Da Vinci often turned to the natural world for design solutions. He documented the action of falling and flowing water and studied the shapes of fish and applied these observations to the design of a more hydrodynamic ship’s hull than the roundbottomed vessels of his time. The model has two sides, demonstrating two ideas for increasing the stability and or speed of the shape through water, both shapes can now be seen in the hulls of modern vessels from racing yachts to container ships.
IMAGES: Spindle hull ship
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