# Where else was the tech that made T-shirts change colour used? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 9, 2020, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661 "2020-08-09T18:00:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/1 "2020-08-09T18:00:22Z")
The Hypercolor T-shirt remains a bizarre icon from decades ago. I had one as a student - a T-shirt whose colour was sensitive to heat and would change from dull to neon yellow while playing road hockey. In essence, it acted as a B.O. highlighter. Clothing that changes colour fell out of vogue. Even glasses that become darker in sunlight no longer seem to be a thing (maybe as contacts have become far better). But I occasionally wonder where else this miracle 1970s technology has been applied. Any idea? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/2 "2020-08-09T18:04:12Z")
The same technology first hit it big back in the 70s with mood rings. It’s thermally activated, the shirts change color as your body temperature changes. It’s been used in various other ways including beer cans and baby bottles. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/3 "2020-08-09T18:05:47Z")
Leuco dye’s most notable recent use was prolly by Coors when they figured that people were too stupid to know when their beer was cold so they provided them with color-coded help. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/4 "2020-08-09T18:06:44Z")
Mood rings are a similar but different thing, using liquid crystal thermochromes. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/5 "2020-08-09T18:13:11Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > d rings are a similar but different thing, using liquid crystal thermochromes [Wiki lists the two main types of thermochromic materials](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermochromism#Organic_materials) as [liquid crystals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_crystal) and [leuco dyes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leuco_dye) So yes, similar substances in their color changing ability, but different compositions. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/6 "2020-08-09T18:14:56Z")
Things that change color are a particular interest of mine. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/7 "2020-08-09T18:18:56Z")
They are interesting. Maybe there is a use that is more practical than highlighting B.O. Maybe even Snowboarder B.O.? Seriously, why do you like things that change colour? (I can see raking in the Bucks on my “modern” roulette wheel - sorry, it’s red now…) ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/8 "2020-08-09T18:28:11Z")
Why? As a kid I was fascinated with my mood ring, with my glow-in-the-dark watch face and with fluorescent posters. I find them interesting and pleasing; I really like fluorescent colors. I also now enjoy the fact that, in my art, it can be used to create multi-faceted works: they appear one way and then they change to reveal something else depending on conditions. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/9 "2020-08-09T18:54:07Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > I also now enjoy the fact that, in my art, it can be used to create multi-faceted works: they appear one way and then they change to reveal something else depending on conditions. I own some mugs that reveal a more interesting picture when you put a hot beverage in them. It’s fun. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/10 "2020-08-09T19:02:09Z")
They are neat, which is exactly why there must be more uses now than decades ago? Mood rings were before my time, but they’ll be cool again soon. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/11 "2020-08-09T20:07:42Z")
[Color changing hair dye?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZqMgd7NEvk) I don’t remember if that was a FB or Imgur find, but there ya go. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2020, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/12 "2020-08-09T20:10:58Z")
They are used to power the TARDIS and fund PBS. > **[Doctor Who Disappearing Tardis Mug](https://shop.pbs.org/VJ8962.html?p=1&websource=PBSGOOGLE7&source_code=PBSGOOGLE7&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiI2h4_aO6wIVEb7ACh1uowc1EAQYAiABEgKpqfD_BwE)** > > Put that chameleon circuit to the test, each and every time you get a refill. The Doctor's TARDIS magically disappears from a London street when you fill it up with a hot beverage, reappearing mid time/space continuum on the other side. When it... ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/13 "2020-08-10T16:42:41Z")
When I was little, before hypercolor shirts even, my family had a stack of single-use thermochromic thermometers for taking our temperature. No doubt my dad swiped these from the infirmary at the factory where he worked. I was looking up thermochromic thermometers and found [this article](https://www.explainthatstuff.com/thermochromic-materials.html) which explains how thermochromic materials work, and it reminded me of the Duracell batteries that had the thermochromic stickers on them. I don’t feel like those ever worked properly. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/14 "2020-08-10T16:45:48Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I own some mugs that reveal a more interesting picture when you put a hot beverage in them. It’s fun. I had a couple with art by Sandra Boynton. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/15 "2020-08-10T17:37:23Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > I had one as a student - a T-shirt whose colour was sensitive to heat and would change from dull to neon yellow while playing road hockey. Wow–I’ve never seen a t-shirt play road hockey. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/16 "2020-08-10T18:21:08Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Even glasses that become darker in sunlight no longer seem to be a thing (maybe as contacts have become far better). They’re still around and pretty popular- they’ve just become a LOT better than they used to be. Now they’re called “Transitions” lenses, and they go from clear to dark very quickly and vice-versa, especially in warmer weather. My kids have them, and they seem to be fantastic compared to what they used to be. If you don’t know/notice that someone has them, you probably won’t know- they’re that good now. My kids’ glasses look completely normal until they’re out in the sun, and then you look and they’re wearing dark sunglasses before you know it. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/17 "2020-08-10T18:34:57Z")
He couldn’t run very fast so usually ended up minding the net. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/18 "2020-08-10T18:36:49Z")
I had a pair 20 years ago. They were good for a while. The lenses are supposed to be clear inside and dark when it is bright and sunny. Eventually, the glasses thought it was always sunny. Must of been from Philadelphia? ---
**Author:** ![c\_carol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e79b87/32.png) [@c\_carol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/c_carol)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/19 "2020-08-10T20:37:13Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > They are used to power the TARDIS and fund PBS. I have one of those Tardis mugs. It was really neat until I washed it a few times and all the color-changing paint chipped off. Now it’s just a solid black mug. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2020, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661/20 "2020-08-10T23:01:42Z")
I have a T-shirt that changes color in the sunlight, but it’s not from heat. I think it is activated by UV. There is a chain called Del Sol that specializes in shirts and other objects that do this, and they are usually found in resort areas. I bought mine on a Caribbean island on a cruise. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-else-was-the-tech-that-made-t-shirts-change-colour-used/917661.md?page=2)