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The Unnatural Economy: Reclaiming Nature's 3.8 Billion Year Design Manual 1 The Unnatural Economy - Part 1: The One Percent Solution: Why 3.8 Billion Years of R&D Matters 2 The Unnatural Economy - Part 2: The Spiral Mandate: Why Nature Never Uses a Straight Line 3 The Unnatural Economy - Part 3: Dragging the Past: From Sharkskin to Supersonic Efficiency 4 The Unnatural Economy - Part 4: The Zero-Waste Blueprint: Fungi, Mussels, and Green Chemistry 5 The Unnatural Economy - Part 5: The Corporate Jungle: The High Cost of the "Not Invented Here" Syndrome ← Series Home Key Takeaways Counterintuitive efficiency: Rough sharkskin reduces drag better than smooth surfaces. Fuel savings: 5% drag reduction can save 1,814 tonnes of fuel per ship annually. Whale tubercles: Bumps on flippers enable 40% higher angles of attack. Propulsion breakthroughs: Fish tails achieve 85% efficiency vs. 70% for ship propellers. The Shark Feeding Frenzy The phosphorescent glow of the searchlight cut through the churning water of the Dampier Archipelago, revealing a sight of pure, ruthless biological efficiency: twenty to thirty sharks boiling the ocean, engaged in a violent feeding frenzy. This close encounter underscores the competitive environment that drives biological adaptation to its highest degree. Sharks, compelled to be constantly moving to push water through their gills, are the ultimate result of this evolutionary pressure—a masterclass in hydrodynamic streamlining. Their survival mandates minimal energy use to maximize hunting vigor. ...