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First Gear Mechanism Discovered In Nature
GameboyRMH writes "A gear mechanism has been discovered [paywalled original paper here, for those with access] for the first time in nature in the nymph of the Issus, a small plant-hopping insect common in Europe. It uses the gears to synchronize the movement and power of its hind legs, forcing the legs to propel it in a straight line when jumping, which would otherwise be impossible for the insect if it had to control the timing and force of its leg muscles independently."
I don't think you are jumping the sort of distances (relative to your size) that this insect is. The power of the jump compared to its mass is quite impressive, and apparently has special requirements. From the linked article:
" The gear teeth on the opposing hind-legs lock together like those in a car gear-box, ensuring almost complete synchronicity in leg movement - the legs always move within 30 'microseconds' of each other, with one microsecond equal to a millionth of a second.
This is critical for the powerful jumps that are this insect's primary mode of transport, as even minuscule discrepancies in synchronization between the velocities of its legs at the point of propulsion would result in "yaw rotation" - causing the Issus to spin hopelessly out of control."
William George
If you look at the picture of the thing, it's pretty amazing. Each gear strip is 400 micrometers long.
"First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
The Synopsis was a little lacking in detail. Namely, the gear configuration for the legs on this adolescent insect allowed it to jump faster and further than it would normally be able to do safely. Through use of the gear configuration, it allowed the adolescent insect to develop it's nervous system to adapt to acceleration to 400g while it's muscular structure and carapace developed, at which point the years are shed. Basically, these are training wheels, not that they are inherently better. What is interesting is that the gear design is quite different than what we humans have created, and allows for highly effective forward momentum with minimal energy expenditure at the expense of reverse.
Thirty four characters live here.
You can read the paper's full text here: http://freepdfhosting.com/292b7f1c8f.pdf Some highlights: On page 2, there are some great images of the gears in action. Do check them out! Your friend, pdfbuddy.
Have you never seen a cricket or grasshopper?
Yes. They have stabilizers. This little bug doesn't, thus needs more accurate jumping.
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Wrap up here: http://dennisdjones.wordpress.com/2011/05/07/irreducible-complexity/
..and here is a video of the gears in action.
"His name was James Damore."
Some of these research articles of late seem to have no respect for the basics of nature that the layman seems to have been taking for granted since the beginning.
If you're going to whine about an article, at least read it. The gears help it react faster than any sort of nerve impulse could.
And they also suggest at the end that the reason larva have gears but not adults is because larva molt.
They theorize that adults do not have gears because any sort of fracture is permanent and fractures seem likely over a period of sustained use.
There exists a Weevil with a screw as a leg joint.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trigonopterus_oblongus
Nature is absolutely awesome.
As I understand it, the appendix is also part of the immune system. It is a storehouse for intestinal flora: bacteria that aid in digestion. If you get a diahretic disease that flushes out your colon, your digestive flora are repopulated from the appendix.
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