I want to build a small machine

[KAckermann]

Requirements:

• Between .5cm and 1cm large.
• It must negotiate 3-D space in an air atmosphere.
• It must be capable of autonomous existence.
• It must be capable of high-g acceleration to rapidly start and stop.
• It must be able to remain stationary on a surface at any spatial orientation.
• It must self-replicate.
• It must derive power from organics such as sugar and poop.
• It must be able to detect and evade moving objects.
• It must exhibit a preference to orbit the heads of humans.
• It is desirable that it emit a general buzzing sound. The louder the better.

Use:
There may be broader applications for this device, but the primary use is as a response to the following scenario:

If you are invited to visit the Large Hadron Collider, and some scientist there starts bragging about the colossal scientific instruments they have, a devastating response would be to open up a matchbox and say, "Oh yeah? Got one of these?", and let the machine leave the matchbox and hopefully begin buzzing orbits around the bragging scientist's head.

Budget is tight.

 

[rootX]

http://www.infovisual.info/02/img_en/040%20Morphology%20of%20a%20fly%20(lateral).jpg

 

[binzing]

Haha at both. I love your response Root.

 

[KAckermann]

Perfect! How much for this... fly?

 

[edward]

Perfect! How much for this... fly?

It depends on what options you want. Hind legs are extra

 

[Cyrus]

Is there a point to this thread?

 

[Anticitizen]

Beyond levity, you mean?

 

[binzing]

Cyrus, let them have fun, lol, nobody's going to die, I promise.

 

[KAckermann]

<i>Is there a point to this thread?</i>

Yes, there is. How far are we away from building such a thing?

 

[Cyrus]

Try google.

 

[KAckermann]

I would contend we are not significantly closer to engineering a fly than we were 25 years ago. Or 250 years ago, for that matter.

 

[KAckermann]

I always get leery when mentioning this, but the things that can be done with a $4.00 microcontroller these days are frightening. I was cringing during the Iraq war that we would start to see autonomous M-50 machine guns on rooftops that could target the whup-whup of helicopters. Something like that would make close-air support quite difficult.

Asymetrical can mean many things. One of these days, one of our UAV's will be responding to alternate commands, and those commands might be coming from a curious and resourceful 15-year-old kid.

 

[edward]

*This Machine is Alive! Microscopic Motor Runs on Microbes*

How small do you want to go??

http://www.livescience.com/common/media/video/player.php?videoRef=TinyDriver

http://www.livescience.com/technology/060828_micrbobe_motor.html

Need a microscopic chain drive??

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_/ai_83477555