First free-swimming robot fish. Researcher John Kumph in a water tank with the Robot Pike he designed. The robot will be used in research into discovering why fish are such efficient swimmers. The 80-centimetre long robot has a rigid fibre- glass nose which contains motors. These pull on tungsten wires attached to a fibreglass spring that forms the robot's skeleton". This flexes the body to produce powerful swimming strokes. The body has a flexible skin made of lycra and a stainless steel mesh. It is steered by its fins. The battery-powered robot is controlled by a human operator (top right) using a radio. Photographed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA."