Team discovered cells and structures that let squid skin change from transparent to colored, leading to a new tunable material for camouflage, displays, and thermal management. (news.uci.edu)

submitted 5 days ago by Pro@reddthat.com to c/science@mander.xyz

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UC Irvine researchers and collaborators at the Marine Biological Laboratory have uncovered cells and structures responsible for helping squid skin change from transparent to colored.

The scientists drew inspiration from squid skin to develop an advanced tunable material for use in camouflage, displays, and thermal management.

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[-] Kyrgizion@lemmy.world 6 points 5 days ago

Chromatophores baby. I like to imagine an alien species using it as a form of communication. It's probably able to transfer information at much higher speeds than human speech.

[-] Xulai@mander.xyz 2 points 2 days ago

Absolutely. One has so much to work with on this form of communication, much like human speech combined with facial/body movements, that it has exceptional potential for rational/social precise communication.

It would even have the potential for an easy analog to human writing.

this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2025

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