As the name implies, biomimicry is the discipline of designing products by mimicking phenomena that already exist in biology and nature. The best-known example of this approach is Velcro, which was ...

When the Wright brothers were figuring out how to build an airplane, they took inspiration from some of the fliers of the natural world - birds. Nature has had a long time to perfect its ways, so why ...

Explaining biomimicry—much less getting people to buy into the concept, framework or philosophy—can be difficult. On the one hand, it is intuitive and simplistic. On the other, it is radical compared ...

Since the dawn of the industrial Revolution, manufacturers have been building things by a process that is now known as "heat, beat, and treat." That meant starting with a raw material and using ...

We all want to make our buildings more efficient and reliable. Artificial solutions abound, but evolution also holds the answers to many of our problems. Some animals and plants ingeniously adapt ...

EcoSense explores three creative and wildly different examples of biomimicry. Sometimes Mother Nature could use a boost and when we work with her natural systems, she can reward us with a blueprint ...

"Perhaps I will ask students to study bees and try to come up with a way to build a mechanical method of duplicating their flight. I will be preparing for the class over the summer," she said. She has ...

Innovation doesn’t always mean creating something entirely new. Some of the most remarkable breakthroughs come from observing what already exists in nature. From color-shifting chameleons to ...

Designers and engineers have often looked to the environment and how Mother Nature has accomplished phenomenal design solutions for inspiration over the ages. Perhaps all that is new about this ...

Leaders say they want innovation, yet reward speed and predictability. Learning from nature shows how curiosity and culture ...

How does nature make durable materials like corals without heat or a kiln? How do peacock feathers get their beautiful colors? And how do geckos stick to all kinds of surfaces, allowing them to run up ...