Spiderman, Spiderman, friendly real-life Spiderman

by Kaitlin | April 27, 2007 at 08:05 am
685 views | 0 Recommendations | 1 comment

Photos

Good Times

Good Times

see larger image

uploaded by lapsus_calami

First, Kryptonite. Second, life in other galaxies. Now, a real-life Spidey? It's a week of geek's dreams come true 'round these parts.

Nicola Pugno, a 35-year-old researcher at the Polytechnic University of Turin, said he has worked on a form of adhesion for about 10 years that could lead to something like a spider-man suit.
Pugno uses the gecko as a model for the adhesive. Geckos, like Spidey, have fine hairs on their feet that allow them to grip surfaces and to climb. Designing a working Spidey suit? Sounds like the ideal life's work of a comic book fan, right? Um, no.
Despite his work's obvious Spider-Man similarities, Pugno said he has no particular interest in the hit movies and that science is what fascinates him. Science fiction, he said, "leads to nothing."
Now, I won't go on a rant, but the link between science fiction (or speculative fiction for those allergic-to-"sci-fi" types) and actual scientific advancement has been proven over and over again in various permutations since the mid-twentieth century. Leads to nothing?! Dude, you wouldn't be in the news if it weren't for Spidey. Looks like a certain researcher needs a Marvel care package, stat!


Advertisement
recommend This comment thread is now closed
0
insaniac

That's just... awesome.

This story was created over 3 months ago, the comment thread is now closed.

NowPublic on Facebook

What is NowPublic?

NowPublic lets people work together to cover news events around the world.

Find out more

Crowd Power

These members have powered this story:

Most Recommended Stories in Tech & Biz

 

closeSign in to NowPublic

is reporting from