Design
Physical properties of the natural world, like shark's skin — which has a special texture to help it glide through the water — can be applied to design. Shark skin ripples inspired the now-banned swimsuits created and worn by competitive swimmers because they reduce drag on the body in the water.
Another example, Lotuson paint, was inspired by the Lotus flower, which, though it lives in a swamp, is always clean. The plant's petals have nodules that collect rain water and wash the plant. This same nodule approach can be used in house paint, which saves time in washing down your house, and it also means you don't need to use hazardous chemicals.
The longhorn cowfish, from the boxfish family, can be found in tropical and subtropical waters in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Its shell is a good example of a material that is both light and tough. It is made of mineralized scales that do not overlap and are held together by zipper-like connections. The scales rest on a bed of fibers that imparts flexibility to the fish’s carapace. These gold-on-black images were taken with micro-computed tomography.
No comments:
Post a Comment