The Bedtime Scientist

A question

How do spiders make their webs?

A calm, true answer. Then, if the wondering keeps going, the whole episode.

The short answer

They make the silk inside their own bodies as a liquid, and it hardens as it is drawn out. Weight for weight it is stronger than steel and stretchier than rubber.

An orb-weaver begins with a single thread carried on the breeze, builds a frame and the spokes, then walks the spiral. Many eat the old web at dawn and spin a fresh one at dusk, recycling every thread. The web is also a telephone: it reads the vibration of every visitor.

Go deeper tonight

Spiders: Tiny Architects

The full episode, in one calm voice, with nothing that startles.

The episode

Spiders: Tiny Architects

0:00 9:52
Sleep timer

Read the guide for this one in the morning.

This connects to

Patterns

One idea turns up in many different nights. Follow one and the library starts to join up.