In what was a toss-up with the solar panel spotted salamander, the enslaved silk-producing spider won my attention. Reported by NewScientist, a man by the name of Fritz Vollrath and his Oxford-based team have discovered a way to harvest the natural material that exceeds the strength of our artificial steel by an impressive 20 times. However, the silk acquired is for research purposes and by potentially controversial means.
The producer of the silk is none other than my ultimate phobia, the spider; more specifically, the orb spider. To harvest the silk naturally produced by the orb spider, Vollrath and his team pin down the arachnid and carefully extract an initial strand of silk, wrapping it around a motorized wheel to continue the spider's silk production. This process can continue for up to 8 hours, and with the orb spider's natural silk-spinning rate being 2 centimeters per second, this technique can potentially amass 57,600 centimeters of silk. For those handful of countries still stuck in the customary measurement system (Hey, U.S.!), that's nearly 22,700 inches, approximately 1,900 feet, or a little more than 6 football fields; you get it—a lot of silk.
Of course, the potential for gathering copious amounts of spider silk is great, running the gamut from artificial muscle replacements to stopping a bullet (sort of). And with the breadth of silk that can be acquired being so large, this mode of harvesting spider silk may prove to be the most efficient, albeit ironically time-consuming, process of obtaining the scientifically versatile substance. However, the only "but" to be debated is the ethical issue of detaining the spider for such an elongated period of time in the name of science.
Now, at the end of the day, the spider is released back into its habitat, according to Vollrath, "unharmed," but for up to 8 hours the creature is held captive. Calling this practice exploitation or slavery may be what some may call "extreme," but the basis of the silk extraction process is in alignment with that of actual slavery. Animal rights activists will certainly be opposed to this on principle, but the scientific and practical potential that Vollrath's team could tap into is invaluable. To see the process hands-on, in video format, click on the spider below.
Of course, the potential for gathering copious amounts of spider silk is great, running the gamut from artificial muscle replacements to stopping a bullet (sort of). And with the breadth of silk that can be acquired being so large, this mode of harvesting spider silk may prove to be the most efficient, albeit ironically time-consuming, process of obtaining the scientifically versatile substance. However, the only "but" to be debated is the ethical issue of detaining the spider for such an elongated period of time in the name of science.
Now, at the end of the day, the spider is released back into its habitat, according to Vollrath, "unharmed," but for up to 8 hours the creature is held captive. Calling this practice exploitation or slavery may be what some may call "extreme," but the basis of the silk extraction process is in alignment with that of actual slavery. Animal rights activists will certainly be opposed to this on principle, but the scientific and practical potential that Vollrath's team could tap into is invaluable. To see the process hands-on, in video format, click on the spider below.
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| The orb spider: 6-inch leg span and 600 yards of silk. |
This is really interesting . . . and a bit gross. We hear a lot these days about new materials, including some from nanotech. What do you think the ultimate hopes of the people producing these materials are? Can you foresee any ethical or social problems popping up around these materials? Also, do you feel bad for the spiders? ;-)
ReplyDeleteI found this article fascinating. I've watched a documentary about the enforcement agencies are now experimenting with spider webs to develop a tougher bulletproof vest. I find it interesting when we utilize mother nature's design/concept/produce to our advantage. I've also read and watched how we are using the hexagonal design of a beehive to strengthen a piece of plywood to at least 5x the ordinary strength. I also read about a team of engineers in the military utilizing the way a dragonfly fly to be adapted to a miniaturized drone.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a pretty interesting discovery, especially since the spider remains unharmed throughout the process. I'll admit, the idea is a bit gross, but the potential is definitely there. While it may be unethical to enslave the spider this way, it remains unharmed and could be restricted to only once in a while. Additionally, it's probably more humane that what we do to pigs and cows.
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