00:00Meet the robot trying to move and fly like a bird.
00:04More specifically, a diving bird like a puffin.
00:07They transition quickly between water and air
00:10using just their wings, a biological marvel considering
00:13that water is almost 1,000 times denser than air.
00:17But how do they do it?
00:19To find out, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute
00:22of Technology built this flapping wing robot.
00:25It weighs about 250 grams and can swim underwater,
00:29fly and launch itself out of water.
00:32It has two flexible membrane wings and a movable tail.
00:36Thanks to the robot, the scientists can check how wing size
00:39and flexibility affect movements.
00:42Insights that could also help explain the diversity
00:45of South America's diving birds as well.
00:47We can track these bird, these robotic birds,
00:50because we can have them swim in our pools,
00:51we can have them fly in our flight zones.
00:54We have the ability to really measure these things in depth
00:57that would be very challenging to do with birds.
00:59But it's not just about understanding birds.
01:02The researchers believe that this kind of robot could also be used
01:06for lake and ocean monitoring in the future.
01:09Today, a lot of the ocean research happens with research vessels,
01:13guard ships that are expensive to run and are polluting as well.
01:16We're hoping that some of this monitoring can be replaced
01:20by robots that are electric, affordable, efficient,
01:24and does not require a boat to deploy.
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