“You can run these things over with a car and they don’t die,” says David Kisailus at the University of California, Irvine. … Kisailus hopes that understanding the diabolical ironclad beetle’s uniquely tough structure will help inform the design of stronger components for use in building lighter aircraft, resulting in planes that consume less fuel and emit less carbon dioxide. “No need to reinvent the wheel, just figure out what nature’s done,” he says. Read More