Harvard
Scientists at Harvard claim they invented a new "wool-like" fabric that changes shape, and if I'm being completely honest, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. First of all, like that hell Can a substance have a memory and, secondly, what does that mean?
A post on Harvard's website uses hair as a metaphor to clarify this. When you straighten your hair - and your hair gets wet in the rain - it will eventually return to its original shape, whether it's curly or wavy or whatever.
For more of that
Subscribe to the CNET Now newsletter to receive the most important stories of the day from our editors.
Apparently this is because hair has a "shape memory".
Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have created a fiber material that does almost the same thing. The hope? This new material could be used in clothing to reduce waste in the fashion industry. The example the Harvard article uses: A one-size-fits-all t-shirt that can automatically shrink or expand to fit a person's specific measurements. Or how about self-fitting bras or underwear?
The secret is keratin, a protein found in hair and nails. The scientists took keratin from recycled wool and 3D printed the material into specific shapes. The video above shows a keratin sheet, 3D printed into an origami star, wrinkled and then placed in water. It slowly transforms itself back into something that resembles its original shape.
"This makes the material suitable for a variety of applications, from textiles to tissue engineering," said Luca Cera, bio-engineer at Harvard and author of the paper.
"With this project, we have shown that not only can we recycle wool, but we can also build things from the recycled wool that we have never imagined," added Kit Parker, the paper's senior writer. "The impact on the sustainability of natural resources is obvious. With recycled keratin protein, we can do as much or more than has previously been achieved by shearing animals, reducing the environmental impact of the textile and fashion industries."
You can read the full study here.
