Wednesday, July 9, 2008
How Cutting-Edge Science Imitates Nature to Develop Synthetic Fibers and the Extreme Fabrics of Today
Explore how science has studied nature’s successful processes and copied them to achieve technological advancements in the field of textiles. Historically, we will see how studying the silkworm and spider led to making synthetic fibers and materials in the laboratory. In present day science, we’ll explore current cutting-edge work on modern extreme fabrics, including textile-relevant developments in nanotechnology and biomimetics. See a demonstration of electrospinning fibers so fine they are almost invisible. We’ll also consider associated environmental impacts, and the interface with recycling.
Teachers will earn PDPs in this course, and be able to identify natural processes emulated by science, create hands-on activities to illustrate the nature-synthetic connection, accumulate and assess data, and perform experiments to identify characteristics of a substance.
*This program is part of a two-week syllabus. Cooperating MITS Partners for the Merrimack Region course also include the Tsongas Industrial History Center, DCR Division of State Parks and Recreation, the New England Quilt Museum, and the Amoskeag Fishways.
