#Harvard origami fish grabber full#

For instance, the main body contains gaps between the dodecahedron to prevent pressure build-up while traversing the ocean floor. The researchers were very thorough in developing the device, adding all sorts of considerations into the design. Designing the Origami Folding Mechanism Image courtesy of Kaitlyn Becker Similarly, suction cups could retrieve single specimen but were ultimately slow and still quite dangerous for certain species. Previously, biologists relied on nets, which could shred gelatinous life-forms or seriously harm others. That list contains creatures like zooplankton, who make up 38 billion kilograms of carbon in biomass (7% of the of the world’s total biomass). Gruber referred to some of these creatures as “lost fauna”, referencing the lack of research on them. Then, we’d release it,” biologist David Gruber told the Verge.

#Harvard origami fish grabber full#

The dream is to enclose delicate deep-sea animals, take 3D imagery that includes properties like hardness, 3D-print that animal at the surface, and also have a ‘toothbrush’ tickle the organism to obtain its full genome. “ I view this as a platform technology that we hope will continue to evolve. Future designs may scale up the size for larger organisms. Needless to say, it’s no easy feat for a device to withstand ocean pressures of that magnitude. The device not only works spectacularly, it also retrieves creatures at depths of 11 kilometres. The biologists made the device for strapping on to an underwater rover for use by remote control. Related Story Living Seawall Tiles: Volvo’s Plan For Combatting Pollution