October 8th, 2009 by El Ed Mom

Spider-Man isn’t the only person with an interest in spider silk. While Spidey uses the threads to zigzag from building to building, or to snare a bad guy, scientists are investigating silk for different reasons. And though researchers have learned a lot about silk by investigating spiders, insects such as caterpillars, ants and bees also have been studied for the sticky stuff. Scientists are even trying to get silk from animals such as goats.

It turns out silk might be good for weaving a lot more than shirts and ties. In the future, the silky fiber might be used to make supertough bulletproof vests and light but strong parachute cords. Silk also might work well for delicate tasks inside the body. Researchers are experimenting with using silk to support growing cells, the same way a construction crew builds scaffolding around a building to help keep everything in its place during construction. Silk might be a good material to give growing cells something to hang on to. 

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