B.B.C. Article
A new shape-changing metal crystal is reported in the journal Nature, by scientists at University of Minnesota.
It is the prototype of a new family of smart materials that could be used in applications ranging from space vehicles to electronics to jet engines.
Called a "martensite", the crystal has two different arrangements of atoms, switching seamlessly between them.
It can change shape tens of thousands of times when heated and cooled without degrading, unlike existing technology.
Currently, martensite metals are made of an alloyed mixture of nickel and titanium.
They have the remarkable ability to "remember" their shape and even after being bent will return to their original form. For this, they are called "shape memory" metals.

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B.B.C. Article
Cube-shaped robots that can flip, jump and assemble themselves into different shapes have been unveiled by scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The small robots, known as M-Blocks, have no external parts but can move using an internal flywheel mechanism.
They stick together using magnets.
The scientists envisage miniaturised "swarmbot" versions self-assembling like the "liquid steel" androids in the Terminator films.

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