• Age: 8 to 12
• Grade: 3 to 7
• Reading age: 8 to 12

Biomimicry examines the extraordinary innovations of the natural world and the human inventions they have inspired. Readers will learn about marvels such as high-performance swimsuits modeled after sharkskin and the sleek front ends of Japanese bullet trains based on the long, streamlined beak of the kingfisher. There's also plenty about what glimmers on the horizon: A Brazilian beetle may be key to developing computers that run on light, and the gecko's humble foot may hold the secret to revolutionizing the way surgical wounds are closed. Best of all, nature's inventions are lean, green machines that are self-sustaining and generate zero waste --- yet another cue humans are taking from the natural world. Astounding facts, easy-to-understand prose and luminous illustrations bring the wonders of nature into the science lab.

Dora Lee lives with her family in Vancouver, Canada. From an early age, she was interested in both science and writing. As she grew older, writing took a backseat to jobs in biotechnology research and development.

Dora Lee's profile page

Margot Thompson is an illustrator of children's books including the award-winning Tree of Life, Sea Monsters, Make a Change: Shapes, and Make a Change: Opposites. She also works as a designer at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

Margot Thompson's profile page

• Short-listed, Norma Fleck Award for Canadian Children's Non-Fiction, Canadian Children's Book Centre
• Short-listed, Green Earth Book Award, Newton Marasco Foundation
• Winner, Best Books for Kids & Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre
• Winner, Outstanding Science Books, National Science Teachers Association
• Commended, Information Book Award, The Children's Literature Roundtables of Canada

An abundant taster of a science book that makes an excellent case for the point of "copying nature".—The Toronto Star

An intriguing collection of invention, engineering and scientific advances and potential developments for readers who like to know a little bit about a lot of things.—Kirkus Reviews

... this book will be of interest not only to budding scientists and science fair hopefuls, but also to those who like a splash of art with their science—School Library Journal

Biomimicry: Inventions Inspired by Nature

Biomimicry is a fascinating look at how human inventions are inspired by nature. As stated in the introduction, “biomimicry is a way of thinking that encourages scientists, inventors and ordinary people to study nature and use its solutions to solve our problems.” Lee shows us many examples of inventions we’ve already taken from nature, such as Velcro, motors and echolocation, and goes on to discuss how we mimic nature in our buildings, medicine, communication, movement, pollution-free power and many other ways. Lee concludes the book with sections that discuss what we’ve learned from – and will continue to discover in – nature about computing, robotics, nanotechnology and sustainable living.

What’s fantastic about this book is the many ways it can be used in the classroom. It could be placed on a shelf for students to pick up and read a section that is of particular interest to them. For students who are already hooked on science, it will be an immediate hit. For those who are rather tenuous science readers, it may just open a door to a new field of reading. Teachers could use it to support various areas of the science curriculum from the primary to intermediate grades as it touches on structures, computing, movement and camouflage, among other topics. Biomimicry is such a fascinating book that, with supporting materials, it could be the basis for an engaging new unit in the science curriculum.

Biomimicry: Inventions Inspired by Nature

A fascinating look at how human inventions are inspired by nature. Lee shows us many examples of inventions we’ve already taken from nature such as Velcro, motors and echolocation and goes on to discuss how we mimic nature in our buildings, medicine, communications, movement, pollution-free power and many other ways. Sections that discuss what we’ve learned from and will continue to discover in nature about computing, robotics, nanotechnology and sustainable living are also included.