The Garden of Cosmic Speculation – Scotland wallpapers

The Garden of Cosmic Speculation – Scotland 

Open to the public only one day a year, the Garden of Cosmic Speculation takes science and maths as its inspiration. Quite simply, there isn't another garden like it in the world. The garden was set up by Charles Jencks, together with his late wife Maggie Keswick and is located at Portrack House near Dumfries. That's in Scotland, by the way! It was set up in 1989 without the usual ideas people have when they create a garden. Horticultural displays very much take second place in this garden. Instead, it is designed with ideas in mind - and to provoke thought (or at least speculation) about the very nature of things.

Beautiful Birds on Branches

About Birds on Trees

You ever see a bird clutching onto a branch high in a tree and wonder, "What happens if it falls asleep? How could it hold on?" 

The avian talon works through a "pulley system of tendons," according to the animal morphology blog Ars Anatomica, and it can lock into place. 

"The bird's foot closes and grasps automatically as the ankle and knee joints are bent," we read. "This grasp cannot be released until the limb is straightened again." 

So, instead of expending precious energy holding the muscles tight—as you would if you were hanging onto a branch with your fists/arms—the system simply physically locks in place. 

A 1990 paper in Zoomorphology goes into more depth about the biomechanics of the lock, which results from the placement of the tendons and evolved specializations of their texture. 

And, of course, this wondrous anatomical system doesn't just come in handy on telephone wires, but also during attacks:

    Raptors swoop down on prey with talons/legs outstretched. The impact with the prey folds the raptor’s legs against its body, causing the talons to clench automatically, tearing into the prey. The automatic grip is strong enough to kill, and is what allows many hawk species to catch and kill other birds in midair.