bionicsn.
/bʌɪˈɒnɪks/, U.S. /baɪˈɑnɪks/ With singular agreement. The branch of science and technology that deals with the design and creation of electromechanical systems or devices that function in a similar way to (parts of) living organisms, esp. (in later use) those intended to replace or augment parts of a human body.
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society > occupation and work > study of work > [noun] > technology or technography > other branches
bionics1960
zygology1970
alternative technology1972
nanotechnology1974
softnomics1983
nano1987
nanotech1990
1960 J. E. Steele in Proc. Nat. Aeronaut. Electronics Conf. 218/1 The title of this session is Bionics. This is a new term referring to a relatively new but rapidly expanding area of activity—the study of systems which function after the manner of or in a manner characteristic of or resembling living systems.
1973 Press-Courier (Oxnard, Calif.) 7 Mar. 32/2 ‘The Six Million Dollar Man’. A test pilot..is ‘remade’ through a science called bionics into a superman, superior to the flesh and blood man he was before.
1981 W. H. Middendorf What Every Engineer should know about Inventing viii. 68 The adaptation method..has spawned research in an area called bionics, which is the study of living things as engineering prototypes.
1994 Eng. Jrnl. 83 81/1 They are experimenting with bionics and some day Kevin, thanks to their research, will be given a new body.
2007 Reading (Pa.) Eagle (Nexis) 13 Feb. Technology soon will be available to create a hybrid implant that combines the best of bionics with regular hearing aids.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online December 2021).
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n.1960