Rock and Roll b How flies control their flight

Flying insects can perform a wide array of extreme aerial maneuvers with exquisite accuracy and robustness outmaneuvering any man made flying device As a physical system a flapping insect is strongly nonlinear with fast growing mechanical instabilities that must be controlled to allow flight Hence similar to balancing a stick on one s fingertip flapping flight is a delicate balancing act made possible only by ever present fast corrective actions Understanding the underlying mechanisms of insect flight is