Posted: 07/20/2005
Robotics Show Lucy Walked Upright
Score one for another a non-traditional use for robotic technology, specifically (proto)human robotic technology.
According an article on BBC News, which is based on a paper in the journal Royal Society Interface, whatever that may be, an “evolutionary robotics” model indicates that Australopithecus afarensis, an early human that lived approximately 3.2 million years ago, walked upright (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4697977.stm). Many of those in the robotics community might be unfamiliar with Australopithecus afarensis, but perhaps not that species most famous representative, Lucy, the largely complete afarensis skeleton found back in the 1970s. The article describes how a group of UK scientists employed computer robotic techniques to work out the most energy efficient gait for afarensis based on Lucy’s skeleton and the Laetoli footprint trails. The Laetoli footprints, nearly as famous as Lucy herself, were formed by a rare chance of events. A volcanic eruption distributed a powdery ash which was then converted to a fine mud by a rainfall. Along comes a wandering band of early humans leaving footprints in the mud, which were then hardened by the blistering African sun. Presto… perfectly preserved hominid tracks, at least 3.6 million years old, that give evidence of upright bipedal walking, a major milestone in human evolution.
