Biomimicry

Thirty percent of their roots die and decay each year, adding organic matter to the soil. The remaining two thirds of the roots overwinter, allowing perennials to pop open their umbrella of vegetation first thing in the spring, long before weeds can struggle up from seed.

The new questions should be “Will it fit in?,” “Will it last?,” and “Is there a precedent for this in nature?” If so, the answers to the following questions will be yes: Does it run on sunlight? Does it use only the energy it needs? Does it fit form to function? Does it recycle everything? Does it reward cooperation? Does it bank on diversity? Does

In today’s economy, our definition of success is rapid growth—if you grow faster than your competitor, you win. In tomorrow’s world, winning will mean being more competitive, doing more with less, and being more efficient than your competitor. Companies won’t need to be as big—in fact, it might be more profitable to be small and produce high-qualit

Nature runs on sunlight. Nature uses only the energy it needs. Nature fits form to function. Nature recycles everything. Nature rewards cooperation. Nature banks on diversity. Nature demands local expertise. Nature curbs excesses from within. Nature taps the power of limits.

There are fourteen different shapes of crystal that are possible in all of nature.

James Drake and Stuart Pimm of the University of Tennessee study what it takes to arrive at an assembly of species that remain in equilibrium, a condition farmers would obvously want for their domestic prairie. Unlike The Land staff, they do their experiments with ecosystems in a computer (artificial life) and with aquatic organisms in glass tanks

warm-up for our real break from Earthly orbit—the Petrochemical and Genetic Engineering Revolutions.

The trick is to start with crops that mimic the first successional stage (grasses and legumes), and then add crops that mimic the next stage (perennial shrubs), all the way up to the larger trees—nut crops, for instance.

Hard rain hits this canopy of plants and it either runs gently down the stems or it turns into a mist. By contrast, when rain hits row crops, it strikes exposed soil, packs it, then runs off, taking precious topsoil with it.”