Newswise — A newly formed research group, Design Innovation From Nature, has launched a research website in response to UC Berkeley's growing interest in biologically inspired structures and systems. The website contains news about current and past research projects, classes that will be taught, dates for a newly launched lecture series, and a blog announcing upcoming events. Visitors to the site can sign up to stay informed about upcoming lectures, reviews, and classes.
The initiative envisions a growing collaboration at UC Berkeley among the Colleges of Environmental Design, Letters and Sciences and Engineering beginning with the Departments of Architecture, Integrative Biology, and Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. Its aim is to support the campus-wide Minor in Design Innovation and to foster the Design at Berkeley Initiative. The overarching goal is to strengthen the university’s expertise in different scientific areas by establishing a truly interdisciplinary and mutual knowledge exchange between students and faculty.
Early investigations into this research program include the courses IB32 – Bioinspired Design and Studio One – Bio-inspired Design and Fabrication. In these classes, biologists, engineers and architects investigate natural role models and transfer underlying design principles into new applications, products, and technologies. These courses and research initiatives try to overcome individual disciplinary efforts and aim to establish a dialogue that could enrich both UC Berkeley’s scientific community and creative culture.
Principle Investigators for this research program include: Assistant Professor of Architecture Simon Schleicher, Professor of Integrative Biology Robert Full and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences Ronald Fearing.
This project is supported by the University of California, Berkeley, Institute of International Studies (IIS) and the Interdisciplinary Faculty Program.
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