 Bio Inspired
16 May 2013
"Flowers" self-assemble from basic chemistry
By simply manipulating chemical gradients in a beaker of fluid, researchers at Harvard have found they can control the growth behavior of crystals to create beautiful, precisely tailored nanostructures...
14 April 2013
Successful transplant of bioengineered rat kidney
Bioengineered rat kidneys have successfully produced urine both in a laboratory apparatus and after being transplanted into living animals. The scientists behind the breakthrough believe that with further work, bioengineered kidneys could someday replace donor kidneys...
10 September 2012
Fungi make modern violin sound like a Stradivarius
A Swiss researcher has succeeded in using fungi to modify the wood in a violin to make it sound indistinguishable from a Stradivarius...
9 August 2012
Hamburger-shaped raindrops creating twin rainbows
Computer simulations have allowed scientists to identify the curiously named "burgeroid" raindrop as being responsible for a rare optical phenomenon known as the twinned rainbow...
23 July 2012
Artificial jellyfish shows new route to synthetic organisms
Using only silicon and cultured rat heart muscle tissue, bioengineers have created a jellyfish-like creature that, despite its relative simplicity, shows complex swimming and feeding behaviors...
20 April 2012
Heredity and evolution seen in synthetic DNA
DNA and RNA possess two features believed essential for life: they display heredity and they can adapt over time. Now, scientists have shown that heredity and evolution can be performed by molecules other than DNA and RNA...
9 January 2012
Insect cyborgs get onboard power source
Attaching tiny sensors, recording devices and control mechanisms to insects is now a more realistic prospect after the discovery that electricity can be generated using the insect's digestive system...
21 September 2011
Proton-based transistor could control biological processes
Transistors that control electron flow are the foundation of electronic gadgets, but a new type of transistor that controls proton flow could allow the creation of devices that can communicate directly with living things...
22 July 2011
Mushy memory brings biocompatible electronics a step closer
A new generation of biocompatible electronic devices may be in the offing with the development of a memory device that is soft and functions well in wet environments...
21 July 2011
Artificial neural network created from DNA
Caltech researchers have made an artificial neural network out of DNA, creating a circuit of interacting molecules that can recall memories based on incomplete patterns, just as the human brain can...
23 September 2010
Human-powered ornithopter flaps into record books
"Snowbird", a human-powered aircraft with flapping wings, has become the first of its kind to be capable of sustained flight, say its creators at the University of Toronto. The ornithopter maintained both altitude and airspeed for 19 seconds, and covered a distance of 145 meters at an average speed of 26 kilometers per hour...
15 September 2010
Artificial ovary nurtures human eggs to maturity
Using a 3D Petri dish, researchers have built an artificial human ovary that can grow precursor cells into mature human eggs in the laboratory...
4 June 2009
Biologically inspired, ultra-broadband chip could enable "cognitive" radio
A radio chip modeled on the human inner ear can efficiently process a broad spectrum of signals including cell phone, wireless Internet, radio and television; an achievement that could usher in what the developers call "cognitive" radio...
6 October 2008
Researchers get amped over artificial electric eel cells
Researchers say that by applying modern engineering design tools to one of the basic units of life, artificial cells could be built that not only replicate the electrical behavior of electric eel cells but in fact improve on them...
22 August 2008
Growing A Home With "Plantware"
A bus-stop that grows its own foliage as shade? A house built from living tree roots that provides natural protection against earthquakes? These concepts may be science fiction today, but Israeli scientists say that fully functional "plantware" may be only a decade away...
18 August 2008
Bio-Engineered Yeast Cranks Out Drugs
Chemical engineers at Caltech have used various plant genes to genetically modify common baker's yeast to produce large quantities of drugs, including antibiotics, nicotine, and even morphine...
24 July 2008
The Visual Cortex Goes Digital
A cognitive scientist is developing pictorial representations of digital circuits which he says can turn our eyes and visual cortex into a powerful, programmable digital computer...
20 May 2008
The Photonic Bug
Creating an ideal "photonic crystal" to manipulate visible light in optical computers may now be possible; thanks to a beetle from Brazil whose shimmering, iridescent green scales provide the ideal, diamond-like crystalline structure...
15 April 2008
Laser Used To Get Thundercloud Sparking
Using a powerful ground-based laser, European scientists were able to induce electrical activity in thunderclouds, a precursor to producing lightning strikes on demand...
7 April 2008
Computer Recognizes Attractiveness In Women
Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but what if the beholder is a software program?
30 January 2008
Pimped Bacterium Churns Out Hydrogen
Deleting six genes in E. coli's DNA has transformed the bacterium into an extremely efficient hydrogen-producing factory that's powered by sugar...
18 January 2008
Flexible Electronics Melded With Contact Lens Creates Bionic Eye
Scientists have combined a flexible, biologically safe contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights...
12 November 2007
Evolutionary Algorithms Used To Design A Better Leaf
A computer model of a plant has been created that produces more leaves and fruit without needing extra fertilizer...
27 July 2007
Biologists Create Gene "Dimmer Switch"
A tunable genetic switch based on RNAi and repressor proteins can be used to turn on, shut off, or partially activate a gene's function...
30 May 2007
Cooking Up Memories
Experimental work from Israel has shown that it's possible to store multiple rudimentary memories in an artificial culture of live neurons...
4 May 2007
IBM Demos Self-Assembling Chip Turbocharger
Using self-assembling nanotechnology to create insulating vacuums, researchers have boosted signal throughput in computer chips by 35 percent...
1 May 2007
Synthetic Snot Enhances Artificial Nose
UK researchers have used artificial nasal mucus to significantly enhance the performance of an electronic "nose"...
20 February 2006
When Efficient Flight’s A Drag
If human engineers had designed the dragonfly’s method for flight they’d likely be inordinately proud. And one scientist thinks that dragonflies could point the way for the aircraft of the future...
15 December 2005
GM Tomatoes May Pave Way For Other Drought Resistant Crops
Consumers may still have lingering concerns about GM foods, but scientists are pushing ahead with new genetically modified plants that they say could revolutionize agriculture...
24 November 2005
GM Bacteria Creates Living Photographs
Using genetically engineered E. coli, students have successfully created the first-ever bacterial photographic paper...
31 October 2005
New Research Center Aims To Plagiarize Nature
Some of man’s most elegant technological developments have been inspired by Mother Nature, so it’s not surprising that a new research center has been established specifically to develop new technologies based on the natural world...
28 July 2005
Crop Diagnosis With Polarized Light
Indicators of plant health, usually invisible to the naked eye, can be made visible using polarized light. Real-time control of fertilizer application using this technology could save the agricultural industry billions and prevent algal blooms...
18 July 2005
Shark Skin Sloop
Covering ship hulls with artificial shark skin could help ships sail more smoothly by stopping pesky barnacles from attaching to the hull...
30 June 2006
Designed By Mother Nature
Developing a new technology from scratch is a complex and time consuming business, so wouldn't it be handy if scientists had a pre-existing blueprint at their disposal? As it happens, they do, and fortuitously it exists all around us: nature. And using nature as your template provides the added bonus of not having to worry about pesky patents. The science of copying nature, known as biomimetics, is not altogether new - think radar, Velcro and da Vinci's flying machines - but it is garnering increasing attention, with anything from the biomechanics of frog legs, to the sensing ability of rat's whiskers, being used as a basis for new inventions...
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