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  1. #3
    BPnet Veteran cassandra's Avatar
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    Re: Article on "How Gecko Toes Stick" from 'American Scientist' magazine

    Oh dang...I guess I just looked at the first page to make sure the link worked...

    The most interesting tidbit from the article (okay, the only part I could understand):

    "Theoretically, the 6.5 million setae [that's the microscopic fiberous thingies on geckoes feetses that makes them stick] on a tokay gecko could generate 1,300 newtons of shear force--enough to support the weight of two medium-sized people--based on measurements from single setae. These numbers suggest that a gecko is only attaching 3 percent of its setae in generating the strongest force (20 newtons) measure in whole-animal experiments. Even more surprising, a 50-gram gecko needs less than 0.04 percent of its setae (attached maximally) to support its mass (which requires half a newton of force) on a wall. At first glance, gecko feet seem to be enormously overbuilt by virtue of a safety margin of at least 3,900 percent." --American Scientist, Volume 94

    Sticky dudes!

    Sorry the link requires access...=P
    Last edited by cassandra; 02-21-2006 at 06:46 PM.
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