Most people are other people.
Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions,
Their lives a mimicry,
And their passions a quotation.
-Oscar Wilde
“ Biomimetics “ or “ Biomimicry “: An upcoming technology-oriented approach that is focusing on putting nature’s lessons into practice. A technique that looks for sustainable solutions to several human challenges — mimics various strategies and time-tested patterns that a character has developed in nature.
Moreover, it is considered an approach that can revolutionize how we; construct materials, generate energy, and many more.
Biomimetics aims to treat nature as an inspirational model for synthetic paradigms. That is using and implementing concepts and principles from nature to create new devices and systems. Emulation of materials and methods found in nature can solve recent challenges present in the healthcare and national security sectors.
Evolution of Biomimetics -
Otto Schmitt, an American academic and inventor, first coined the term “Biomimicry.” In 1960, Jack Steele, a psychiatrist, and engineer defined the term “Biomimicry.” However, the word got popularized in 1997 by Janine Benyus through her seminal book named Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature.
Moreover, the invention of the Velcro by George de Mestral in 1948 is considered the product from when Biomimicry started to reach its full potential.
Field of Application and Perspective of Biomimetics -
Biomimetics has several applications, and most of them deal with the sectors of human activity. It has its application in medicine, research, industry and agriculture, architecture, urban planning, and many more. Therefore, Biomimetics can be applied directly to all sectors.
Most of the applications of this technique, developed in the past, are of macromolecular level.
Example: The Japanese Bullet train, Velcro fasteners, passive cooling structures, the shape of airplanes, fluid-drag reduction swimsuits, and many more.
Recently, Biomimetics has started approaching the micro and sub-micro molecular level of matter. Scientists and researchers have started thinking of the case at the atomic level, i.e., nanotechnology. Gecko tape, Bone Tissue Regeneration, and Artificial Photosynthesis are some of the outcomes of micro-level Biomimetics.
Linking Biomimetics to nanotechnology has led to utilizing nature in many ways — Like in self-assembly, Viral construction, and Protein Motors.
Biomimicry is getting a lot of importance in tissue engineering as well. Recently, favorable architectures for Tissue regeneration have also been developed that are biomimetic scaffolds. These Biomimetic scaffolds can simulate the architecture of the extracellular matrix (ECM). Techniques like rapid prototyping and electrospinning are already being used to manufacture 3D biomimetic scaffolds.
All these biomimetic approaches may open promising new fields in the coming future. Integration of Biomimetics in biomedical engineering will also advance future technologies in many ways. Building technology in this manner will provide us with a more stable and productive future.
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Originally published at https://mishmash.co.in on April 24, 2021.
