Sea urchin could lead to knives that never need sharpening

Telegraph ^ | Dec 25, 2010

[the invisib1e hand]

A sea urchin with teeth that can eat through stone could one day lead to knives which never need sharpening.

The creatures have self-honing teeth which allow them to chomp through stone, carving out hideaways on rocky shores.

Scientists have now learned how the urchins keep their teeth razor-sharp and believe that technology based on the same principle could create everlasting bladed tools.

Analysing the teeth of the California purple sea urchin, the scientists found a complex structure of layered calcite crystals held together by super-hard natural cement.

Between ...

[calex59]

If they never need sharpening, then you’d never need a new one resulting in a tremendously negative impact on manufacturing.

I don't know about you but I don't buy a new knife simply because it needs to be sharpened. Self sharpening knifes would wear the blade down just like a manually sharpened blade does, the difference being the owner would never have to do it. Eventually they will wear out.

[battousai]

But will they ‘break’ when they fall off the counter like the .. Never need sharpening ceramic blades?

Never needs sharpening != won't break if you drop it off the counter top.

Ceramic blades are awesome if used as intended, that is for soft items. Every tool has its specific purpose you can't blame the tool if they are not used as intended or without care. I have never had a days trouble with my Kyocera HIP blade, I love it to death.

Maybe some of them are marketed as not needing sharpening, but most reputable manufacturers will tell you that they eventually do. Kyocera even offers free sharpening if you send the knife to them, but unfortunately only open to Japanese residents where mine came from. So I got a diamond sharpner just for it, but over a year old now and hasn't needed it yet, and that's with constant weekly use.

That said I am looking forward to what they come up with from studying these sea urchins :)

[azhenfud]

"....and believe that technology based on the same principle could create everlasting bladed tools."

Sea urchins die - they are not "everlasting".

[Cheetahcat]

More we learn about nature,The wonder of it all expands even greater.

[Charles Henrickson]

The Urchin of Dentist.

[jonno]

So we can have knives that stay sharp by leaving bits of themselves in your food?

Comment from the link.

(sounds like Ginzus will remain viable...)

[1010RD]

No, no, no! Over billions of years and thousands of tiny mutations things like this happen. This is proof of evolution and this is the best fit for this environment. Other urchins without this adaptation simply went extinct, but there’s no reason to believe that these urchins were engineered by a higher power...

Unless you mean aliens?

[andyk]

I'd like to thank the sea urchin along with the quail for pooping out the egg that makes the urchin so freaking delicious.

[1010RD]

At 0:46 is that blood all over the guys sleeve?

[RandallFlagg]

Reminds me of a custom lightsaber that someone had built.
By the hilt was the printed warning, "Do Not Sharpen."

[danielmryan]

If they never need sharpening, then you’d never need a new one resulting in a tremendously negative impact on manufacturing.

Not necessarily. Serviceable cutlery can last for decades - my parents' has - but that durability hasn't stopped it from staying cheap and plentiful.

One of the main sources of demand is new households. Because cutlery is cheap, using hand-me-downs seems miserly. Typically, buying a new set for a new household is preferable. Even in these days, there are many youngsters still moving out of the nest.

[BereanBrain]

Bring me that floating fat man, the baron!

[The Comedian]

Langoliers ping.

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

[wally_bert]

You got me on that one.

[roadcat]

Oh-oh! Now you have to spill some blood after unsheathing it!

[UCANSEE2]

Well, spacefarers can take Sea Urchins along with them and use them instead of razors to shave with.

Plus, any algae or mold that grows in the spaceship, the sea urchins will eat.

As far as the Box jellyfish, either jellyfish ‘adapted’ to the environment, or they were designed for the environment.

It is amazing what ‘life’ can do to survive. Sometimes they are the oddest things (odd to us, anyway).

Merry Christmas to you!

[roadcat]

Me and my wife, newly married at the time, bought a set of cutlery in the mid-1970s. It’s still sharp and we still use them. But we also bought a more expensive better-looking set later on.

[aruanan]

They still can’t avoid being eaten alive by the French.

[shibumi]

Don’t worry, my weapons are well fed.

[CrazyIvan]

They are laminated with the hardest metal being a thin sheet for the edge. The metal then gets progressively softer as you move away from the edge. It then wears itself sharp.

My fifty year old Forney welding manual shows how to do this
with hard surfacing rods. Works pretty well on mower blades.