There is extensive research on how a fixed-position flap affects lift in the realm of fluid-structure interaction. However, taking the conversation in a new direction, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign conducted a bio-inspired study with a novel twist—variable stiffness—to learn more about how it affects lift. The study, “Bio-inspired variable-stiffness flaps for hybrid flow control, tuned via reinforcement learning,” was written by Nirmal J. Nair and Andres Goza. It is published in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics.