Week 1: What is Biomimicry?

Biomimicry is the art and science of taking influence from nature to innovate new ideas and designs to fuel our creations in a more efficient way. The importance of biomimicry comes from the fact that, in our world today, engineers are hoping to eliminate waste and create more sustainable designs for systems that are currently not working perfectly. Designers today should be looking for inspirations from natural organisms that have existed for thousands, even millions of years rather than synthetic objects that have existed for only a few decades.

As we become a greener society, nature’s influence will only become more appropriate in our quest for being clean, healthy and efficient with our products. We have built our way out of naturalistic forms only to become more harmful to the world around us, and now we have to learn to get back to that. The reason why biomimicry in technological design would maintain itself as being more sustainable is quite simple to understand: if plants and animals were surviving with these methods and “technologies” of their own before and not causing their environments harm, the how could you not take influence from that?

My own interest in biomimicry has not been long lived YET. I hadn’t known about it before learning of it and doing research on it. Everything about biomimicry makes sense me to and I feel that we as humans should take as much influence from natural forms as we possibly can. If we were to continue to synthesize our own harmful technologies in our world, we would be ruining our own chances of progressing our own species. If we are able to utilize the natural processes of the things around us rather than try to innovate our own, we will be more efficient in our work.

For my own work, I would choose to use it in the way I work with product design. Through trend research, I have found that some of the most appealing package design concepts are derived from natural forms and materials. With materials that are eco friendly and representational of natural forms, that is not only creating an effective design, but also opening consumer up to the prospects of biomimicry.

I have two pretty interesting examples that I have come up with through my research. The first example is how the Eiffel tower is directly influenced from the design of the top portion of the interior structure of the human femur. Images from here and here.

You can basically see the shape and form of the Eiffel Tower hanging upside down in the form of the joint of the femur.

My second example comes from the honeycomb shape of beeswax in a bee hive. Through the process of creating blinds that were ergonomically able to diffuse and keep light out efficiently, designers and scientists adapted the shape and form of the honeybee's honeycomb to keep light contained and properly diffused. Pictures from here and here.

Biomimicry is a fantastic way to innovate and create new ideas for effective designs. In a way it's an obvious solution to many design problems.

Mary N.

Week #1: Naturalists Blog Post

Alright, I'm not going to lie. Today was busy and the only place I was able to set up shop for my nature quiet time was on the benches and the grassy knoll outside of MCAD.

But this experience is something that I have missed. It was wonderful to sit and just listen, look around, I even met a new friend on campus in the short amount of time I spent outside.

It was truly a lovely experience. It was cool, not cold with very little breeze. The industrial hum emanated around me as I focused on not making noise.

Although it wasn't an ideal place to pay attention to nature, it was a good place to experience the organic elements interacting with the human elements. The ground was spongy, crunchy even. Today was around 40 degrees with was the gasping breath after the plunge of the winter cold. The patches of snow were pretty solid with many animal tracks in them. I even saw a bunny creep out from under its safe, warm hollow.

I am very ready for spring.

I promise my next nature post will involve a more appropriate environment. But I have to say that in the middle of the city, it's interesting to see what nature still exists and what it does for you when you notice it.

Until next time,

Mary

My current environment

Sigh, I look at all of the lovely nature posts rife with green grass, sunlight, animals and beauty. Being a full-time student with a part-time job in the center of the city at the end of winter gives me little room to stop and smell the dandelions creeping out of the crack in the cement.

Going to a place that is in the middle of nowhere, however, is a total breath of fresh air.

For instance, my family has a cabin up in Hackensack, MN on Ten Mile Lake, ten miles from Leech Lake and Walker, MN if you have ever heard of it.

In the summers, the wildlife explodes and there are plants and animals that I can interact with on a daily basis.

That situation would be my ideal right now.

My post may be a little on the late side this evening, but it will be there!

Mary

Hello, Biomimicry

Hey there, this is my first blog post for the Biomimicry for Designers blog taught by Cindy Gilbert.