Gore-Tex

Robert Gore, USA, patent 3,953,566 of 1976. Stretched PTFE that breathes while blocking rain.

Overview

Bob Gore yanked heated PTFE instead of pulling it slowly, discovering expanded nodes-and-fibrils microstructure in 1969. The 1976 patent covered porous waterproof membranes; a decade of garment patents followed. Outerwear, boots, medical patches, and space suits adopted the ten-billion-pores-per-inch membrane. W.L. Gore, a family company, became a perennial best-workplace fixture. The 1969 tug is materials science's nicest accident since Teflon, which it literally is.