Now in our 13th year of bringing you beautiful imagery from biomedical science every day

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Sensational Skin
19 November 2012

Sensational Skin

Skin is the underappreciated hero of our body. It is at once our sensitive, self-healing cocoon, and our unyielding first line of defence against the world. Scientists are trying to emulate its feats for use in prosthetics and robotics. The model pictured is sporting pads of the latest synthetic skin. Tiny nickel particles embedded in flexible plastic allow it to conduct electricity. Pressure applied to the model’s hand, lights up the bulb on its chest. It can distinguish between a light tap and a firm handshake, and can use the changing distances between nickel particles to tell how bent or twisted a joint is. When cut in two the skin can even heal itself: within half an hour, it can put itself back together and be in full working order – essential if it’s going to withstand day-to-day life.

Written by Anthony Lewis

Search The Archive

Submit An Image

Follow on Tumblr

Follow on Instagram

What is BPoD?

BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

Read More

BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.