Related papers: Aerodynamic Significance of Mass Distribution on S…
Maple trees (genus $\textit{Acer}$) accomplish the task of distributing objects to a wide area by producing seeds which are carried by the wind as they slowly descend to the ground, known as samaras. With the goal of supporting engineering…
Appendages of seeds, fruits and other diaspores (dispersal units) are essential for their wind dispersal, as they act as wings and enable them to fly. Whirling fruits generate an auto-gyrating motion from their sepals, a leaf like…
Wind dispersal of seeds is one essential mechanisms for plants to proliferate and to invade new territories. In this paper we present a methodology that combines 3D-printing, a minimal theoretical model and experiments to determine the…
This study investigates the steady-state kinematics of single-winged spinning samaras and re-evaluates the simplifying assumptions commonly used in existing theoretical models. High-speed imaging was employed to quantify key parameters,…
We introduce a model of traveling agents ({\it e.g.} frugivorous animals) who feed on randomly located vegetation patches and disperse their seeds, thus modifying the spatial distribution of resources in the long term. It is assumed that…
Several species of plants have raindrop-sized flowers that catch raindrops opportunistically in order to spread their 0.3-mm seeds distances of over 1 m. In the following fluid dynamics video, we show examples of these plants and some of…
The large variation in seed mass among species inspired a vast array of theoretical and empirical research attempting to explain this variation. So far, seed mass variation was investigated by two classes of studies: one class focuses on…
Production of energy (metabolism) and its distribution is vital for living organisms, both at individual level - between different functions of an organism, as well as between species of communities at different organizational levels,…
Motivated by a winged seed, which takes advantage of a wing with high angles of attack and its associated leading-edge vortex to boost lift, we propose a powered 13.8-gram aerial robot with the maximum take-off weight of 310 mN (31.6 gram)…
Ecological selection forces for weedy and domesticated traits have influenced the evolution of seed shape in Setaria resulting in similarity in seed shape that reflects similarity in ecological function rather than reflecting phylogenetic…
The large active wing deformation is a significant way to generate high aerodynamic forces required in bat flapping flight. Besides the twisting, the elementary morphing models of a bat wing are proposed, such as wing-bending in the…
Habitat loss is one of the biggest threats facing plant species nowadays. We formulate a simple mathematical model of seed dispersal on reduced habitats to discuss survival of the species in relation to the habitat size and seeds production…
Diversity patterns of tree species in a tropical forest community are approached by a simple lattice model and investigated by Monte Carlo simulations using a backtracking method. Our spatially explicit neutral model is based on a simple…
Understanding the scattering mechanisms from the ground surface in the presence of different vegetation densities is necessary for the interpretation of P-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) observations and for the design of geophysical…
We consider through simulations the behavior of elongated grains on a vibrating ratchet-shaped base. We observe differences in layer velocity profile and in net grain velocity for grains that are composed of one, two, or three colinear…
Using simulations and a simple mean-field theory, we investigate jamming transitions in a two-species lattice gas under non-equilibrium steady-state conditions. The two types of particles diffuse with different mobilities on a square…
We study a model of seed dispersal that considers the inclusion of an animal disperser moving diffusively, feeding on fruits and transporting the seeds, which are later deposited and capable of germination. The dynamics depends on several…
Bristled and membranous insect wings have co-evolved despite apparently serving the same functionality. We emulate flight physics using an automated free-fall experiment to better understand how and why several distinct wing forms may have…
Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) provides information on the vertical structure of forest stands enabling detailed and extensive ecosystem study. The vertical structure is often summarized by scalar features and data-reduction techniques…
We employ a novel computational modeling framework to perform high-fidelity direct numerical simulations of aero-structural interactions in bat-inspired membrane wings. The wing of a bat consists of an elastic membrane supported by a highly…