Geckos inspire 'super-adhesive' (BBC)

[eppur_se_muova]

Just one metre square of a new super-sticky material inspired by gecko feet could suspend the weight of an average family car, say its inventors.

The plastic, known as Synthetic Gecko, has been developed by researchers at aerospace and defence firm BAE Systems.

Like the reptile's foot, the reusable polymer is covered in millions of tiny mushroom-like hairs that provide grip.

Future applications could include an adhesive to repair aircraft, skin grafts or even a Spiderman-style suit.
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The University of California team showed that the adhesion was due to very weak intermolecular forces produced by the billions of hair-like structures, known as setae, on each gecko foot.
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more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/5217240.stm

Geckos are held up by van der Waals forces, something normally considered at the molecular, not macroscopic, scale. Fascinating.

[geckosfeet]

1. kewl.

[girl gone mad]

2. Cool..

I've accidentally squashed two baby geckos this week in my house. :(

[TlalocW]

3. And continuing my amazing ability to always find a comic for the subject..

TlalocW

[ChairmanAgnostic]

4. all from an insurance ad, no less.