Designed by the Mediated Matter research group at the MIT Media Lab in collaboration with Prof. Fiorenzo Omenetto (TUFTS University) and Dr. James Weaver (WYSS Institute, Harvard University), The Silk Pavilion explores the relationship between digital and biological fabrication on product and architectural scales.
The research team at the Institute for Computational Design (ICD) and the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) have taken morphological inspiration from the structure of the sea urchin and the sand dollar, both sea-bed invertebrates, to create what almost bears semblance to a floating bee hive, in a team combining architects, engineers, biologists, and palaeontologists.
A completely new geometric shape has been discovered by a group of researchers looking into the dynamics of cells that contribute toward the embryonic development and lead to the formation of human organs. Lehigh University professor, Javier Buceta, helped discover this geometric shape— the scutoid.
A team of MIT researchers has designed a breathable workout suit with ventilating flaps that open and close in response to an athlete’s body heat and sweat. These flaps, which range from thumbnail- to finger-sized, are lined with live microbial cells that shrink and expand in response to changes in humidity.
Researchers at MIT, Harvard University and Seoul National University have engineered a soft autonomous robot that moves via peristalsis, crawling across surfaces by contracting segments of its body, much like an earthworm. The robot, made almost entirely of soft materials, is remarkably resilient.
Find out how human bones inspired the Eiffel Tower through the design principle of structural hierarchy.
Navicula is derived from nature, in this case from one of the many microscopic diatoms that float around in the oceans. The flowing, segmented form is shipped as kitset and assembled on site with push-in nylon clips. The thin curved pieces of CNC-cut bamboo plywood create a flowing structure
The bacterial flagellum has become an iconic example of the evidence against modern Darwinian theory as well as the evidence for intelligent design. Stephen Meyer, Scott Minnich and others scientists and scholars explore the facts about this amazing piece of nanotechnology, first made famous by biologist Michael Behe.
Dr. Mirtsch Wölbstrukturierung GmbH in Berlin has developed an innovative process for producing vaulted materials. The bionic structure is relatively easy to install in metals. The sheet metal is rolled over a mill equipped with lined braces. The varying levels of pressure cause the metal to ‘plop in’.
THE DIATOMIST is a short documentary about Klaus Kemp, master of the Victorian art of diatom arrangement. Diatoms are single cell algae that create jewel-like glass shells around themselves. Microscopists of the Victorian era would arrange them into complex patterns, invisible to the naked eye but spectacular when viewed under magnification.
Researchers at MIT, Harvard University and Seoul National University have engineered a soft autonomous robot that moves via peristalsis, crawling across surfaces by contracting segments of its body, much like an earthworm. The robot, made almost entirely of soft materials, is remarkably resilient.
Radiolaria lets you manipulate a web of connected cells to create a huge variety of biologically-inspired patterns. Each object you create starts as a basic hexagonal mesh which you can change as much, or as little, as you want with a variety of tools.
Navicula is derived from nature, in this case from one of the many microscopic diatoms that float around in the oceans. The flowing, segmented form is shipped as kitset and assembled on site with push-in nylon clips. The thin curved pieces of CNC-cut bamboo plywood create a flowing structure
Ultra-Ever Dry is a superhydrophobic (water) and oleophobic (hydrocarbons) coating that will completely repel almost any liquid. Ultra-Ever Dry uses proprietary nanotechnology to coat an object and create a barrier of air on its surface. This barrier repels water, oil and other liquids unlike any coating seen before.
An adjustable shading system that adapts itself independently over the course of the day, without sensors or motors and largely maintenance-free? It really is possible: an ETH doctoral student at the Institute for Building Materials has developed an alternative to motor-driven sunshades.
Namib desert beetles live in an area with little ground water, so how is it that they have no trouble finding H2O? Find out how the resourceful insects use their wing scales to absorb water droplets from fog, and how we can use them as a model for combating water shortages.
Janine Benyus is a biologist, innovation consultant, and author of six books, including Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. In this video Benyus explains the practice of biomimicry and what can be learned from the genius of nature.