Page 276 - The Origin of Birds and Flight

274 The Origin of Birds and Flight

SCIENTISTS ARE INSPIRED BY INSECTS’ FLIGHT SYSTEMS
Many research institutions aim to develop technology by imitating
living beings in nature. (For details see, Harun Yahya, Biomimetics:
Technology Imitates Nature, Istanbul: Global Publishing, March 2006).
Most of the robots and devices developed in recent years were in-
spired by nature. Insects are most frequently imitated, especially their
exceedingly successful flying techniques. In recent years, Charles
Ellington (a professor from Cambridge University), Robert Michelson (a
research engineer from the Georgia Technical Research Institute) and
others have shown that insects take advantage of their wings being very
small by establishing vortexes that a plane never can—vortexes that they
use during take-off and flight. 244