According to the researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, earwax may hold the secret to advanced adhesives for technological applications. It seems that earwax has powerful adhesive properties. Particles entering the ear are trapped by earwax, protecting the inner ear. The research team says that earwax is a non-Newtonian, shear-thinning fluid, which makes it a perfect adhesive filtering agent that could protect advanced machinery such as Mars rovers from being damaged by dust. An earwax-like substance can protect moving parts, but the researchers say that more research will be necessary. They want to understand the chemistry of earwax so as to determine the reason why it works. Though the thought might be funny, nobody will collect earwax for the next Mars rover. If the work is fruitful, a synthetic “earwax” may be developed and tested. The researchers will present their findings to the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) this year.