Reverse engineering has been applied to all the fields that you cite. The F-35 is a funny example in the sense that if there is one item that would be reverse e

Reverse engineering has been applied to all the fields that you cite. The F-35 is a funny example in the sense that if there is one item that would be reverse engineered in its entirety down to the last transistor then it probably would be that plane if one accidentally made its way to China somehow. Nothing motivates more than a perceived gap in weapons systems ability. Reverse engineering of electronics is a solved problem, even though it may be a lot of work. Is there some proof that someone got a useful idea on how to make an artificial heart out of a patent published about mechanical equipment used in a factory? If you want to keep something secret, keep it to yourself. Monkey see, monkey do!