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Researchers to try to figure out how Drosophila, the humble fruit fly, controls its movements so precisely and elegantly to inform the design of better robotic systems.

For almost three decades, Whiting School Professor Louis Whitcomb has developed tools and vehicles that enable oceanographers to explore once-unreachable depths.

"Safe autonomous systems are crucial for our society," said Noah Cowan, professor of mechanical engineering. "Our approach will integrate traditional mathematical control theory with new and emerging AI to make systems verifiable, robust, safe, and correct."

By chasing cockroaches through an obstacle course and studying their movements, the Johns Hopkins engineers discovered that animals' movement transitions corresponded to overcoming potential energy barriers and that they can jitter around to traverse obstacles in complex terrain.