Molecubes

Hob Lipson from Cornell University have designed Molecubes which are robots capable of self replication.

Each 10 centimetre cube contains a microprocessor, and they are all equipped with an identical set of instructions that tell the block how to connect and swivel, depending on the way it is linked to other blocks. The instructions are designed to make the blocks work together to self-replicate.

For example, three or four blocks piled on top of each other to form a tower can create an identical tower by swivelling round like a crane to pick up other nearby blocks and pile them on top of each other

The video makes the process a lot more understandable.

- Self-cloning robots are a chip off the old block
Video

[Via. Future Feeder]