Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41271689›Full record

ArticleNature communications2025

The tymbal of a cicada: nature's sound-generating metastructure.

Pritam Ghoshal, Richa Singh, Hongcheng Tao, Eshan Ganju, Nikhilesh Chawla, James M Gibert, Anil K Bajaj

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Pritam GhoshalAdvanced Dynamics and Mechanics Lab, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1529-7973
Richa SinghDepartment of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.
Hongcheng TaoAdvanced Dynamics and Mechanics Lab, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0730-669X
Eshan GanjuSchool of Materials Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.
Nikhilesh ChawlaSchool of Materials Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4478-8552
James M GibertAdvanced Dynamics and Mechanics Lab, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA. jgibert@purdue.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1429-5378
Anil K BajajRay W. Herrick Laboratories, School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.

Funding

NSF | ENG/OAD | Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI) 2145803
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cicadas generate sound through the interplay of tymbal buckling and body resonance, but a unified framework explaining the diversity of calls across species has been absent. In this study, we conceptualize the cicada's sound-generation mechanism as a naturally occurring biological metastructure, characterized by periodically arranged ribs and inherent frequency filtering. We introduce a novel mechanical model comprising a chain of bistable oscillators coupled to a chain of resonators, which successfully captures both the snap-through dynamics of the tymbals and the subsequent acoustic filtering. This model represents the first species-adaptable framework capable of reproducing the distinct song frequencies and call patterns observed across multiple cicada species, offering a new understanding of this remarkable biomechanical system.

Indexed as

HemipteraVocalization, AnimalAcousticsAnimalsBiomechanical PhenomenaModels, BiologicalSound

Identifiers

PMID41271689
PMCPMC12638954

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.