For the curious:

Speaking to MailOnline, Willot confirmed this ‘was indeed a tricky procedure. They are very reactive and won’t stop struggling once caught, preventing any shaving attempt if not anaesthetised.’

This was done by exposing the ants for a few seconds to carbon dioxide, then strapping them down firmly.

Hairs were removed using a high-power binocular telescope and a very sharp blade.

‘It’s the same as shaving your own chin: the scalpel blade has to move in the opposite direction of the hair’s growth. It has to be a delicate and gentle motion,’ said Willot.

After practising on large soldier ants, he found that a smaller worker ant could be entirely shaved in an hour of delicate work.

He estimates around 40 ants were shaved altogether to produce seven good examples for the experiments.

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I find myself making fun of the engineering, but I think it’s a defense mechanism. I’ve had a pretty strong interest in the Titanic since I was a kid, and if I were offered the opportunity to see it, I think I’d be more likely to go. And it’s scary to think I’d end up on a vessel that wasn’t designed to do the thing it advertised it can.

How much did the people who went actually know about the sub they were on? How common is it to sign a waiver about dying to go on a commercial sub?

It’s easy to laugh with hindsight, but it’s scary to think what could have happened if I were in the position to choose to go.