Biologically-Inspired Systems

Motto: Structure and function of biological systems as inspiration for technical developments

Throughout evolution, nature has constantly been called upon to act as an engineer in solving technical problems. Organisms have evolved an immense variety of shapes and structures from macro down to the nanoscale. Zoologists and botanists have collected a huge amount of information about the structure and functions of biological materials and systems. This information can be also utilized to mimic biological solutions in further technical developments. The most important feature of the evolution of biological systems is multiple origins of similar solutions in different lineages of living organisms. These examples should be the best candidates for biomimetics. This book series will deal with topics related to structure and function in biological systems and show how knowledge from biology can be used for technical developments in engineering and materials science. It is intended to accelerate interdisciplinary research on biological functional systems and to promote technical developments. Documenting of the advances in the field will be important for fellow scientists, students, public officials, and for the public in general. Each of the books in this series is expected to provide a comprehensive, authoritative synthesis of the topic.