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Squid Skin With a Mind of Its Own

4 minutes 32 seconds

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When the nerve cells of squid suffer an injury, something unexpected happens with the tiny pouches of colored pigment, called chromatophores. A MIT scientist discusses this phenomenon, and how it can be used and modeled on the computer with some surprisingly simple rules. Part of the "Science Out Loud" series.

Media Details

Runtime: 4 minutes 32 seconds

Glowing star shining light on a planet. Caption: That tells you there may be a planet around that star.
Science Out Loud
Episode 1
3 minutes 33 seconds
Grade Level: 9 - 12
A humanoid robot holding a drill. Caption: to continuously pay attention to his surroundings
Science Out Loud
Episode 2
5 minutes 7 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
Squid with a white body speckled in reddish brown. The color of the head matches the color of the speckles on the body. Caption: His brain has total control over what his skin is doing.
Science Out Loud
Episode 3
4 minutes 32 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
Fine white tubes grow in the same direction. Caption: and carbon nanotubes grow like blades of grass.
Science Out Loud
Episode 4
3 minutes 21 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
Still image from: Engineering Engines: What Do Horses, Cars, and Planes Have in Common?
Science Out Loud
Episode 5
3 minutes 32 seconds
Grade Level: 8 - 12
A man dropping a ball. Caption: potential energy gets converted into kinetic energy
Science Out Loud
Episode 6
5 minutes 5 seconds
Grade Level: 9 - 12
Woman wrapped in a blanket. Caption: you'd have cloak that would be invisible.
Science Out Loud
Episode 7
5 minutes 35 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
Person holding a twisted strip of material. Caption: This shape is called a Möbius strip.
Science Out Loud
Episode 8
4 minutes 47 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
A person skydiving. Caption: but all those tiny forces make a big force called drag,
Science Out Loud
Episode 8
3 minutes 46 seconds
Grade Level: 8 - 12
Long grasses and shrubs. Caption: More than 100,000 natural compounds occur in plants,
Science Out Loud
Episode 10
3 minutes 54 seconds
Grade Level: 10 - 12
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