Bio-Mimicry: Inventions Inspired By Nature
Over the years, scientists and inventors have studied characteristics of elements in nature and have come up with mind-blowing technologies and products. Let’s have a quick look at some of the best ones!
Crux of the Matter
Bullet Train <> Bird’s Beak
A kingfisher’s beak helps it in minimising air pressure when it flies or dive into water. Inventors designed modern trains keeping this in mind, to reduce air pressure and noise.
Ventilation <> Termite Mounds
Termites build earthen mounds that are well-ventilated with holes and slits. Buildings like Eastgate Centre in Zimbabwe are based on this idea, which internally regulate temperature with only 10% AC system requirement.
Velcro <> Burdock Plant
Engineer George de Mestral observed how the plant’s seeds had tiny hooks to stick to things with loops like cotton fibers of pants. He made the “zipperless-zipper” or Velcro brand hook and loop thereafter.
Tape <> Gecko Lizards
These lizards stick to the surfaces without adhesives, due to hair on their toes. By changing the direction of the hair, they can break the grip without any sticky residues. Scotch tape was then invented by Richard Gurley Drew in 1922.
Light Bulbs <> Firefly
Fireflies produce a chemical reaction inside their bodies which makes them “light up” or become bioluminescent. A similar structure has been used in LEDs or light-emitting diodes, which increased the brightness by 55%.
Wind Turbines <> Whales
Whales are aerodynamic, and one of the nature’s best swimmers. The swimming efficiency of whales has inspired serrated-edge wind turbines, which are even quieter than the regular blades.
Sonar <> Dolphins & Bats
These animals use echolocation and their sonar system, for navigation and finding food. This means emitting sounds and listening to the echoes to detect objects around them. This inspired the creation of ‘Ultracane’ for blind people, which begins to vibrate when it gets closer to any object. Sonar system is also used to do water surveys, detect damage or blockage, etc.
Curiopedia
The first animal to go to space and make an orbital spaceflight around the Earth was the dog Laika. She got aboard the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2 on 3 November 1957.
Curated Coverage