Biotech researcher Marco Lo Presti at Tufts University discovered a new type of silk-like fiber while cleaning glassware containing silk and dopamine. This fiber can be shot like a web from a distance, creating rapid adhesion to objects, likened to Spider-Man's abilities. Although it won’t enable swinging between skyscrapers, its quick-acting adhesive properties have significant implications. The fibers, noted for their tensile strength, represent a novel creation not found in spiders, highlighting the successful blend of natural inspiration and innovative research. The team’s findings are published in Advanced Functional Materials.
While using acetone to clean the glassware of this silk and dopamine substance, I noticed it was undergoing a transition into a solid format, into a web-looking material, into something that looked like a fiber.
Part of the play that is very underestimated is where you say 'Hey, wait a second, is this like a Spider-Man thing?' And you brush it off at first, but a material that mimics superpowers is always a very, very good thing.
We can now catch an object and pick it up and manipulate it remotely, which is not something any spider can do.
Footage of the team's experiments shows strands of the material being dripped onto a number of objects from several inches above, forming a solid connection in a matter of seconds.
Collection
[
|
...
]