Feather Zipping and Unzipping (IMAGE)

University of California - San Diego

Feather Zipping and Unzipping

Caption

You may have seen a kid play with a feather, or you may have played with one yourself: Running a hand along a feather's barbs and watching as the feather unzips and zips, seeming to miraculously pull itself back together. That "magical" zipping mechanism could provide a model for new adhesives and new aerospace materials, according to engineers at the University of California San Diego.

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University of California San Diego

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