#ScanAllFishes - how, why, and whatever will you do with all those data

I am interested in the sea as a source of bioinspiration. The marine environment, mirroring the internal conditions of the human body, is a fertile source of new technologies and materials. The talk will focus on a couple of success stories, new forms of suction attachment, and new ways to filter particulates, as well as work in progress on armor. The suction cups are modeled on a fish sucker and can attach to very rough surfaces with the same tenacity as smooth surfaces. The innovative aspect of the filter is that the mesh size is larger than the particles captured. The twin roots of these research projects are natural history and morphology. I will discuss a new initiative to CT scan all of the vertebrates, and the challenges and opportunities presented by this large dataset. All of the scan data are being made available on-line with an open access model and this has already resulted in unanticipated synergies and new projects.