A new theory could help engineers to create materials for use as smart textiles, artificial tissue and even the aerodynamic contours in jet turbines – by knitting them. The oldest known example of knitting is from Egypt over a thousand years ago, yet until now scientists did not fully understand how a non-stretchy yarn could be entangled into such a stretchy fabric. The new study, published in the journal Physical Review X, boils knitwear properties down to three parameters – yarn bendiness, the length of yarn, and the number of crossing points in each stitch. The simplicity of the model...