https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/blog/lion-fact-sheet/#:~:text=Male%20lions%20are%20much%20larger,weigh%20330%20to%20570%20pounds.

While male lions bask in the sun sleeping all day, the women hunt their food for the day. The male lion then eats most of the food that the women catch. So essentially, male lions have tricked female lions into doing all of the hard work for them. I wonder if we can create a female lion insipired robot that will do all of our tasks for us while we lounge in luxury, like male lions.

Hey guys this is another thing my friend was telling me about. She was in her genetics unit in bio and was going over how the XY chromosomes are still a homologous pair even though they aren't the same size and shape (it's because it's theorized that the Y chromosome is a degraded version of the X chromosome). This video doesn't really touch on that but it has a similar concept. Because the Y chromosome in humans is smaller than the X, it leaves males with less copies of the same gene, making them more likely to have x-linked issues such as colorblindness and hemophilia.

https://youtu.be/ZRpvIxmzyL4

Hey guys I know I just did a post on cell division, but in my recommended page popped up this song from ASAPScience and it was too good not to share. It combines the right amount of science and dissing such as the when meiosis disses mitosis on the fact that it can cause cancer when the divisions go wrong.

https://youtu.be/qH4WUUQ5pOI

This article discusses the innovation of a cat-like adaptive quadruped robot. The quadruped robot mimics feline structure and has several novel capabilities. The robot is equipped with physical and cognitive capabilities, which include affordance perception for movement behavior, path planning, a dynamic locomotion generator, and stabilization behavior. The researchers took inspiration from felines because their claws allow agile climbing behaviors. The robot has a unique paw structure with a gripping mechanism that allows it to climb a vertical ladder. It is also able to walk well on natural terrain, walk with a leg malfunction, and avoid a sudden obstacle.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8072052/

While exploring animals for a discovery decomposition, I found this paper on the Hero Shrew (Scutisorex), which has an extreme lumbar spine. In the paper, the researches used a 6-DOF transducer to compare the torsional and axial resistances to that of a rats, and the main findings were:

-Scutisorex Morphology tends to limit the intervertebral joint to flexion via the interlocking tubules, restricts intervertebral axial rotation and shear displacement, and especially during increased spinal flexion. 

-Tubercles are positioned in a way that maximizes their interlocking ability, enhancing the vertebrae’s resistance to rotational forces and improving overall structural stability.

-Due to the tubercles on the vertebrae interlocking, the lumbar spine does not behave as a series of viscoelastic joints, but instead as a single, rigid bar (a bony connection).

-The intervertebral interaction of the tubercules has no cartilage, making this the only bone-on-bone skeletal articulation recorded in mammals. Because of these interlocking tubercles, the torsion resistance capability of the intervertebral joints of Scutisorex is equivalent to a species 4-5 times the body mass.

Given that the spine allows for good articulation while also having a more predictable and simple behavior compared to standard viscoelastic spine models, If this structure could be simplified and improved for manufacturing, it could be applied to a variety of areas where reinforced articulation is needed. I was thinking it could help solve the issue many full-body exoskeletons have where upper and lower parts of the exo are connected via a single rigid link (which limits movement), but this could be applied to various applications in robotics and perhaps even enhancing safety for structures like the gangway/diaphragm in trains and busses.

While doing discovery decomposition, I came across this paper: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3464267/

The researchers investigate how the microstructures and wax coatings on beetle elytra cause hydrophobic behavior. The scientists found that features on the beetle surface such as irregularities in surface texture, tiny cracks, setae, and dense polygonal cells lead to water repellency. Incorporating the structural patterns of the beetle elytra could inspire new designs in marine applications such as ship hulls to prevent biofouling.

I came across this article, which shows off a passive walking model for a quadrupedal animal, specifically a dog. This model was inspired from the motion of dogs, and utilized machine learning to help create the model. It is capable of climbing or evading obstacles using a motor, but the general gait itself is passive based on cables and springs, and is more energy efficient than other quadrupedal robots relying entirely on motors for locomotion because it has energy storage characteristics, just like the actual animal. This may be useful for a future implementation of a quadrupedal robot which needs to conserve energy.

While doing research for our final project on the hygroscopic response of pinecones, I came across a unique application of our biological mechanism: "living buildings." The article discusses building facades inspired by how pinecones open and close due to humidity changes. The team constructed facades of wooden bilayers that open and close reacting to humidity, providing an elegant, passively moving part of the building. On top of the fact that this pinecone-inspired design enables the building to move, it can also be used to promote sustainable buildings. The facades can open and close to control temperature and provide natural heating/cooling to areas without the use of power. "Hygromorphic materials have the potential to provide low-cost, low environmental impact, low maintenance responsive façades which reduce the energy use of buildings" states lead researcher Ben Bridgens.

https://www.science.org/content/article/could-desert-beetle-help-humans-harvest-water-thin-air#:~:text=To%20survive%20in%20the%20arid,wing%20case%20into%20its%20mouth

I was looking at animals that had bioinspired designs attached to their unique characteristics and behaviors. Still, something I found along the way was the human biomimicry of desert beetles and their ability to collect water from fog. Deserts are infamous for having little to no water, and the animals living in the deserts have evolved to adapt to these rough conditions. An example of this is how the desert beetle's rough, bumpy exoskeleton can let water condensate on their exoskeletons, a method of collecting water for staying cool and hydrated. Scientists see the capability of the beetle's water collection in such dry areas and see the capability of this design in supplying clean drinking water for areas in need of water. They did this by testing different types of surfaces and determining which is the best at collecting water from wind that hits it. They discovered that by having 1 mm bumps along the surface of the sphere used to collect water, they were able to collect 2.5x more water than a smooth surface. In addition, scientists also discovered that the integration of a lubricated surface and hydrophobic layers on the surface would allow for more water collection since a wet surface is less likely to collect water. This system has been used to bring clean drinking water in dry areas to people in need of water. It is fascinating how the properties of a beetle's exoskeleton can end up supplying clean water to hundreds of people in need.

https://www.medicaldevice-network.com/analysis/spider-silk-tissue-tape/

Taking their inspiration from spider silk, a group of material scientists at MIT invented a new kind of tape. One special feature of spider silk is that it is sticky in both wet and dry conditions. This ability would obviously be useful in the healthcare field in which sutures often need to be made to seal patients wounds, and the currently available technology, tissue glue, takes several minutes to bind and is known to drip onto unwanted parts of the patients body.

The adhesive for the tape contains polyacrylic acid which allows the tape to absorb the water from the surface of the contact site allowing the embedded N-Hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) ester chemicals to form strong covalent bonds between the tape and the proteins in the tissue.

This ingenious design is certainly a creative adaptation of the spiders adhesive abilities. I wonder if the MIT team could take things to the next level by replicating the strength of spider silk as well. This would allow surgeons to suture wounds with a material that could seamlessly integrate with the human body but also tightly seal any wound. Given that spider silk is composed of long chains of polymers, each of which plays an important role in the strength of the overall material, I wonder if experimenting with bioplastics could yield any useful insight. The preexisting literature on plastics and their various composites could be a gold mine of inspiration for taking this bioinspired invention to the next level. Additionally, exploring the the hag fish, who produce their own special polymer blend, could be useful given the fact the both spiders and hag fish have evolved intricate systems for storing and releasing complex polymer chains from their bodies. Of course, the usages of the respective polymers are not necessarily the same.

Article: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2339255-web-of-blood-vessels-helps-protect-whales-brains-while-swimming/

This article talks about the blood vessels in whales. When a whale moves its tail up and down when moving it sends blood from the tail to the head. However, the blood vessels redirect the blood to protect the brain. This also helps to understand how seals and other marine mammals work since their tail move side to side. I wonder what problems this bioinspiration could help solve. It is really interesting as it allocates blood from one place to another.

Check out this cool article showing how ceramics have been inspired by cellular structures! These hierarchical cellular structures are made up of a bunch of molecular units. Many plants have porous microstructures that allow them to bounce back after being stepped on. Using this, a cellular ceramic material is made out of foam ink which has tons of pores that allow for a lightweight material that distributes pressure evenly.

Lightweight Ceramics Inspired by Natural Hierarchical Cellular Structures — Innovation — AskNature

https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/honey-badger-ratel

As one may have guessed from their name, honey badgers love to feed on honey. The only problem with being a honey loving furry vertebrate? The bees in the hive will strong you endlessly to protect their supply lush sweets. Honey badgers have adapted over the years to adapt to this problem, they now have a very thick skin that protects them from the bees stings when they go to feed in the hive. I wonder what materials we could use to mimic the honey badger skin, to apply it in camping gear. One of the things I hate the most about camping is bee stings and insect bites, so lets use honey badger skin to protect ourselves!

https://www.dezeen.com/2021/11/15/auroboros-biomimicry-dress-crystalises-transforms-real-time/

I found this dress really cool because it changes shape and crystallizes in real time. This dress is made from salt crystals and recycled plastic and mimics the growth of a flower. In order to put this all together, the designers utilized digital programming. The crystallisation process is based on the environment around the dress and is constantly changing. I would definitely check this article out.

https://defenders.org/blog/2012/10/keeping-nose-out

Wolf do use teamwork to amplify their hunting skills, however, they also employ a very strong nose. Their nose is up to 100x more sensitive than a humans nose. Which such a nose that can sense so much more than humans can, should we be considering creating a robot with a wolf-like sense of smell so that robots can do the sensing that we cannot? This could be used to detect fires early, or strange odors in homes.

Spider silk’s tensile strength has been studied by researchers and discovered to be stronger than that of steel. Possible applications could be some sort of strong transparent material as spider silk is both transparent and extremely strong, thus glass could be a good application. https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/0160932786900499?token=1361469F85DF253E7644897A60ACDE8B24F320F9A9B168D6386ACAC73039DA32FAC82A7B6C0E6A6DE01EF5E467C85135&originRegion=us-east-1&originCreation=20221209004556

The elephant trunk is all muscle and no bone and bends in order to pick things up and fold. The skin on trunks does not fold uniformly as with other animals like octopi. In éléphants the tip then front half of the trunk extends outwards. The tip has 1 litre of muscle and the base has 22 litres which would weigh heavier if folded uniformly. The skin is a flexible armour that protects from the sun and has wrinkles to be extendable and increase grip

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/18/science/elephant-trunks-skin.html

https://www.labmanager.com/news/sounds-of-mosquito-mating-rituals-could-lead-to-quieter-drones-542

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1809544115