Drawing on inspiration from origami, robotician Jamie Paik and her team have created super-thin robots that can reshape and fold themselves. They call them robogami. Here's how they work: Unlike classic robots, which are usually crafted for specific functions, the robogami are ever-changing and have the flexibility to adapt to new environments and tasks. “Instead of being a single robot that is specifically made for a single task, robogamis are optimized to do multi-tasks,” Paik says. “And this is quite important for the difficult and unique environments on the Earth as well as in space.” Yes, you read that correctly! They believe these robots can not only shape practical, everyday things — like how we shop for clothes online — but can also help with big research projects such as exploring outer space.
