Biomimicry as Methodology

I know some of you are taking biomimicry, and will learn more about this by first hand experience. But for the rest of you, biomimicry is worth checking out for inspiration.

Biomimicry is being inspired by nature; taking solutions observed in biological processes, then applying them appropriately to whatever we're trying to accomplish. The logic is, nature has had millions of years to fine tune and perfect it's strategies for accomplishing it's tasks, so by studying it closley we can reach better, more effecient, and ingenious solutions.

As far as methodology, it's almost backwards, and resembles one of our upcoming projects, where we'll have something and need to find an applicaiton for it. It's not new at all for people to be inspired by nature, but this biomimicry movement is fairly new, and it's wide open right now because there's isn't a set methodology yet. So we start with natures solution, and then have to look for applications for it. This might seem almost silly, and it's not the way most people are accustomed to solving problems. So asknature.org has made it where you can ask nature about what you need to do, metaphorically, and it will link you with biological examples that could inspire your solution. For example, if your question is 'how would nature channel fluids?', you would get animals varied as the thorny devil to humpback whales.

http://www.asknature.org/
http://www.biomimicry.net/


wow, that was verbose, sorry guys.