![]() ![]() Those small, healable fractures allow the blades to absorb impacts without completely snapping, explains Jesus Rivera, an engineer at UC Irvine. When the beetle is squashed, tiny cracks form in the protein glue between the layers of each blade. These blades contain layers of tissue glued together by proteins, and are highly damage-resistant. A series of protrusions, called blades, fit together like jigsaw puzzle pieces to join the two sides. ![]() The second key feature is a rigid joint, or suture, that runs the length of the beetle’s back and connects its left and right sides. That flexibility helps the beetle absorb compression in a region of its body that is safer to squish. The connective ridges near the back of the beetle, on the other hand, are not as intricately interlocked, allowing the top and bottom halves of the exoskeleton to slide past each other slightly. Those connections are stiff and resist bending under pressure. Near the front of the beetle, around its vital organs, the ridges are highly interconnected - almost like zipper teeth. David Kisailusīut those ridged connections have different shapes across the beetle’s body. These protrusions are tightly interlocked and highly damage-resistant, helping give the beetle its incredible durability. This slice of a diabolical ironclad beetle’s back shows the jigsaw-shaped links that connect the left and right sides of its exoskeleton. Ridges along the outer edges of the top and bottom latch together. “You can imagine the beetle’s exoskeleton almost like two halves of a clamshell sitting on top of each other,” Kisailus says. The first is a series of connections between the top and bottom halves of the exoskeleton. ![]() Within the diabolical ironclad beetle’s own tanklike physique, two key microscopic features help it withstand crushing forces. That would be like a person shouldering a stack of about 40 M1 Abrams battle tanks. In compression experiments, Kisailus and colleagues found that the beetle could withstand around 39,000 times its own body weight. “Unlike a stink beetle, or a Namibian beetle, which is more rounded … it’s low to the ground it’s flat on top,” says David Kisailus, a materials scientist at the University of California, Irvine. The diabolical ironclad beetle, which dwells in desert regions of western North America, has a distinctly hard-to-squish shape. Those features could inspire new, sturdier designs for things such as body armor, buildings, bridges and vehicles. Tightly interlocked and impact-absorbing structures that connect pieces of the beetle’s exoskeleton help it survive enormous crushing forces, researchers report in the Oct. Phloeodes diabolicus is basically nature’s jawbreaker.Īnalyses of microscope images, 3-D printed models and computer simulations of the beetle’s armor have now revealed the secrets to its strength. This insect’s rugged exoskeleton is so tough that the beetle can survive getting run over by cars, and many would-be predators don’t stand a chance of cracking one open. The diabolical ironclad beetle is like a tiny tank on six legs. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |