Categories: Technology

Slime molds are designing airplane, subway structures that are alive

Globules of living slime molds are implemented to redesign Airbus’s newest partitions for airplanes with an organic intelligence more efficient than its human counterparts.

They’re gooey, they’re slimy, and they are completely revolutionizing how we think about designing networks and structures.

European aircraft manufacturer Airbus announced that it is using slime molds to map out the most structurally sound partitions on their airplanes.

Slime molds are single-celled organisms that grow and spread out to form networks that map out the most effective ways to get from point A to point B while ensuring a structurally-sound grid. Using these slime maps, 3D printing technology is then employed to carry out the bare-bones structural work.

However, in a demo video on Airbus’s website the company revealed that they are looking to a concept cabin that replaces metals and plastic for organic plant material that is lighter, greener, and renewable.

“The cabin’s bionic structure and responsive membrane combines panoramic views with an integrated neural network pulsing through it, which can identify and respond to the specific needs of each passenger. And the fittings and furnishings will take care of their own cleaning and repairs thanks to innovations inspired by nature, like dirt repellent coatings and self healing covers,” says Airbus’s website.

What better model to incorporate than that which has evolved over millions of years on this planet and has the capabilities to learn and subsequently repair or “heal” itself over time?

Slime molds redesign the Tokyo railway system

When faced with a congestion dilemma surrounding the Tokyo railway system in 2010, Japanese scientists turned to nature to sort it out.

Slime molds had already been proven to possess intelligence by successfully navigating mazes to reach food sources in the laboratory. Taking this concept one step further in Japan, scientists then used slime molds to trace out the existing train system with incredible results!

The slime molds actually made new networks that pinpointed the most mathematically efficient connecting nodes that were more efficient than the designs that had been set in place by engineers. While the most efficient links remained in place and strengthened, the remaining less-efficient branches died off, leaving only the optimal routes.

With an energy crisis and natural resources being dwindled through non-renewable and destructive technology, Mother Nature has once again shown us that she is a transient and intelligent being that continues to be a subtle teacher, guiding us into a new era of biotechnology.

Tim Hinchliffe

The Sociable editor Tim Hinchliffe covers tech and society, with perspectives on public and private policies proposed by governments, unelected globalists, think tanks, big tech companies, defense departments, and intelligence agencies. Previously, Tim was a reporter for the Ghanaian Chronicle in West Africa and an editor at Colombia Reports in South America. These days, he is only responsible for articles he writes and publishes in his own name. tim@sociable.co

Recent Posts

AI and the Dopamine Trap: How Algorithms Are Rewiring Our Social Cravings

New research shows AI companions can lift mood and teach social skills, but only when…

1 day ago

Hate speech, deepfakes & false info undermine UN work: comms chief

Hate speech is a launching point for crackdowns on narratives that impede UN agendas: perspective…

2 days ago

Making Sense brings strategic insight to the SIM Hartford Chapter

On June 4, technology executives gathered at the SIM Hartford chapter presided over by Fariba…

3 days ago

‘Digital disinformation undermines trust in climate & health authorities’: WHO Pan European Commission on Climate & Health

The PECCH is an attempt to persuade us into believing that climate & health policies…

5 days ago

WEF ‘Summer Davos’ in China to tackle transhumanism, AI & One Health agendas

The program agenda for the World Economic Forum's (WEF) 16th Annual Meeting of the New…

1 week ago

10 design and architecture writers to put on your radar this year

It’s easy to get caught up in the visuals—perfectly styled rooms, dramatic before-and-afters, bold architectural…

1 week ago