Bionics

From CreationWiki, the encyclopedia of creation science

Bionics is the study of processes or designs in nature for the purpose of finding practical applications and/or designing artificial imitations of those processes or designs in technology.

1 Intelligent design
2 Examples
3 Organizations
4 Related References
5 See Also

Intelligent design

Main Article: Intelligent design

Evolution is, by nature, an incredibly wasteful process. According to evolution, millions of "prototype" organisms (creatures that attempt to adapt to an environment but cannot) are eliminated in the great struggle to survive. However, for such a wasteful and destructive mechanism, evolution seems to produce designs so enviously extraordinary that they are beyond the scope of mankind's ability to create. When looking to solve scientific challenges, scientists frequently look to nature for inspiration. Bionics is the term to describe the entire wing of science devoted to examining and copying nature's (God's) design.

Examples

Georges de Mestral invented velcro after observing the way burrs cling to a dog's fur with hooked barbs.^[1]
The Wright brothers observed the flight of birds to inspire their airplane designs.
The hard calcium carbonate shell of mullusks is copied for bullet-proof armor.^[2]
Nanotechnology for developing better solar-cell and fuel-cell technology copied from human body mechanisms.^[3]
Engineering the wings of airplanes to "morph" for efficiency in varying flight speeds, based on the design of fish scales.^[4]
The natural antifreeze produced in teleost fish of the polar regions is imitated for food preservation.^[5]
The design of cockroaches is studied as a role model for robot design.^[6]
The flexibility of octopus arms is studied for inspiration on new robotics designs.^[7]
NASA engineers took clues from "the ultimate designer -- nature" for space craft technology.^[8]
Using dragonflies and houseflies as models, bioengineers Berkeley, created a series of artificial compound eyes.^[9]
Bee behavior can be studied to polish and perfect the science of decision-making.^[10]
Sea-sponges are studied in an effort to produce light yet sturdy materials.^[11]
The flight of bees provides examples of greater flight lift, control and pitch.^[12]
The built-in navigation capabilities of ants were studied to produce similar designs for robot navigation.^[13]
Scientists study the ability of bugs to cling to the ceiling, in an effort to create similar robotic abilities.^[14]
The design of gecko feet inspired scientists to create microfibers capable of sticking to smooth surfaces.^{[15] [16]}
The design of crustacean eyes was incorporated into a European observatory telescope design.^[17]
Eyes of various animals are inspiring for other technologies.^[18]
Spider webbing is a biological marvel that scientists strive to imitate for producing stronger ropes or cables.^{[19] [20] [21]}
Self-cleaning plastics based on the design of plants. ^[22]