Gecko and Van der Waals

Apparently geckos have millions of tiny hairs on their feet (paws?) that adhere to almost any surface. As I recall, the individual hairs are actually using the Van der Waals force for adhesion. The photo is from this NYTimes article, which discusses attempts to produce artifical gecko paws for applied purposes. Imagine giant robots with sticky gecko paws 🙂

I really love the third photo on the right!