Can you actually swing from spider silk?

Veritasium

Summary

This video investigates the real-world science behind spider silk, comparing its physical properties to steel and Kevlar. The host explores why spider silk is so tough, how it is produced by spiders, and the challenges researchers face in trying to replicate it at an industrial scale using transgenic organisms like silkworms. Finally, the host puts the material to a practical test to see if it can withstand the forces experienced during a human swing, similar to Spider-Man.

Chapters

  1. 0:00Introduction to spider silk testing
  2. 0:17Spider-Man physics and real spider webs
  3. 0:58Diverse types of spider silk
  4. 2:05Testing dragline silk strength
  5. 4:31Comparing specific strength to steel
  6. 5:01The importance of material toughness
  7. 7:37Molecular structure of spidroins
  8. 8:47Early attempts at spider silk harvesting
  9. 9:34The problem with farming spiders
  10. 10:55Genetic modification experiments
  11. 11:46Processing proteins in the spinning duct
  12. 15:23Silkworms and industrial espionage
  13. 17:02Creating transgenic silkworms
  14. 22:10The future of spider silk applications
  15. 22:40The ultimate swinging test

Topics covered

  • Structural mechanics of spider silk
  • Comparing silk, steel, and Kevlar

+4 more topics (full content when you follow the channel)

Transcript excerpt

- This is the largest amount of spider silk that's ever been put together for a test like this. So I'm gonna put it to the ultimate test, and try to be the first person ever to swing from spider silk. I don't know if it's going to hold my weight, so let's see. In three, two, one. (Derek yelling) - In "Spider-Man Two," Peter Parker is on a runaway train full of passengers. And to stop it from derailing, he stands in front of the train, fires webs at the buildings around him, and holds on. The webs stretch, some of them snap, but they do just enough to slow down the train and save everyone on board. It sounds like something straight out of a comic book. But real spider silk, the fiber that makes up a spider's web, well, it truly might be this incredible. It's reportedly stronger than steel. It's pretty strong. That's crazy! And 10 times tougher than Kevlar. To find out if that's really tru…