新奇事件簿 科学家研制出更有力的机器人（在线收听）

Scientists from two of the USA's elite universities have pioneered a new method of creating artificial muscles. The scientists have dubbed their discovery as a "soft robot". It is a 2.6-gram "muscle" that looks like a small bag with many water-filled compartments. It has been given amazing strength by supporting it with an origami-inspired structural framework. This allows the artificial muscle to lift an object that is 1,000 times its own weight. The New Scientist website said this weight-to-strength ratio is the equivalent of a newborn baby lifting a large 4WD car. The ground-breaking discovery could greatly benefit many areas of science, medicine, robotics and engineering.

来自美国一流大学的科学家首创了制作人造肌肉的新方法。科学家称他们的发现为“柔软的机器人”。它是一款重2.6克的肌肉，看上去像一个小小的袋子，有许多装满水的小隔间。通过一个折纸驱动的结构框架，它被赋予了惊人的力气。这让人造肌肉可以提起本身体重1000倍的物体。新科学家网站表示，这种体重和力量的比率相当于一个新生儿举起一辆四轮驱动车。这项创纪录的发现将使科学，医药，机器和工程等许多领域受益。

The scientists are from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. They are experts in the field of soft robotics. They said their new soft robot muscle can be made in just 10 minutes and costs less than one dollar. Researcher, professor Robert Wood, hopes to create "softer" robots that are more similar to humans. He said: "Humans are normally soft and brittle compared to the big industrial robots that you might find on an assembly line. The next step is to take this system and develop it into a fully functional robot." Dr Daniela Rus explained that the robots could be like the human hand. They could be strong enough to grip any object firmly, while being soft and gentle.

这些科学家来自麻省理工学院和哈佛大学。他们是“柔软的机器人”领域的专家。他们说，他们新发明的柔软的机器人肌肉只用十分钟就能造出来，成本不到1美元。研究人员Robert Wood教授希望创造出与人更接近的更柔软的机器人。他说：“与生产线上才能找到的大型工业机器人相比，人类通常更加柔软，更加脆弱。下一步就是借鉴这种系统的经验，使它成为功能更全面的机器人。”Daniela Rus博士解释说，机器人应该像人类的手一样。他们可以足够有力，能够牢牢地抓取任何物体，同时足够柔软和温柔。