blog posts New smart plastics can heal on their own, to mend cracked phone screens or airplane wings Feb 23, 2016 1:30 pm by Popular ScienceIllinois in the News Share on Facebook Tweet Email Images Popular Science (Feb. 23) - . Illinois professor Nancy Sottos helped pioneer this field in the ’90s. Her team has developed composites that can repair themselves using a range of methods. Share on Facebook Tweet Email