#ThinkfullyHabit: Steal from nature
What if we didn’t need to start from scratch when trying to solve a problem or if a partial blueprint already existed? The trick is often knowing where to look. How often do you take inspiration from nature and the natural world as a place to start?
One example (from many!) is how the porcupine quill is inspiring the design of surgical staples to help improve the healing process*. If you’re wondering how this came about it’s because porcupine quills are known for how easily they pierce the skin (studies have found that quills only need half the force to enter the skin compared to a needle) and how hard they are to remove (they have backward pointing barbs which are incredibly effective at staying put because the barbs flare out and snag when pulled). It’s led to the development of synthetic quill-inspired staples which create smaller punctures in the skin, preventing bacteria from entering wounds.
“Every living creature that exists today is here because it tackled a number of challenges. And those that haven’t have quickly become extinct. In essence, we are surrounded by solutions. Evolution is truly the best problem-solver. ”
WHY?
Biomimicry is rapidly emerging as an established practice of our time. Biomedical engineer Jeffery Karp at Harvard Medical School is widely seen as one of the leading figures in biomimicry and knows the value of searching nature to answer problems. In his case, the porcupine quill-inspired medical staple is just one of the ideas that his lab has worked on. In 2008, MIT’s Technology Review magazine named him one of the top innovators in the world**. He has over 100 issued or pending national and international patents, with several technologies developed in his lab which have so far led to the development and launch of multiple products and eight companies that have raised over $400 million in funding***.
However, it turns out that ‘biomimicry’ itself may be a somewhat misleading name. The mimicking aspect is not really the important part; it’s the inspiration part that is. As Leif Ristroph, assistant professor of mathematics at New York University’s Courant Institute acknowledges that while “a distinct advantage of the bio inspiration route is that pre-existing solutions are somewhat handed to us,” we also have to “determine which parts we care to mimic and which do not carry over to our problem of interest.” Adrian Thomas, professor of biomechanics in the zoology department at Oxford University goes further by suggesting that nature is the inspiration that can then be improved upon. “The obvious mistake is to copy nature – it is possible to do much better than nature by exploiting the best engineering materials.”
This is not just relevant to a few areas of life. Bio inspiration is gradually working its way into different solutions that impact how we live, from the medical tape inspired by gecko feet, the electricity-free ventilation systems inspired by termite mounds, through to the high speed train design inspired by the kingfisher bird.
So next time you’re facing a problem, try answering the following:
- What exactly needs solving? Boil the problem down to its essence.
- Where can this kind of problem be seen in the natural world? Take fresh inspiration.
- What can I steal and adapt from to help address the problem? Discern what's helpful and what's not.
- How can I apply ideas into a solution using the materials and resources available? Work out what's useful.
It’s not about waiting for nature to miraculously inspire you. It’s about turning to nature to see if a partial blueprint may already exist that can be built upon and being just as inquiring and analytical in your approach as you may be when using any other information source.
REFERENCES