Tiny droplets navigate mazes using 'chemical echolocation,' without sensors or computers

A recent study by a team of researchers led by TU Darmstadt has found that tiny amounts of liquid can navigate their way through unknown environments like living cells—without sensors, computers or external control. The tiny droplets can navigate autonomously, are able to detect obstacles from a distance and move reliably through complex mazes—without cameras or electronics. The reason for this is a mechanism that the research team refers to as "chemical echolocation."