The egg has always been considered a very important food source in the history and nutrition of humanity. It is also one of the most recognizable forms in nature and an example of evolutionary adaptation in a wide range of environmental conditions and situations, such as being hatched outside the nest, with or without body heat, hot or cold, in dirty or clean environments. , etc.
Now a team of scientists from the University of Kent, the Institute for Environmental Treatment Research and Vita-Market Ltd, have discovered the universal mathematical formula that can describe any bird egg found in nature, something that has never been seen before. had gotten.
From an analytical point of view, the egg shape has caught the attention of mathematicians, engineers and biologists: it is large enough to hatch an embryo, small enough to leave the body in the most efficient way and does not roll once on the outside, it is structurally sound enough to support weight and the beginning of life and represent species that have survived since the time of the dinosaurs.
Eggs are a crucial part of Earth’s biodiversity, with more than 10,500 living species on the planet that have gone through various evolutionary phases and survived numerous extinctions in the prehistoric era.
The egg, that perfect shape
The shape of the eggs contains a series of geometric figures, including ovoid, sphere, ellipsoid, and pyriform. However, all the physical structures of the eggs have not yet been concluded in any complete scientific reference. To create the egg shape measurement guide, the experts developed a mathematical solution.
During the analysis of all egg shapes, the researchers used four geometric figures: sphere, ellipsoid, ovoid, and pyriform (conical) or pear-shaped, with a mathematical formula – the latter – yet to be determined. To correct this gap, the researchers introduced an additional function in the ovoid formula, developing a mathematical model to fit a completely novel geometric shape characterized as the last stage in the evolution of the sphere-ellipsoid, which is applicable to any geometry of the egg. .
The universal mathematical formula for the shape of the egg is based on four parameters: length of the egg, maximum width, displacement of the vertical axis and diameter to a quarter of the length of the egg.
How useful will this mathematical milestone be?
“This universal formula can be applied in all fundamental disciplines, especially in the food and poultry industry, and will serve as the impetus for future research inspired by the egg as a research object,” the authors explain.
It will facilitate the work of scientists developing technologies for hatching, processing, storing and classifying eggs, among other things. In addition, it could be applied to architecture, to inventions for the future …
Reference: Valeriy G. Narushin, Michael N. Romanov, Darren K. Griffin. Egg and math: introducing a universal formula for egg shape. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 2021; DOI: 10.1111 / nyas.14680
