Scientists
in China have developed a robotic system based on artificial intelligence AI to
monitor and care for human embryos fed in artificial wombs. The robot is being
developed as a possible solution to the problem of population growth in the
world’s most densely populated country, where the birth rate has recently
fallen to its lowest level in six decades.
Researchers
at the Suzanne Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology in the
eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu used the robot to observe an artificial
uterus. This robot is designed to observe, record, and manually manipulate
carbon dioxide and other environmental objects. According to the South China
Morning Post, the robot is also capable of classifying fetuses according to
their ability to develop. (Who was the first to report on this robot).
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Source: South China Morning Post |
A
research paper published in the Journal of Biomedical Engineering explains how
robotic nannies have already been used to raise animal embryos in artificial
uterine environments. The article says that there are still many unsolved
mysteries about the physiology of the development of the normal human embryo.
This technology will not only help to further understand the beginning of life
and the development of human embryos but will also provide the theoretical
basis for resolving birth defects and other important reproductive health
issues. According to the article, this system allows the fetus to grow more
securely and efficiently than the natural arrangement of a woman’s uterus.
Chinese
Scientists build Robotic Nanny
The
concept of this robotic technology is reminiscent of the chemical nanny in a
short story from Tedder Cheng’s famous 2019 collection, Exhalation. In the
story, a child who is brought up exclusively through an automated nanny grows
up unable to communicate with other human beings. However, Chinese researchers
have proven that this technology can be used safely for fetal development. But
there are still legal barriers that could prevent a human fetus from using it
after the age of two weeks.
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