Gecko Treadmill

This Gecko Treadmill was built for Kellar Autumn in the Biology Department.

One of our goals is to use the general principles we discover about the mechanics of locomotion. The mechanism of dry adhesion in the millions of setae on the toes of geckos has been the focus of scientific study for over a century. We provide the first direct experimental evidence for dry adhesion of gecko setae by van der Waals forces, and reject the use of mechanisms relying on high surface polarity, including capillary adhesion.

For more information, see Autumn Lab.