The legendary 20th century architect, Frank Lloyd Wrightonce described his profession as the "mother art". In the 21st century,architects and designers are increasingly turning their attentions toMother Nature as a source of inspiration for their creations The art of copying nature`s biological principles of design is nowknown as biomimetics. The word was coined by Janine Benyus, a championof the movement and author of the influential 1997 book "Biomimicry:Innovation Inspired by Nature". History is littered withexamples of humans copying nature`s design. One of the best and mostenduring examples was invented by the Swiss engineer George de Mestral.Whilst out walking his dog one day de Mestral became annoyed by theburrs catching and sticking to his clothes and in his dog`s fur. Hedecided to study them under a microscope. The magnification revealed anetwork of tiny hooks. The product of his labors was Velcro, which waspatented in 1951. More recently nature`s ingenuity has begun transforming theself-cleansing properties of a range of products. German botanistsobserved the remarkable drying and cleaning mechanism of lotus plant`sleaves and have successfully replicated the process. Its commercialapplications have already been realized in paint, glass and clothing.According to Professor Julian Vincent from Bath University it is thissort of application in which design is truly biomimetic and representsan authentic fusion of biology and engineering. "So far," hetold CNN, "the ideas that people come up with have been prettyserendipitous. It depends on a biologist who has got a feel forengineering." Professor Vincent -- who has recently beeninvestigating improvements to the "lab on a chip" technology and theevolving Russian problem-solving method TRIZ -- has calculated thatthere is a 12 percent similarity between biology and engineering."We`ve discovered that in engineering you use energy 70 percent of thetime to solve problems," he said, "whereas in biology you use it nomore than 5 percent of the time." For large scale engineeringprojects the influence of biomimetics has yet to be fully felt. Butsome buildings are already taking their cues from nature. TheEastgate Center in Harare, Zimbabwe may not look as if its based on adesign from nature, but its actually modeled on the delicate structuresfound inside a termite mound. Opened in 1996, it has a unique passivecooling system - the brainchild of architect Mick Pearce. {EastgateCenter}. Plenty of architects, though are clearly inspired by natural forms.Frank Gehry`s buildings are known to have been inspired by the shapeand movements of fish. And the Spanish architect Santiago Calatravaincorporates winged structures into many of his designs Lord Foster`s design for 30 St. Mary Axe in London has been likenedto the shape of a gherkin. But its true ancestral design is perhapsmore like that of Hexactinellid sponges -- better known as glasssponges -- which sit at the foot of the deepest oceans. The shape ofFoster`s building and external lattice design are strikingly similar.The comparisons don`t end there. In his 2003 article `TowardsBiomimetic Architecture` in Nature, Hugh Aldersey-Williams pointed outthat "It {the sponge} sucks water into its body at the base andcirculates it upwards, extracting nutrients as it goes...Foster`sbuilding ameliorates the air currents round its base. Inside, itcirculates air rather as the sponge pumps water, drawing it in lowdown, and allowing it to rise as it is warmed". The result is a dramatic 50 percent reduction in the building`s energy bills.Professor Vincent, who says he gives more talks to architects thananyone else, is keen to see biomimetics properly utilized in buildingdesign. "At the moment everyone says `look, that`s obviouslybiomimetic`, because of the shape. My argument with biomimetics is thatwere looking at functions and those functions s
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