Find out how web-spinning spiders do what they do and learn about the impressive, multipurpose material they use to catch their dinner. Spiders make their webs from silk, a natural fibre made of ...

An article in a 1995 issue of NASA Tech Briefs discussed work done by researchers at Marshall Space Flight Center to see how various substances — including caffeine — affect spider web patterns.

This technique depends on the spider being able to instantaneously detect the vibration when an insect has bumped into its web. Any outside noise could make that harder. “They really rely on ...