In a recent Healthy by Choice MasterClass, I used the term Biomimicry. A few days later several of my colleagues contacted me asking what was that term you used and what does it really mean? This is a fascinating subject and a methodology that has been used for millennia and recently become popular and highly relevant.

What Is Biomimicry?

The term biomimetics was coined by American biophysicist and inventor Otto Schmitt in the 1950s as the emulation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems.

The term biomimicry appeared as early as 1982. But was popularized by scientist and author Janine Benyus in her 1997 book Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature.

Biomimicry is defined in the book as a "new science that studies nature's models and then imitates or takes inspiration from these designs and processes to solve human problems". Benyus suggests looking to Nature as a "Model, Measure, and Mentor" and emphasizes sustainability as an objective of biomimicry.

Biomimicry is a technological-oriented approach focused on putting nature’s lessons into practice. According to Janine Benyus, biomimicry sees nature as:

A model. It studies nature’s models and imitates them or uses them as inspiration for designs or processes with the goal of solving human problems.
A measure. It uses ecological standards to judge the rightness of human innovations.
A mentor. It is a new way of observing, assessing, and valuing nature.

When we observe nature, we realize there is no such thing as waste, it is an input for another use.

For all the challenges we face, nature has a solution.

We have only studied biomimicry for the past half-century, yet the earth has been developing efficient methods of life for 3.8 billion years. Our planet is the oldest and wisest teacher we could ask for.

A few prominent examples of biomimicry include:

Rock-Cut Architecture

Caves have been used as a shelter since the monolithic era 6000 BCE, so it makes perfect sense that in India, Buddhist temples and shrines were carved into caves and mountainsides. These temples eventually doubled as trade posts on the Silk Road.

Silk: 3000 BCE

Silk is one of the first examples of biomimicry that we see in human history. The use of the material is dated back to 4000 BC, making it one of the first fabrics invented by humans. It is common knowledge that silk comes from silkworms, and the Chinese were the first civilization to learn from the brilliant worm. This invention was the reason that the Silk Road got its name. Silk could be traded for its weight in gold during the times where only the Chinese had the weaving strategy mastered. 6,000 years later we are still using silk all around the world.

Umbrellas

The first Chinese umbrellas were invented 1700 years ago by a man named Lu Ban, who is now revered in Chinese history. The idea for the umbrella sprouted when Lu Ban saw children using lotus leaves to shield themselves from the rain. He decided to mimic the flexibility and effectiveness of the leaf and create a product of his own. The first umbrellas were, in fact, made of silk.

Leonardo Da Vinci

Leonardo Da Vinci was a student of biomimicry. He is one of the most revered and studied figures from the Italian Renaissance. Regarded as an expert scientist, inventor, artist, architect, and mathematician, Leonardo was a man ahead of his time. Thousands of sketches from his notebooks are still sought after and studied today. The part of his work that relates to biomimicry is his study of birds, he was fascinated by flight and drew out schematics for many flying machines that mimicked the bone structure of birds and bats.

A few more recent examples of biomimicry include:

Velcro: 1955

In 1948, while walking in the woods, Swiss engineer Georges de Mestral noticed how cockleburs stuck to his dog's coat. While it was inconvenient, he saw an opportunity. Upon examination of the burs, he noticed that its surface was made up of many tiny hooks. They stick to things by intertwining these hooks into the loose makeup of surfaces like fabric and animal fur. He invented Velcro by mimicking this surface covered in tiny hooks and partnering it with a surface covered in tiny loops. The result? Velcro: a paragon of biomimicry in practice.

Bullet Train: 1990s

In the late 1990s, Japan implemented biomimicry in the form of trains. The bullet trains they had been using were causing problems for all nearby inhabitants. When the trains zoomed through a tunnel, air would compress around the front of the train before releasing a tremendous booming noise once the train exited the tunnel. The chief engineer was able to solve this problem by looking at one of his hobbies: birdwatching. The kingfisher is a small bird with a long beak that dives into the water for its prey. The engineer redesigned the front of the train to be shaped like the kingfisher’s head, resulting in the train slicing the wind rather than trapping it inside the tunnels, fixing the booming sound.

Wind turbines: 2010

One huge flaw in wind turbines is that when placed too close together, turbulence disrupts and lowers the efficiency of horizontal axis wind turbines (the traditional ones). While studying the way schools of fish swam through water so close together, it was observed that how the fish swam complimented each other and none of them missed a beat. This helped solve this wind turbine flaw. When they rotated the axis so it pointed vertical, the turbines could be placed much closer together without disrupting the others. Increasing efficiency by up to ten times over the horizontal axis.

Sharkskin: 2014

Sharkskin has been mimicked for its rough segmented texture. Bacteria do not like landing on the skin of a shark. Engineers have designed materials with a comparable microscopic texture that repel bacteria in a similar way. This material is especially useful in hospitals where it can be used to cover surfaces and door handles to eliminate the spread of bacteria.

There are countless other examples of biomimicry and most scientists, engineers and designers believe that biomimicry will be of great importance in the future.

Next week we will discuss how Nikken has utilized biomimicry for over 46 years to create the Wellness Home, using science and technology to provide vital elements the way nature intended so that we all can be Healthy by Choice.