In the developing world, builders can’t afford Western-size electricity bills. So to build Zimbabwe’s largest commercial building, Michael Pearce drew inspiration from another system in which energy is at a premium: a termite mound. Using a theory known as architectural biomimicry, Pearce created a structure that maintains a constant temperature using only the passage of air through shafts exactly how the termites do it. Next up: heating systems based on the habits of Alaskan polar bears. (Just kidding.) —CM

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