From Natural Wonder to Useful Tool Parker is a leading scientist in the field of biomimetics applying designs from nature to solve problems in engineering, materials science, medicine, and other fields. His studies of the body coverings of butterflies and beetles have led to brighter screens for cell phones. He sometimes draws inspiration from nature's past: while visiting a museum in Warsaw, Poland, be noticed a 45-million-year-old trapped in amber and observed how the shape of its eye's surface reduced light reflection. This shape is now being used in solar panels.