Important Innovations Collection

A Light Show That Baffles Scientists Source:  Great Smoky Mountains National Park.org Inspiration from Nature It's one of the most enchanting mysteries of nature and science.  There is a species of fireflies in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee that blink their lights in unison.  They're called Synchronous fireflies.  And they are the only firefly species in the US that puts on their special light show in sync. Scientific Mystery The phenomenon baffles scientists.  These Synchronous fireflies exist in only a few places around the world.  In the Great Smoky Mountains, they light up in sync from mid May through mid June.  How they do so and why they light-up in unison for just a month have not been determined.  Thousands of them light up at the same moment for ten seconds, go dark for a minute and then light up the forest again. Firefly Inspiration Thousands of eco-tourists flocked to remote areas of the Great Smoky...

Greater Energy Efficiency Yale's Drone with Landing Gear Nature Inspired UAV Researchers at Yale University have developed a UAV that uses robotic talons inspired by birds.  The landing gear allows the drone to perch and rest in places that would normally be inaccessible.  The drone can attach to ledges and even hang upside down.  The landing gear allows the drone to rest and turn off its motor while still gathering information with its sensors and cameras. Purpose The purpose of the robotic talons is to enable the drone to conserve battery power and increase its energy efficiency.  A number of different talons can be attached to the bottom of the drone to land in different places and on different surfaces. Practical Applications The nature inspired talons give the drone far more access in the environment that it's working in and enable it to perform many more tasks.  The Yale team continues to develop the drone.  They are likely to empower it ...

Detects Cancer Faster Source:  University of Kansas Medical Center Lab on a Chip Works On a Miniscule Amount of Plasma The new, lab on a chip's key piece of innovation is a 3D nanoengineering method that mixes and senses biological elements based on a herringbone structure found in nature.  The herringbone drains the liquid sample into a gap allowing hard contact with the surface of the chip system to recognize disease quickly. This is another example of nature inspired innovation. Ultrasensitive Medical Device This is an ultrasensitive diagnostic device developed at the University of Kansas Medical School.  It's designed to enable doctors to detect cancer much faster from a drop of blood or plasma.  That means earlier intervention and potentially better outcomes for patients.  It's been successfully tested using clinical samples from ovarian cancer patients.