Latest spider web Stories
Rayshell Clapper for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online After learning about human genetic engineering, many readers might want to find out about some examples of genetic engineering. Both bizarre and beneficial, the following article highlights some truly fascinating and pragmatic examples of modern genetic engineering. The Biotechnology Forums, a website for professionals and students in biotechnology (the area that studies genetic engineering) recently explained some of these...
Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online Movies and comic books are primarily based on fantasy, but a new study shows how one particular concept involving Spider-Man might be more feasible than most superpowers. University of Leicester physics students found Spider-Man's webbing strength would hypothetically be strong enough to stop a moving train. In the movie Spider-Man 2, the Marvel comic character uses his webs to help stop a runaway train before it plummets off the...
Researcher and team are the first to measure all of the elastic properties of an intact spider's web, drawing a remarkable picture of the behavior of one of nature’s most intriguing structures. The work could lead to new “bio-inspired” materials that improve upon nature. As fibers go, there’s never been anything quite like spider silk. Stretch it. Bend it. Soak it. Dry it out. Spider silk holds up. It is five times stronger than steel and can expand nearly a third greater than its...
Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online Scientists are unraveling the mysteries of what makes the fiber that spiders spin five times as strong as piano wire. A team from Arizona State University found a way to obtain a wide variety of elastic properties of the silk from several spiders' webs using non-invasive laser light scattering techniques. "Spider silk has a unique combination of mechanical strength and elasticity that make it one of the toughest materials we...
Lawrence LeBlond for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online The ultraviolet decorations and intricate patterns of the orb-weaver spider’s web is used to attract food, say scientists from the University of Incheon, whose studies of a common orb-weaver spider species are published in the journal Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Researchers suggest that the UV light-reflecting patterns seen in the webs of orb-weavers, particularly the Wasp Spider, could trick flying insects into landing...
HELSINKI, Finland, August 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Helsinki Festival [http://www.helsinkifestival.fi ], the largest arts festival in Finland has this year enlisted the help of the nation's spiders. The 2012 Festival is bringing Tomas Saraceno, one of the hottest names on the current international art [http://www.helsinkifestival.fi ] scene, to the Finnish capital [http://www.helsinkifestival.fi ]. Saraceno's enormous 3D works are based on a variety of spider webs. The...
Scientists report that they have solved the riddle of how spider webs can withstand different levels of stress - including hurricane force winds - without collapsing. Researchers, led by Markus Buehler of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), used computer simulations to find out how silk structures respond to different levels of stress. What they found was quite remarkable. Reporting in the journal Nature, the researchers found that web durability does not only rely on silk...
Researchers have shown for the first time how Golden orb web spiders (Nephila antipodiana) add a chemical to their web silk to repel invading ants. The finding adds a chemical defense to the impressive properties of spider silk, already known to be very strong, elastic and adhesive, and may provide new opportunities for pesticide design. The study was led by researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and the University of Melbourne, and is published in the journal...
Young house spiders weave webs with perfect angles and regular patterns, but as they reach old age their webs deteriorate, showing gaping holes and erratic weaving.By using spiders as a simple model this research may provide insight into how age affects behavior in other organisms, including humans.The reason web building skills are lost as spiders grow older may be due to degeneration of the central nervous system. PhD researcher, Mylène Anotaux, from Nancy University in France, says...
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.The team, led by Dr Andre Walter and Professor Mark Elgar from the University of Melbourne's Department of Zoology, found that orb-weaving spiders respond to severe damage to their webs by building bigger silk crosses, but if the damage is mild they don't bother adding extra decoration.Professor Mark Elgar said web...
Latest spider web Reference Libraries
The Golden Silk Spider (Nephila clavipes) is a species of orbweaver spider. It is found in the warmer regions of the Americas. In the United States, this species ranges throughout the coastal southeast and inland, from North Carolina to Texas. In many areas its distribution is somewhat localized and may be absent in many areas over wide areas. In some arboreal or swampy areas, adults and their webs can be found in large concentrations, especially near the coast. This species is also...
The Autumn Spider (Metellina segmentata) is a species of spider that has a Palearctic distribution and has been introduced to Canada. Adults are normally found from August to October. The preferred habitat is open wood edges or gardens. This is one of the most common orb-weaving spiders. The web of this spider has no threads at its center. Most webs are built low above the ground. The spider sits at the center during the day for long periods of time. Sometimes it will hide at the edge and...
The Black House Spider (Badumna insignis) is a species of arachnid that is found in Australia. It is found throughout much of Australia and prefers urban habitat mostly. They build their webs on tree trunks, logs, rock walls, and buildings (walls crevices and window frames). In the bush, this species prefers trees with rough bark which provide good shelter. Trees that have been attacked by wood-boring insects are also make good homes for this species, as the sap flowing from the bored holes...
