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Gecko Tapes
he unique ability of geckos to scale walls and suspend from ceilings has attracted the interest of naturalists for ages, dating back to Aristotle’s observations in his History of Animals of the creature’s ability to “run up and down a tree in any way.”[1] It is only recently that scientists have unlocked the secret behind the lizards’ perplexing mobility and begun engineering synthetic materials mimicking their abilities. Gecko Feet Structure and Intermolecular Forces A gecko’s foot has toepads consisting of about half a million setae made of keratin.
While many problems still obstruct immediate commercial applications of gecko tape, such as poor durability and high fabrication costs, the prospects of the technology are still generating excitement in a variety of fields. In more typical circumstances, the incredible strength of gecko tape could be used in a myriad of applications, such as increased mobility for humans in construction, inspection, and military situations. The fact remains that as we progress in our understanding and utilization of the most fundamental forces of nature, we will be able to approach problems once though unsolved from a new direction, specifically, from the bottom-up.
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