Imagine a robot that could tie your shoelaces to the perfect degree of tightness, or a robotic hand capable of performing abdominal surgery and then suturing the wound with impeccable precision.
You might assume these feats would rely on complex electronic sensors, and yet a breakthrough by Chinese scientists has made it possible for robots to rival the skill of experienced surgeons – even with their “eyes closed” – using just a simple knot.
The achievement, by an interdisciplinary team from…