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The Discovery FilesPatch Work
Engineers at Rutgers and Oregon State Universities have found an inexpensive way to make thin, durable heating patches by using intense pulses of light to fuse tiny silver wires with polyester. It's estimated that 42 percent of the energy used for indoor heating is wasted to heat empty space and objects instead of people. However, the new heating patches can be sewn into clothing, so they can be more localized to specifically warm humans.
Credit: National Science Foundation/Karson Productions
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