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SHAFAQNA- Octopuses are notorious escape artists, able to squeeze and squish themselves into and around nearly any obstacle they encounter. In an ode to these crafty cephalopods, researchers have created the first completely soft-bodied robot, dubbed the “octobot.” The palm-sized machine’s exterior is made of silicone. And whereas other soft robots have had at least a few hard parts, such as batteries or wires, the octobot uses a small reservoir of hydrogen peroxide as fuel. When the hydrogen peroxide washes over flecks of platinum embedded within the octobot, the resulting chemical reaction produces gas that inflates and flexes the robot’s arms. As described online today in Nature, the ga...

SHAFAQNA –Long held as a democratic model for the Middle East, Turkey is fast becoming ground zero for all things totalitarian, and neo-colonial, under the leadership of its ambitious President: Recep Erdogan. A despot in democratic clothing, Turkey’s strongman has played by America’s exceptional handbook, arguing national security to better deny, and reject its people’s civil liberties. Determined to impose himself as a neo-Ottoman monarch, Erdogan has behaved a waabe imperial power, a rogue state among other rogue states: Saudi Arabia, Qatar … Empowered by EU capitals on account Turkey stands a tentative ally against the axis of resistance against Zionism, and imperialism, Erdogan has bee...