Oddly enough, science knows little about shark nutrition: what they eat and how they digest food, as well as what kind of food they eat.
Scientists conducted a series of 3D scansWith high resolution, they obtained three-dimensional images of the intestines of almost 30 species of sharks. Thanks to the scans, the researchers discovered several new aspects of the functioning of the shark intestines. The analysis showed that the shark's intestines work like Nikola Tesla's famous valve.
CT image of the coiled intestine of a sea shark seen from top to bottom. Credit: Samantha Lee / California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Scientists have found that spiral organsshark digestion slows down the movement of food and directs it down the intestines, relying on gravity in addition to peristalsis, the rhythmic contraction of the smooth muscles of the intestine. This function turned out to be analogous to the one-way valve that the famous physicist Nikola Tesla invented over a hundred years ago. This valve allows fluid to flow in one direction without backflow and assistance from any moving parts.
In their work, scientists mainly useda computed tomography (CT) scanner at Friday Harbor Laboratories to create three-dimensional images of shark intestines, which were obtained from samples held at the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History. The machine works like a standard computed tomography scanner used in hospitals: a series of X-ray images are taken from different angles and then combined using computer processing to create three-dimensional images. This allows researchers to see the intricacy of a shark's intestine without cutting or touching it.
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