Thomas Speck
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View article: Design across hierarchy: morphological and mechanical insights into pili nuts (Canarium ovatum)
Design across hierarchy: morphological and mechanical insights into pili nuts (Canarium ovatum) Open
In recent years, the biomimetic potential of hard nutshells has gained increasing attention. For transferring functional principles into bio-inspired applications, a detailed understanding of the structural composition of these natural mod…
View article: Toward More Autonomous Soft Robots: Development and Characterization of a 3D‐Printed Pneumatic Contact Sensor for a Six‐Legged Soft Robotic Walker
Toward More Autonomous Soft Robots: Development and Characterization of a 3D‐Printed Pneumatic Contact Sensor for a Six‐Legged Soft Robotic Walker Open
Sensory feedback systems allow soft robots to interact and respond to their environment through embedded or external sensors. These sensors often rely on electronic components for signal interpretation and processing, which increases syste…
View article: Beyond the bilayer: multilayered hygroscopic actuation in pine cone scales
Beyond the bilayer: multilayered hygroscopic actuation in pine cone scales Open
The anisotropic hygroscopic behavior of pine cone scales and its effect on bending motion, with implications for bioinspired actuation, is investigated. Using gravimetric water uptake measurements, synchrotron radiation-based nano-holotomo…
View article: Unrolling of <i>Syngonium podophyllum</i> : Functional Anatomy, Morphology and Modelling of Its Peltate Leaves
Unrolling of <i>Syngonium podophyllum</i> : Functional Anatomy, Morphology and Modelling of Its Peltate Leaves Open
The mechanisms underlying leaf unfolding remain largely speculative and are often inferred from mathematical models. Peltate leaves, unlike typical foliage leaves, frequently emerge in a “rolled‐up” state. This study investigates mechanism…
View article: Quantifying hygroscopic deformation in lignocellulosic tissues: a digital volume correlation tool comparison
Quantifying hygroscopic deformation in lignocellulosic tissues: a digital volume correlation tool comparison Open
Digital Volume Correlation (DVC) was used to study the hygroscopic shrinkage in lignocellulosic tissues. For this, small tissue segments of only a few cells were prepared from the endocarp of Hura crepitans fruits, the sclereid cell layer …
View article: Transition Processes in Technological Systems: Inspiration from Processes in Biological Evolution
Transition Processes in Technological Systems: Inspiration from Processes in Biological Evolution Open
With environmental challenges intensifying, a fundamental understanding and sustainable management of ongoing transition processes are crucial. Biological evolution provides valuable lessons on how to adapt and thrive under changing condit…
View article: Starting strong: development and biomechanics of the seedling–host interaction in European mistletoe (<i>Viscum album</i>)
Starting strong: development and biomechanics of the seedling–host interaction in European mistletoe (<i>Viscum album</i>) Open
Attachment to a substrate is fundamental for plant growth and development. This is especially true for species that live either partially or fully off the ground, such as mistletoes, which have developed unique adaptations to anchor themse…
View article: Instability and equilibration of fluid-mineral systems under stress investigated through molecular dynamics
Instability and equilibration of fluid-mineral systems under stress investigated through molecular dynamics Open
Stress gradients and non-hydrostatic stresses are to be expected in rocks in the lithosphere, even in the presence of fluids. This complexity challenges the reliability of existing hydrostatic thermodynamic models, and, currently, in the g…
View article: Rapid Solidification of Plant Latices from Campanula glomerata Driven by a Sudden Decrease in Hydrostatic Pressure
Rapid Solidification of Plant Latices from Campanula glomerata Driven by a Sudden Decrease in Hydrostatic Pressure Open
By monitoring the solidification of droplets of plant latices with a fast quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D), droplets from Campanula glomerata were found to solidify much faster than droplets from Euphorbia ch…
View article: Lowering the Entrance Hurdle for Lab Automation: An Artificial Intelligence‐Supported, Interactive Robotic Arm for Automated, Repeated Testing Procedures
Lowering the Entrance Hurdle for Lab Automation: An Artificial Intelligence‐Supported, Interactive Robotic Arm for Automated, Repeated Testing Procedures Open
Laboratory automation is crucial for improving efficiency and enhancing reproducibility in scientific workflows. However, industrial solutions mostly do not fit the needs of scientific institutions, such as cost efficiency, customizability…
View article: Biomimetic freestanding microfractals for flexible electronics
Biomimetic freestanding microfractals for flexible electronics Open
The microfractals of leaf skeletons can be effective substrates for flexible electronics due to their high surface-to-volume ratio, transparency, breathability and flexibility. The challenge lies in replicating these fractal surfaces at th…
View article: Challenging the Biomimetic Promise—Do Laypersons Perceive Biomimetic Buildings as More Sustainable and More Acceptable?
Challenging the Biomimetic Promise—Do Laypersons Perceive Biomimetic Buildings as More Sustainable and More Acceptable? Open
This study investigates whether or not laypersons perceive biomimetic buildings as more sustainable and acceptable, a notion termed the “biomimetic promise”. Employing an experimental design (N = 238), we examined assessments of three real…
View article: Optimizing <i>in vitro</i> fertilization in four Caribbean coral species
Optimizing <i>in vitro</i> fertilization in four Caribbean coral species Open
Background Larval propagation and seeding of scleractinian corals for restoration is a rapidly expanding field, with demonstrated applications to assist the recovery of declining populations on reefs. The process typically involves collect…
View article: Advances in Biomimetics: The Power of Diversity
Advances in Biomimetics: The Power of Diversity Open
Biomimetics research on living systems attempts to transfer their properties and functions to engineering applications [...]
View article: Toward understanding the fast latex coagulation in <i>Campanula</i> spp. (Campanulaceae)
Toward understanding the fast latex coagulation in <i>Campanula</i> spp. (Campanulaceae) Open
Synopsis The plant most commonly known for producing latex is the Pará rubber tree, Hevea brasiliensis. There are, however, thousands of latex-bearing plant species, and these species exhibit a diverse array of different types of latex, ea…
View article: Within and Between-Leg Oil Transfer in an Oil Bee
Within and Between-Leg Oil Transfer in an Oil Bee Open
Synopsis Oil bees, which gather oil from flowers, transfer the floral oil collected from fore-legs, to middle-legs, and then to hind-legs, where they store the oil until release in the nest's brood cell. The complex leg maneuvers and the s…
View article: Tiered Approach for Prospective Sustainability Assessment of New Technologies to Assess Benefits and Challenges (TAPAS)
Tiered Approach for Prospective Sustainability Assessment of New Technologies to Assess Benefits and Challenges (TAPAS) Open
When assessing the sustainability of novel technologies and materials systems, the question arises as to how a robust sustainability assessment for technology and material developments with a low readiness level is nevertheless possible an…
View article: Rapid Solidification of Plant Latices from Campanula glomerata Driven by a Sudden Decrease in Hydrostatic Pressure
Rapid Solidification of Plant Latices from Campanula glomerata Driven by a Sudden Decrease in Hydrostatic Pressure Open
Monitoring the solidification of droplets of plant latices with a fast quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D), droplets from Campanula glomerata were found to solidify much faster than droplets from Euphorbia chara…
View article: Oncological Safety of MRI-Informed Biopsy Decision-Making in Men With Suspected Prostate Cancer
Oncological Safety of MRI-Informed Biopsy Decision-Making in Men With Suspected Prostate Cancer Open
Importance The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pathway for diagnosing clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa; defined as International Society of Urological Pathology grade group ≥2) uses multiparametric MRI (mpMRI) for prostate bi…
View article: Smart Bioinspired Material‐Based Actuators: Current Challenges and Prospects
Smart Bioinspired Material‐Based Actuators: Current Challenges and Prospects Open
This research review discusses several examples of plant movements, either depending on the direction of the triggering stimuli (tropisms) or not (nastic responses), which have served as inspiration to develop smart biomimetic actuators. I…
View article: Natural coil springs: Biomechanics and morphology of the coiled tendrils of the climbing passion flower Passiflora discophora
Natural coil springs: Biomechanics and morphology of the coiled tendrils of the climbing passion flower Passiflora discophora Open
Tendrils of climbing plants possess a striking spring-like structure characterized by a minimum of two helices of opposite handedness connected by a perversion. By performing tensile experiments and morphological measurements on tendrils o…
View article: Biomimetic Freestanding Microfractals for Flexible Electronics
Biomimetic Freestanding Microfractals for Flexible Electronics Open
The microfractals of leaf skeletons can be effective substrates for flexible electronics due to their high surface-to-volume ratio, transparency, breathability and flexibility. The challenge lies in replicating these fractal surfaces at th…
View article: In pursuit of the tetratic phase in hard rectangles
In pursuit of the tetratic phase in hard rectangles Open
We numerically investigate two-dimensional systems of hard rectangles at constant pressure through extensive hard-particle Monte Carlo simulations. We determine the complete phase diagram as a function of packing fraction and aspect ratio,…
View article: Orchestrated Movement Sequences and Shape-Memory-like Effects in Pine Cones
Orchestrated Movement Sequences and Shape-Memory-like Effects in Pine Cones Open
Hygroscopic seed-scale movement is responsible for the weather-adaptive opening and closing of pine cones and for facilitating seed dispersal under favorable environmental conditions. Although this phenomenon has long been investigated, ma…
View article: The Basics of Evolution Strategies: The Implementation of the Biomimetic Optimization Method in Educational Modules
The Basics of Evolution Strategies: The Implementation of the Biomimetic Optimization Method in Educational Modules Open
With a focus on education and teaching, we provide general background information on bioinspired optimization methods by comparing the concept of optimization and the search for an optimum in engineering and biology. We introduce both the …