There was something really similar to this (if not the same thing) that came out of University of Chicago recently. http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2

There was something really similar to this (if not the same thing) that came out of University of Chicago recently. http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/10/25/a-robot-with-beanbag-hands-learns-the-gentle-touch/ http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/10/25/a-robot... Physicists are calling these materials 'granular media' - and there is a ton of research going into that field right now.