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Scientists, some with funding from the U.S. Air Force, have made breakthroughs that could eventually make all this reality.Research published on Wednesday reveals advances in materials science that could transform industries struggling with the rising cost and scarcity of raw materials and save lives in post-conflict countries still clearing minefields.

In a study published in the Royal Society journal Interface, Oxford University researchers David Porter and Fujia Chen examine the structure of silkworm cocoons, which are extremely light and tough, with properties that could inspire advanced materials for use in protective helmets and light-weight armor.

Silkworm cocoons have evolved a remarkable range of optimal structures and properties to protect moth pupae from many different natural threats," Porter and Chen said in their paper. These structures are lightweight, strong and porous and therefore "ideal for the development of bio-inspired composite materials.Their research could lead to lightweight armor that dissipates rather than deflects the particular components of a blast that do the most damage to the human body - much like crumple zones in modern cars or sound-absorbing sonar tiles that make submarines harder to detect.

Even more tantalizing from an economic standpoint, Porter and Chen's research, which was funded by a grant from the U.S. Air Force, could point to a new material for fabricating car panels in some of the fastest-growing car markets China and India.Fritz Vollrath, who heads the Oxford research group, said supplies of cocoons are plentiful. "Present raw silk market production globally is half a million tons annually.