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Asserts that spider's silk and web designs are governed by the same rules and constraints that apply to human materials science and structural engineering. Reasons why spiders may be able to teach scientists more about materials science. Evolutionary changes which scientists believe have enabled the spider to develop its unique abilities.

The article reports on studies regarding two species of Mexican social spiders, Mallos gregalis and Oecobius civitas. These spiders were observed to cooperate in capturing, attacking and eating prey. The studies have provided a substantial amount of data about their sociality. However, several questions remain such as the conditions which favor the establishment of spider sociality.

Discusses a series of experiments on spiders. Number of species of spiders that are found in the U.S.; Techniques that can be used to photograph webs; Potential risk associated with experimenting with spiders.

The article focuses on the different forms of spider webs. According to the article, different types of spiders have varying forms of spider webs to adapt to different environments. The webs spun by those spiders that hold to the rocks and tree trunks have the tendency to head down the slope, thereby, spreading the thread downward over an increasing area producing a web like that of Amaurobius or Agelenopsis. Other types of spiders like the Linyphiidae make webs of such fine silk that they are visible only in the morning when beads of dew trace their lines.

The article looks at a research from biologist Fritz Vollrath and other published in "Journal of the Royal Society Interface" which decode spiders' web-building skills for use in robots. It mentions autonomy helps the arachnids quickly spin perfect webs with minimal brain use and simulated surprisingly simple rules to govern complex behavior. It also mentions filming and digitized the movements of several cross spiders, each with partially regenerated, half-length legs at certain positions.

The article reports that a team of researchers has coaxed bacteria to produce spider silk as tough and elastic as the natural version. Topics discussed include modification of the spider DNA involved in producing silk proteins, potential of synthetic silk as a sustainable alternative to petroleum-derived fibers such as nylon.

The article focuses on the feeding behavior of spiders. The author notes a study by researchers at the Martin Nyffeler and Klaus Birkhofer which seeks to understand the amount of food spiders consume annually wherein it was estimated that spiders eat 460 million metric tons in a year, and highlights the techniques used by researchers in their study.

The article presents a list of articles related to science including "Occurrence of Life in the Universe," by Su-Shu Huang, "Space Perception of Tortoises," by R. M. Yerkes, "Visually Controlled Locomotion and Visual Orientation in Animals," by James J. Gibson, "Geometrical Spiders," by R. W. G. Hingston and "The Delayed Type of Allergic Inflammatory Response," by H. Sherwood Lawrence.

Describes research which studied the effects of Hurricane Lili on the Exuma Islands, the Bahamas. Research by Spiller and Losos in `Science'; Study of lizard and spider populations; Islands impacted by the hurricane; Islands partially sheltered; Long-term effects of the hurricane on species mix; Creatures that vanished due to the storm.

Describes the mating behavior of Sierra dome spider. Lacing of web with a volatile pheromone, a hormone that attracts males; Means of foraging and defense; Conflict between the sexes; Increase in the rate of male visitation by an order of magnitude.