This sequence of photos, taken from a video, shows the process of self-replication. The robot removes one section of itself which becomes the base for the new robot. The remaining three cubes then pick up additional cubes from feeding stations to build the new robot.
The Cornell University research team was led by mathematics graduate student Bryant Adams (left), Hod Lipson (center) and mechanical engineeering graduate student Victor Zykov.
Credit: Kevin Stearns/University Photography, Cornell University