About ants and created life

Here are two links to videos that came to my head after the first session. The first one is about a giant ant colony. When you see those small hills full of ants in the woods you may not guess how complex those systems are. But this video shows a really amazing "architecture" created by the nature of ants!

The second one is from an artist from the Netherlands, Theo Jansen, who creates huge "animals", moving structures that are not dependent on anything else but wind and sun. Take a look! ;)

Marcus Hubl

Seasonal Cicadas - Group 1

Posted by Cecilia Rudstrom

Evaporation in the cockroach

The cockroach have an ability to change the evaporation through it's shell depending on the temperature in the surroundings. At temperatures above 30 degrees celsius water can pass through.
Imagine what that technique could do for sportswear...

Read full scientific article: http://jeb.biologists.org/content/12/4/373.full.pdf+html

image source: http://www.cozypad.com/how-to-eliminate-cockroaches-from-your-home/3798.html

/ Catrin S

Wave energy technology inspired by kelp plants

BioWAVE is a technology inspired by the swaying motion of kelp plants in the ocean. Kelp are large seaweeds that grow vertically from the ocean floor, and constantly sway in the water. The BioWAVE system is designed to mimic these plants.

Photo source: http://geog.ucsb.edu/mobile/events/department-news/

The BioWAVE is mounted on the seafloor, with a pivot near the bottom. The array of buoyant floats, or "blades", interacts with the rising and falling sea surface (potential energy) and the sub-surface back-and-forth water movement (kinetic energy). As a result, the pivoting structure sways back-and-forth in tune with the waves, and the energy contained in this motion is converted to electricity by an onboard self-contained power conversion module. The conversion module contains a hydraulic system that converts the mechanical energy from this motion into fluid pressure, which is used to spin a generator. Power is then delivered to shore by a subsea cable. You can read more about BioWAVE here.

// Satu

Janine Benyus: Biomimicry in action

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_GFq12w5WU&feature=player_embedded

Jaume

Encyclopedia of Adaptations in the Natural World

Hi!

I found this great book online that I think everybody might find something interesting in, either for the first project or overall.
It describes the challenges for all of the species on the earth (including us humans) and it covers about everything from the beginning of the history of human accomplishments and also includes stories about different achievements that are inspired/borrowed from nature.


http://buid.academia.edu/NithyaSrinath/Books/673865/Biomimicry-_Adaptations_in_the_natural_world

/ Shirin

Bacteria Design !

A Mysterious Light Glow

The glow is a natural reaction of the bacteria and no chemicals are used to create the fluorescent effect.

The intense glow which can last anywhere from a day to a week will and bespoke designs can be created from any artwork supplied.

By CURB
link:

http://curbmedia.com/what-we-do-glowfungi.asp

 

Posted by Aude

Bioluminescence_green light

A Mysterious Green Glow

In tropical seas, many sailors have been mesmerized by a mysterious green light seen below the ocean surface...

Now researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have uncovered key clues about the bioluminescent worms that produce the green glow and the biological mechanisms behind their light production.

"This is another step toward understanding the biology of the bioluminescence in fireworms, and it also brings us closer to isolating the protein that produces the light," said Deheyn, a scientist in the Marine Biology Research Division at Scripps. 

"If we understand how it is possible to keep light so stable for such a long time, it would provide opportunities to use that protein or reaction in biomedical, bioengineering and other fields-the same way other proteins have been used."

Experiments by Dimitri Deheyn and Michael Latz

revealed green bioluminescence.

(Credit: Image courtesy of University of California - San Diego)

Posted by Aude

“Biomimicry in action”

TED-talk by Janine Benyus. Some very interesting examples of nature´s genius design:

http://www.ted.com/talks/janine_benyus_biomimicry_in_action.html 

Enjoy!

/Szilvia

Desert molly (or how to survive to light and heat in the desert)

While browsing on asknature, I came across this nice desert plant.
It needs light to live, but too much light can burn it and that is not a secondary issue when speaking about desert.
Consequently, this plant has made up a way to protect itself from heat.
1. At noon, under the hottest sun, its leaves crumble up, reducing the surface exposed to the sun.
2. Then, it excretes salt from leaves and the surface of leaves is completely covered. Salt reflects sun light and decreases the quantity of heat the plant will get.
Impressive!

// Sara

bioluminescence

Here is a short talk on bioluminescence. This researcher looks at sea creatures that emit light. It's just an overview of these animals and her studies; it would be interesting to see how bioluminescence could be mimicked by engineers and designers to solve human problems. Okay, her sound effects are slightly ridiculous. But it doesn't distract too much from the cool research she's done!

http://www.ted.com/talks/edith_widder_the_weird_and_wonderful_world_of_bioluminescence.html

-Elaine Erwin

Manuel DeLanda: Nature, Space, Society

This talk is part of a discussion series consisting of three sessions on the relationships between society, space and nature, and how they are currently being transformed both theoretically and by technological and environmental changes in the world. (05.03.2004)

http://channel.tate.org.uk/media/26608082001

Enjoy!

Anna Maria

Image credits: news.yorku.ca

Predatory Hawaiian Caterpillar

This newly discovered caterpillar species is native to Hawaii and unique because it has evolved to eat snails (only about 0,13% of the worlds Lepidoptera are know to be predators or parasites). 

Due to the hard shells of snails, the caterpillar has learned to utilize a silk-spinning technique to immobilize its prey (similar to spiders).  Although all caterpillars have the ability to produce silk to form cocoons, this is the first record of a predatory caterpillar which uses silk to catch live prey. 

This particular caterpillar have long, thin appendages on their abdomen which acts as sensory organs. When a snail touches the caterpillar, it bends back quickly and strikes. It forces its long body into the snail shell, capturing the snail in its own shell and eats it alive. Very cruel.  

I dont know how to relate this to architecture, but I thought it was very interesting.

by mikaela grassl

Seaweed!

Possibilities within Seaweed.

Hi, I’ve started to do a little research on the possibilities and capabilities of … seaweed. I recently made a hat by drying and weaving local (for me) Irish seaweed called kelp. The natural stickiness of the seaweed helped it to glue together and then when it dried it became hard and brittle. I remolded the hat by simply putting it in warm water, and then repeating the drying process with a different mold. Seaweed is also being used in bio-refineries to produce energy, Seaweed can be farmed in the right conditions and using a process of fermentation the naturally producing methane can be extracted. Here are some photos form the hat I made!


Séamus Guidera

Sand Castle Worm - Cecilia Rudström

Sandcastle Worm                                

Cecilia Rudström, week 1

The sandcastle worm, also called honeycomb worm, is a reef-forming marine polychaete worm belonging to the family Sabellarididae. It is dark brown in colour with a crown of lavender tentacles. This sea creature live in large colonies, on the cost of Califonia, where they builds large honeycomb-like tube reefs, often seen on rocky beaches at medium and low tide. These structures are created on the ocean floor by gluing grains of sand together. The worms remain in their tubes and are almost never seen apart from, when submerged, they extend their tentacles out of the tube to catch food particles and sand grains. At low tide, when above the water, they close the entrance to their tubes with a shield-like operculum made of dark setae.

This adhesive used to bind the sand grains together is very strong, similar to that of many mussels, but most notable it is cured underwater. The fact that the adhesive cure underwater as oppose to many synthetic ones that either do not cure underwater or set too quickly, has fascinated scientists and set the task to develop a whole new generation of synthetic adhesive products. Beyond creating a better adhesive for composites, a structural adhesive able to cure underwater has numerous uses in marine applications and medical uses. Scientists believe a synthetic version of the glue could have applications as a biocompatible medical adhesive, for instance to repair shattered bones, sealing skin cuts, repair of cranio-facial bones etc. 

Week 1: At Micro-organism level

An introduction to Biomimicry, along with other Bio-fields (ie: biomimetics, biomorphosism, biophilia etc).  We looked into nature's solutions in thermal, moisture, heating, structural, colour, sensing and regenerative capacities.  The students started on their new assignment, a design challenge inspired by nature to generate new ideas.  Lets see where the research guides them to.