Smart fabrics or electronic-integrated textiles (E-textiles) have been available for quite some time, although practical use still evades the technology. Apparently, this is because existing e-textile technologies use materials that are far too rigid or bulky or complicated. Scientists under Nicholas A. Kotov and Chuanlai Xu though, propose a material for e-textiles that's lighter, softer, more flexible and less complicated to make real life usage possible.

This material is made out of cotton fibers coated with electrolytes and carbon nanotubes using a simple process the scientists have devised. Treated fibers were tested to be conducive enough to carry charge and power a light-emitting diode connected to them. More importantly, the fibers were tested and were proven to react to and detect albumin which is a key protein in blood. This opens up possibilities of integrating the fibers on the fabrics used to make military clothing that could be wired to monitor vital signs of the soldiers as well as detect bleeding if present.