Portable electronic sensors, such as those of Fitbit watches and pedometers that detect biological signals, may in the future be replaced by … mushrooms.
No, this is not a typo. In a proof-of-concept study, mycelium was able to detect external stimuli such as light, temperature and moisture, but also certain chemicals in the environment and even electrical signals.
Oyster mushroom mycelium, the fibrous mainframe tissue of fungi that colonize underground and from which mushrooms sprout, could detect electrical signals so that it could repeat part to computer-readable sensors and processors.
In other words (fantastic) words, the mushroom’s perception of the environment will become the data that gives you the beats per minute on your heart rate monitor.
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In nature, mycelium organizes itself into geometric structures in and throughout the soil. Although fungal mycelium does not have many reasons to detect electrical signals in nature, the reprogramming of mycelium genes from oyster mushrooms is to form different geometric structures that will optimize the detection power of electrical signals. believe it’s worth investigating.
“We have shown that it is possible to distinguish some kind of stimuli from the fungal electrical reactions,” said Adamatzky, who is famous for using slime molds to solve mazes and optimize urban road planning in Tokyo and France. his new research article.
“The results have paved the way for the future design of intelligent sensor stickers that can be used in reactive fungal carriers.”
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The spots referred to were hemp dust that was colonized with mycelium and then connected to computer sensors.
The distribution of different chemicals on the patch, as well as exposure to different stimuli mentioned above, gave Adamatzky the certainty.
It is not something that will soon gain control of the markets, but it is another fascinating application of mycelium, which according to GNN can be used to make bricks, coffins, canoes and to clean up nuclear waste with great influence. exercise.
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