The first thing that comes to mind when thinking about biological organisms and how they relate to building systems is the digestion system of animals. The reason why I think they relate to each other is that buildings require a plumbing system for the that connects to the sewage. If you look at the two images below you can see how the cow digestion system and the building drainage relate to one another. In both cases, there is a course that flows throughout the system that ultimately flushes everything out.
SKIN
I just had a class about material matters and we talked about biomaterials. One of the big questions was how can we bring these materials back into today's building. One of the materials we were talking about was wood. A lot of people like wood but they don't like how it looks after a year. The point I am trying to get across is that the materials on the outside of the building are affected by external factors such as weather and it begins to show wear and tear. This relates to human skin because as we get older and are exposed to harmful external forces such as UV rays, our skin can begin to sag and show the effects of the sun. The way our skin ages is loosely mimicked by the way buildings age. As people, we try to avoid this by using products to keep our skin clear and protected. Similarly for buildings, we are trying to find the best solution to ensure that a building can maintain its look for the longest time.
