Tire technology is always developing to enhance traction, but researchers at the University of Akron think they may have found a technique to create greater grip on the roadways, and it includes an arctic species: the polar bear.
Turns out that bumps on polar bears’ paws are 1.5 times taller than other bears, making the polar bears 30 to 50% more efficient on snow and ice. Watching polar bears walk on the ice without sliding or falling gave Professor Ali Dhinojwala of the School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering and Ph.D. candidate Austin Garner an idea that maybe they could learn from the paws of the arctic bear to make better snow tires.