Material Intelligence in Elephant Trunks
Elephants can pluck individual peanuts and lift tortilla chips without breaking them — extraordinary delicacy from animals with thick skin that should block fine touch sensing. The secret lies in approximately 1,000 trunk whiskers with graded material stiffness. Stiff plastic-like bases transition to soft rubbery tips, encoding WHERE along the whisker contact occurs. The bending profile differs based on contact location — material properties replace surface sensors.
Schulz, Kuchenbecker et al. — Science, 2026 (Max Planck Institute)
Mouse X: contact position | Mouse Y: force | Click: palette | C: toggle comparison | Space: pause | I: info