Bird nests—very well-engineered
Birds’ nests are engineering marvels, being both lightweight, flexible, and cohesive. To have these properties, nests must be made in specific ways using sticks with specific properties. “Birds seem to have a sense for how the properties of an individual stick will translate to the characteristics of the nest”. This is something which humans have been unable to do until now.
A team of researchers have combined laboratory experiments and computer simulations to start unravelling this mystery. They found that the distribution and friction of contact points between different sticks are crucial to nest design.
Engineers wish to understand how birds’ nests are designed so they can copy their design, but there are still many mysteries to be solved.
- Conover, E., Experiments hint at why bird nests are so sturdy, sciencenews.org, 12 May 2022
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