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Observations on the hydrodynamics and swimming motions of mammalian spermatozoa

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Abstract

An asymptotic solution of the Stokes Flow equations for a self-propelling filament is presented. An explicit expression for the propulsive velocity is obtained for the case of an infinite filament undergoing small amplitude sinusoidal motions. The asymptotic solution is then used to obtain drag coefficients to be used in a simpler approximate analysis which can be applied to experimentally observed motions.

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Shack, W.J., Fray, C.S. & Lardner, T.J. Observations on the hydrodynamics and swimming motions of mammalian spermatozoa. Bltn Mathcal Biology 36, 555–565 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02463267

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