Akhlesh Lakhtakia is an Evan Pugh University Professor and The Charles Godfrey Binder (Endowed) Professor in the Department of Engineering Science and Mechanics, at Pennsylvania State University, USA. He received his BTech. (1979) and DSc (2006) degrees from Banaras Hindu University, India, and his MS (1981) and PhD (1983) degrees from the University of Utah, USA. His current research interests include electromagnetic and elastodynamic fields in complex materials and architected materials, including sculptured thin-films and mimumes, thin-film solar cells, biologically inspired design, and forensic science.