Velcro Was Invented After a Walk in the Woods
A split image showing a close-up of a natural burr on one side and an electron microscope view of velcro hooks on the other
Swiss engineer George de Mestral noticed burrs sticking to his dog's fur in 1941. Under a microscope he saw tiny hooks catching on loops of fur, and spent eight years perfecting the synthetic version.
Why Itβs Interesting
It is one of the most famous examples of biomimicry β nature solving an engineering problem billions of years before humans needed it. Velcro is now used in everything from NASA spacesuits to children's shoes.
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