Tangible Media Group of MIT Media Lab has built a system with ‘pin-based shape displays’ to successfully animate inanimate objects — blocks, to start with. The blocks can be rotated, stacked and catapulted in order to construct or deconstruct structures. They experimented with a variety of blocks, ranging from the average, normal block, to magnetic blocks and kinematic blocks. The usage of each block is dependent on its qualities. Imagine this technology on a larger scale — it can quicken construction, be remotely controlled in hazardous conditions, or transport aid to inaccessible locations.  The possibilities presented by this new development are boundless, creating a path to a new generation of technology, now closer than ever before.

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