What Are the Benefits and Uses of Intelligent Oil?

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The discussion centers on the concept of "intelligent" oil, referencing videos that showcase the behavior of chemotactic droplets that can solve mazes, inspired by the movement of amoebas. The phenomenon is attributed to simple acid/base chemistry, which allows these droplets to navigate through their environment. The researchers behind this discovery received an Ig Nobel prize for their work. The conversation also highlights the importance of understanding the medium in which these droplets operate, clarifying that their intelligent behavior occurs in water rather than air. For those interested in the scientific details, the associated research paper by Lagzi et al. from 2010 is mentioned, providing further insights into the mechanics of this behavior.
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"intelligent" oil

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXgP8rq_wfA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPMHjDzpOVg
 
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Amazing video, but of course they learned the trick from the maze-solving amoeba:
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v407/n6803/abs/407470a0.html" :smile: it earned the researchers an Ig Nobel prize.
 
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Amazing what simple acid/base chemistry can do. For those interested in reading the associated paper with these videos explaining the phenomena, see:

Lagzi et al. 2010. Maze Solving by Chemotactic Droplets. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 132: 1198-9. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja9076793
 
Ygggdrasil said:
Amazing what simple acid/base chemistry can do. For those interested in reading the associated paper with these videos explaining the phenomena, see:

Lagzi et al. 2010. Maze Solving by Chemotactic Droplets. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 132: 1198-9. http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja9076793

Oh, so it's in water. I wondered how it could know where it is just being in air.
 
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