life inspired

The next step in the 3D printing revolution may be body parts including cartilage, bone and even skin.
BBC News - 'Printing out' new ears and skin

How can architects build a new world of sustainable beauty? By learning from nature. At TEDSalon in London, Michael Pawlyn describes three habits of nature that could transform architecture and society: radical resource efficiency, closed loops, and drawing energy from the sun.

"High-speed footage now reveals that the secret lies in the way fleas use their hind legs as multi-jointed levers. This 'lever-effect' allows fleas to drive their feet onto the ground, and the sudden release of the 'coiled spring' hurls the insect forwards and upwards, scientists report in the Journal of Experimental Biology. [...] Dr Sutton, whose research was funded by the Human Frontiers Research Program, hopes ultimately to design robots that can jump as high as the insects."

News article @ BBC News