**3.10 Blastodisc**

*Description*: Blastodisc, also known as a germinal disc, is the embryo-forming portion of an egg with discoidal cleavage usually appearing as a small disc on the upper surface of the yolk mass.

*Functions*: A fertilized blastodisc (now called the blastoderm) grows and becomes the embryo. As it grows, the embryo feeds on the yolk as a food source.


### **Table 2.**

*Summary of functional analysis of an avian egg.*

*Principles for Designing Green, Lean, and Smart Microfactories: Chicken as a Model DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.109645*


**Table 3.**

*Product attributes.*

In **Table 2**, we summarize the functions of the parts of an egg. We use the standard notation of writing the function with a verb and a noun. For example, for the part "bloom" the verb is "seal-off" and the noun is "egg pores." In **Table 3**, the product (egg) attributes are listed.

When we examine "egg" as a product for its green, lean, and smart attributes, the following conclusions emerge.

*Green*: All the materials that are used to manufacture an egg are organic. There are no toxic materials that might pollute or damage the environment. When an egg is discarded into nature, all the materials decompose by the actions of microbes except the shell which is made of calcium carbonate. Some animals and birds might consume eggshells as a calcium supplement. There is no waste. All the materials are upcycled.

*Lean*: Egg shape and all the parts are made of a minimum number of materials and labor to fulfill specific functions summarized in **Table 2**. It is evidently a lean design.

*Smart*: The materials in an egg protect the egg by preventing harmful bacteria at seven different levels in a hierarchical manner [19]. Its design allows good trade-offs between different functions; for example, the pores in the eggshell allow the passage of gas molecules but not liquid material.
