科学家把青蛙细胞变成活的机器

科学家把青蛙细胞变成活的机器

Scientists have taken a bold leap into the future with robots built from frog parts.

科学家们向未来迈出了大胆的一步，用青蛙的细胞来制造机器人。

New research published this week in PNAS from Tufts University and the University of Vermont describes how frog stem cells can create a unique hybrid of organic and inorganic parts — living machines that power themselves.

本周，塔夫茨大学和佛蒙特大学在《美国国家科学院院刊》上发表的一项新研究描述了青蛙干细胞是如何创造出一种独特的有机和无机混合物的——为自身提供能量的活机器。

A manufactured quadruped organism, 650-750 microns in diameter — a bit smaller than a pinhead. (Photo: Douglas Blackiston, Tufts University)

For their designs, researchers used a supercomputer to create an "evolutionary algorithm," essentially a program that models random configurations of skin and heart cells. Then those models are tested in a virtual environment under various conditions. One model might for example, be able to move under its own steam farther than others. That model then provides the basis for more designs, which are in turn, tested in virtual environments.

在他们的设计中，研究人员使用超级计算机创建了一个“进化算法”，本质上是一个模拟皮肤和心脏细胞随机配置的程序。然后在虚拟环境中对这些模型进行各种条件下的测试。例如，一个模型可能比其他模型在自己的动力下走得更远。然后，该模型为更多的设计提供了基础，这些设计将在虚拟环境中进行测试。

About 100 generations later, scientists choose the most efficient models to produce in the lab, adding early stage skin and heart cells from African clawed frog embryos.

大约100代后，科学家们选择了最有效的模型在实验室中生产，加入早期非洲爪蛙胚胎的皮肤和心脏细胞。

In effect, it's survival of the fittest for robots. And it's where organic tissue reveals certain advantages. Heart cells, for example, have the ability to contract and relax on their own Those natural motions become a xenobot's energy source.

实际上，这是适者生存的机器人。这就是有机组织的优势所在。例如，心脏细胞有收缩和放松的能力，这些自然运动成为xenobot的能量来源。

And in case you're fretting about a possible xenobot revolution, they also have an expiration date. The models function for between seven and 10 days  — long enough to complete their task  — before self-termination.

如果你担心可能会有一场xenobot革命，它们也有一个截止日期。在自我终止之前，这些模型可以工作7到10天——足够完成它们的任务。

Besides, added co-author Sam Kriegman, "If you watch the video, it's hard to fear that these things are taking over any time soon."

此外，合著者山姆·克里格曼补充道，“如果你看了这段视频，你很难担心这些东西会很快占据你的生活。”

Indeed, they are tiny and somewhat squishy., But the xenobots could take on some truly Herculean tasks in the future. Researchers suggest they may be deployed to clean microplastics from oceans and other remote places. Or they could detect toxins and gobble them up safely. Given their size, they may also be able to deliver drugs to a body or even scrape plaque from arterial walls.

事实上，它们很小，而且有点黏糊糊的。但在未来，这些异种机器人可能会承担一些真正艰巨的任务。研究人员认为，它们可能被用于清洁海洋和其他偏远地区的塑料微粒。或者它们可以检测出毒素并安全的吞食掉。考虑到它们的大小，它们也可以将药物输送到身体，甚至从动脉壁上刮下斑块。

Another potential use? If designed with blood vessels, nervous systems and sensory cells, xenobots could become basic eyes.

另一个潜在的应用?如果用血管、神经系统和感觉细胞来设计，异种机器人可以成为基本的眼睛。

On the left, the anatomical blueprint for a computer-designed organism. On the right, the living organism, built entirely from frog skin (green) and heart muscle (red) cells. The background displays traces carved by a swarm of these new-to-nature organisms as they move through a field of particulate matter. (Photo: Sam Kriegman/University of Vermont)

Despite their promise, it's hard to dismiss the ethical implications of grafting living cells to machines. Is there a point where "living, programmable organisms" become self-aware? And if so, how would we know?

尽管他们已经承诺了，很难否认移植活细胞到机器上的伦理影响。“活的、可编程的有机体”是否会有自我意识?如果是，我们怎么知道?

"There are interesting ethical questions about the moral status of these xenobots," Thomas Douglas of the Oxford Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics, tells The Guardian. "I think they'd acquire moral significance only if they included neural tissue that enabled some kind of mental life, such as the ability to experience pain.

牛津上广实用伦理中心的托马斯·道格拉斯在接受《卫报》采访时表示:“关于这些外星机器人的道德地位，存在一些有趣的伦理问题。”“我认为，只有将神经组织纳入其中，才能赋予它们某种精神生活的意义，比如体验疼痛的能力。”

"But some are more liberal about moral status. They think that all living creatures have interests that should be given some moral consideration. For these people, difficult questions could arise about whether these xenobots should be classified as living creatures or machines."

但有些人在道德地位上更开明。他们认为所有的生物都有利益，应该给予一些道德上的考虑。对这些人来说，可能会出现一些难题，比如这些异种机器人应该归类为生物还是机器。”