skip to main content

Deep Look: Porcupines Give You 30,000 Reasons to Back Off

4 minutes 15 seconds

Now Playing As: Captioned (English) (change)

Porcupines may be adorable, but their quills are razor-sharp, designed to impale and next to impossible to remove. But it's not all bad news. Researchers are designing new surgical staples that mimic the quill's shape to better close wounds and promote healing. Part of the "Deep Look" series.

Media Details

Runtime: 4 minutes 15 seconds

Black and white closeup of a daddy longlegs spider crawling on the dirt, small black ovular body hovering just above the ground.
Deep Look
Season 4 / Ep 8
4 minutes 3 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Small black ovular beetle crawls along moss towards pile of leaves.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 1
4 minutes 34 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Closeup of a baby hairworm insect with a mottled light and dark brown body and thin legs crawling over a plant.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 3
4 minutes 8 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Side profile of a dog with an overlay that shows the skeletal structure of its snout. The area just below its eyes and across the bridge of its nose is illuminated in yellow and labeled Olfactory Recess.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 4
3 minutes 33 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Closeup of a wasp with a black body, short antennas and transparent wings.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 5
4 minutes 19 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Microscopic photo of a louse crawling along a single strand of hair.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 6
3 minutes 44 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Video shows a light gray background.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 7
4 minutes 15 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Black beetle with thin, spidery legs and black and white antennas crawls down a thin sheet of dirty fabric.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 8
4 minutes 26 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
A honey bee sucks nectar from a flower.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 9
4 minutes 10 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12
Blurred photo of a woman leaning over to kiss the cheek of a baby. The baby reaches up to grab her chin in its hands.
Deep Look
Season 6 / Ep 10
3 minutes 27 seconds
Grade Level: 7 - 12