Method of locomotion of Ordovician echinoderms

The mode of locomotion of one of the earliest free-living stalked echinoderms – Ordovician Pleurocystites belonging to the subphylum Blastozoa – was reconstructed. This was done by constructing a soft robot. For its construction, a 3D printed replica of these fossils was used, in which flexible artificial contractile fibers, resembling the muscles of living organisms, were embedded. The results of this research, published and highlighted by the editors of PNAS, show that similar robots inspired by organisms extinct millions of years ago can provide unique insights into their evolution and way of life, as well as find engineering applications, contributing to the development of a new research sub-discipline – palaeobionics.

Press release:
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN “Robotics ‘Revives’ a Long-Extinct Starfish Ancestor“,
Science Daily “450-million-year-old organism finds new life in Softbotics“,
Today Headline “450-Million-Year-Old Organism Finds New Life in Softbotics“, “Advances in soft robotics usher in a new era of scientific analysis“,
Technology Networks “450-Million-Year-Old Organism Rebuilt as a “Soft” Robot“,
EurekAlert! “450-million-year-old organism finds new life in Softbotics“,
The Ohio State University “Advances in soft robotics usher in a new era of scientific analysis“,
Polskie Radio “Polish scientists help recreate 450-million-year-old marine organism“.