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Monthly Archives: January 2000

Ants inspire mindless, cooperative robots

27-Jan-00

Teams of mindless robots can achieve complex tasks without communicating with each other, say robotics experts in Canada, who were inspired by ants’ behaviour. Armies of such cheap, expendable robots might one day help build a base on Mars — or simply mow your lawn.

Alaskan volcano stirs

11-Jan-00

Alaska’s Shishaldin volcano has experienced small explosions over the past few weeks, geologists say. The numbers of explosions have varied from several to more than 200 per day, but no steam or ash plumes have been observed by airborne and ground observers.

Earth: Warmer and wetter

09-Jan-00

Newly analyzed satellite data shows that Earth’s atmosphere has gotten warmer and wetter over the past 11 years, with the amount of water vapor increasing 2 percent.