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Gecko-Inspired Adhesive Sticks It to Traditional Tape

Move over, Spider-Man, soon the rest of us may be able to scale walls and cling to ceilings, too. Researchers have developed a supersticky adhesive modeled on the gecko foot that grips even the slipperiest surfaces.

Scholars have long marveled at the superlative climbing abilities of gecko lizards. But only recently have scientists figured out how the creatures manage their gravity-defying feats. As it turns out, the sole of the gecko foot is covered with millions of submicron hairs that apparently stick the animal to the substrate by way of intermolecular van der Waals forces. ...