Scientists at NYU-Poly have created a ?robo-fish? to try to understand how to communicate with fish and convince them to do things to help the environment.

The scientists expect the robo-swimmer to be able to convince an entire school of fish to follow its lead. Mauriziu Porfiri, an associate professor mechanical engineering, claims they can move fish away from an area that is highly polluted or steer them away from danger.

?It?s actually really exciting because you can have a great impact on the world as a whole and kids that are excited to be engineers in the future,? said undergrad student Nicholas Cavaliere.

Scientists hope to transition what they've been doing in the lab, in the field within the next few years. There will be a few more experiments before the fish is ready to go out in the wild.