Modeling spider webs as multilinked structures using a Chebyshev pseudospectral collocation method

Abstract

Spiders weave intricate webs for catching prey, providing shelter and setting mating rituals; arguably the most notable of these creations is the orb web. In this thesis we model the essential vibrations of orb webs by first considering a spider web as a multilinked structure of elastic strings. We then solve the associated eigenvalue problem using a Chebyshev pseudospectral collocation method to discretize the system. This thesis first examines the vibrations of webs with uniform material properties throughout, then investigates the effects of using biologically realistic material parameters for silks within a single web. Understanding how spiders detect and react to the vibrations produced by their webs is of interest for both biological and engineering applications.