BIOMIMICRY

Posted: August 26th, 2021

BIOMIMICRY

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1. Introduction
   1. Topic Abstract

With the growing need for high-rise buildings, architects have relied solely on nature as a means of drawing inspirations globally. Nature has proved to offer creative solutions for recurring human problems. Therefore, incorporation of biomimicry in architectural designs and planning is considered the most evolving form of innovation, which mirrors the functional dynamics of nature. In this research paper, biomimicry is associated with motivation for intelligent and innovative engineering with the intent of curbing the adverse effects of the global construction industry on the environment. In practicality, biomimicry seeks to enhance the sustainability of a building design. Nonetheless, increased world-wide research on the implementation of biomimicry in architectural design has exposed various hurdles. This paper seeks to study two different methods as well as levels of biomimicry as a way of exemplifying the recently evolved innovations in architectural design and planning. Moreover, the paper discusses varied sources and authors who have intensified the study of biomimicry through principles and strategies to solve human problems. Further, the paper discusses three examples of authoritative projects that have inherently featured in the levels of biomimicry approaches.

• Project Definition
  • Research Questions
• Does the incorporation of biomimicry in architectural design and planning impact building sustainability?
• What are the two approaches of biomimicry?
• What are the three levels of biomimicry?
• How the application of the levels of biomimicry affect the form, material, construction, process, and function of a building?
• How the study of biomimicry seeks to fulfill the fundamental principles of sustainable architecture?
• How biomimicry remedies structural, water, and energy efficiency, coupled with the enhancement of zero-waste systems?

• Project Rationale

The multi-dynamism of nature offers a better opportunity for the incorporation of biomimicry in architectural design. The reason is that nature tends to recycle everything useful in it, thus adapting itself to local conditions of the natural environment. To be precise, there is the recycling of energy and other materials sources that impact the architectural space positively. Therefore, such an opportunity would help eliminate the environmental and social problems which have been occasioned by the built architectural space. Indeed, the humanistic approach to architectural space seems an alternative method to biomimicry despite its adverse effects attached to unwarranted production of wastes, energy, and gas emissions coupled with inefficient material use. Likewise, the recent advancement in urban construction has amplified the chance to implement varying degrees of biomimicry methods. Notably, the different levels of this innovative method have proved significant in reducing the detrimental effects of unsustainable construction. Therefore, the study of biomimicry proposes innovative and eco-friendly methods associated with offering more compatible and adaptive solutions. Any living organism has always sought for ways of avoiding excesses coupled with overbuilding of material used. Instead, it has usually focused on attaining optimal efficiency via the utilization of limited material and energy.

Consequently, biomimicry offers an extensive degree of solutions for reaching efficiency in water use, minimal waste systems, thermal setting, as well as energy supply. Precisely, such vital components have brought about sustainable building design. The functioning of nature always inspires my perceptions towards the essentiality of bionic since it brings about a harmonious unity between the built environment and the architectural space. For example, one can infer how plants make use of air pollution by transforming excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere into oxygen. Therefore, this research stresses the need for learning all the levels of biomimicry like organism and behavior since copycatting an organism’s behavior in the architectural form cannot serve the larger purpose of the study. Instead, it is essential to apply the ecosystem level of biomimicry in a bid to underscore how a built structure would mimic the natural processes of an organism’s characteristics. To design a building in the form of cacti entails executing a simple shape feature of an organism, which does not upsurge a building whole sustainability plan.

• Authoritative  SourcesArticle 1

Rao, Rajshekhar. “Biomimicry in Architecture.” International Journal of Advanced Research inCivil, Structural, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering and Development, vol. 1,no. 3, 2014, p.101-107.

In this article, Rao mentions the need for establishing a sustainable building design that has been interwoven with advanced technology through the application of biomimicry approaches. Indeed, the processes of nature are considered inspiring in challenging designers to channel their efforts towards sustainable architecture. The author underscores the importance of biomimicry in the sense that it remedies the development of natural behaviors.  For instance, the article stresses efficiencies in water use, energy, and recycling of wastes as better biomimetic approaches of reinforcing building sustainability. This study of biomimicry revolves around initiating solutions to the working dynamics of the built environment together with the living organisms. In other words, Rao views that the incorporation of biomimetic into the architectural design would be useful in amplifying the survival capacity of buildings as it is reflected in the natural selection of organisms. Therefore, Rao seeks to advance the revelations of natural processes in impacting the behaviors of building designs towards the implementation of resource efficiency.

• Article 2

Al-Zeiny, Rasha. “Biomimicry as a Problem Solving Methodology in Interior Architecture.” Science Direct, 2010, p.1-1072.

In this article, Al-Zeiny regards the study of biomimicry as a problem-solving in interior architecture as it draws inspiration from the behaviors, systems, and processes of natural organisms. However, the author undeniably recognizes the fact it is challenging to implement the widespread use of biomimicry in interior design methods. The reason why such execution may not be possible results from the fact that it is quite complicated to imitate the ecosystem of an organism, and thus apply its process and function into interior design. Clearly, this article emphasizes the need to reshape the design to focus centrally on the library of shapes, aside from the study of biomimetic as a measure of understanding how best one can impact the sustainable use of interior design. In short, Al-Zeiny has, therefore, suggested that interior architecture should move past the formalistic features of nature and further focus on the biological processes of organisms.

• Article 3

Kaplinsky, Joe. “Biomimicry versus Humanism.” Architecture Design, vol. 76, 2006, p. 66-71.

In his analysis, Kaplinsky discredits the study of biomimicry and considers it over qualifying in the way it disregards the critical role of mechanical solutions in impacting the building sustainability. Instead, he views that the application of nature would ideally underestimate the works of architect designers.  For example, he has contended that the utilization of biological language and its analogies would overall lessen the real accomplishment of architecture designers. Therefore, as a way of harmonizing unity between nature and humanism, he advocates for the application of a humanist sense towards the study of biomimicry.

• Book 1

Carlson, Allen. Aesthetics and the environment. Routledge, 2000. Print.

With the viewpoint that traditional aesthetics is regularly interwoven with the appreciation of art, Carlson demonstrates how a person’s aesthetic experiences do not embrace art. Instead, he regards that human behaviors have always reflected on nature. Furthermore, he posits that the acquisition of scientific knowledge is essential in helping humans to appreciate the aesthetics of an environment rather than experiencing the same. Consequently, he recommends that architects need to hold proper scientific knowledge of natural environments like biological processes of organisms before understanding the functionalism of their aesthetic yields.

• Book 2

Hawkes, Dean, and Wayne Forester. “Energy Efficient Buildings.” Architecture, Engineering, and Environment, 2002. Print.

Hawkes and Forester have explored the growing relationship between architectural design and mechanical engineering. While cross-examining the environmental function and working dynamics of buildings in the 21^st century, these authors have underscored the significance of incorporating innovating design features as a means of improving the sustainability of the built environment. Subsequently, the studies on these building projects have discovered innovative ways of integrating architecture with engineering, thus resulting in attractive as well as energy resourceful structures.

• Exemplars

The EpiCenter in Bozeman, Montana. The building structure has been designed with the architectural impacts of sustainable design with intent to minimize the use of energy, and thus regulate the demands of other resources like water. Likewise, this building has been envisioned to operate more or less the same as an organism.

The research project of Dr. A.J.N. Van Der Brugge. The design encompasses varied strategies, philosophies, and approaches which have been mirrored the processes and behaviors of natural organisms. For instance, the design is meant to control light perception in the environment. Thus, this mimicks the relationship between an organism and the environment. As a result, the study of biomimicry has helped to solve methodological problems associated with creating a new sustainable requirement for planning for interior spaces in a community environment.

Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing, China. This concept of biomimicry entails fostering efficiency in energy use as an approach of establishing an eco-friendly built environment mirroring the inspirations from nature. The stadium has inherently featured in design integrated characteristic systems of a natural bird’s nest in a bid to economize on the costs of energy. More so, it has centrally focused on recycling wastes efficiently via filtration as well as backwash system methods, which have positively impacted the building sustainability.

• Lexicon
• Biomimicry – With “bio” implying living and “mimicry” meaning imitating, these two words are combined to bring about a concept of designing structures by imitating the form and behaviors of living organisms as they have evolved over the billions of years.
• Humanism – The act of featuring in the characteristics behavior of a sensible human being.
• Built environment – Architectural space that has been built
• Building sustainability – Optimal use of material, water, and energy coupled with zero-waste management while designing and planning for architectural space to achieve efficiency

• Trajectory

The future trajectory research study in biomimicry should encompass the learning of skills associated with the characteristic behaviors of organisms in the ecosystem. In this case, architects would need to get instilled with the knowledge of applying such ecological skills throughout the planning and designing of architectural space and the built environment. Besides, enrolling for UA courses in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology would help a lot in reinforcing the expertise of architectural study.

• Project Resources

3.1 Bibliography

Al-Zeiny, Rasha. “Biomimicry as a Problem Solving Methodology in Interior Architecture.” Science Direct, 2010, p.1-1072.

Carlson, Allen. Aesthetics and the environment. Routledge, 2000. Print.

Hawkes, Dean, and Wayne Forester. “Energy Efficient Buildings.” Architecture, Engineering, and Environment, 2002. Print.

Kaplinsky, J. “Biomimicry versus Humanism.” Architecture Design, vol. 76, 2006, p. 66-71.

Mirniazmandan, Seyedehaida, and Ehsan Rahimianzarif. “Biomimicry, An Approach Toward Sustainability of High-Rise Buildings.” Iranian Journal of Scientific Technology in Translational Science, vol. 42, 2018, p. 1837-1842.

Rao, Rajshekhar. “Biomimicry in Architecture.” International Journal of Advanced Research inCivil, Structural, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering and Development, vol. 1,no. 3, 2014, p.101-107.