News tagged with spider silk
Scientists crack the spiders' web code
(PhysOrg.com) -- Decorative white silk crosses are an ingenious tactic used by orb-weaving spiders to protect their webs from damage, a new study from the University of Melbourne has revealed.
May 31, 2011 |
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Tarantulas shoot silk from feet
Climbing is possibly one of the riskiest things an adult tarantula can do. Weighing in at anything up to 50gm, the dry attachment systems that keep daintier spiders firmly anchored are on the verge of failure ...
May 16, 2011 |
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Firm uses genetic modification to coax spider silk from silkworms
(PhysOrg.com) -- In what many in the textile industry have for years been calling the holy grail of materials science, genetic engineers from Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc. have succeeded, using Sigma Life ...
Robot fish can trick the real thing
Scientists have long turned to nature for inspiration and innovation. From unlocking the secrets of spider silk to create super-strong materials to taking hints from geckos for new adhesives, clues from the ...
Mar 08, 2011 |
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Scientists unravel the mysterious mechanics of spider silk
Scientists now have a better understanding of why spider silk fibers are so incredibly strong. Recent research, published by Cell Press on February 15th in Biophysical Journal, describes the architecture of silk fibers from t ...
Mar 01, 2011 |
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Scientists untangle spider web stickiness
Ali Dhinojwala and Vasav Sahni consider themselves materials scientists, not biologists. They study surfaces, friction and adhesion. Nevertheless, they have discovered that understanding how nature makes things ...
Dec 03, 2010 |
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Researchers hope to harness power of spider silk
(PhysOrg.com) -- When Peter Parker was bitten by a radioactive spider in a laboratory, he became Spider-Man, a superhero with the ability to spin strong, flexible webs. Jeff Yarger and Gregory Holland are ...
Nov 01, 2010 |
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Nanospheres made of aromatic amino acids: The most rigid organic nanostructures to date
(PhysOrg.com) -- Organic nanostructures are key elements of nanotechnology because these building blocks can be made with tailored chemical properties. Their disadvantage has been that their mechanical properties ...
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Sep 30, 2010 |
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Scientists genetically engineer silkworms to produce artificial spider silk (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- A research and development effort by the University of Notre Dame, the University of Wyoming, and Kraig Biocraft Laboratories, Inc. has succeeded in producing transgenic silkworms capable ...
Sep 29, 2010 |
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Giant spiders cast webs over river using super biomaterial
(PhysOrg.com) -- The antithesis of the itsy-bitsy spider, Caerostris darwini, a giant orb spider and namesake of Charles Darwin, weaves a web of super strength never before seen, says Dr. Todd Blackledge, Leucht ...
Sep 17, 2010 |
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Native-like spider silk produced in metabolically engineered bacterium
Researchers have long envied spiders' ability to manufacture silk that is light-weighted while as strong and tough as steel or Kevlar. Indeed, finer than human hair, five times stronger by weight than steel, and three times ...
Jul 27, 2010 |
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Scientists breed goats that produce spider silk
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers from the University of Wyoming have developed a way to incorporate spiders' silk-spinning genes into goats, allowing the researchers to harvest the silk protein from the goats’ ...
Investigating how spiders spin their silk, researchers unravel a key step
Five times the tensile strength of steel and triple that of the currently best synthetic fibers: Spider silk is a fascinating material. But no one has thus far succeeded in producing the super fibers synthetically. ...
Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry
May 12, 2010 |
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New analysis of the structure of spider silks explains paradox of super-strength
Spiders and silkworms are masters of materials science, but scientists are finally catching up. Silks are among the toughest materials known, stronger and less brittle, pound for pound, than steel. Now scientists ...
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Mar 14, 2010 |
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Here's looking at dew: spiders snare water from the air
Fog-catching nets which provide precious water in rain-starved parts of the world may be poised for a high-tech upgrade thanks to the spider.
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Feb 03, 2010 |
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