In the dynamic biological system, cells and tissues adapt to diverse environmental conditions and form memories, an essential aspect of training for survival and evolution. An understanding of the biological training principles will inform the design of biomimetic materials whose properties evolve with the environment and offer routes to programmable soft materials, neuromorphic computing, living materials, and biohybrid robotics. In this perspective, we examine the mechanisms by which cells are trained by environmental cues. We outline the artificial platforms that enable biological training and examine the relationship between biological training and biomimetic materials design. We place emphasis on nanoscale material platforms which, given their applicability to chemical, mechanical and electrical stimulation, are critical to bridging natural and synthetic systems.

Carbon microcoils were deposited onto Al2O3 substrates using C2H2/H2 as source gases and SF6 as an incorporated additive gas in a thermal chemical vapor deposition system. At as-grown state, the carbon coils (d-CCs) show the diverse geometry. The geometry-controlled carbon microcoils (g-CMCs) could be obtained by manipulating the injection time of SF6 in C2H2 source gas. The d-CCs with polyurethane (PU) composite (d-CC@PU) and the g-CMCs with PU composite (g-CMC@PU) were obtained by dispersing d-CCs and g-CMCs in PU, respectively. The electromagnetic wave shielding properties of d-CC@PU and g-CMC@PU composites were investigated in the frequency range of 0.25-4.0 GHz. The shielding effectiveness (SE) of d-CC@PU and g-CMC@PU composites were measured and discussed according to the weight percent of d-CCs and g-CMCs in the composites with the thickness of the composites layers. On the whole frequency range in this work, the SE of g-CMC@PU composites was higher than those of d-CC@PU composites, irrespective of the weight percent of carbon coils in the composites and the layer thickness. Furthermore, we confirmed that the absorption mechanism, instead of the reflection mechanism, seemed to play the critical role to shield the EMI for not only the g-CMC@PU composites but also the d-CC@PU composites.

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