Biomimicry

Have you ever watched a bird fly high, high up in the big blue sky. Did you wish you had wings to soar, too. Or maybe you have seen a little seed with fluffy wings twirl down from a tall tree, dancing in the wind. I am the idea that looks at all of these amazing things in nature and asks, 'How can we do that, too.'. I am nature’s secret helper, showing people how to copy its wonderful tricks. My name is Biomimicry.

For a very, very long time, people have been learning from me. Way back around the year 1505, a curious man who loved to draw named Leonardo da Vinci watched birds dip and glide through the air. He drew pictures of amazing flying machines with big wings just like a bird's. He was using me to dream about flying. Much later, on a walk in the year 1941, a man named George de Mestral noticed tiny, sticky burrs from a plant stuck all over his dog’s soft fur. He looked at them under a special looking glass and saw they had tiny hooks. That gave him the idea for Velcro, the scratchy stuff that holds your shoes together. Rip.

Today, I help people solve all kinds of puzzles. I’ve helped smart people design a super-fast train with a nose like a kingfisher's beak so it can zip through tunnels without making a loud noise. Shhhh. I’ve even helped them make swimsuits that work like shark skin to help swimmers glide faster through the water. Whoosh. I am proof that the best ideas are all around you, right outside your window. The next time you see a spider's sparkly web or a big green leaf, look closely. You might just find the secret answer to a big question.