“Silk: A World History” describes the unique qualities of silk that make it a sustainable material with a wide variety of applications. The following is an excerpt from Silk: A World History by ...

Japan-based biochemist Ali Malay has long questioned traditional theories about how spiders make their silk. “The prevailing hypotheses seemed like magic, because, according to it, you suddenly have ...

Spider silk is one of the strongest materials in nature. Because of this, silk has been used in battle to protect warriors and soldiers from injuries. But could spider silk stop a bullet? Darwin’s ...

Somewhere in Michigan, 10,000 silkworms are spinning the future of supermaterials. They labor in the thick air of a warm, humid warehouse, pulling a sticky white strand from a gland in their face and ...