- [Host] If you want to
solve everyday problems, there's a test lab that's been running intensive research and
development for 3.5 billion years that you could turn to
for ingenious solutions. That lab is nature. From spider's webs that may
help your bones heal faster. To geckos helping us
to scale a glass wall. And Velcro being inspired
by annoying outdoor pest. Prepare to be amazed by
these top 15 technologies inspired by nature. (Amazing) Number 15, gecko skin. When you think of geckos,
you probably think of a talking lizard,
pitching you car insurance. But it turns out, geckos
have also inspired important technological advances. They creatures can seemingly defy gravity, climbing flat surfaces like walls. And even hang from one toe. It turns out this
ability comes from setae, rolls of tiny hairs on their feet. These hairs can hold onto any surface, using something called a
sticky Van der Waals force, which uses fluctuation
in charge distributions between neighboring molecules. Scientists have figured
out how to use the force, the Van der Waals force, to make everything from a contraption that lets humans climb
a shield glass wall, to grippers for space repairs. Unfortunately, it still can't get you a better deal on your car insurance. You're on your own with that one. Number 14, moth eyes and solar panels. When scientists at North
Carolina University wanted to make thin solar
panels more efficient, they had an eye on moth eyes. Their panels were often
reflecting some light, which made them less efficient. Then the scientists
noticed that a moth's eyes are extremely efficient
and research showed that this was due to their
eyes being non-reflective. They contain tiny microstructures that funnel light back into the eye. The researchers decided to
design synthetic nanostructures that mimic the light funneling
properties of the moth eyes. These nanostructures improve
the solar panel's efficiency. Number 13, Velcro. If you spend much time hiking outside, you've probably come home covered in Burdock burrs at some point. These annoying blobs, cling to things like clothes and hair. In 1941, a man named George de Mestral brought some home as a souvenir from his hunting trip. He noticed how they
clung to his own clothing and his dogs fur, and this intrigued him. Studying one of the
burrs under a microscope, he observed to have tiny
microscopic simple hooks that allowed it to attach to loops in his socks and his dogs fur. This was Mestral's light bulb moment. And he spent years doing research, and testing hooks and loops
of many different materials. Eventually he arrived at the
perfect combination, Velcro. Now that's an idea that stuck around. Number 12, canes inspired by bats. Bats are able to navigate by echolocation, admitting ultra sonic waves. The waves bounce back,
telling the winged creatures if large objects are near by. Scientists use the same idea
to create the ultra cane. A cane for the visually impaired, that also uses echolocation. It sends out ultra sonic waves, and vibrates to let the user know when large objects are near. Number 11, spider webs. Webs in your home might inspire you to invent a new way of running
from the room screaming. But they also inspired some scientists to make a super strong adhesive. Researchers noticed that the anchor points of spider's webs, where the
web attached to something, like a wall or a tree limb,
were extremely strong. After studying the matter further, they realized the spider's silk was woven in a particular geometric pattern at the anchor points,
lending to its strength. They then tried this with Polyurethane, using a process called Electrospinning, to pull the thin filaments of Polyurethane in a same geometric pattern. This allow them to build
their own synthetic adhesive, which could prove useful in medicine. Say stitching a broken bone together so tightly that heals much faster. Which might be useful after
you trip and fall running away from that spider web in
the corner of your room. Number 10, lobsters and LEXID. Lobsters see by focusing on a small point, light reflected back
to them from that point helps them view their surroundings. In 2007, the U.S. Government decided this was worth investigating. They invested millions of dollars developing a technology called LEXID, which is based on how lobster eyes work. LEXID allows people to see
through solid surfaces, like wood and even concrete, using low powered x-rays. It's sort of like the lobsters inspired Super-Man's x-ray vision. But no word on whether you can
see everyone's underwear yet. Number nine, birds and bullet trains. If you've been lucky enough to
have been on a bullet train, you may have noticed
the loud noise it makes emerging from a tunnel. But you wouldn't of noticed if you rode one of the newer ones, inspired by birds. In the 1990's, a Japanese
engineer named Eiji Nakatsu, noticed how elegantly Kingfisher birds dove into the water,
barely making a splash. He wondered if he could
somehow make bullet trains work the same way. His research on thew Kingfisher's beak led to a new bullet train design, that was not only quieter, it was also more aerodynamic, making it more energy efficient and allowing it to
travel at higher speeds. Number eight, sugary vaccines. A tardigrade may sound like something in an episode of Doctor Who, but it's actually a tiny, tough, eight-legged creature that lives in water. When taken out of water, they dry out. But they can be reanimated
as much as 100 years later. Scientists were fascinated
and discovered the bugs coat their molecular parts, like
DNA and proteins in sugar. Taking inspiration from this, biotech companies have adapted this process to protect live vaccines. So they no longer require refrigeration. You may not think there's anything sweet about getting a jab, but your vaccine may
actually have sugar in it. Number seven, termites. We tend to think of termites as tiny bugs that destroy houses. But on the contrary, they
actually inspired a process of building houses to become
more energy efficient. Termites, when living in their own homes, build mounds that they keep at a nearly constant temperature. Although this does vary from day to night. They build in a sort of
built in cooling system for the mounds. With vents in the tops and sides, wind blows hot air through the vents and out of the structure at the top. And termites can control this system by blocking or opening vents. Architect Mike Pierce,
copied the critters design when he drew up plans for the
Eastgate Center in Zimbabwe. His design pulls cool
air from underground, while chimneys on top of
the building vent cool air. No word on whether the termites are suing for intellectual property infringement. Number six, Stenocara
beetle and water collection. You've probably never heard
of the Stenocara beetle. But its system of
collecting water from fog could help us all have more
drinking water in the future. The beetle lives in the Namibian Desert, where there's no fresh water to be found. It survives because it has
bumps on the back of its wings. These are like magnets for water, while the beetles shell
is waxy, like Teflon drawing the water from the fog down into the beetles mouth. Using the bug as a model, researchers at MIT have developed water magnet bumps for buildings, so that human beings can
gather water from fog as well. Around the world, more than 20 countries use water collection nets
to bring water from the air. So adding these beetle bumps, would greatly increase the efficiency of collecting water in this way. Number five, mussels and
bacteria make underwater glue. If you need glue that
can work under water, or when wet, you might
want to flex your muscles, no not those muscles. But the kind served in
seafood restaurants. Scientists have noticed how easily Mussels could cling to
surfaces under water, like rocks, jetties, and even sea animals. After studying this sticky seafood, they discovered mussels produced a protein that allows them to adhere
to even wet surfaces. After synthesizing this protein in a lab, researchers mixed it with
proteins produced by e.coli. What the bacteria use to create slime. Yes, slime is a technical term here. This combination produced
a prototype hailed as the strongest
bio-produced adhesive yet. While it would obviously
help for things like underwater repair of boats, it might have other applications too. Including binding wounds in wet locations. Number four, Galapagos shark and protective coating for hospitals. When you think about sharks and hospitals, you probably think of
someone going to the hospital after being bitten by a shark. But sharks have help
scientists take a bite out of bacteria in hospitals. The Galapagos shark is very slow moving. But Barnacles don't build up on its skin and bateria doesn't stick to it either. Its skin is made up of denticles, small tooth or bristle-like protuberances. You may know these if
you paid attention to the design of Speedo suits
that Olympic athletes wore at the last summer Olympics. The denticles actually
help them move faster through the water. However, the ones one the Galapagos shark are arranged in a particular pattern that keeps bacteria from
landing and adhering. A company called Sharklet,
keeps hospitals safer and more sanitary by putting this pattern on surfaces in hospitals
to keep bacteria off. A welcome alternative to
anti-bacterial cleanses that tend to encourage
anti-biotic resistant bacteria. Turns out bacteria are
even scared of sharks. Number three, coral and CO2. If you worry about your carbon footprint, you'll be happen to know
some organisms in nature want to help keep CO2 out of the air. Scientists noticed that coral reefs use Carbon as a building
block as they build reefs. A company called Calera,
designed a process modeled after the recipe coral reefs use to build themselves with
Carbon, to create cement. Normally, producing cement is not great for a company's Carbon footprint. Typically concrete
production emits a ton of CO2 for every ton of cement produced. But with Celera's sea inspired model, instead of emitting the Carbon Dioxide, its actually sequestered
in the cement itself. Number two, lotus and self cleaning paint. You may have thought to yourself, I wish I live in a self-cleaning house. Thanks to the lotus flower,
you may get a chance one day. Lotuses, like shark skin, have micro-rough patterns on their skin that naturally repel
things like dust and dirt. The reason can be seen
only under a microscope. The surface smooth
looking to the naked eye, is studied with microscopic
nail-like protuberances that push away particles of dust and dirt. Water is a polar molecule, with a positive and negative end. And droplets tip-toe
over the flowers surface. Dirt particles on top of the buns are poured into the water droplets as they tip-toe past. So when it rains, the water
rushes away everything repelled by the tiny nail-like studs. Leaving a pristine surface. This inspired researchers at
IPSO, a German paint company, to study the lotuses
self-cleaning abilities. After four years, they
developed a house paint with similar properties. Which may reduce the
need for pressure washing or otherwise cleaning
the outside of the house, Number one, whale flippers. Whales are large, unwieldy creature. But they manage to move around in water with surprising agility,
despite their size. A company called WhalePower, discovered this was due to their flippers. Which are studded with
bumps called tubercules, along their leading edge. Scientists at the company were inspired to put bumps or tubercules
on their own products. Including fan blades, wind
turbines, and irrigation pumps. These bumps make the
applications more efficient just like the whales flippers. In fact, wind turbines
with these tubercules, are up to 20% more efficient. Another test in a wind tunnel, shows flippers with tubercules experienced more than 30% less drag. Researchers are even considering adding the bumps to airplane wings, to increase lift and reduce drag. The whale's bumpy ride definitely inspired some better technology for humans. There are literally countless examples we've could've used in this video. Would you like to see another? Do you have any favorite ways technologies have been inspired by nature. Let me know in the comments down below. Also please be sure to like
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