What if the secret to better helmets comes from … shrimp?
On South Carolina’s coast, the snap, crackle and pop of snapping shrimp fill the air. Their powerful claws snap fast enough to vaporize water, creating shockwaves strong enough to stun prey and defend themselves. But how do they survive their own and each other’s blasts?
USC biologist Dan Speiser and his lab discovered that a special “orbital hood” — a helmet-like shield around the shrimp’s eyes and brain — seems to protect the shrimp's eyes and brain from these powerful shockwaves. To discover how the hoods do this, biomedical engineers Tarek Shazly and Ahmed Alshareef investigated their mechanical properties.
What Speiser, Shazly and Alshareef have learned could have implications for reducing the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder among military personel. Shockwaves can lead to long-term neural damage that can result in mental health conditions like PTSD. Understanding the snapping shrimp's hood structure could be an important step in designing next-generation helmets to help mitigate the risk.