Explainable Causal Reinforcement Learning for bio-inspired soft robotics maintenance with embodied agent feedback loops Introduction: When a Silicone Tentacle Taught Me About Causality Last spring, I spent three weeks trying to keep a bio-inspired soft robotic arm from tearing itself apart. The arm—a pneumatically actuated silicone tentacle modeled loosely on an octopus—was supposed to learn how to grip fragile objects. Instead, it kept developing micro-tears near its bending jo...