This paper reports on an analytical study of the intrinsic shapes of 523 whiskers from 15 rats. We show that the variety of whiskers on a rat's cheek, each of which has different lengths and shapes, can be described by a simple mathematical equation such that each whisker is represented as an interval on the Euler spiral. When all the representative curves of mystacial vibrissae for a single rat are assembled together, they span an interval extending from one coiled domain of the Euler spiral to the other. We additionally find that each whisker makes nearly the same angle of 47∘ with the normal to the spherical virtual surface formed by the tips of whiskers, which constitutes the rat's tactile sensory shroud or "search space." The implications of the linear curvature model for gaining insight into relationships between growth, form, and function are discussed.

中文翻译：

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鼠须的欧拉螺旋。

本文报道了对来自15只大鼠的523晶须固有形状的分析研究。我们显示，大鼠颊上的各种晶须（每个晶须具有不同的长度和形状）可以通过简单的数学方程式来描述，以使每个晶​​须都以Euler螺旋上的间隔表示。当将单个大鼠的Mystcial触须的所有代表性曲线组装在一起时，它们跨越了从Euler螺旋的一个螺旋畴延伸到另一螺旋畴的间隔。我们还发现，每根晶须与由晶须尖端形成的球形虚拟表面的法线几乎成47°角，从而构成了大鼠的触觉感觉罩或“搜索空间”。线性曲率模型对于深入了解增长之间的关系的意义，