BioInspired! So What? Now What!

This article provides an overview of biomimicry with numerous examples:

• Mark Miles, the Morpho butterfly and Qualcomm's Mirasol display
• Georges de Mestral, burrs and Velcro
• Claus Mattheck, growth of load-bearing structures and the SKO (soft kill option) design method
• Jay Harman, spirals in nature and the PAX Streamlining Principle
• the camel's nose and a saltwater-irrigated greenhouse in Qatar
• the banyan tree/harvester ants and water management in Lavasa
• Jaime Grunlan, lobster/shrimp shells and a fire-proofing polymer coating
• Shanghai Jiao Tong University, birdwing butterflies and more efficient solar technologies
• Simon Fraser University, butterfly scales and an anti-counterfeiting stamp (NOtES)
• Omni-ID, butterfly scales and more reliable RFID tags
• the Morpho butterfly and Morphotex fabrics

Thanks to Cindy Gilbert for the pointer!