Cat’s Paws for Paratroopers, Hijacker Patent, Neom Ratio Sighting

This week’s Feedback column (that I write) in New Scientist magazine has three segments. Here’s how they begin:

Seeking a soft landing — The elegant structure of a naturally evolved cat’s paw has inspired a new way to protect paratroopers’ legs….A bit Heath Robinson — The cat’s-paw-pads-for-paratrooper-protection patent reminds Feedback, a little, of a patent granted to Gustano Pizzo in 1972. Pizzo engineered an electromechanical system to trap aeroplane hijackers….A Neom ratio sighting — Reader Jason Bradbury sent in the first plausible sighting of the Neom ratio on display somewhere other than in Neom. The Neom ratio is based on the proportions of a city planned to be built in the Tabuk region of Saudi Arabia….