retrieve it from the fly. How powerless are those who invoke and those invoked!

[@ColocasiaCorm]

Fly are gross

[@SecondAmendmentMuslim]

O humanity! A lesson is set forth, so listen to it ˹carefully˺: those ˹idols˺ you invoke besides Allah can never create ˹so much as˺ a fly, even if they ˹all˺ were to come together for that. And if a fly were to snatch anything away from them, they cannot ˹even˺ retrieve it from the fly. How powerless are those who invoke and those invoked!. Quran 22:73

[@swingyflingex3458]

Hahahaha

[@CommentFactsAndNotNegativity]

Wow, you really missed the point of that verse.

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

Schizo alert

[@gloriaelmore9092]

It was very simple for God to create.

[@haniallelli94]

And that’s Evolution??? Just random failures 🤡🤡🤡

[@augustwest-e8l]

no. evolution is random successes!

[@SchmelvinMoyville]

This is your comment? Just brain damage 🧩🧩🧩

[@lotusa8868]

Allahu Akbar