Physics - Worm Viscosity

Physics - Worm Viscosity



A. Deblais/Univ. of Amsterdam

Tipsy turvy. Sludge worms can perform as active polymers in viscosity measurements in which their activity is controlled with temperature or with alcohol. (See video below.)

Worms do good physics (when sober)

Wriggling aquatic worms can alter the physical properties of the water they swim in, making it flow 10–100 times more smoothly. Experiments have demonstrated that worms can provide macroscopic models for the behaviour of ‘active’ polymers — molecules that move on their own and spontaneously form patterns. Researchers controlled the activity of the worms by raising or lowering the temperature of the water, or by adding alcohol to it. The alcohol seemed harmless to the worms, which took just half an hour to sober up after being returned to pure water, says physicist Antoine Deblais. “Sometimes it’s better to be a worm.”

APS Physics Focus | 5 min readSource: Physical Review Letters paper