Using military software to model the perfect piece of clothing
So, let's say you've managed to snag some support from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (or DARPA) and have access to some military-grade software. What would you do with it? Design a flying car? A laser gun? If you're these two guys, you make one hell of a hoodie.
Jonathan Bachrach and Saul Griffith, two former MIT researchers who teamed up to create their own design studio in San Fransisco, Other Lab, in turn have teamed up with clothing company Betabrand to crank out a hoodie. Not just any hoodie, however — one that's engineered to use no wasted material, and be made as simply as possible.
You see, the fellas are working with money from DARPA's Programmable Matter project, which is one of the agency's schemes to develop shape-shifting technology. This hoodie represents their work with those algorithms: the piece of clothing was modeled in 3D and then automatically distilled into its most basic components, which could then be made as a real product.
At the moment, only 100 of the hoodies have been made and it looks like you can still grab one for yourself for $110.
We think it looks pretty damn cool, actually. You can see the process for yourself in the video below.
Other Lab, via Wired, via PopSci