Zoobots - NON FICTION
Innovations in the world of robotics are multiplying, with many cutting-edge breakthroughs, and this exciting and timely new book for young readers explores one particularly intriguing area: the world of robo-animals, or zoobots. In an attempt to design robots that can solve problems or perform tasks that humans can't, or just can't do easily, roboticists have been looking at the unique skills some animals have. Using something called mechatronics — mechanical and electrical engineering combined with computer science — they are finding ways to closely mirror those skills in robot form. Some fascinating examples from the book of what zoobots can do include: finding survivors of a fire using sensitive, computerized "whiskers"; scaling skyscraper walls using super stickiness; or delivering drugs deep within the human body using microscopic whiptails for locomotion. Twelve zoobots are described, each on its own two-page spread.
Award-winning children's author Helaine Becker's text is comprehensive, yet clear and lively, and is made more manageable by being broken up into shorter segments. The futuristic design of the book includes vivid, detailed color illustrations by Alex Ries, of both the zoobot prototypes as well as the animals from which their skills were derived. This imaginative and interesting nonfiction book will definitely capture the imaginations of technology buffs.
Sydney 5A
ReplyDeleteI found most of this book interesting because I got to learn about all sorts of cool and interesting robots that are being developed. Such as a human robot, a starfish robot, a gecko robot, and many more. I give this book a 9 out of 10 because I learned that people can make robots that are so advanced, and are also made to help people. I didn't give this book 10 out of 10 rating because some parts of the book where not the most interesting.
Denya 5A
ReplyDeleteI'm going to rate this book 7/10 for several reasons. It really opened up a new door to me, about the robotic world and all. The way those animal-based robots were designed to do things that humans can't in different conditions is pretty cool. It made me think of what it would be like to actually meet someone who has literally made a robot animal, designed like a mole, snake, gecko, or a starfish. The way the author organized the information with underlined subtitles, the good pictures, and clear information really helped when I was reading it. It's a very interesting subject the author chose to write about, and the book was really captivating.
Matthew, Jones
ReplyDeleteI would rate " Zoo-bots" 8\10 because there was lots of different information about the different bots. I found it cool that the "Whitesides' colour changer"and and "Uncle Sam' would be used on spy missions, surveillance and reconnaissance. My favourite zoo-bot of all of theme was the Nanobot because I think its incredible that scientists\enginneers could make a robot that was microscopic. If you like animals and robots I think you should read this book.
Raphaelle5A. I give this book a 8 out of 10 because it was very detailed and it really gave me a blast of what is new.
ReplyDeleteIt was very hard to believe that people are really working on the new amazing robots that are inspired by real animals. What' s amazing is that these robots can do things that no ordinary animal can do like shape shift, change colour, and go on important missions and they can put themselves in situations that would be dangerous for a human or animal. This book could get a little boring, but it was great peek into the future.
Julian 5/6 C
ReplyDeleteI going to give this book a 8/10. It was interesting but I thought they could have made it a bite longer so we could learn more. Some of the robots I liked the most, are the one that fights fires, the spy snake and the gecko. I think the robot for fighting forest fire will be very helpful in the future of fighting forest fires, with all the global warming. I thought the book would be about like animals from the zoo in robot form but I was wrong.
Sam 5/6C
ReplyDeleteZoobots was a great book so I give it an 8/10. I found the "Zoobots" mentioned in this book bizarre. My favourite Zoobot was the star fish because it could change colours and pick up fragile items. I would like to see what the tentacle-grabber thing will look like when it's done. Zoobots is for anyone who wants a glimpse into the future.