Janine Benyus: Biomimicry in action A self-proclaimed nature nerd, Janine Benyus

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Janine Benyus: Biomimicry in action A self-proclaimed nature nerd, Janine Benyus' concept of biomimicry has galvanized scientists, architects, designers and engineers into exploring new ways in which nature's successes can inspire humanity. Why you should listen. In the world envisioned by science author Janine Benyus, a locust's ability to avoid collision within a roiling cloud of its brethren informs the design of a crash-resistant car; a self-cleaning leaf inspires a new kind of paint, one that dries in a pattern that enables simple rainwater to wash away dirt; and organisms capable of living without water open the way for vaccines that maintain potency even without refrigeration -- a hurdle that can prevent life-saving drugs from reaching disease-torn communities. Most important, these cool tools from nature pull off their tricks while still managing topreserve the environment that sustains them, a life-or-death lesson that humankind is in need of learning. As a champion of biomimicry, Benyus has become one of the most important voices in a new wave of designers and engineers inspired by nature. Her most recent project, AskNature, explores what happens if we think of nature by function and looks at what organisms can teach us about design. What others say “The sophisticated, almost pro-growth angle of Benyus shows the great potential profitability of copying some of nature's time-tested, nonpolluting, room-temperature manufacturing and computing technologies.” — New York Times http://www.ted.com/talks/janine_benyus_biomimicry_in_action?language=en For this discussion,I'd like to explore humanities connection to nature. In the past, humans looked to what was around them to solve their problems. To fly we designed airplane wings like birds. To swim faster we designed fins that fit on our feet. Dr. Janius expressed how much genius there is in nature for us to model and be able to solve our problems. Please answer - What are some ideas that come to mind for you as you watched the film? Do a little research and find some other example of biomimicry in action out there, especially examples that might help our society transform sustainably.

Explanation / Answer

Biomimicry is designing or making models based on biological organisms. In nature there are indeed many examples from which ideas can be derived for the energy efficient models. Flow without turbulance of kingfisher inspired Bullet train which was earlier very noisy and faced a lot of resistace while travelling through tunnels due to pressure difference.By changing the shape of the front of the train from round to sharp nose-like this problem was solved. Galapago shark- reduce the growth of bacteria by theor hcarecteristic skin pattern which makes it harder for the bacteria or other microbes to attach. Carbon dioxide as a building block in construction. Aquaporins by water filter companies- Inspired by RBC membrane which have the water porting channels embedded in their membranes by attracting only water and leaving the solutes on the external side. Peak power use of aplliances-Inspired by the working action of ant and bee hives Water resistant polymers inspired by chitin in the insects.

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