Throughout history, most inventions were inspired by the natural world. The idea for the pitchfork and table fork came from forked sticks; the aeroplane from gliding birds. But the wheel is a one hundred percent homo sapien innovation. As Michael LaBarbera—a professor of biology and anatomy at the University of Chicago—wrote in a 1983 issue of "The American Naturalist", 'only bacterial flagella, dung beetles and tumbleweeds come close. And even they are “wheeled organisms” in the loosest use of the term, since they use rolling as a form of locomotion'.
Thanks to the Smithsonian, there's a lot more there. -
The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail. There is an ongoing hoax about the hoop snake which is supposed to exhibit similar propensities. It is reputed to be able form itself into a hoop and roll after its prey at speeds up to 60 miles an hour! They can alter their shapes as they go, and even roll up hill. This reminds me of Fletcher's post on the besslerwheel forum about suggesting to Bessler that he tried out that idea with his own wheel to see if it would roll uphill.
JC
