Rare Spider Silk on Exhibit at AMNH

[Primus1motor]

Does it stop crossbow bolt? If not then it has no use!

[tricecold]

they made this for Legolas

[lyric142]

... I want to touch it!

[rkmugen]

I would've thought they'd have the chemical composition of the spider silk by now (2011, going into 2012) so it can be mass produced....

[ZEINSTAIN2011]

unike but cant vacummed!

[pdxeddie1111]

I dont know how good a bulletproof vest it would make since the stuff stretches so much but I think it would be awesome as an inner skin to a spacecraft or aircraft. going through space and you hit a debris cloud where it goes through the outer layer but the inner skin stops it from puncturing.

[thehungrynunu]

i wonder how it would feel to rub one out on that using it

[ben10150]

Why didn't spider man ever make his suit out of this?

[huntman1412]

@ben10150 I think he did.

[BeortheMad]

Google 2.6g 329m/s, it's spidersilk cloth embedded in human skin creating bulletproof skin. A really exciting project.

[JackRendar]

I would not be surprised if this thing is bullet proof XD

[Be4TinGyoU]

It look's like they'll be making stuff from spider silk very soon as biologists have just genetically engineered the silk worm that can now make silk similar to a spider in mass quantities.

[CardShowOff]

I heard this thing is stronger than steel. But I personally don't know..

[Kaduos]

@CardShowOff There are varying degrees of spider silk strength. Tensile strength, in general, is comparable to steel (how far it can be stretched before deforming permanently), extremely ductile (stretching before breaking), and the strongest known silk (Darwin's Bark Spider) is 10 times tougher than Kevlar, though most silks are just comparable to kevlar, if a little less.

[amoredecoeur]

wonder how much he/she was paid to produce that...????

[HOLLISKID23]

Bucket list #67

:Touch the spider silk.

[dragonamt]

It cost $500,000,000 of Peers and Godly's own money just to make it, Its estimated net worth is something like 3.2 million dollars is what I think they said on the Nova special.

[mgregggphone]

@dragonamt Do you have a source for that? I can't imaging that 1/2 billion is anywhere correct.

[mgregggphone]

@dragonamt Do you have a source for that info? I can't imaging that 1/2 billion is anywhere correct.

[dragonamt]

@mgregggphone I am sorry, I meant $500,000. I am not sure where I got those extra zeros from, that would clearly be absurd (well, actually I think 500000 for a shawl is absurd anyway, but, you know...)

[evjcc]

you know that people will want to make clothes out of this and then spiders are going to get used.

[kiwambathegiant]

does anyone know the typical breaking force for spider silk?

i'm doing an A level project and would really appreciate some help.

[larry89]

cant wait to wear some spider silk clothing! lol

[TerraRone]

It's probably not still on exhibit now, but if it were, the great distance I live from this museum is the only thing that is stopping me from going to jail. I would be completely unable to resist trying to break the glass and touch it, just out of pure, irresistible curiousity.

[EVLWNS]

If and when I become World Emperor, I'm going to have my royal clothes made out of this material. That way I'll both be bullet proof and look completely awesome.

[geogodley]

how did you count a million spiders?

[arteres14]

Made in Madagascar, produced in Madagascar, never shown to Madagascar.

Simon Peers takes and does not share. This is very unfortunate.

[arteres14]

Made in Madagascar, produced in Madagascar, never shown to Madagascar.

Simon Peers takes and does not share. This is very unfortunate.

[zub1964]

I want to watch this but can't.... Damn, I hate being arachnophobic ! The very thought of where this beautiful silk comes from.... EEK !!

[abracadaverous]

@zub1964 Go ahead and watch! They don't show any spiders.

[Dragonese1]

This is the most breathtakingly beautiful creation I have ever viewed. A joint project

as it were between man and creature. As I thought of the article I had seen in the

paper some time ago, I prayed it would be on You Tube....and it was. Thank you so much for sharing.

[aka4512]

It's awesome but i think i will pass this spider silk.

[MrLuvlyJubly]

0:40 the only one in the world? Unique in the world? Why are you touching it?

[ksidruh]

@MrLuvlyJubly Because it's comparable to kevlar in terms of it's strength so he's unlikely to damage it. =o

[MrLuvlyJubly]

@ksidruh The David by Michelangelo is made of Marble the hardest metamorphic rock known to man, yet you can't get within 20 feet of the statue. Why? It is the only one of it's type, it's a master piece like this textile.

[moonboots69]

there ! you see...? spiders are useful to us... they make lovely towels & blankets..

don't squash 'em no more !!

[BeechDeux]

@BeechDeux This comment is not spam, keytoothed just marked it as such because he does not want people to know what he is doing to this unfortunate woman, rememberthediamonds, that he has created a hate campaign against.

[lemurbaby]

I noticed the same thing as Pattypop45 - these guys are completely floored by this ingenious work of art. The arts and culture of Madagascar have always struck me as among the richest in the world, but this takes the cake. And it's good to know those golden orb spiders are good for something... Yikes!

[MorganKnives]

That's creepy and awesome at the same time...

[reeding]

is it kinda sticky?

[76547890]

Amazing! Thanks for the vid.

[pattypop45]

the guy with the glasses is so stoked on the silk he can barely speak. I love his enthusiasm

[lialammas]

From this moment to the future I rather buy clothes made by real spiders then designers and man made machines.

[ghostgirl62]

Brrrr ça ne me donne pas du tout envie d'acheter cette étoffe...

[ldarroch]

Uhm, so I take it this is an act of academic interest... Not like there's a village somewhere in the past that all had spider silk bed throws and shawls...

[seyoumeye]

The Atlantians( race) are really hiding the truth about the Lemuria civilization, the real indigenous of this planet...the rest is Alien.

[Pasakoye]

Very beautiful, it's cool that that's the actual thread color and not white silk dyed. Even if it was made from white spider silk it would be amazing.

[plasticbarf]

I like the part where the interviewee says "(collecting spiders) is not something that everyone wants to do"

Go figure, I would think people would be lining up to harvest giant venomous spiders.

[aronchai]

@plasticbarf ARACHNIDS! AAAUUUIOOOOOOGGG!!!

[maxwell9meredith]

@plasticbarf They are only mildly venomous, I have on many occasions enjoyed playing with them. Their webs are amazing, and they are really quite docile creatures.

[dimitridabrowski]

@maxwell9meredith it depends. every spider species and even subspecies has it's own unique silk with different thikness, stickynis ;) and breakingpoint so if you are doing a project be sure to try the silk of the biggest spiders in the world. because they are doing expeiments as we speak to make bulletproof vests of it !!

[urbansuburbandork]

@plasticbarf they aren't venemous

[gregshortall]

Mosquitos are all for this trend taking off again.

[plasticbarf]

I don't use the word "mystical" very often, but this tapestry definitely seems mystical. Made by a million spiders, workers braving spider bites, a truly unique material. Although, I wish they would make some for experimentation (like what would happen if you shot a bullet at it?, would it stop it? Is it springy?)

[anonymuffin513]

Many researchers have been trying to synthesize spider silk for use as a replacement for or to combine with Kevlar for bullet proof vests.

[ciucinciu]

@anonymuffin513 spidergoats:D

[anonymuffin513]

LOL Yup! That plan didn't go so well though. XD Nexia tanked and sold all the research to a Canadian company, can't recall atm -- did a project on it for my Textiles class. They just couldn't profitably produce effective synthetic spider silk. If someone figures out how to actually farm spiders profitably, we'll have great new inventions involving the silk. They just haven't figured out how to do it, or bothered to take the time/space to house them in a way that they won't eat each other. >.o

[keytoothed]

fascinating. Thanks for sharing.

[Einstien121]

@plasticbarf well spider silk is as strong as high tensile steel and can stretch 140% to its length .

[Digiscat]

@plasticbarf 5x stronger than steel...itd problly stop a bullet. I doubt its springy.

[rcmeyerson]

@plasticbarf They've started to breed goats that have the protein from spider silk in their milk. Its extremely strong compared to silkworm silk. But, it's hard to breed spiders and farm them, because they don't do well in groups. Hence the goat loophole.

[afroboy717]

this is just amazing !!! 5 stars!!

[macaroni8cheese]

hey nick,i was just rereading your comment and i think i misinterpreted what you were getting at.

although i still think the oscars are a big pile of poo, a dress of this material might be pretty cool and the spider thing too.

i like the humor this has generated --machine washable,dryer safe?lol perhaps its bullet proof like Kevlar.

i bet sprintjm could cumm up w/ something better

[sprintrjm]

could you imagine if they made another rug, but this time out of spider cumm?

Just think of the possibilitys !

[DuffmanIRL]

LOL

[macaroni8cheese]

may i respectfully disagree w/ you NickRoman?

an award show for actors would be a gross undermining of the beauty and grandeur of this magnificent piece art.

[NickRoman]

Ok, who's going to be the first woman to wear a dress made of this stuff? to the Oscars, or what? That would be awesome to see. It should have a big spider design right in the middle.

[Gannondalf]

it would cost so much!

[medalmouse]

Woah....now that is a masterpiece- Now the bigger question....is it machine washable?????Dryer safe? Well that is just priceless...the spiders themselves don't look shabby either XD Sadly, i doubt there will be any recreations...4 arduous years later and who knows how many spider bites- Private collectors have probably hired master thieves to take it XD lol Probably light enough to be a flying carpet...just need the the jet engines....then you can travel in style!

[sumwyun]

Amazing stuff. I wouldn't mind a tapestry like this in my house.  I wonder what it would feel like...