Nothing Special   »   [go: up one dir, main page]
You seem to have javascript disabled. Please note that many of the page functionalities won't work as expected without javascript enabled.
 
 
Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
3.5
3.4
Journals
Biomimetics
Special Issues
Biomimetic Process and Pedagogy: Second Edition
share announcement

Biomimetic Process and Pedagogy: Second Edition

A special issue of Biomimetics (ISSN 2313-7673).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 5697

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Jacquelyn K. Nagel

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA 22807, USA
Interests: bio-inspired design process; methods and tools; bio-inspired design pedagogy; engineering design theory; mechatronics; automation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biomimetics is a design philosophy that encourages us to learn from nature and results in the discovery of non-conventional solutions to problems that are often more efficient, economic, and elegant. Taking inspiration from nature has made (and can make) valuable contributions to a wide range of areas, including engineering, architecture, materials science, and business. Although this approach is gaining credibility, questions of how to best support the process of biomimetics or teach biomimetics remain.

This Special Issue aims to collate theoretical, experimental, and review contributions from a multidisciplinary community of engineers, biologists, technologists, industrial designers, psychologists, social scientists, cognitive scientists, environmental scientists, and all others who work in the areas of biomimetic processes and pedagogy. We hope that this Special Issue will provide insight into the state of the art of how biomimetics is performed and taught.

Submissions related, but not limited, to the following areas are highly encouraged:

  • Standards of practice for biomimetics;
  • Processes of biomimetics;
  • Tools and methods that support biomimetic processes;
  • Pedagogical strategies and frameworks of biomimetics;
  • Education and training in the field of biomimetics.

Dr. Jacquelyn K. Nagel
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomimetics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bio-inspired design
  • biomimetic design
  • process
  • standards
  • methods
  • pedagogy
  • design study
  • education
  • training

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

18 pages, 3351 KiB  
Article
Examining an Evolving Biologically Inspired Design Professional Learning Environment through Conjecture Mapping and Design-Based Research
by Abeera P. Rehmat, Alexandra A. Towner, Meltem Alemdar, Michael E. Helms, Jeffrey H. Rosen, Roxanne A. Moore and Marc J. Weissburg
Biomimetics 2024, 9(8), 468; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9080468 - 2 Aug 2024
Viewed by 865
Abstract
Biologically inspired design (BID) in engineering is a convergent, systematic approach that uses analogies from biological organisms to develop solutions for human engineering and design problems. Based on outcomes from prior studies of integrating BID in higher education, incorporating BID into pre-college education [...] Read more.
Biologically inspired design (BID) in engineering is a convergent, systematic approach that uses analogies from biological organisms to develop solutions for human engineering and design problems. Based on outcomes from prior studies of integrating BID in higher education, incorporating BID into pre-college education is a logical evolution. For effective BID instruction of these convergent concepts in pre-college education, teachers need to be well-equipped with biological, engineering, and pedagogical knowledge, both in general and those unique to the convergent, still evolving discipline. In this paper, we investigate the Professional Learning (professional learning) environment designed to foster engineering teachers’ understanding of BID integration in engineering and to determine to what extent the evolving professional learning environment fostered engineering teachers’ conceptual knowledge of BID across the three-year project. This design study applies conjecture mapping with design-based research (DBR) to examine a professional learning environment that changed over three summers and its impact on teachers’ conceptual understanding of BID integration in engineering. The analysis indicates that a combination of experiential and informal learning experiences along with engagement in a formal design challenge promoted teacher enthusiasm and a conceptual understanding of BID across the three years. Professional learning fostered teachers’ understanding of BID integration in engineering and enabled them to integrate BID into their engineering teaching practice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetic Process and Pedagogy: Second Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Generalized conjecture map for educational design research [<a href="#B27-biomimetics-09-00468" class="html-bibr">27</a>].</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>An evaluation cycle using design-based research and conjecture mapping.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Embedded design cycles of the professional learning across the three years.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Original conjecture map of the professional learning environment.</p> Full article ">Figure 5
<p>The 2020 professional learning environment conjecture map [<a href="#B11-biomimetics-09-00468" class="html-bibr">11</a>].</p> Full article ">Figure 6
<p>The 2021 professional learning environment conjecture map [<a href="#B11-biomimetics-09-00468" class="html-bibr">11</a>].</p> Full article ">Figure 7
<p>The 2022 professional learning environment conjecture map.</p> Full article ">
13 pages, 13633 KiB  
Article
Is a Forest Fire a Natural Disaster? Investigating the Fire Tolerance of Various Tree Species—An Educational Module
by Olga Speck and Thomas Speck
Biomimetics 2024, 9(2), 114; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9020114 - 15 Feb 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4126
Abstract
Wildfires are unplanned conflagrations perceived as a threat by humans. However, fires are essential for the survival of fire-adapted plants. On the one hand, wildfires cause major damage worldwide, burning large areas of forests and landscapes, threatening towns and villages, and generating high [...] Read more.
Wildfires are unplanned conflagrations perceived as a threat by humans. However, fires are essential for the survival of fire-adapted plants. On the one hand, wildfires cause major damage worldwide, burning large areas of forests and landscapes, threatening towns and villages, and generating high levels of air pollution. On the other hand, fire-adapted plants (pyrophytes) in the fire landscapes of the Earth are able to survive exposure to heat (e.g., because of their thick bark, which protects their living tissue) and benefit from fire directly (e.g., fire initiates cone opening and seed release) or indirectly (e.g., fewer competing plants of fire-sensitive species remain, seeds germinate in the ash-fertilized soil). We present the experimental set-up and results of a fire experiment on bark samples used as a basis to assess the fire tolerance of various trees. Fire tolerance is defined as the ability of a tree to survive a surface fire (up to 200 °C and 5 min duration). The measure of the fire tolerance for a tree species is the time taken for the vascular cambium under the insulating bark to reach the critical temperature of 60 °C. Within an educational module, we provide worksheets for teachers and students enabling them to analyze the fire tolerance of various tree barks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetic Process and Pedagogy: Second Edition)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Number of wildfires and burned area (in km<sup>2</sup>) per year in (<b>a</b>) European Mediterranean countries (EUMED 5 = Portugal, Spain, southern France, Italy, and Greece) and (<b>b</b>) North America including Alaska and Hawaii. Total number of wildfires (blue) with polynomial trend line (orange), total burnt area (red) with linear trend line (black) (data from [<a href="#B8-biomimetics-09-00114" class="html-bibr">8</a>,<a href="#B10-biomimetics-09-00114" class="html-bibr">10</a>]).</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>The type of forest fire depends on whether the ground with the roots, the surface with the undergrowth, and/or the crown are burning. In a flying fire, pieces of vegetation are carried by the wind far beyond the fire front. A ladder fire arises when low-growing burning vegetation carries the fire to taller vegetation. Burning structures are shown in red.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Giant sequoias (<span class="html-italic">Sequoiadendron giganteum</span>) in the Yosemite National Park, CA, USA. (<b>a</b>) The tree bark is undamaged, (<b>b</b>) the tree shows signs of fire damage but is still alive.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Schematic drawing of the cross-section of a tree trunk (not to scale). The vascular cambium is the layer of tissue in which cell division takes place. It forms secondary xylem (wood) inwards. All tissue layers outside the vascular cambium are referred to as bark and include the secondary phloem and the periderm. The periderm is a secondary covering that consists (from the outside to the inside) of cork (phellem), cork cambium (phellogen) and living cells (phelloderm). The bark has a surface structuring with indentations of various depths (Adapted from [<a href="#B27-biomimetics-09-00114" class="html-bibr">27</a>]).</p> Full article ">Figure 5
<p>Experimental set-up for fire-tolerance analyses in the fume cupboard. A bark sample (1) is clamped (2) at a height of 43 cm over (3) a Bunsen burner with a flame length of about 20 cm. Additionally, the Bunsen burner can be protected by a hollow aluminum cylinder (indicated as “see-through” in the picture). The flame temperature is measured by (4) a thermocouple, and the temperature of the inner bark surface, i.e., the position of the cambium in the living tree, is measured in a contactless manner by (5) an infrared thermometer (position indicated). Data are recorded via (6) a computer. Time is measured by (7) a stopwatch. As a precaution, (8) a bucket of water should be available to throw in any bark samples that catch fire.</p> Full article ">Figure 6
<p>Fire tolerance of various bark samples. The time <math display="inline"><semantics> <msub> <mi>τ</mi> <mn>60</mn> </msub> </semantics></math> is given as a function of bark thickness. (<b>a</b>) Samples were stored at 100% relative humidity. The values for the giant sequoia are not shown within the graph because all samples had not reached the temperature of 60 °C after 5 min. This is indicated by the arrow. (<b>b</b>) Samples that were dried and stored at 0% relative humidity.</p> Full article ">Figure 7
<p>Frequency of forest fires in the natural habitats of the studied tree species are given together with the mean values of the degree of structuring and of the density of their bark. The bar chart displays the mean values and the standard deviations.</p> Full article ">
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop