image: These are silkworm cocoons. Silkworms spin, depending on breed, between hundreds of meters to over a kilometer of continuous silk fiber to generate a cocoon for protection and permit the development of the pupa. This image relates to an article that appeared in the July 30, 2010, issue of Science, published by AAAS. The study, by Dr. Fiorenzo Omenetto of Tufts University in Medford, Mass., and colleagues is titled, "New Opportunities for an Ancient Material." view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Fiorenzo Omenetto