For several thousands of years, humanity has availed himself of the freedom to distance himself from the rules of nature, pushing considerably forward in the “torture of nature to find out her secretes” (F. Bacon). We have now reached a point of technological and scientific development from which to enable to start of a new cycle of the natural-artificial relationship: a society that works as an ecosystem among ecosystems. Biomimicry is a science that imitates the natural world in order to reproduce artificially structures, shapes and materials. After almost 10 years from the first draft of this book, the biomimetic science has grown significantly becoming a consolidated research branch in a world in where the contrast between natural and artificial is becoming less and less evident.
The theoretical framework and definitions included in this book can help the reader to approach biomimicry by looking at several possible implications with particular regard to architectural and urban topics.

Giacomo Chiesa, architetto, già assistente volontario presso il Politecnico di Torino, è attualmente assistente presso la cattedra di Architettura tecnica e progettazione industriale del MARKHI di Mosca (“Master dei Talenti”).

Giacomo Chiesa, Ph.D. in Technological Innovation for the Built Environment, is an assistant professor in Architectural Technology at the Politecnico di Torino. He studies environmental and technological design issues with special regards to the relation between nature and artefacts, passive and natural cooling strategies and technological innovation frameworks. Furthermore, He studies the impact of digital technologies on the design practice.