The<unk>  in materials science is the observed superhydrophobic (also super hydrophobic or super-hydrophobic) and self-cleaning property found with<unk>  plants' leaves     . In some Eastern cultures, the<unk>  plant is a symbol of purity. Although<unk> es prefer to grow in muddy rivers and lakes, the leaves and flowers remain clean.  Botanists who have studied<unk>  leaves have found that they have a natural cleaning mechanism. This cleaning mechanism was discovered by Wilhelm Barthlott  in 1982. He also holds a patent .
The microscopic structure and surface chemistry of the leaves prevent them from being wetted by liquids having a contact angle of greater than 90° to an unstructured surface of the same material. With contact angles to water of up to 170°, droplets roll off a leaf's surface like mercury, taking mud, tiny insects, and contaminants with them. This is known as superhydrophobicity, or more commonly, the<unk> . Water droplets on taro and nasturtium leaves exhibit similar behavior.
Some nanotechnologists have developed treatments, coatings, paints, roof tiles, fabrics and other surfaces that can stay dry and clean themselves in the same way as the<unk>  leaf. This can usually be achieved using special fluorochemical or silicone treatments on structured surfaces or with compositions containing micro-scale particulates. Super-hydrophobic coatings comprising Teflon™ microparticles have been used on medical diagnostic slides for over 30 years.  It is possible to achieve such effects by using combinations of polyethylene glycol with glucose and sucrose (or any insoluble particulate) in conjunction with a hydrophobic substance.
In one method, an aluminium surface is made superhydrophobic by immersing it in sodium hydroxide for several hours (which roughens the surface) followed by spin coating a layer of perfluorononane to a thickness of 2 nanometers.  This procedure increases the water contact angle from 67° to 168°, an effect that can be explained by Cassie's law. Electron microscopy shows that the aluminium surface resembles that of a<unk>  surface, with a porous microstructure containing trapped air.  Any surface treatment that creates micro or nano scale roughness with features having a height to width ratio greater than one that is subsequently coated with a thin hydrohobic coating will exhibit the<unk> .
Lotus effect
Cognitive bias
Isotope separation
Mass effect 
Founder effect
Unblinding
Limiting factor
Dominance relationship