Bioinspired How Nature Made Us Modern, Drives Technological Innovation, and Inspires a Future Worth Inventing

The human species is recognized for its intelligence and creativity, but where do these stand-out smarts come from? Our celebrated brains play a role, but it turns out something else altogether is going on. This fascinating natural history of modern humankind lays out a compelling case for how nature plays an outsized yet largely unsung role in human progress and innovation. From the wildly famous inventor who traveled with a dismembered ear in his suitcase, to why popular music makes us want to dance, Stier’s exploration of how various aspects of technology and culture came to be will astonish readers, one revelation after another. At once a paradigm-shaking analysis of humanity’s technological history, and a guide map to future human prosperity, Bioinspired will sweep you up and, ultimately, deposit you somewhere different, before an entirely new horizon.
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Samuel Cord Stier is a recognized expert on the subject of biologically inspired innovation. He first fell in love with Nature as a child catching frogs in the wilds of Iowa. This passion led him to study biology and natural resource management and work as a backcountry ranger with the U.S. Forest Service. As a Peace Corps volunteer, he studied flying foxes in the Philippines and started that country’s first natural history museum. A lecture by Janine Benyus, co-founder of the Biomimicry Institute, led him down a new path, consulting on sustainability with corporations and leading youth education initiatives. He founded The Center for Learning with Nature and developed award-winning curricula on the topic, which are now used across the United States and in over 70 countries worldwide. He has also held faculty appointments in sustainable design at Otis College of Art and Design and in engineering at Texas Tech University. Sam and his family live alongside a chatty creek in Montana.