Knots Are A Tied And True Hobby For Some People
August 26, 2019 at 8:37 p.m.
By -
Makes the knot both tidy and tight.”
Reef Knot Mnemonic
I am often on the alert for something that can occupy my mind and time that may be useful in the future. While browsing through the bookstore, I came upon “The Handy Book of Knots,” written by Randy Penn. It offered 10 top reasons for learning to tie knots:
1. Knotting will help you in endeavors you already enjoy.
2. It will help you get involved in new activities.
3. Knotting is a useful skill in many crafts.
4. Tying cordage properly will make you look competent.
5. You will be able to manage ropes of different sizes and materials.
6. You will learn how to tie safer knots that won’t untie under duress.
7. You’ll react better if you need to tie knots in an emergency.
8. You’ll find more uses for rope, like securing cargo to your bicycle or motorcycle.
9. You’ll be able to rely on cordage to make a variety of repairs.
10. Most importantly, you’ll learn how to do the job right.
From this description, it would appear that knot-tying should be a required course in schools and universities. The more I read, the more I became interested in the history, names, numbers, functions and diversity of knots. There is even research carried out on how much force is required to tighten knots. This distinction helped sailors and others to choose certain knots over others to secure vessels.
History
Not much is known about knots and material used to tie them before recorded history, but both plant and animal materials were available for use in cordage. (Cordage is a general term referring to ropes and twine.) Numerous plants are made of strong fibers that provide structural strength, as do a variety of animals. Animal hides could be cut into thin strips for tying materials. Early humans must have been inspired to tie their first knots by what they saw around them. Spider webs, bird nests and even the complex nature of many plants may have provided suggestions.
Background
For anyone wishing to learn more about knots, there is a treasure house of information in “The Ashley Book of Knots,” first published in 1944 and still in print. It contains nearly 7,000 illustrations of over 3,000 knots. The book for which Ashley dedicated over a decade of research, writing and illustration, remains the essential guide to knot-tying and a historical archive of their uses. Ashley’s goal was to document and reproduce every known knot, cataloguing them by their uses and designs, and offer instructions on how to recreate their specific ties.
In July 2017, the New Bedford Massachusetts Whaling Museum opened a special exhibit on Ashley’s work entitled “Thou Shall Knot.” The museum composed this description: knots “are integral to the ships we sail, the clothes we wear, the hair we braid, the memories we keep, our colloquial expressions, the games we play, the shoes we tie, the presents we give, the fish we catch, and the social contacts that bind us.”
Nomenclature
The names given to knots provide clues about what they meant to our ancestors. One of the first things to notice is that some refer to professions. From Archer and Bell Ringer to Weaver, knots continue to be called by their namesakes—they played a key role in these trades. Some knots have multiple names, and one name can refer to many different knots. When a knot has many different names, it is an indication that, for whatever reason, the knot was significant enough to warrant such attention.
Diversity
As noted by the description supplied above by the Whaling Museum, knots have a number of practical uses. There are so-called stopper knots, or knots that are tied at the end of cord. Stopper knots have many uses; the knots allow the user to suspend an object or keep a line from running all the way out. Tying bends are used to join the ends of two ropes to provide more length or make a needed connection. Loops can be used as a bowline or noose. Hitches can be used to secure a rope to rings, rails, posts, hooks or other ropes. Lashing knots can secure a box or sleeping bag, or group a stack of items. There are also special knots for decoration purposes. There may be as many as 3,800 different types.
Mechanics
Researchers have analyzed the mechanical forces underpinning simple knots and carried out experiments to test how much force is required to tighten them. They discovered that the topology of a knot determines its mechanical forces. (Topology is the mathematical study of the properties preserved through deformations, twisting and stretchings of objects.) For the first time, scientists can predict the force needed to close knots. This may help understand something as simple as to how headphones become tangled, how to better tie shoe laces and how the configuration of knots can help in surgical procedures.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. He has taught college courses on regulatory and compliance issues at Ivy Tech, Grace College and Butler University. Sherman has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge on all levels. Eclectic Science, the title of his column, touches on famed doctors and scientists, human senses, aging, various diseases, and little-known facts about many species, including their contributions to scientific research. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
Makes the knot both tidy and tight.”
Reef Knot Mnemonic
I am often on the alert for something that can occupy my mind and time that may be useful in the future. While browsing through the bookstore, I came upon “The Handy Book of Knots,” written by Randy Penn. It offered 10 top reasons for learning to tie knots:
1. Knotting will help you in endeavors you already enjoy.
2. It will help you get involved in new activities.
3. Knotting is a useful skill in many crafts.
4. Tying cordage properly will make you look competent.
5. You will be able to manage ropes of different sizes and materials.
6. You will learn how to tie safer knots that won’t untie under duress.
7. You’ll react better if you need to tie knots in an emergency.
8. You’ll find more uses for rope, like securing cargo to your bicycle or motorcycle.
9. You’ll be able to rely on cordage to make a variety of repairs.
10. Most importantly, you’ll learn how to do the job right.
From this description, it would appear that knot-tying should be a required course in schools and universities. The more I read, the more I became interested in the history, names, numbers, functions and diversity of knots. There is even research carried out on how much force is required to tighten knots. This distinction helped sailors and others to choose certain knots over others to secure vessels.
History
Not much is known about knots and material used to tie them before recorded history, but both plant and animal materials were available for use in cordage. (Cordage is a general term referring to ropes and twine.) Numerous plants are made of strong fibers that provide structural strength, as do a variety of animals. Animal hides could be cut into thin strips for tying materials. Early humans must have been inspired to tie their first knots by what they saw around them. Spider webs, bird nests and even the complex nature of many plants may have provided suggestions.
Background
For anyone wishing to learn more about knots, there is a treasure house of information in “The Ashley Book of Knots,” first published in 1944 and still in print. It contains nearly 7,000 illustrations of over 3,000 knots. The book for which Ashley dedicated over a decade of research, writing and illustration, remains the essential guide to knot-tying and a historical archive of their uses. Ashley’s goal was to document and reproduce every known knot, cataloguing them by their uses and designs, and offer instructions on how to recreate their specific ties.
In July 2017, the New Bedford Massachusetts Whaling Museum opened a special exhibit on Ashley’s work entitled “Thou Shall Knot.” The museum composed this description: knots “are integral to the ships we sail, the clothes we wear, the hair we braid, the memories we keep, our colloquial expressions, the games we play, the shoes we tie, the presents we give, the fish we catch, and the social contacts that bind us.”
Nomenclature
The names given to knots provide clues about what they meant to our ancestors. One of the first things to notice is that some refer to professions. From Archer and Bell Ringer to Weaver, knots continue to be called by their namesakes—they played a key role in these trades. Some knots have multiple names, and one name can refer to many different knots. When a knot has many different names, it is an indication that, for whatever reason, the knot was significant enough to warrant such attention.
Diversity
As noted by the description supplied above by the Whaling Museum, knots have a number of practical uses. There are so-called stopper knots, or knots that are tied at the end of cord. Stopper knots have many uses; the knots allow the user to suspend an object or keep a line from running all the way out. Tying bends are used to join the ends of two ropes to provide more length or make a needed connection. Loops can be used as a bowline or noose. Hitches can be used to secure a rope to rings, rails, posts, hooks or other ropes. Lashing knots can secure a box or sleeping bag, or group a stack of items. There are also special knots for decoration purposes. There may be as many as 3,800 different types.
Mechanics
Researchers have analyzed the mechanical forces underpinning simple knots and carried out experiments to test how much force is required to tighten them. They discovered that the topology of a knot determines its mechanical forces. (Topology is the mathematical study of the properties preserved through deformations, twisting and stretchings of objects.) For the first time, scientists can predict the force needed to close knots. This may help understand something as simple as to how headphones become tangled, how to better tie shoe laces and how the configuration of knots can help in surgical procedures.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. He has taught college courses on regulatory and compliance issues at Ivy Tech, Grace College and Butler University. Sherman has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge on all levels. Eclectic Science, the title of his column, touches on famed doctors and scientists, human senses, aging, various diseases, and little-known facts about many species, including their contributions to scientific research. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
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