Awesome Findings of The Super Survival Master – Spider

Natural evolution offers efficient solutions, as seen in spider silk inspiring innovations in body armor, super small microphone design, and bird-safe glass. #Biomimicry #Innovation

I.Spider Means Good Luck

I recently came across some fascinating news about the super survival master spiders and realized they share similarities with fungi. Both have survived on Earth for millions of years and can inspire innovative designs and solutions beneficial to humans and the environment. Spiders, with their unique survival strategies and long history, feature prominently in stories and creations across various cultures.

In China, spiders are considered auspicious creatures. The shape of a spider resembles the Chinese character “蟢,” which is a homophone for “happiness.” As a result, spiders are affectionately called “蟢子,” and encountering one is seen as a harbinger of good fortune. One of the most delightful beliefs is that when a spider descends on its silk, it symbolizes “good luck falling from the sky,” also known as “happiness falls from the sky.”

II. Spider’s Special Survival Skills

Spiders are unique in their ability to build webs, making them true masters of silk. In Spain, a piece of 110 million-year-old amber was discovered, revealing that spiders may have been weaving webs as far back as 136 million years ago.

Genetic testing showed that the amber contained extinct prey species, such as mites, flies, beetles, and wasps. This discovery suggests that spider webs played a significant role in shaping the evolution of early flying insects.

III. Inspirations of Spider Silk

(1) Artificial Spider Silk for Body Armor

Spider silk is renowned for its high strength, large elongation, high damping capacity, and ultra-light weight, making it ideal for protective applications like body armor, highway guardrails, and high-altitude landings. However, replicating spider silk has proven challenging. Two notable studies are making progress.

Irina Iachina, a postdoctoral researcher at SDU University, and biophysicist Jonathan Brewer used optical microscopes to analyze spider silk’s internal structure and material composition, finding that it consists of tightly packed fibers derived from proteins.

Another study, led by Professor Liu Zunfeng of Nankai University, developed new artificial spider silk using hydrogel fibers, which closely mimics the mechanical properties of natural spider silk.

(2) Miniature Microphone Design Inspired by Spiders

Spiders can “hear” sounds through their webs, offering inspiration for improving microphone design. Current microphones, based on human auditory principles discovered by German doctor Hermann Von Helmholtzd 150 years ago, use a metal diaphragm to mimic the eardrum. These microphones are susceptible to interference from stray air molecules and struggle with background noise in tiny devices like smartwatches.

Mechanical engineer Ron Myers from Binghamton University explores how spiders sense vibrations in air particles through their webs and leg hairs. Spiders detect frequencies from 1 Hz to 50 kHz, far beyond the human range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz. This principle could lead to the development of ultra-small, highly sensitive microphones.

(3) Bird-Safe Architectural Glass

Every year, at least 100 million birds die from window collisions, as they cannot see clear glass and mistake reflections of the sky and trees for open space.

Engineers have drawn inspiration from the UV-reflective threads in spider webs, which birds can see and avoid. Companies like Walker Glass and Vitro Glass have developed bird-safe glass, such as AviProtek, incorporating this reflective technology to prevent bird strikes.

Some Thoughts

Natural evolution often produces the most efficient and least labor-intensive solutions. By observing nature more closely, we can discover innovative and sustainable ways to address human challenges. And Spider silk is just a wonder example to look into.

Related Biomimicary Post

Extended Readings

[1] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ancient-orb-weavers/#:~:text=Recent%20genetic%20and%20fossil%20evidence,and%20Araneoids%2C%20build%20orb%20webs.

[2] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/spiderweb-thread-inspires-ultrasmall-microphones/ 

[3] https://www.hobaudubon.org/window-collisions#:~:text=Researchers%20estimate%20that%20between%20one,glass%20the%20way%20we%20do. 

[4] https://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/these-spiders-use-their-webs-like-huge-silky-ears/ 

[5] https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/sticky-science-the-evolution-of-spider-webs/ 

[6] https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn9389-oldest-spider-web-found-in-amber/ 

[7] https://interestingengineering.com/science/biomimicry-9-ways-engineers-have-been-inspired-by-nature 

[8] https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.10.17.464740v1.full 

[9] https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-019-13257-4 

[10] https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.10.17.464740v1.full

Leave A Comment