Researchers at MIT partnered with the Rhode Island School of Design to create a fabric that can hear. While this may seem odd or even invasive, it has remarkable implications across many fields, including medical devices. A shirt could record the heartbeat of someone with cardiac issues. Or help a person who is hard of hearing or blind better navigate the world.
The fiber is piezoelectric, meaning it creates an electric signal when bent. That includes drastic movements like pressing on the material but also tiny ones from sound waves. Piezoelectricity is used in sonars, electronic drum sets, medical imaging, and buzzers like those used on Jeopardy. The energy can even be stored and redistributed, like Black Panther’s Vibranium suit.
The fiber is piezoelectric, meaning it creates an electric signal when bent. That includes drastic movements like pressing on the material but also tiny ones from sound waves. Piezoelectricity is used in sonars, electronic drum sets, medical imaging, and buzzers like those used on Jeopardy. The energy can even be stored and redistributed, like Black Panther’s Vibranium suit.