Evidently nature tells us an awful lot about technology. Today for example scientists are claming that the shell of the scarab beetle could shape the future of flat screen TVs, laptops and mobiles. The story is covered today by The Times and is from a paper published in the New journal of Physics written by Dr Jewell from
Exeter.
The key seems to be about how the colour of the beetle, as seen by human eyes, is achieved. To the naked eye the beetle appears bright green but under a microscope the colours seen by the eye is a mix of red, yellow and green laid out in a honeycomb pattern. The way that the shells of the beetle, which are devoid of any pigment, absorb and reflect light differs from other surfaces because they are discriminatory. It is this process of displaying colour that the scientists believe holds the key.
As quoted in The Times Dr Jewell believes: that the Costa Rican beetle’s shell will provide clues to enhance LEDs so they produce “purer” light. By learning from the beetle, it should be possible, she said, to have better and more energy-efficient control over the precision of the wavelengths emitted, making filters redundant.
So this green beetle could be a very ‘green’ beetle indeed…
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