There are many examples of scientists who used everyday objects to solve complex problems. I will share only two in this post but there are many more than most people realize.
In 1941, George de Mestral after taking his dog for a walk in the woods, discovered that the dog’s fur was full of burrs. Wondering why these burrs were so difficult to remove, he examined them under a microscope and discovered that nature had designed the burrs with tiny hooks that enabled them to cling to loops in hair or fabric (as a way of spreading seeds). It occurred to him that he could create a fastener using a similar combination of hooks and loops. He patented his invention in 1955 and concatenating the French words for velvet hook (velour crochet) he called it Velcro.
One of the most dramatic problems to hit the news in recent years was the failure of the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1986, when seven US astronauts lost their lives. A Commission was formed to get to the root of the problem. Physicist Richard Feynman declared that the O-rings had frozen allowing some gases to escape from a chamber and ignite. However, the Commission did not accept Feyman’s theory and decided to remove it from their report and place it in the appendix. Feynman threatened to resign from the Commission and requested that his name be withdrawn. When the opportunity arose at the presentation of the report, Feynman, ever the performer, demonstrated the Challenger problem by dipping a rubber hose in freezing temperature water. The YouTube video of that presentation is given below.
It is now accepted that the O-rings were a significant part of the problem and it took a simple demonstration with a rubber hose to illustrate the simple idea underpinning a giant technology.
Nature has evolved many ingenious ways of maximizing the survival of various species, conserving energy and finding the shortest distance between two points. Scientists have often delved into Nature’s methods and structures to find solutions to complex problems. Since surface tension pulls liquids into shapes that minimize surface area, mathematicians have learned to use soap bubbles to discover shapes of maximum volume and minimum surface area.
We live in a fascinating world containing everyday objects that represent remarkable solutions to complex problems.
