Get ready for a new era of smart clothes.
That is gear that is not just fashionable but smart technologically. Boffins at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, are developing apparel made from electronic fibres that can change shape and colour according to the wearer's movements. A shirt which can charge your mobile phone. And futuristic semmits and drawers that allow for storage of energy from the body.
The project, codename Karma Chameleon, is producing fibres with embedded computer functions. Initially, these smart fabrics will be used to keep the wearer warm in even the coldest Scottish summer. But the possibilities are endless. Including:
l A football scarf that can change colour from blue to green and vice versa according to whatever part of Glasgow you are in.
l Satnav socks which can be programmed with directions from Google maps. Never get lost as your feet do all the navigation.
l Interactive underpants with a thermostatic control that will keep the cojones cool in summer and warm in winter. They will also have a warning device which alerts the wearer when a change of undergarment is necessary.
l A dress with its own Twitter account, @doesmybumlookbiginthis? The dress can be preset to give the response No darling it really suits you, it's very slimming.
l A handbag with interior mapping which enables a woman always to find her mobile phone. And her purse when she is holding up the queue at a supermarket checkout.
l A T-shirt that displays and constantly updates your Facebook status. It will automatically tell all your friends that you are in Starbucks spilling a skinny latté down your front.
l A tie that turns black for funerals. Trainers that turn into smart shoes when you want to go clubbing. Denims that convert to fashionable breeks to further confound the bouncers.
l A hankie that turns into a TV screen to watch Sky Sports.
l A belt with a screen built into the buckle that keeps you up-to-date with the football results when your hankie is in the wash.
l A shirt cuff that is actually a smartphone. Will also give an instant diagnosis if you are not very well and wipe a runny nose on the cuff.
l The other shirt cuff which is a dedicated SMS device for telling you that your tea is oot, what is on the menu, and an estimated time when it will be given to the dog.
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