Mimicking Nature

CONTENTS 1. Introduction 2. Sustainable development : A global Issue i. Poverty reduction ii. Globalization of trade iii. Energy and environment iv. Summit on sustainable development v. The convention of biodiversity vi. Economic value on environment 3. Inspiration derived from Plant kingdom i. Velcro ii. Lotus effect iii. Innovation form lady mantle plant iv. Rain collecting skyscrapers v. Artificial Solar Cell vi. Artificial photosynthesis vii. Innovative idea from tape root system viii. Inspiration from Jack pine ix. Inspiration from liverwort x. Inspiration from maple tree xi. Inspiration from okra xii. Inspiration from Artemisia plant xiii. Inspiration from Eucalyptus tree xiv. Inspiration from Florida Rosemary xv. Inspiration from giant sequoia xvi. Inspiration from Guayule plant xvii. Inspiration from red mangrove xviii. Inspiration from seed coat xix. Inspiration from strangler-fig xx. Inspiration from Taquari bamboo xxi. Inspiration from tarbush xxii. Inspiration from Tae plant xxiii. Inspiration from White rot-fungi xxiv. Vaccine preservation solution from Myrothamnus flabellifolia 4. Inspiration derived from Animal kingdom i. Mimicking sea cucumber: Medical solution ii. Discovering success iii. Looking into nature iv. Shinkansen Bullet Train: Inspired by Kingfisher v. Anti-reflective coating: Inspiration from Moth vi. Fiber Optic Design inspired from Sponges (Porifera) vii. Aerodynamics: Inspired from Fruit flies viii. Pit viper: Inspiration for Missile detection ix. Chameleon as a camouflage model x. The beetle Stenocara :A new method for water collection xi. Locust Method for Traffic Problems xii. Self-Changing Display Signs: Inspired by Peacock Feathers xiii. Butterfly: A Computer Solution xiv. From the Immune System, a Solution to the Computer Virus Menace xv. Eye to the Camera: the Technology of Sight xvi. Revolution in Hearing Devices : The Fly’s Ear xvii. Oyster Shells: Inspired Model for Light, Sturdy Roofs xviii. The Munich Olympic Stadium and Dragonfly Wings xix. A Structure that Makes Bones More Resistant xx. The Radiolarian Design Used as a Model in Dome Design xxi. The Earthquake-Proof Design in Honeycombs xxii. Architectural Designs Drawn from Spider Webs xxiii. Robotics Is Imitating Snakes to Overcome the Problem of Balance xxiv. The Balance Center in the Inner Ear Astounds Robotics Experts xxv. Structure of Worm Muscles Lead the Way to New Mechanical Systems xxvi. Learning from Human Lungs How to Sequester-Carbon xxvii. Learning from Nature How to Create Flow Without-Friction xxviii. Learning from Dolphins How to Warn People about-Tsunamis xxix. Learning From Chimpanzees How to Heal Ourselves xxx. Create Sustainable-Buildings: Learning from Termites xxxi. Ever-sharp urchin teeth may yield tools that never need honing xxxii. Hercules beetle: Humidity changes exoskeleton color xxxiii. Filter feeding basking shark inspires more efficient hydroelectric turbine xxxiv. Filter feeding basking shark inspires more efficient hydroelectric turbine xxxv. Eiffel Tower comes from the thigh bone. 5. Biomimicry research 6. Biomimicry: In Molecular Level 7. Modern town planning: Eco-friendly? LAVASA? 8. Some case studies in biomimicry 9. Some Access point to Biomimicry Further reading Index Mimicking Sea Cucumbers: Medical Solutions When you look at a sea cucumber—an ocean floor-dwelling animal that looks like a giant slug—medical solutions might not be the first item that pops into your mind. A sea cucumber’s skin is soft and flexible to help it navigate obstacles as it travels along the ocean floor. When a threat arises, our unlikely hero’s skin quickly transforms into a hard, rigid protective shield. As soon as the threat dissipates, the sea cucumber again relaxes and goes along on its way. Christoph Weder and Stuart Rowan, researchers and professors at Case Western Reserve University, have created a new material that mimics the sea cucumber’s ability to transition between states of rigidity. Their bio-inspired material has resulted in a surprising new medical application. Currently, paralyzed patients can get an electronic device—called a neural electrode—implanted into their brain to help send and receive brain messages. The electrodes are typically made of metal, ceramic or silicon, but such brittle materials can cause brain tissue damage over prolonged periods of time. On top of this sobering fact, the cells in the brain—in response to the foreign object—will attack the electrode, significantly decreasing the electrode`s recording ability and eventually causing it to fail. Weder and Rowan’s material is being applied to neural electrodes that are rigid enough to insert in the brain, but once they come into contact with the brain’s water, they will become soft and flexible enough to avoid the brain tissue damage that current electrodes cause. This species of sea cucumber is called the Holothuria Argus and believe it or not, this sea cucumber is humongous! If you were to pick it up, it would be as long as your arms…stretched out The material that these scientists created to mimic the sea cucumber’s ability is, according to Weder, “Cool because it can rapidly shift between a dynamic range of flexibility and rigidity.” Within the skin of the sea cucumber, the rigid nano-rods are made from collagen, a protein. The rods do not interact with each other when the sea cucumber is relaxed, but when the organism feels threatened it releases a protein that binds to the collagen, and cross links all the rigid rods, essentially creating a scaffold that stiffens the skin. The basic mechanism that Rowan and Weder are mimicking is control over the interaction of the rods. Their material also mimics the matrix architecture of the sea cucumber’s skin. Weder noted, “Once you understand the architecture, the basic process, we can say, well, we can do this with a different material, with different chemistry, and different ingredients certainly not as sophisticated as nature does it, but we can make materials that can change their properties.” Instead of using collagen, which is in sea cucumber skin, Rowan and Weder used cellulose—an easy-to-use and accessible protein—from tunicates (an underwater filter feeding organism). They used the cellulose from tunicates because their fibers are especially long and thus the researchers could use a relatively small amount for testing. The scientists noted that once the material is manufactured, however, cellulose could be taken from wood, cotton, or wheat, all of which are renewable, easily accessible resources that could even be taken from recycled waste products. Rowan and Weder embedded the cellulose fibers into a pliable plastic, which yielded a rigid material. The hydroxyl groups (molecules consisting of oxygen and hydrogen) on the surface of the cellulose fibers stick together, forming a fibrous web. To break the fiber bonds and loosen the web, Weder and Rowan’s team injected a water-based solvent, which was an artificial cerebral spinal fluid used to mimic the fluid in the brain. The hydrogen groups of the solvent bond with those on the cellulose fibers, and as a result the fibers decouple from one another. Conversely, as the water evaporates, the cellulose fibers reconnect and the material becomes stiff again. The researchers used water as the “switch” because of their desire to insert neural electrodes made of the material into the human brain, but they also would like to come up with other ways to switch the material, such as electrically, chemically, with light. Shinkansen Bullet Train: Inspired by Kingfisher Bulletin train is traveling at speed of 187 mph (300km/h, a breakneck speed, amazing. Every man made things has one or more demerit, here also the case is not different.