Breaking news: Flies are hard to swat...

In case you just thought your reflexes are particularly slow, it's not you. 

It's the fly.  Nature made them unswattable.

Astonishingly quick thinking accounts for the ability of flies to avoid being swatted, scientists have discovered. High-speed imaging has revealed an ability to execute an emergency takeoff in a split second.

Within 200 milliseconds of spotting the looming swatter, the fly calculates the location of the threat and positions its legs for a jump in the safest direction.
All is not hopeless however.  Just follow this simple attack strategy.

"It is best not to swat at the fly's starting position, but rather aim a bit forward of that to anticipate where the fly is going to jump when it first sees your swatter," said Dickinson. Flies are also unable to register slow movement, making it possible to creep up on a fly before delivering the killer blow. [More]

Isn't this like the famous strategy of skating to where the puck will be?  And doesn't it require, like, precognition?  Besides another famous hockey player once said, "All hockey players are bilingual. They know English and profanity."  They are hardly the best sources for life plans.

I say bring back DDT.  Oddly it may not be all that crazy an idea.

 [via arbraoth]