NatureTech - Episode 02: The Material World

Description

Nature invented a whole range of hi-tec materials long before we invented ceramics and plastics. And not only are they often better, but nature has also invented ingenious ways of building with them. In this programme we travel inside a giant sequoia to find out how nature has built the largest living thing ever, and how that might help us make better bullet-proof vests. In the forests of Central America, the breath-taking, irridescence of a morpho butterfly in flight is all the more amazing when slowed down over a hundred times. It has inspired one cosmetics company to invent an entirely new kind of lipstick -- but more importantly, understanding its dazzling beauty might pave the way for a new revolution in information technology -- photonic crystals -- that would make fibre optic systems obsolete.

NatureTech, a multi-award-winning series, explores "biomimetics" - the science of looking to nature for answers to modern problems. Why are blossoms never dirty and can we also make our cars that way? Why can geckos walk on the ceiling and can we use their tricks to create better adhesives? Why is the spider's web tougher than steel? Exciting new developments in computer technology, chemistry and physics are now enabling us to understand Nature's designs better than ever before. Scientists are not simply trying to copy nature -- they are taking hints, extracting principles and applying winning designs of evolution in a new, human context. Visually, this series is an attractive, fast-paced mix of stunning natural history shots, computer-assisted design and CGI graphics of futuristic inventions, ultra-modern, spacy architecture and high tech as well as scenes of the world's leading designers and engineers at work, all created by the team that made "Limits of Perception".

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