VOGEL, S; Duke University: Biological Relevance of the Peclet Number Exchange processes commonly use forced convective flows to augment molecular diffusion. A dimensionless index, the P�clet number (vl/D), indicates the relative magnitude of the two processes. Its value can provide a functional rationale for specific structures and processes, and it can suggest situations in which […]

BOWKER, G.E.; Furman University: A mathematical evaluation of wind, gravitational, and electrostatic forces in pollen capture. Under typical pollination conditions (clear skies), plants carry a net negative charge. This charge is located on the skyward distal parts of the plants, and is concentrated at points (e.g. the edges of leaves, the tips of needles, and […]

ZUMWALT, A.C.; LIEBERMAN, D.E.; RUFF, C.B.; Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; Harvard University, Cambridge, MA; Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD: Too good to be true? Testing the relationship between muscle function and attachment site morphology Muscle attachment sites are bony features that may be indicative of in vivo muscular stresses. Many studies have used these […]

POLK, J.D.; LIEBERMAN, D.E.; DEMES, B.; Harvard University; Harvard University; Stony Brook University: Predicting long bone loading from cross-sectional geometry Long bone loading histories are commonly evaluated using midshaft cross-sectional properties. Functional inferences are made by assuming that long bones are deformed like long, straight beams in pure bending, with neutral axes that run through […]

FESSLER, J.L.*; WESTNEAT, M.W.; CHERNOFF, B.; Univ. of Illinois, Chicago; Field Museum; Field Museum: Morphometrics and Biomechanics: Functional Implications of Shape Change in the Labridae The Labridae is a large family of marine fishes (>600 sp.) that are diverse in trophic morphology, ecology, and prey capture biomechanics. Although the functional morphology of feeding in adult […]

TAYLOR, J.R.A.*; KIER, W.M.; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill: Hydrostatic Skeletons in the Crustacea The crustacean molt cycle involves a short phase, ecdysis, in which the animal sheds its rigid exoskeleton and is left with a soft, flexible cuticle inflated with water. During the few days required for […]

DANIEL, T.L.; GLINOGA, G.P.; WARD, P.D.; Univ. Washington, Seattle; Univ. Washington, Seattle; Univ. Washington,Seattle: Biomechanics and origins of shell coiling Mechanisms driving the origin and early evolution of coiling in molluscan shells remain enigmatic. With the notion that shell form follows from an evolutionary arms race between mollucan prey and their predators, we asked whether […]

THOMASON, JJ; MCCLINCHEY, HL; JOFRIET, JC; DICKEY, JP; RUNCIMAN, J; DOUGLAS, JE; Univ. of Guelph, Guelph; Univ. of Guelph, Guelph; Univ. of Guelph, Guelph; Univ. of Guelph, Guelph; Univ. of Guelph, Guelph; Equine Research Centre, Guelph: Anatomical construction of the horse’s hoof for weightbearing The horse�s hoof is constructed to withstand the shock of rapid […]

ELLERBY, D.J.; MARSH, R.L.; CARR, J.A.; HENRY, H.; Northeastern University; Northeastern University; Northeastern University; Northeastern University: Muscle function in running guinea fowl: linked muscles spanning multiple joints The guinea fowl hind limb contains a number of linked muscles and tendons that cross multiple joints. This complex anatomical arrangement makes inference of muscle length from limb […]

BRAINERD, E.L.*; AZIZI, E.; Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst: Muscle fiber angle and strain amplification in segmented musculature Segmented axial musculature is a defining characteristic of vertebrates and their close relatives. We have developed a mathematical model of segmented muscle in which the relationships between muscle fiber angle, muscle fiber strain, segment strain and segment force […]