My OpenLearn Profile
Personalise your OpenLearn profile, save your favourite content and get recognition for your learning
Whether you find spiders fearful or fascinating, they are to be admired for their web-spinning and prey-catching techniques, and the remarkable methods they use to move from one place to another. In this album, researchers in Denmark and the United States use an 8-legged robot and a virtual spider, high-speed photography, a hot air balloon and a rowing boat to explore the biophysics of spiders. In the audio track, Dr David Robinson of The Open University explains how advances in technology allow advances in scientific knowledge and understanding. This material forms part of The Open University course S204 Biology: uniformity and diversity.
Track 4: Theseus the virtual spider
Computer scientist Thiemo Krink explores the rules of web spinning.
- Read a transcript of this track - you'll need a PDF viewer, such as Adobe's free Adobe Reader
- Download this track from iTunes - you'll need Apple's free iTunes software
- Discover more from The Open University and iTunesU at open.edu/itunes
Tracks in this podcast:
| Track | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Investigating spiders: life on a thread | A short introduction to this album. Play now Investigating spiders: life on a thread |
| 2 | Investigating the biophysics of spiders | David Robinson explains the difference between spiders and insects, and takes a close look at how technology allows us to learn more about thie behaviour. Play now Investigating the biophysics of spiders |
| 3 | Ballooning spiders | Bio-physicist Bob Suter goes spider hunting in a hot air balloon. Play now Ballooning spiders |
| 4 | Theseus the virtual spider | Computer scientist Thiemo Krink explores the rules of web spinning. Play now Theseus the virtual spider |
| 5 | Spiders' webs | Biologist Fritz Vollrath disentangles the science of spiders’ webs. Play now Spiders' webs |
| 6 | Boating spiders | Bio-physicist Bob Suter shows how some spiders can move over a water surface. Play now Boating spiders |
| 7 | Galloping spiders | Bio-physicist Bob Suter explains how some spiders gallop across the surface of water. Play now Galloping spiders |
Rate and Review
Rate this audio
Review this audio
Log into OpenLearn to leave reviews and join in the conversation.
Audio reviews