On These Silken Sheets


Book Description

On These Silken Sheets by Sabrina Darby is a deliciously erotic romp through Regency England—four very spicy connected novellas, each centered around Harridan House, an exclusive private club where anything goes. Fans of Ellora’s Cave will welcome newcomer Sabrina Darby with open arms, recognizing her instantly as an up-and-coming star and a wonderfully sensuous new voice in historical erotica, as On These Silken Sheets so masterfully—and naughtily—proves.




Soft Fibrillar Materials


Book Description

As one of the most important classes of soft materials, supramolecular materials are of a mixture of networks of molecular chains/fibrils and a liquid. These self-assembled fibrous/ molecular architectures exhibit various functionalities, ie. superhydrophobicity or superior mechanical strength, etc. and consist of the controllable structures. They can be functioned via micro/nano engineering, to have some particular added functions, ie. emission materials, tissue engineering scaffolds, bio imaging and sensing materials etc. They have therefore found broad applications in photography, cosmetics, food and petroleum industries and not the least in the biomedical sector where there is strong interest in these materials as drug delivery agents. The book covers the most important soft functional materials, including small molecule physical gels, silkworm silk and spider silk fibers and functional fibers, with respect both to the fundamentals and to development and engineering methods. It provides the reader with the necessary knowledge on the chemical and physical formation mechanisms of these materials and demonstrates that one can rationally design and tune the fibrillar networks so that the resulting materials exhibit the desired functionalities. This work is a must-have for all Materials Scientists, Polymer Chemists, Condensed Matter Physicists, and Biotechnologists working in this interdisciplinary field.










Silk: Materials, Processes, and Applications


Book Description

Silk: Materials, Processes, and Applications addresses the latest research on the structure and properties of silk fibers, properties of silk-based materials, and cutting edge-related industrial practices. It pays particular attention to mulberry silk, but unconventional silks such as spider silk and marine silk fibers are also covered. Although silk is one of the oldest known fibers, new research continues to shed light on its properties, leading it to be applied in new contexts particularly in the medical field, and new non-textile areas. In addition to structural and mechanical qualities, this book also includes a great deal of new research on the chemical modifications of silk fibers, and other processing methods. With a focus on practical methodologies, this is the most readable and readily applicable book on silk so far, making it a perfect guide for readers with a range of backgrounds. - Addresses the fundamental differences between mulberry, spider, and wild silks - Describes silk fiber and non-fiber forms, including hydrogels and films - In-depth coverage of silk-processing methods provides the perfect starting point for biotechnologists interested in the use of silk for non-textile applications




Oligomerization of Chemical and Biological Compounds


Book Description

Many thanks to the authors for high quality chapters and to the referees for helping improve the manuscripts. The book is interdisciplinary, it covers fields from organic chemistry to mathematics, and raises different aspects of oligomerization. It is a great source of information as every chapter introduces general knowledge and deep details. Mixing communities is to instigate novel ideas and hopefully help looking at oligomerization with new eyes.




The South China Silk District


Book Description

The material in this book is framed and organized through the themes of world system's theory -- such as incorporation, commercialization of agriculture, industrialization, proletarianization, and the cyclical rhythm of the capitalist world-system. The whole range of sericulture is examined from the production process, the social and technical problems, and the motives of cultivators, to how this form of agriculture changed over time. This text, replete with concrete and historical detail, offers carefully researched data of interest to sociologists and sinologists, as well as those in anthropology, economics, political science, and history.




Clean It Fast, Clean It Right


Book Description

Drawing on the knowledge of more than two hundred experts, this reference offers advice on cleaning, removing problem spots, saving money, and developing efficient cleaning methods




Spider Webs


Book Description

In this lavishly illustrated, first-ever book on how spider webs are built, function, and evolved, William Eberhard provides a comprehensive overview of spider functional morphology and behavior related to web building, and of the surprising physical agility and mental abilities of orb weavers. For instance, one spider spins more than three precisely spaced, morphologically complex spiral attachments per second for up to fifteen minutes at a time. Spiders even adjust the mechanical properties of their famously strong silken lines to different parts of their webs and different environments, and make dramatic modifications in orb designs to adapt to available spaces. This extensive adaptive flexibility, involving decisions influenced by up to sixteen different cues, is unexpected in such small, supposedly simple animals. As Eberhard reveals, the extraordinary diversity of webs includes ingenious solutions to gain access to prey in esoteric habitats, from blazing hot and shifting sand dunes (to capture ants) to the surfaces of tropical lakes (to capture water striders). Some webs are nets that are cast onto prey, while others form baskets into which the spider flicks prey. Some aerial webs are tramways used by spiders searching for chemical cues from their prey below, while others feature landing sites for flying insects and spiders where the spider then stalks its prey. In some webs, long trip lines are delicately sustained just above the ground by tiny rigid silk poles. Stemming from the author’s more than five decades observing spider webs, this book will be the definitive reference for years to come.







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