Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution => Topic started by: neilep on 20/04/2008 16:14:42

Title: How Can This Ant Lift So Much ?
Post by: neilep on 20/04/2008 16:14:42
Dear Ants and Aunts (Aunts are female uncles who are ant experts)



See this Ant ?


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Strong eh ?

Ants (and other insects) can lift many times their own weight....how do they do that ?


Title: How Can This Ant Lift So Much ?
Post by: Madidus_Scientia on 20/04/2008 16:56:12
I think its to do with the ratio of volume to strengh, hard to explain but imagine if an ant was blown up so that it is the same weight as an elephant. Its legs would break and it would collapse in a heap, like trying to hold an elephant up with broomsticks, there's a reason elephants need such thick legs. But because ants are so small everything is so much stronger in ratio to their small volume. Like how its easy to snap a long stick in half, but as it gets smaller and smaller it gets harder and harder to do it, it can take more force per unit of stick as it gets smaller, you half the volume but you don't half the force required. Does that make sense?