jeremijenko
Robotic dogs sniff out toxins
They sniff, wag their tails, fetch and run in packs. But no one minds if these canines stick their noses into some pretty dirty stuff. That's because they are robotic dogs, modified by engineering students at Yale University to sniff out toxic materials. Equipped with just about everything but a wet nose, the plastic and metallic-skinned robots have spurred toxic search projects in the United States, Europe and Australia. They are the brainchild of Natalie Jeremijenko, a lecturer in engineering at Yale and self-described technoartist.