Flying Microchips Modeled on Tree Seed Pods

Imagine if all those little seed pods that come fluttering down from trees had electronic sensors on them to measure pollution levels in the air or the presence of an airborne virus like COVID. Engineering professor John Rogers at Northwestern University took cues from nature to design an even tinier version of the helicopter seedpod that carries a computer chip and sensors instead of a seed. (Segment produced by Cole Cummings)