RoachBot to the Rescue! Meet the Six-Legged Cyborg Superhero Built for Search and Rescue

Wow in the World

The episode explores the scientific development of 'RoachBot,' a cyborg cockroach engineered for search and rescue missions. Hosts Mindy and

Key takeaways

• Scientists at Nanyang Technical University developed a cyborg cockroach using an electric backpack to steer the insect.
• The 'RoachBot' is specifically designed for search and rescue in flooded areas following natural disasters like earthquakes.

Main topics

• Cyborg technology
• Search and rescue robotics

Notable quotes

A cyborg is something that's part living creature and part technology or machine.

Conclusion

An inspiring look at how merging biology with engineering can create i

Transcript preview

Speaker 5 (0:00) Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here. And before we start the show, are you a kid who wows? Of course you are. Well, listen up because I am searching for the perfect wow kid to join me as a guest on an upcoming episode of two What's in a Wow People Who Wow edition. Together, we'll play three rounds of my getting to know you game show. And along the way, we'll get to know all about you, your hidden talents, your hobbies, your funniest stories. Plus, the winner will also receive a prize pack of Wow in the World toys and books. Want a chance to be on the show? Ask your grown-ups to enter our Kids Who Wow contest. Grown-ups record a short video of your wowzer sharing three true wow facts about their life. Then ask them to tell you the story behind one of those facts. Enter for a chance to win when you send us your video at Tinkercast.com slash contest. Grownups, you can learn more about the rules for this contest and upload your submission before October 1st at Tinkercast.com slash contest. That's Tinkercast.com slash contest. And now for a quick ad break and then back to the show. Speaker 4 (1:17) The Speaker 3 (1:18) movie's Speaker 5 (1:47) about to start. Oh, here he comes. I see him. Hey, Roz, we're over here. Yeah, session. Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme. Okay, Speaker 3 (1:56) let's see here. I've got a box of exploding ants for Mindy. Thank you. Speaker 5 (2:01) Here, watch this. Did you know these things are banned in 35 countries? Speaker 3 (2:12) Oh, wow. I've also got a five-gallon bucket of lemonade for Dennis. Speaker 5 (2:18) Oh, Speaker 2 (2:18) give Speaker 5 (2:18) it here. Speaker 3 (2:20) Thank you, Guy. Uh... Speaker 2 (2:34) Time for a free refill. Dennis. Okay, I'll wait. Speaker 3 (2:38) Oh, right. Speaker 2 (2:39) How Speaker 3 (2:39) could I forget you, Reggie? Let's see here. I've got one small, unbuttered, unsalted, unflavored popcorn for you and one for me. Would you like to see a movie? Who, me? Would you like to see the stars? From Earth? No, Mars. Oh. Uh-uh. Just kidding. Yeah, from Earth. Speaker 5 (2:59) Okay, let's take it Speaker 3 (3:00) from the top. One, two, three, four, five. Would you like to see a movie? Stop singing. We're about to enter the theater. You're making a scene. Oh, well, then it'd just be serene to make a little scene. Tickets, please. Oh, who's got the tickets? Oh, right. Here are three tickets to Pigeon Patrol the movie. Oh, Reggie, that's right. You need a ticket, too. Actually, pigeons get in free for Pigeon Patrol the movie. Speaker 1 (3:26) What? No. Ah, Speaker 3 (3:27) thanks. Sweet. Speaker 5 (3:29) Pigeon Patrol the Speaker 1 (3:29) movie is in C to C on your right. Thank you. Speaker 3 (3:32) Let's go, everyone. Yay! Speaker 5 (3:35) Pigeon Patrol! Pigeon Patrol! Pigeon Patrol! Okay, Speaker 3 (3:40) let's find some seats quickly before the previews start. Can Speaker 5 (3:42) do, Guy Raz. Excuse me. Sorry, I'm just going to sit right by you here. I didn't mean to sit on you. Sorry. Can you move your legs, please? Sorry about Speaker 3 (3:50) that. Watch it. You spilled your lemonade all over me. Don't worry about it. It's Speaker 5 (3:53) free Speaker 3 (3:53) refills. Huh? Speaker 5 (3:55) There we go. That screen is big. Exploding ants, anyone? Speaker 3 (3:59) Uh, no Speaker 5 (3:59) thanks. Hush, boy. Can't nobody hear the movie. Grandma G-Force! Speaker 4 (4:04) I didn't know you were going to be here to see Pigeon Patrol 2. I got a dilapidating crush on that handsome Captain Cuckoohead. A Speaker 2 (4:13) crush? He's a... cartoon pigeon. A cartoon pigeon who knows how to talk. That's right he does. And baby Dennis likes flyer flaps and binky. Baby Dennis? You Speaker 3 (4:24) came out to the movies too? Would you all please stop talking? The movie previews are starting. Hey you in the glasses. Me? Yeah you. Quiet down. Speaker 1 (4:38) Where weather rules the, um, world. I am the Speaker 4 (4:45) king! Push, you big windbag. Shhh. Speaker 1 (4:52) Seismic events so seismic, no human can stop them. Speaker 3 (4:58) I've Speaker 6 (5:01) quaked. Speaker 3 (5:09) In a Speaker 1 (5:10) world where the wind and the rain show no mercy. Speaker 4 (5:16) Everybody just needs to get a diaper house that soaks up the water. It works and it only smells a lot. Speaker 1 (5:24) The question is, when disaster strikes, who you gonna call? Speaker 3 (5:30) Static Man? Speaker 1 (5:31) No, definitely not. Speaker 3 (5:32) Can the movie announcer hear us? Speaker 3 (5:39) Half Speaker 1 (5:41) cockroach, Speaker 3 (5:42) half Speaker 1 (5:43) robot. All hero. I Speaker 3 (5:48) am Roachbot, and I am here to rescue you. Aw, it's so tiny. Speaker 1 (5:53) From the makers of the Karate Kicking Cockroach and that other one about the beetle who gets pooped out by a frog. Speaker 3 (5:59) Based Speaker 1 (5:59) off a true study from the scientific journal Nature Communications. A Speaker 3 (6:04) scientific study? Shh, be quiet. Oh, sorry, sorry. Speaker 1 (6:09) It's Roachbot, Super Cyborg Scuba Scout. Speaker 3 (6:14) You have been found out. You are safe. Thank you, Roach Bob. My hero. Speaker 1 (6:20) Coming to a natural disaster near you this summer. Wow. That Speaker 4 (6:28) was a very short movie. I'm going to go complain and get my money back. Speaker 2 (6:33) What? But that wasn't... Yeah, me too. That pigeon patrol looked an awful lot like a little baby cockroach in a scuba suit. One star. Speaker 3 (6:43) No, that was a preview for a different movie about a cyborg cockroach. Speaker 4 (6:47) I do not know what a cyborg is. Oh, cyborg is Speaker 5 (6:52) short for cybernetic organism. It means it's something with both