ZQ Zygote Quarterly
Article:
Authors:
Spring 2012
The Interviews
Julian Vincent, Jay Baldwin, Maria Mingallon, & Jane Fulton Suri
Interview with Maria Mingallon Structural Engineer, Architect, Researcher & Professor What are your impressions of the current state of biomimicry/bio-inspired design? It is still quite limited when one looks at the number of industries where biomimicry is being considered in the design process. Currently it is applied in very specific industries, where innovation is the key differentiator. This is however not the case in more conservative industries: such as the construction industry. While this could be one of the main candidates that could best benefit from bio-inspired building strategies, it is rare to find people who even know the term biomimicry. What do you see as the biggest challenges? Convincing people that investing in research in biomimicry at early stages of a project can pay off. Also that the majority of the times, we are already looking for inspiration in the natural systems when we design, for example, the drainage system in a highway.
How have you developed your interest in biomimicry/ bio-inspired design? I consider Nature as the best professor in structural engineering. Nature is just a free encyclopedia where we can find answers to pretty much all design challenges. Nature would have already dealt with the issue and tested it over millions of years through evolution. Natural structural typologies, processes of formation, and natural building strategies are my main interests in biomimicry. What is your best definition of what we do? Provide for a forum where specialists in biomimicry and individuals interested on learning from it can share ideas, projects and other initiatives. Essentially becoming a ‘bank’ of data in biomimicry case studies and examples, i.e. a source of inspiration. It will also contribute to help spreading the word on how biomimicry can push the boundaries of current design and construction strategies. What are you working on right now?
What areas should we be focusing on to advance the field of biomimicry? Natural building strategies (including natural structural typologies) and material science are two main ones. If we could ever build like nature does, we would certainly be close to perfection! And worldwide waste will not be an issue anymore. Another interesting area is finding sustainable strategies for producing and saving energy, i.e. not only its production per se but also its efficient management.
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“The Architecture of the Dragonfly Wing: A Study of the Structural and Fluid Dynamic Capabilities of the Anisoptera’s Forewing”. The work presented here is part of a technical paper co-authored by Maria Mingallon (Arup, Senior Structural Engineer) and Sakthivel Ramaswamy (KRR Engineering, Director), published and presented at ASME 2011. The paper outlines the main findings of a broader biomimetics research study undertaken at the Architectural Association as part of the master program in Emergent Technologies and Design. The aim of the research was to derive the adaptable and performative