Biological Materials Science and Engineering: Biological Materials, Biomaterials, and Biomimetics

摘要

This second issue of JOM dedicated to biological materials science in 2008 complements the March issue admirably. We remind the reader that the 'bio' field has three prominent components: biological materials--natural materials; biomaterials--synthetic materials used in a biological environment; and biomimetics--bioinspired materials and structures. In the March issue, the importance of biological materials within the framework of materials science and engineering (MSE) was emphasized; it was pointed out that this is not a passing fad but a structural evolution. Figure 1 is a brief historical overview (presented counterclockwise, starting at the top left-hand corner) showing how metallurgy gave rise to materials science and engineering, which expanded from primarily structural materials to functional materials, leading now to biological materials that serve as inspiration for complex hierarchical systems of the future.