Nature's Blueprints: A Review on Biomimicry

In the world of innovation, nature often holds the patent on brilliance. Imagine harnessing the aerodynamic efficiency of a peregrine falcon's dive or the powerful adhesive properties of a gecko’s feet. This is the essence of biomimicry. But what is biomimicry?

Fun Fact: Biomimicry is derived from the Greek words "bio," which means life, and "mimesis," which means imitate.

Biomimicry is the practice of emulating nature to find the most effective and sustainable solutions to human challenges. The concept of biomimicry is based on the key principle that nature operates with optimal efficiency and productivity without producing waste. Since nature has been constantly perfecting these processes for thousands of centuries, it is only right for inventors and innovators to look to nature for inspiration.

Don’t be confused with bio-utilization or biomorphism. Unlike biomimicry, bio-utilization is the act of using nature to construct or design something and biomorphism is the act of looking like nature. For example, bio-utilization is done when a material such as wood is being used to make a chair. Biomorphism is done when a chair is designed to look like a tree stump in nature. On the other hand, when it comes to biomimetics, it involves imitating nature's mechanisms and methods to create innovative designs and products that address modern challenges.

This instinctive practice dates back millions of years, rooted in our ancestors' observations of nature for survival strategies. In the early days, humans would look to nature to find the optimal way to gather food and protect themselves. To gather food, humans imitated the methods of hunting by other predatory animals. To protect themselves, humans imitated animal protection methods to hide themselves from predators. These observations of nature allowed humans to develop technologies such as snowshoes and camouflage to help them. A more famously historial example was the development of the first airplane. In the 1480s, artist Leonardo da Vinci sketched diagrams of flying animals to inspire his idea of the first human flying machine. His sketches were later discovered by the Wright brothers who famously took inspiration from da Vinci’s sketches and their own observations of the mechanics of flying animals to create the first working airplane.

There have already been many inventions developed with the use of biomimicry over the past few centuries. The infamous Velcro material was inspired by burrs that the inventor encountered on a walk in nature. The strong and sticky climbing pads mimicked the mind-blowing ability of a gecko’s foot to stick onto any surface. For transportation purposes, the speedy bullet train from Japan emulated the beak of a Kingfisher because of its aerodynamic features. For architectural purposes, the passive cooling abilities of termite mounds were imitated in many architectural structures and buildings. Biomimicry has also been used with bat echolocation to help people with sight impaired disabilities by allowing them to navigate around using sound. As engineers continue to invent and innovate technology, they continue to utilize nature’s efficient abilities across various disciplines, making it an ubiquitous method of engineering.

Why is biomimicry so important? The art of biomimicry isn’t just about technological innovation. It fosters a deep understanding and connection with the natural world. It gives us a method of working with nature rather than working against it. It also offers solutions that have been used for thousands of years and are known to work without the expense of something else. By aligning our designs with nature’s proven strategies, biomimicry offers sustainable solutions that promote harmony rather than exploitation. Utilizing the beneficial methods of biomimicry allows us as a society to create a safer and more environmentally-friendly environment for everyone.

This approach holds immense promise for the future. As engineers continue to unlock nature's secrets across various disciplines, biomimicry stands as an enduring method to engineer a sustainable tomorrow. I hope you learned something new! Keep a lookout for the next post!

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References

Biomimicry Institute. (n.d.). What is Biomimicry?. Biomimicry Institute. Retrieved July 9, 2022, from https://biomimicry.org/what-is-biomimicry/

Idaho Public Television. (n.d.). Biomimicry: What is Biomimicry?. Science Trek. Retrieved July 9, 2022, from https://sciencetrek.org/topics/biomimicry

Venturini, B. (2021 Sep. 26). What is Biomimicry?. EHL Insights. Retrieved July 9, 2022, from https://hospitalityinsights.ehl.edu/what-biomimicry