chicken wire

For the structure pattern in chemistry, see chicken wire (chemistry).

Close up of chicken wire used in a chicken coop.

Chicken wire, or poultry netting, is a mesh of wire commonly used to fence poultry livestock. It is made of thin, flexible galvanized wire, with hexagonal gaps. Available in 1 inch (about 2.5 cm) diameter, 2 inch (about 5 cm) and 1/2 inch (about 1.3 cm), chicken wire is available in various wire gauges usually 19 gauge (about 1 mm wire) to 22 gauge (about 0.7 mm wire). Chicken wire is occasionally used to build inexpensive cages for flying animals, though the zinc content of galvanized wire makes it inappropriate for gnawing animals such as parrots.^{[citation needed]}

In construction, chicken wire is used as a matrix to hold cement or plaster, in a process known as stuccoing. Concrete reinforced with chicken wire yields ferrocement, a versatile construction material.

It can also be used as a security measure in musical venues to protect the musicians from things being thrown, as seen in the 1980 film The Blues Brothers.

Other uses

Psychologist Harry Harlow used chicken wire to create "surrogate mothers" for rhesus monkeys. In experiments, the wire "mothers" tended to inspire less affection than cloth "mothers" despite being equipped with "nipples" supplying milk.

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg claims that the animatronics puppet for E.T. "was made out of brown Play-Doh and chicken wire" in a teaser trailer for the film Bee Movie.^{[citation needed]}

In chemistry, molecules with fused carbon rings are often compared to chicken wire — see chicken wire (chemistry).

In photonics, the chicken-wire effect is a predominant pattern of low transmission lines between multifiber bundles in a fiberoptic used to couple the intensifier tube to the CCD sensor. The lines have a pattern similar to that of chicken wire.

See also

• Chain link fencing
• Welded wire
• Oligodendroglioma, a brain tumor with a microscopic chicken wire pattern^{[citation needed]}
• Chicken wire (chemistry)

External links

• Wire gauges (SWG) used in Chicken Wire