They are composed of “protocells” made of synthetic biological material

Dec 14, 2013 09:46 GMT  ·  By

Self-healing materials are few and far between, but a British designer managed to invent one for his new running shoes.

London designer and researcher Shamees Aden has invented a pair of running shoes made of what he calls “protocells.”

It's really a synthetic biological material that can repair itself overnight. That's right, these shoes can heal.

There's another special asset: the shows can be 3D printed to the exact size of a user's foot, basically acting like a second skin. Sure, a stronger and thicker skin than normal for humans, but still.

The material can inflate or deflate according to the type of ground you're running on. To have them heal, though, you'll need to place the shoes in jars filled with protocell liquid, since the protocells actually are living organisms not unlike plants.

Dr Martin Hanczyc, a professor at the University of Southern Denmark who specializes in protocell technology, helped develop the shoes.