How far do you think a dandelion seed can drift from its base plant?
Continue reading “Innovative plant: How does the dandelion drift its seeds?”Tag: bio-inspired
Which is more stable, washing machines or birds? The answer might surprise you
What do birds and washing machines have in common? Shockingly, it’s not the ability to wash clothes. Rather, most birds and washing machines are great examples of vibration isolation systems.
Continue reading “Which is more stable, washing machines or birds? The answer might surprise you”Sticks and stones may break my bones but dirt will wash right off
There you are, sitting in the park eating your spaghetti picnic on your favorite picnic blanket when your pollen allergy acts up. You let out a sneeze powerful enough to compete with Aeolus’ bag of wind, but now your spaghetti is all over your favorite picnic blanket. You immediately go to rinse it off, but your fine Italian sauce has thoroughly soaked in. If only nature had a solution to keep a surface clean. Enter: the lotus leaf.
Continue reading “Sticks and stones may break my bones but dirt will wash right off”The hairy feet of the gecko
Have you ever thought about what it would be like to walk on walls? If you’ve ever watched a Spiderman movie or watched a gecko maneuver around its habitat, you probably have. While geckos don’t fight crime, their climbing ability is as fantastic as that of any superhero. Geckos have one of the most unique climbing adaptations of any animal, and scientists are examining the source of this ability to see if human technology could one day achieve something similar.
Continue reading “The hairy feet of the gecko”Soft Robotics: Humanizing the Mechanical
In media and science-fiction, robots have stereotypically, and perhaps somewhat unfairly, been depicted as mechanical, stiff assemblies of moving joints and complicated circuitry. While this still holds true for many robots designed today, whether for industry or research, the past few years have seen a growing interest in soft robotics in academia, industry, and popular culture. As the name implies, many research groups have begun investing in constructing robots from compliant, softer materials.
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