Adrian Bejan is the J. A. Jones Distinguished Professor at Duke University. His research is in applied physics, thermodynamics and the Constructal Law as the law of physics that governs organization and evolution in nature. He is the author of 30 books and over 600 peer-reviewed journal articles. In 2001 he was ranked among the 100 most-cited authors in engineering worldwide. He is a member of the Academia Europaea and an honorary member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. He was awarded 18 honorary doctorates from universities in 11 countries.
Adrian Bejan
Participant In These Roundtable Discussions
Sat
Apr 22nd
2017
Apr 22nd
2017
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Design in Nature
This roundtable examines the concept of “design” in nature, considering whether the apparent order, efficiency, and aesthetic coherence of natural forms can be understood without invoking external teleology. It explores how ideas of immanent purpose, as discussed in classical philosophy (e.g., Aristotelian thought), relate to modern perspectives grounded in Darwinian evolution and physical first principles, and whether principles from physics, biology, and complex systems can account for the emergence of functional and adaptive structures in nature.