biomimicry
Archived Posts from this Category
Animal Minds
Posted by davidwfox on 08 Sep 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry, books
Fascinating program from one of my favorite radio shows/podcasts:
In Baltimore, Maryland, there’s an octopus that likes to play with toys. In Vienna, Austria, there’s a border collie with a vocabulary of 340 words - more than many toddlers. Southeast Asia is home to dozens of elephants who like to paint. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, re-thinking animal intelligence. Not only are they smarter than we thought – in some cases they’re smarter than us.
You can listen to the program here, but note you’ll need Real Audio player.
From the Jaws of Nereis Virens
Posted by davidwfox on 18 Aug 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
My friend Dennis just sent me this one from MarketWatch:
In the rock pools along the North Atlantic lives a worm that may hold a clue for aerospace engineers looking for stronger, lighter materials to build aircraft that can fly greater distances and burn less fuel. Continued at MarketWatch…
Please share your discoveries, especially ones reported in the business media.
Biomimicry Workshop in September
Posted by davidwfox on 29 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry, events
There’s a new opportunity for training in Biomimicry - a 3-day short course in Leavenworth, WA September 9-11, 2008. This course will be an all-inclusive, intensive learning opportunity for design practitioners and educators interested in incorporating Biomimicry into their design process.
Re-thinking Animal Intelligence
Posted by davidwfox on 13 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
Fascinating program this morning from one of my favorite radio shows/podcasts:
In Baltimore, Maryland, there’s an octopus that likes to play with toys. In Vienna, Austria, there’s a border collie with a vocabulary of 340 words - more than many toddlers. Southeast Asia is home to dozens of elephants who like to paint. In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, re-thinking animal intelligence. Not only are they smarter than we thought – in some cases they’re smarter than us.
You can listen to the program here, but note you’ll need Real Audio player installed.
Whales, Dolphins and Wind Turbine Design
Posted by davidwfox on 07 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
If you happen to be in Marseille, France tomorrow (Tuesday, July 8th) stop by the Society for Experimental Biology’s Annual Meeting at the Parc Chanot to learn about “Hydrodynamic flow control in marine mammals”.
Sea creatures have evolved over millions of years to maximize efficiency of movement through water; humans have been trying to perfect streamlined designs for barely a century. So shouldn’t we be taking more notice of the experts?
The shape of whale flippers with one bumpy edge has inspired the creation of a completely novel design for wind turbine blades. This design has been shown to be more efficient and also quieter, but defies traditional engineering theories. “Engineers have previously tried to ensure steady flow patterns on rigid and simple lifting surfaces, such as wings. The lesson from biomimicry is that unsteady flow and complex shapes can increase lift, reduce drag and delay ’stall’, a dramatic and abrupt loss of lift, beyond what existing engineered systems can accomplish,”
Life in 2020
Posted by davidwfox on 04 Jul 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
In a series titled “Just Imagine“, CNN seeks answers to the question “What will life be like in 2020?”. Here’s one from biomimicry pioneer, Janine Benyus:
I think that if we really pay attention and we become nature’s apprentice, if we begin to learn from these designs and recipes and strategies in the natural world and we recreate our technologies in that image.
I believe that every organism that I can see is sweetening this place. I think if we were to learn from their strategies, we too might be participants in that process, not depleting this place that sustains us, but actually enhancing it to the point where it becomes more and more conducive to life. Continued at CNN…
Another in this series looks at learning from humpback whales that could impact the way heart pacemakers are designed.
And one more - a great photo series. Thanks CNN!
Conference: Biomimicry’s Climate-Change Solutions
Posted by davidwfox on 21 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry, climate change, energy, energy efficiency, events, water
On October 20th, The Biomimicry Institute in conjunction with the annual Bioneers conference will be holding a one-day conference “Biomimicry’s Climate-Change Solutions: How Would Nature Do It?”
This landmark one-day intensive reveals the leading edge of biomimetic solutions to climate change, modeled on nature’s operating instructions. It’s designed for action-oriented professionals from the fields of business, finance and investment, science, technology, public policy, education, media and civil society.
Biomimicry Resources
Posted by davidwfox on 17 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
A few weeks ago I acquired the www.biomimicry.com domain. Presently it redirects to a list of greenr.com articles tagged with ‘biomimicry’…like this one. My plan for biomimicry.com is yet to be formed - maybe you have some ideas? Meanwhile here are fine starting points if you want to dig deeper:
The Biomimicry Guild: “The only innovation company in the world to use a deep knowledge of biological adaptations to help designers, engineers, architects, and business leaders solve design and engineering challenges sustainably.”
The Biomimicry Institute: “The not-for-profit organization whose mission is to nurture and grow a global community of people who are learning from, emulating, and conserving life’s genius to create a healthier, more sustainable planet.”
Natures 100 Best: “A shortlist of one hundred technologies that are all inspired by proven design systems from Nature. This summary is only a small component of this long-term research project that aims to identify key technologies that will help society and industry to leapfrog towards sustainability.”
Send me your favorites…
NYT PAX/Biomimicry
Posted by davidwfox on 08 Jun 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
Mainstream interest in biomimicry is accelerating. Jay Harman’s gives some (cautionary) insights into changing established large industries:
“When I started I thought that this would take 6 to 12 months,” Mr. Harman said. What he found instead were companies that had little interest in redesigning their products, even in the face of the promise of double-digit increases in efficiency.
His radical ideas have so far found a cautious reception in the aircraft, air- conditioning, boating, pump and wind turbine industries.
Mr. Harman’s experience is not unusual. Rather than beating a path to the door of mousetrap designers, the world seems to actively avoid them.
Challenging Ideas
Posted by davidwfox on 30 May 2008 | Tagged as: biomimicry
The UK’s Daily Telegraph offers up a series titled “Challenging Ideas” to help Honda launch their new Accord. Here’s an excerpt from the first in the short six-part series titled “Natural Leaders”:
‘Biomimicry introduces an era based not on what we can extract from organisms and their ecosystems, but on what we can learn from them,’ Janine M Benyus, the author of Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature, says. ‘This approach differs greatly from bio-utilisation, which entails harvesting a product or producer, as in cutting wood for floors or wild-crafting medicinal plants. It is also distinctly different to bio-assisted technologies, which involve domesticating an organism to accomplish a function, for example, bacterial purification of water or cows bred to produce milk. Instead of harvesting or domesticating, biomimics consult organisms; they are inspired by an idea, be it a physical blueprint or a process step in a chemical reaction.’ Continued…
(I normally wouldn’t write a post linking to ‘advertorial“, but this is a useful short read. Here’s to more advertising that makes a genuine effort to inform.)
