textiles

Harvard researchers have transformed ordinary knitting into a platform for creating fabrics that can snap between different shapes and perform useful functions. Using elastic yarns and industrial knitting techniques, the team engineered thick textiles that naturally curve and lock into multiple stable configurations, much like a light switch flipping between on and off. By adding conductive yarn,…

Researchers reviewed 88 studies to assess how nanotechnology could improve firefighters' thermal protective clothing by enhancing flame resistance, thermal management, breathability, and particle filtration, and by adding functions such as sensing. The review finds strong potential for multifunctional nano-engineered textiles but highlights major barriers including scalability, durability, cost, …

When the weather gets extremely hot, wearing white or light-colored clothing is often recommended because these colors reflect more sunlight. Darker and brighter colors usually absorb more solar energy and become warmer. But researchers in China and Australia have developed a purple fabric that could change that rule. The new high-tech textile can stay up […] The post Scientists Create Purple Fab…

A new purple cooling fabric developed by Chinese and Australian researchers could help people stay cooler during scorching summer days without having to resort to wearing white.

In this study, we explore a new method for quantifying stretch/strain of fabrics by remotely measuring the color properties of the fabric under static, stepwise strain conditions as it stretches/relaxes. This method is based on a colloquially well-understood phenomena—that as an elastic fabric (e.g., a knit) stretches, the reflected color content changes, revealing more of the underlying surface.…

E-textiles, particularly knitted resistive strain sensors, have been proposed for joint motion measurements. Although combining non-elastic conductive yarns with elastic non-conductive yarns improves sensor performance, the effects of knitting patterns and strategies for integrating sensors into garments remain underexplored. This paper addresses both by: (1) comparing the characteristics of plai…

Shrinkage means two different things in construction. In the front office, profits shrink as markets contract and project pipelines thin out. In the laundry room, a cotton shirt shrinks when heat and moisture act on its fibers. The business kind follows market cycles; the fabric kind follows physics, and the fabric version is the one […] The post How Cotton Shrinks: Fabric Care and Material Behav…

Linen is a natural textile made from plant fibers, woven from flax, a flowering annual that grows 3–4 feet tall in temperate climates. The same cloth found in clothing, curtains, tablecloths, pillows, rugs, and rope has a slightly rough, slightly shiny surface and a reputation for breathability, durability, and versatility, along with a tendency to […] The post Fabric in Construction: From Flax F…

Researchers developed knitted textiles that can function as switches and count steps. A piece of knitted fabric can now do more than stretch and fold. By carefully controlling its yarns and stitch patterns, researchers have made textiles that snap between stable shapes, operate electrical switches, and even track a person’s steps. Researchers at the Harvard [...]

Scientific Reports, Published online: 28 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41598-026-43881-2 Developing UV- protective textiles for workwear applications using various ZnO nanoparticles and cold plasma

Threads That Connected the World Long before modern globalization, a vast network of trade routes connected distant civilizations across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Known as the Silk Road, this system carried not only goods—but ideas, cultures, and identities. Among the most influential commodities traded along these routes were textiles. Far more than simple clothing, fabrics became power…

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On Friday, March 7, the Textiles Lab at the Carnegie Mellon Robotics Institute, led by Associate Professor Jim McCann hosted a “Hard Textiles” lab jam. The lab jams show the unique ways textiles and technology interact, showcase the possible directions of future research and give the campus community an opportunity to see inside the lab [...] The post CMU Researchers Blend Materials at “Hard Text…