Biomimetics - Natural Inspirations

Velcro - the ubiquitous, quick fastening strip used in shoes, jackets, bags and almost anything that needs to be fastened. Did you know that Velcro, which was invented in 1948 by Swiss chemist George de Mestral, by copying the way cockleburs (has seeds with spines) clung to his dog's coat. Cockleburs have millions of hooked spines that can grip any woolly surface. George, mimicked this by producing a strip with hundreds of "hooked hair" that could grip woolly surfaces. These two strips together came to be known as Velcro and has been the most utilitarian of inventions along with the Zipper.

The April 2008 issue of National Geographic magazine covers several research projects in "Biomimetics - science of mimicking nature" - projects that study animal and plant behaviour and mimic them:

• Mechanical Thorny Devils- devices that mimic thorny devils - hardy lizards that live in the Australian outback and have the ability to suck out water from moist soil, dewdrops, etc.
• Mercedes-Benz's bionic concept car that mimics the aerodynamics of the boxfish which helps boost its gas mileage to 70 miles per gallon
• Lotus Effect Paints - wall paints inspired by the structure of the lotus leaf that creates a self-cleaning, water repellent surface through its nano-structures that cause water to "bead and roll away"
• Whale Flipper wind mills - Windmills that mimic the scalloped edges of a whale's flipper that help generate more power at lower speeds and with less noise.

Many more examples of bio-mimetic projects are covered in this National Geographic article...