News > Deep-sea sponge's 'zero-energy' flow control could inspire new energy efficient designs

Deep-sea sponge's 'zero-energy' flow control could inspire new energy efficient designs

The Venus flower basket sponge, with its delicate glass-like lattice outer skeleton, has long intrigued researchers seeking to explain how this fragile-seeming creature’s body can withstand the harsh conditions of the deep sea where it lives. Now, new research reveals yet another engineering feat of this ancient animal’s structure: its ability to filter feed using only the faint ambient currents of the ocean depths, no pumping required.