On the night of August 29-30, the International Bat Night will take place!
And yes, this little animal, which belongs to the chiropteran species, is protected and celebrated every year.
Although bats have recently become more associated with health viruses, we mustn’t forget that they have been a great source of inspiration for mankind and its inventions. Many scientists have drawn on their observations of the natural world to create inventions that are now revolutionary.
Here’s an overview of all the innovations influenced by these nocturnal little beasts.
The bat has inspired aeronautics …
As we all know, one of mankind’s greatest dreams was to be able to fly. Leonardo da Vinci, who designed the first airplane wings, was inspired by these little winged creatures. Then it was the turn of Clément Ader, who, observing Indian bats flying, designed the first model of Eole, which took off with the morphology of a chiropteran wing.
Bats in the medical field…
Although bats are notorious for transmitting viruses, they do have a medical interest for humans: their saliva cures strokes thanks to the anticoagulant molecule desmoteplase.
Finally, we all know that bats have the ability to perceive everything perfectly at night, thanks to echolocation, their so-called 6th sense. This sixth sense has attracted the attention of a number of researchers, who have finally succeeded in drawing inspiration from it to create a type of cane that sends ultrasound to objects in its field (including those usually difficult to perceive), considerably improving the living conditions of the visually impaired!
The bat in the movies
But that’s not all!
The bat is also a part of today’s culture! Its characteristics have also attracted the attention of writers, who have created unique characters such as Batman the vigilante and Dracula!
So, have we managed to show you the good side of bats?
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