From 0 to 75mph in just three seconds — in just three strides, it’s faster than most of the world’s fastest super cars — the Smithsonian Channel describes the biomechanics behind why the cheetah is the world’s fastest land animal.

Follow this video up with this singular slow motion video of a cheetah running.

via Viral Viral Videos.

Watch Festo HQ team’s new dragonfly-inspired BionicOpter: 

With the BionicOpter, Festo has technically mastered the highly complex flight characteristics of the dragonfly. Just like its model in nature, this ultralight flying object can fly in all directions, hover in mid-air and glide without beating its wings.

In addition to control of the shared flapping frequency and twisting of the individual wings, each of the four wings also features an amplitude controller. The tilt of the wings determines the direction of thrust. Amplitude control allows the intensity of the thrust to be regulated. When combined, the remote-controlled dragonfly can assume almost any position in space.

There are more videos and explanation here. And if you haven’t seen them yet, there are more great videos to check out from Festo: AirRay, AirPenguin, AirJelly, AquaRay, and from the archives, AquaPenguin and AquaJellyfish, and the TEDTalk, A robot that flies like a bird.

via Colossal.

Earth Unplugged films the northern goshawk’s magnificent speed and precision skills in slow motion as it aims for lures and water balloons.

via Laughing Squid.

After this, watch an owl in slow motion, or up the challenge: How small of a space can a northern goshawk fly through?

Robots have to be able to move, perhaps quickly, on all kinds of terrain — search and rescue missions on remote parts of Earth or explorations on other planets like Mars will require it. So terradynamic researchers at Georgia Tech are creating and testing robots that have different leg shapes, all inspired by animals, to handle movement in a variety of environments. Bonus technology: 3D printing.

Watch this robot with c-shaped legs running super fast on Mars-like sand, and read more about the experiments here or here.

h/t PopSci.

Learn how to arm wave with Hip Hop dancer and choreographer Matt Steffanina. Then make it look smooth with lots of practice!