[gallery]Syuzi Pakhchyan, media designer, author and editor of Fashioning Technology wrote a great article that's published on Ecouterre. She talks about the hype and hope of wearable technology. "I have very few illusions that the survival of our planet depends entirely on the clever technologies that we, out of dire necessity, will invent. Technology alone is not going to save our planet—but we certainly are. The onus is on us: It is our choices, our demands from the market, that will bring about the necessary actions and changes in the fashion industry. Smart fabrics and wearable technology offer us an opportunity for a more sustainable future, but the promise will be bittersweet if the entire product lifecycle isn’t taken into consideration." Pakhchyan says.
She discusses ideas around nanotechnology, clothing that is infused with story, and hopeful solutions such as power-generating clothing. I love one of the quotes she referenced by educator and philosopher Marshall McLuhan:
"The book is an extension of the eye... Clothing, an extension of the skin... Electric circuitry, an extension of the central nervous system. Media, by altering the environment, evoke in us unique ratios of sense perceptions. The extension of any one sense alters the way we think and act -- the way we perceive the world. When these ratios change, men change."
Read her full article on ecouterre.com. Images from ecouterre.com.