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The audacious science pushing the boundaries of human touch
It's the first sensation we feel, our most primal connection to others. Can implants and electrical signaling replicate the experience of touch? Research teams are exploring the possibilities—with startling results.
This translucent fabric acts as the skin of an experimental camera-computer combo that “feels” the touch of hands in a novel way—by converting their shadows into information. The Cornell University scientists who developed the mechanism, called Shadow Sense, are trying it out inside a soft, touch-reactive robot.
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