Twisting strong fibres such as sewing thread and fishing line produces artificial 'muscles' that are stronger than their human counterparts.
People have long made yarn by twisting fibres. But Ray Baughman at the University of Texas at Dallas in Richardson and his team twisted low-cost nylon or polyethylene fibres so tightly, while applying just the right amount of weight, that the fibres became extremely coiled muscles. The researchers could then weave the muscles into braids (pictured) or textiles. A bundle of polyethylene muscle fibres generated mechanical work that was more than 100 times greater than that produced from the same weight of human muscle.
The artificial muscles could one day be used in robotics, prosthetic devices, and even in clothing with pores that open and close in response to temperature changes.
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Muscles made from thread. Nature 506, 410 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/506410c
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/506410c
