Friday, February 3, 2012

A Spiders Secret


Picture of a spider web made by a Darwin's bark spider, a new species said to weave the world's biggest spider webs -- and the strongest
An approximately three-foot-wide (meter-wide) Darwin's bark spider web hangs above a river in Madagascar.



Not many of us see a spider and think, 'that really is some awesome insect'.  Most of us even are scared of the sometimes tiny, for the most part, harmless insects.  But when we are pestered by the fact that we are frightened by something so tiny, we almost always fail to look at the bright side of things.  Did you know that the spider is capable of making a very intricate and ingenious silk, some of the finest in fact of all the silk making insects, which by the way is stronger than steel.  Only lately have scientists actually discovered he essential part of how spiders webs remain so strong, and look so frail.  As you can see in the picture above, this spiders web has only seven supporting strands, but remains hanging despite the tremendous weight of the web.  Most of the time this web will have around thirty large moths trapped in the sticky coating on the silk.  Following is an article from the University of Massachusetts.


Secret Behind the Strength of Spider Webs


Published on February 3, 2012 at 3:23 AM

By Cameron Chai

Research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has revealed that the resilience of spider webs depends not only on the strength of the spider silk but also on its stretchiness and web structure.


Spider Web. Photo: Francesco Tomasinelli and Emanuele Biggi
Associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at MIT, Markus Buehler, along with his colleagues have analyzed the structure of spider webs and found important properties related to the resilience of webs. The findings can help develop better damage-resistant synthetic materials and networked systems.
Spider silk is considered to be stronger than steel and is one among the strongest materials known to man. It derives its robustness from its stretchiness, a property which was considered as a weakness. When pulled, spider silk initially softens and stretches. When the pulling force is increased it stiffens. This property helps the spider silk resist damage.
The research team analyzed the response of materials to stress when they were arranged in a spider web pattern. Materials which initially are stretchy and then become “plastic” and others which performed like linear springs were not as effective in responding to the stresses.
Spider webs have a flaw-tolerant system. Damage that occurs is localized and can be repaired. Even if it is not repaired the web mechanically functions as before. The research team tested their findings on actual webs. Initially, the entire spider web deformed, but later only the threads on which the force was applied stretched out and became stiff. When more force was applied it broke. The team found that the web broke only where it was pulled.
In simulated studies spider webs were nearly able to withstand the strength of a hurricane. Buehler states that the way the spider web gains actual strength is more important than the strength factor itself. Materials with complex, non-linear responses can have significant advantages, he added.
Earthquake-resistant buildings dissipate energy to reduce load on their structure, and when the buildings fail, they fail completely. Based on the spider web principle, future buildings can be designed to flex to a certain level and then allow only certain structural elements to break. This will help the other parts of the building to survive. The building can also be repaired and demolition can be avoided. The same spider web design principles can be applied to armored vehicles and airplanes and networked systems.
The findings of the study have been published in Nature.


FUN FACT!!!! DID YOU KNOW THAT DURING WORLD WARII THE ALLIED FORCES USED THE BLACK WIDOWS SILK FOR THE SIGHTS ON THEIR ARTILLERY GUNS, BECAUSE THEIR WAS NOTHING ELSE THAT COULD STAND UP TO THE CONSTANT VIBRATION, AND JERKING PRESSURE!!!!


11 comments:

  1. WOW! Amazing insects, aren't they??

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  2. Ummm...... do you like spiders????


    -Sarah??:)

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    Replies
    1. i just love spiders. my aunt used to eat daddy long legs with cinnamon when she was little!

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    2. It's not that I love spiders or that I don't love them, it's just that God made an awesome insect, and instead of being scared of them, we should look at how God made an insect that could hopefully one day be used in our world for the better. Jub, do you really love spiders?!..

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    3. like you said it's not that i like them and it's not that i don't like them. It's just that i don't get why pople freak out at the sight of them!

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  3. Yeah, she told me last night.(at Reeds)



    -Sarah??:)

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  4. I'm scared of spiders. Sorry I just can't overcome my fear of spiders or snakes.
    spiders are just kind of creepy and they bite people.
    But yes, God did make an amazing insect.

    -Alexis (cook)

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    Replies
    1. I hate snakes! But I don't mind spiders! :)

      -FAith34

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  5. Hmm, well the nice thing is that living in Michigan, there is only two kinds of spiders that are poisonous, the Black widow, and the Brown Reclues, and thankfully they love dark hideaways, so as long as you keep away from those kinds of places you should be cool, but just in case you have to venture in, the poisonous spiders have distinctive markings. The black widow has a red spot on the underside, and you don't have to flip it over to see it! The Brown Reclues has an hour glass marking on it's back. But the trillions of other spiders we have are perfectly harmless!! There are also only two kinds of snakes that are poisonous.

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    Replies
    1. Well, thats one reason im glad I live in Michigan.

      -Alexis

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  6. What snakes are those???


    -Sarah??:)

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