Prescott, T. J., Lepora, N. and Verschure, P. F. M. J. (2014) A future of living machines? International trends and prospects in biomimetic and biohybrid systems. Proceedings of SPIE, 9055. 905502. ISSN 0277-786X
Abstract
Research in the fields of biomimetic and biohybrid systems is developing at an accelerating rate. Biomimetics can be understood as the development of new technologies using principles abstracted from the study of biological systems, however, biomimetics can also be viewed from an alternate perspective as an important methodology for improving our understanding of the world we live in and of ourselves as biological organisms. A biohybrid entity comprises at least one artificial (engineered) component combined with a biological one. With technologies such as microscale mobile computing, prosthetics and implants, humankind is moving towards a more biohybrid future in which biomimetics helps us to engineer biocompatible technologies. This paper reviews recent progress in the development of biomimetic and biohybrid systems focusing particularly on technologies that emulate living organisms—living machines. Based on our recent bibliographic analysis [1] we examine how biomimetics is already creating life-like robots and identify some key unresolved challenges that constitute bottlenecks for the field. Drawing on our recent research in biomimetic mammalian robots, including humanoids, we review the future prospects for such machines and consider some of their likely impacts on society, including the existential risk of creating artifacts with significant autonomy that could come to match or exceed humankind in intelligence. We conclude that living machines are more likely to be a benefit than a threat but that we should also ensure that progress in biomimetics and biohybrid systems is made with broad societal consent. © (2014) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2014 Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Proceedings of SPIE. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | biomimetic; biohybrid; living machines; mammalian robots; social robotics; neuroprosthetics; societal impacts |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > Department of Psychology (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 16 Nov 2016 14:30 |
Last Modified: | 23 Mar 2018 20:52 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.2046305 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE) |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1117/12.2046305 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:107028 |