--- title: "Scientists Build Robot Fish Tank That Lets Goldfish Drive Around on Land" description: "A team of Israeli scientists have allowed a goldfish to navigate dry land — or, at least, remotely control a fish tank on wheels." date: "2022-01-04" modified: "2022-01-04" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/goldfish-drive-fish-tank" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "drive" - "fish" - "the digest" --- # Scientists Build Robot Fish Tank That Lets Goldfish Drive Around on Land ![A team of Israeli scientists have allowed a goldfish to navigate dry land — or, at least, remotely control a fish tank on wheels.]() *\Image: Ben-Gurion University\* ## Fish Out of Water A team of Israeli scientists have allowed a goldfish to navigate dry land — or, at least, remotely control a fish tank on wheels. Is it the beginning of the cyborg fish uprising, or just an innocent goldfish going out for a stroll? We'll leave that up to you to decide. ## Fish Operated Vehicle The team of scientists from Ben-Gurion University [designed a special "Fish Operated Vehicle,"]() (FOV) a four-wheeled cart featuring a computer, a LIDAR system, and a conservatively-sized plexiglass water tank, all in an effort to put the navigational skills of several goldfish to the test as the computer system translated the movement of the fish into movement of the vehicle. https://twitter.com/ronen_segev/status/1477889582398164994 ## Terrestrial Joyride The results were astonishing: the goldfish were able to move the FOV to a target zone in order to receive a small reward in the form of, well, fish food. At first, many of the fish took 30 minutes to find their targets — while dodging decoys and dead ends along the way — but by the end of the experiment, they needed less than a minute. The takeaway: goldfish may have a surprisingly excellent sense of direction, even way outside their watery comfort zone. "These results demonstrate how a fish was able to transfer its space representation and navigation skills to a wholly different terrestrial environment, thus supporting the hypothesis that the former possess a universal quality that is species-independent," the researchers conclude in [their paper](), published in the journal *Behavioral Brain Research*. Will we be seeing goldfish jetting by on the freeway any time soon? That's far less likely. **READ MORE:** [Israeli scientists train goldfish to steer car around room]() \[*The Times of Israel*\] **More on animals driving:** *[Scientists Taught Rats How to Drive Tiny Cars]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()