There is a wide consensus about the necessity of sustainable development. There is also a consensus that wide areas of our economy, industry, and technology and the life styles in industrialized countries are not susta- able. Science and technology are widely regarded as (main) causes for this situation. Issues in this context comprise the generally low resource ef- ciency, an increased and mostly undebated technological power, an - creased invasiveness of modern technologies, increasing amounts and - versity of pollutants, and high technological risks. On the other hand science and technology are also regarded as (main) solution providers towards more sustainability. Thus the question is which type of science and technology is rather a part of the problem, and which type is rather a part of the solution? ‘Learning from nature’ may give some orientation in this context. B- mimetics and bionics are widely regarded as being a part of the solution.

There is a wide consensus about the necessity of sustainable development. There is also a consensus that wide areas of our economy, industry, and technology and the life styles in industrialized countries are not susta- able. Science and technology are widely regarded as (main) causes for this situation. Issues in this context comprise the generally low resource ef- ciency, an increased and mostly undebated technological power, an - creased invasiveness of modern technologies, increasing amounts and - versity of pollutants, and high technological risks. On the other hand science and technology are also regarded as (main) solution providers towards more sustainability. Thus the question is which type of science and technology is rather a part of the problem, and which type is rather a part of the solution? ‘Learning from nature’ may give some orientation in this context. B- mimetics and bionics are widely regarded as being a part of the solution.

The book presents an outline of current activities in the field of biomimetics and integrates a variety of applications comprising biophysics, surface sciences, architecture and medicine. Biomimetics as innovation method is characterised by interdisciplinary information transfer from the life sciences to technical application fields aiming at increased performance, functionality and energy efficiency. The contributions of the book relate to the research areas: - Materials and structures in nanotechnology and biomaterials - Biomimetic approaches to develop new forms, construction principles and design methods in architecture - Information and dynamics in automation, neuroinformatics and biomechanics Readers will be informed about the latest research approaches and results in biomimetics with examples ranging from bionic nano-membranes to function-targeted design of tribological surfaces and the translation of natural auditory coding strategies.

From simple cases such as hook and latch attachments found in Velcro to articulated-wing flying vehicles, biology often has been used to inspire many creative design ideas. The scientific challenge now is to transform the paradigm into a repeatable and scalable methodology. Biologically Inspired Design explores computational techniques and tools that can help integrate the method into design practice. With an inspiring foreword from Janine Benyus, Biologically Inspired Design contains a dozen chapters written by some of the leading scholars in the transdisciplinary field of bioinspired design, such as Frank Fish, Julian Vincent and Jeannette Yen from biology, and Amaresk Chakrabarti, Satyandra Gupta and Li Shu from engineering. Based in part on discussions at two workshops sponsored by the United States National Science Foundation, this volume introduces and develops several methods and tools for bioinspired design including: Information-processing theories, Natural language techniques, Knowledge-based tools, and Functional approaches and Pedagogical techniques. By exploring these fundamental theories, techniques and tools for supporting biologically inspired design, this volume provides a comprehensive resource for design practitioners wishing to explore the paradigm, an invaluable guide to design educators interested in teaching the method, and a preliminary reading for design researchers wanting to investigate bioinspired design.

Bioinspired Materials for Medical Applications examines the inspiration of natural materials and their interpretation as modern biomaterials. With a strong focus on therapeutic and diagnostic applications, the book also examines the development and manipulation of bioinspired materials in regenerative medicine. The first set of chapters is heavily focused on bioinspired solutions for the delivery of drugs and therapeutics that also offer information on the fundamentals of these materials. Chapters in part two concentrate on bioinspired materials for diagnosis applications with a wide coverage of sensor and imaging systems With a broad coverage of the applications of bioinspired biomaterials, this book is a valuable resource for biomaterials researchers, clinicians, and scientists in academia and industry, and all those who wish to broaden their knowledge in the allied field. - Explores how materials designed and produced with inspiration from nature can be used to enhance man-made biomaterials and medical devices - Brings together the two fields of biomaterials and bioinspired materials - Written by a world-class team of research scientists, engineers, and clinicians

This book details the state-of-the-art of research and development in design computing and design cognition. It features more than 35 papers that were presented at the Sixth International Conference on Design Computing and Cognition, DCC’14, held at University College, London, UK. Inside, readers will find the work of expert researchers and practitioners that explores both advances in theory and application as well as demonstrates the depth and breadth of design computing and design cognition. This interdisciplinary coverage, which includes material from international research groups, examines design synthesis, design cognition, design creativity, design processes, design theory, design grammars, design support and design ideation. Overall, the papers provide a bridge between design computing and design cognition. The confluence of these two fields continues to build the foundation for further advances and leads to an increased understanding of design as an activity whose influence continues to spread. As a result, the book will be of particular interest to researchers, developers and users of advanced computation in design and those who need to gain a better understanding of designing that can be obtained through empirical studies.

This book gathers the peer-reviewed and revised versions of papers from the Seventh International Conference on Design Computing and Cognition (DCC'16), held at Northwestern University, Evanston (Chicago), USA, from 27–29 June 2016. The material presented here reflects cutting-edge design research with a focus on artificial intelligence, cognitive science and computational theories. The papers are grouped under the following nine headings, describing advances in theory and applications alike and demonstrating the depth and breadth of design computing and design cognition: Design Creativity; Design Cognition - Design Approaches; Design Support; Design Grammars; Design Cognition - Design Behaviors; Design Processes; Design Synthesis; Design Activity and Design Knowledge. The book will be of particular interest to researchers, developers and users of advanced computation in design across all disciplines, and to all readers who need to gain a better understanding of designing.