In 2013, Texas A and M material scientist worked on a study predicting that this kind of nanocrack healing could actually happen, driven by the tiny crystalline grains inside metals, essentially shifting their boundaries in response to stress. They also worked on this latest study using updated computer models to show that this decade old theories about metal self healing behavior at a nanoscale match what was happening in the lab. That the automatic mending process happened at room temperature is another promising aspect of the research