Biomimicry in action | Janine Benyus

The Competent Universe: Learning from Nature

The Essence of Biomimicry

• The speaker emphasizes the importance of recognizing that we live in a competent universe, surrounded by natural genius. This understanding is crucial for modern cultures that have forgotten this connection.

• The speaker reflects on their environment, highlighting the beauty and orchestration of nature, particularly during springtime, which serves as a reminder of nature's inherent design capabilities.

Nature's Lessons in Design

• The complexity and coordination found in nature occur without centralized control or regulations, showcasing an organic system that thrives through collaboration and instinct.

• A personal anecdote illustrates how children perceive nature’s creations with wonder, revealing a common misconception that humans are the primary builders when in fact many designs predate us.

Rediscovering Natural Solutions

• The field of biomimicry encourages individuals to learn from organisms that have thrived on Earth for billions of years, focusing on functional solutions rather than human-centric designs.

• Biomimics ask how nature would solve specific problems before inventing new technologies, leading to innovative approaches inspired by natural processes.

Case Studies in Biomimicry

• An engineer studying kingfishers inspired a redesign of bullet trains to reduce noise and increase efficiency by mimicking the bird's ability to enter water silently.

• Research into Galapagos sharks reveals how their skin structure prevents bacterial growth; this insight has led to applications in hospital settings to combat infections more effectively.

Innovative Water Collection Techniques

• A Namibian desert creature demonstrates an effective method for collecting water from fog using specialized bumps on its body; this concept is being explored for architectural applications.

Innovative Solutions Inspired by Nature

Harnessing Natural Processes for Energy and Water Management

• The speaker discusses a new solar cell technology inspired by how leaves gather energy, which is self-assembling and inexpensive, with a recharge cycle of every five years. This innovation comes from the company OneSun, co-founded with Paul Hawken.

• Traditional water desalination methods are inefficient; nature employs elegant solutions like aquaporins in red blood cells that export water while leaving solutes behind. A company named Aquaporin is developing membranes based on this natural mechanism.

• Nature's design principles allow trees and bones to reform along stress lines, leading to lightweight structures. This algorithm has been applied in engineering to create lighter bridges and building beams, exemplified by G.M. Opel's bionic car skeleton.

Material Efficiency and Functionality

• The speaker contrasts the multifunctional properties of chitin found in beetles with the multi-layered approach used in products like chip bags. Emphasizing the need for material efficiency, he advocates for minimizing material use while maximizing functionality through design.

• In nature, only five polymers are utilized for various functions compared to 350 synthetic polymers used in human applications. The discussion highlights the potential of learning from nature to improve nanotechnology safety through embedding nanoparticles effectively.

Energy Consumption Insights from Nature

• Organisms efficiently manage energy consumption; social insects like ants and bees serve as models for smart grid technology that optimizes power usage at home through collaborative algorithms developed by companies like Regen.

• Scientists at Cornell are creating synthetic trees that utilize capillary action instead of pumps to move water within buildings, potentially revolutionizing urban infrastructure with eco-friendly designs.

Biological Inspiration for Technological Advancements

• The Amazon electric eel generates 600 volts without harming itself; this raises questions about biological insulation against electrical charges compared to conventional materials like PVC used in wiring.

• Humpback whales' flipper designs reduce drag significantly—by 32%—which inspires more efficient wind turbine designs capable of operating at lower wind speeds.

Ecological Performance Standards in Urban Planning

• At Biomimicry Guild, collaboration with HOK Architects aims to establish cities that perform as well ecologically as the native systems they replace through Ecological Performance Standards.

AskNature.org: Organizing Biological Information

Overview of AskNature.org

• AskNature.org aims to compile biological information categorized by design and engineering functions, inspired by TED principles.

• The project collaborates with the Encyclopedia of Life (EOL), which is an initiative led by Ed Wilson to gather all biological data on a single platform.

• Scientists contributing to EOL focus on answering the question, "What can we learn from this organism?" to enrich the database for AskNature.org.

• The goal is to enable inventors worldwide to access nature-inspired solutions, such as methods for desalination, at the moment of their creative process.