Biomimicry
213.1K views | +1 today
Follow
Biomimicry
Nature inspired innovation
Your new post is loading...
Your new post is loading...
Scooped by Miguel Prazeres
Scoop.it!

Why Nature Prefers Hexagons

Why Nature Prefers Hexagons | Biomimicry | Scoop.it

"How do bees do it? The honeycombs in which they store their amber nectar are marvels of precision engineering, an array of prism-shaped cells with a perfectly hexagonal cross-section. The wax walls are made with a very precise thickness, the cells are gently tilted from the horizontal to prevent the viscous honey from running out, and the entire comb is aligned with the Earth’s magnetic field. Yet this structure is made without any blueprint or foresight, by many bees working simultaneously and somehow coordinating their efforts to avoid mismatched cells."

Marcelo Errera's curator insight, April 22, 2016 11:39 PM
The evolution of design, configuration, structure, organization is a natural phenomenon. Evidence massively supports it. There's no designer, there's only the Constructal Law.

I challenge anyone to count the percentage of "mathematical hexagons" in a honeycomb. 
Scooped by Miguel Prazeres
Scoop.it!

Biomimetics: Smart Geometry at Work

Biomimetics: Smart Geometry at Work | Biomimicry | Scoop.it

"[...] Compared to many engineering materials, the substances/materials of biology do not have any especially outstanding characteristic. They are successful not so much because of what they are but because of the way in which they are put together. The bulk of mechanical loads in biology are carried by polymer fibres such as cellulose (plants), collagen (animals), chitin (insects, crustaceans) and silks (spiders's webs). The fibres are bonded together by various substances (polysaccharrides, polyphenols, etc.), sometimes in combination with minerals such as calcium carbonate (mollusk shells) and hydroxyapatite (bone). Their geometrical organization and the degree of interaction between them provide the means of tailoring properties for specific requirements, meeting the necessary functional performance."

No comment yet.