Hard-wiring beetles for radio-controlled flight turns out to be a fitting way to learn more about their biology. Cyborg insect research led by engineers at UC Berkeley and Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is enabling new revelations about a muscle used by beetles for finely graded turns.
By strapping tiny computers and wireless radios onto the backs of giant flower beetles and recording neuromuscular data as the bugs flew untethered, scientists determined that a muscle known for controlling the folding of wings was also critical to steering.
READ MORE ON UC BERKELEY NEWS
