91�ȱ�

ANDY TORBET:Welcome to Beyond Bionic on 91�ȱ� Teach. I'm Andy Torbet, the show's presenter, and on every episode I go up against some of nature's best athletes and try and match their super skills.

ANDY TORBET:And here's what happened when I went up against one of nature's best climbers - the gecko.

ANDY TORBET:Now I'm not a bad climber, but a gecko can climb vertically, horizontally, even upside down. Yeah that's not so easy. And they can do all this at speed with almost no effort.

ANDY TORBET:And that's because of their specially designed feet and toe pads. The gecko really is a master climber, so I'm going to have to go beyond bionic if I'm going to match the climbing skills of this little fella.

ANDY TORBET:'I've been set the ultimate gecko climbing challenge. 'I'm going to scale a ten-storey glass building 'using just my hands and feet. 'To help me, I'm going to rely on friction.

ANDY TORBET:'Friction is the force created between two surfaces 'that are sliding or trying to slide across one another. 'In this case, me and the building.

ANDY TORBET:'Friction will help me stick to the building 'and stop gravity from pulling me down as I climb. 'This is a real challenge because smooth surfaces like glass buildings 'create very little friction.

ANDY TORBET:'So I need to find something to climb with 'that will generate as much friction as possible 'and keep my hands and feet stuck fast to the glass just like a gecko.'

ANDY TORBET:I've discovered a team who have invented an artificial type of gecko skin, so I'm hoping they can help me in my mission to climb a glass-fronted building.

ANDY TORBET:'The Geckskin is a material that works on flat surfaces, 'and because of the unique way it's made 'it can hold huge amounts of weight really easily.

ANDY TORBET:'And it works just like geckos feet.'

1600:02:19:14 00:02:28:06SCIENTIST:What you have on the feet are actually modified scales. So they've kind of split them into millions of little hairs that you can only see under a microscope. These are called seta.

ANDY TORBET:'Geckos have over 2 billion seta on their feet. 'These super hairs can get into very close contact 'with whatever surface the gecko is climbing on.

ANDY TORBET:'When the two come close together, 'tiny physical interactions are created called Van der Waal's forces. 'Named after the Dutch scientist who worked out some things 'are stickier than others.

ANDY TORBET:'It's Van der Waal's forces that allow the gecko's feet 'to become temporarily stuck towhatever surface they're climbing on. 'And they are seriously strong.

ANDY TORBET:'So strong in fact, that Geckskin can be used to pull a car.

ANDY TORBET:'So far so good, 'this super material is allowing me to pull over two tonnes of truck. 'That's the same weight as a hippopotamus.

ANDY TORBET:'I'm really getting into my stride, 'but then I slightly change the angle at which I'm pulling… 'and the material instantly peels off, 'bringing the challenge to a halt.

ANDY TORBET:'If a gecko wants to become unstuck in a hurry, 'it simply changes the angles of the hairs on their feet 'by peeling back their toes, 'breaking the Van der Waal's forces that keep them attached, 'and Geckskin works in a similar way.'

ANDY TORBET:I'm still confident that science can give me the help I need to complete this challenge. So it's onwards and upwards.

ANDY TORBET:'This is the home of Draper Laboratory, 'where some of the world's most advanced engineering projects 'are developed.

ANDY TORBET:'And I'm here to meet Dave Carter, an expert in nano-structured materials.'

DAVE CARTER:We have the Z-Man hybrid system here that we can use to make a human climb. The suction cups get pulled into the wall and our gecko material helps it grip better so it doesn't slide down the wall.

ANDY TORBET:So it's a combination of suction and gecko.

'This is incredible.'I'm able to hang all my weightfrom one pad,

'making my hand totally beyond bionic and just like a gecko's toe.

'LEDs tell me how many of the suction cups are fully attached to the wall.

ANDY TORBET:'I need all seven to be lit up for maximum sticking power.'

DAVE CARTER:There you go, I think you've got the hang of it.

ANDY TORBET:Oh, we're there, there. Well the plan now is to really put these to the test and I'm going to try andclimb a ten-storey building.

DAVE CARTER:Ten storeys? No one's done that before.

ANDY TORBET:Okay, so that's that, that's that, that's that.

ASSISTANT:Andy is all ready to go beyond bionic.

ANDY TORBET:'As I set off, it's a relief to see those seven red LED lights 'which shows I'm using the paddles properly, 'and have maximum sticking power.'

ANDY TORBET:I'm hoping there's some American pancakes at the top for lunch. Geckos don't have that problem. When food is scarce, they can store nutrients and calories in their tails.

ANDY TORBET:In fact that's a great way of telling how healthy a gecko is. The fatter his tail, the healthier the gecko.

ANDY TORBET:Well it's pretty hot today, and it's hard work, but this kit is working amazingly well. Far better even than in the lab.

ANDY TORBET:'Geckos are cold-blooded animals. 'The colder it is, the harder it is for geckos to get the energy to move.

ANDY TORBET:'But in this sunshine, 'a gecko would be up this building in around 52 seconds.

ANDY TORBET:'But thanks to this amazing gecko-inspired climbing system, 'I'm soon up and away.'

ANDY TORBET:Woo-hoo! Not as graceful, not as efficient, and nowhere near as fast as a gecko. But that was still absolutely awesome to do.

ANDY TORBET:I hope you enjoyed that, and you've got to give total respect to the gecko. I had to go all out to match it's climbing skills, and you can see how new technologies are trying to match those super-skills too.

ANDY TORBET:It's just a shame that right now the Geckskin isn't quite ready. But the Z-Man system certainly did the job. And remember, you can catch more Beyond Bionic on 91�ȱ� Teach. I'll see you next time.