Images

Mimic Birds To Stop Buildings From Falling

Destroyed_building_in_Muzaffarabad_after_the_earthquake_(2005)2ff3ee3ff

Problem:

Buildings fall down in earthquakes!

Biomimicry idea:

Mimic a bird leg.  When a bird  lands, the ankle bends and locks the toes around the tree branch so the bird can’t fall off when it is asleep.  When it it unbends the ankle, the bird lets go and it can fly away

Some birds have a tendon in their legs that stop them from falling off of tree limbs. Earthquakes are a big problem, not only because they kill many people, but the remains of homes cost money to clean up or build again. I think we can use these tendon structures to build a earthquake proof buildings. We can make “tendon” cables that lock the structure in place as needed.

sort of like a bird ankle
sort of like a bird ankle

Mimic a Coyote

Problem:

Homeless people are being neglected.

The reason why I am choosing the coyotes to mimic is because they stay in groups and travel together but they also know where they are going.

Biomimicry Idea:

Coyotes always seem to know where they want to go.  It is harder in a city.  Not everywhere is open and it is hard to find a place to go when you have to leave your housing shelter so early in the morning.  So maybe we could mimic the coyote by making a chart in the shape of a circle.  This circle chart will show where homeless people could get recreation, food, and shelter at different times of day in our well populated area like Portland. The less fortunate can have places to go to that will help them get back on their feet. The circle figure will have the place’s addresses and hours that they are ope so people can live like a coyote that goes from place to place.

 

IMG_1866