Shinkansen train

● Japan’s 500-series Shinkansen commuter train was fast—but it was also loud, especially as it passed through narrow tunnels. The engineer charged with solving this problem happened to be an avid bird-watcher. He modeled his updated train design on the long, narrow beak of the KINGFISHER, which allows the bird to dive into the water without so much as a splash. “The hidden benefit was that the train went 10 percent FASTER, WITH 15 percent LESS ELECTRICITY USE,” Benyus says.