PROTECTING OUR BODIES WITH CLOTHING 



141 



TOPIC 5. PROTECTING OUR BODIES WITH CLOTHING 



SUGGESTED PROBLEMS AND QUESTIONS 



1. How is the temperature of our bodies regu- 

 lated? 



2. What is the scientific reason for wearing dif- 

 ferent kinds of clothing in different seasons 

 of the year? 



3. What are the sources of the different types of 

 fibers used for making clothing? How can the 

 principal fibers be identified? 



4. How is clothing kept clean? 



5. How may stains be removed from clothing? 



SUGGESTIONS AND HELPS FOR STUDY 



1. Carefully read the problems before beginning 

 your study and experimentation. 



2. In connection with problem 3 you should experi- 

 ment with the various tests used to identify the more 

 common fibers. 



3. In connection with problem 5 find out how to 

 remove the following stains : blood, ink, grass, and 

 grease. 



4. The following words in this topic may be new 

 to you. Use them as often as possible to make them a 

 part of your vocabulary. 



microscope an instrument that makes small objects ap- 

 pear larger to the human eye. 



cocoon the case in which the silkworm lives while de- 

 veloping into a silk moth. 



bleach to make white. 



javelle water a bleaching agent made by dissolving 

 chloride of lime and baking soda in water. 



EXPERIMENTS WHICH WILL HELP ANSWER 

 THE PROBLEM QUESTIONS' 



Activity 98. What is the source of each of the dif- 

 ferent fibers used in making clothing? 



Make a table of two columns; head the first column 

 "Fiber" and the second column "Source." In the first column 

 list the fibers wool, natural silk, artificial silk, flax, fur, and 

 linen. In the second column write the sources of these 

 fibers. 



Experiment 99. How may the principal fibers be 

 identified? 



Obtain pieces of fabrics made from wool, cotton, linen, 

 natural silk, and artificial silk. Examine threads of each 

 under a magnifying glass or a miscroscope. Make drawings 

 of each type of fiber as it appears to you. 



Fray the edges of a sample of each piece of fabric. Hold 

 the frayed edges of each sample in a match flame. Make 

 notes on the different rates of burning, the different odors 



1 See workbook, p. 49. 



produced during burning, and the fibers that become gummy 

 as they burn. 



Experiment 100. How can real silk be distinguished 

 from artificial silk? 



Obtain a piece of fabric made of natural silk and one 

 made of rayon (artificial silk). Test the strength of each 

 piece. Wet each piece with water. Test their strength again. 

 Which is weakened by the water? 



Boil samples of each fabric in a lye solution. Which of 

 the two fabrics is dissolved? 



Pull out threads from each piece of cloth. Burn them. 

 Which piece burns rapidly without much odor? Which 

 burning fibers produce an odor of burning hair? 



Experiment 101. How can mixed goods be identified? 



Obtain samples of mixed wool-cotton and silk-cotton 

 goods. Make a lye solution by dissolving three heaping 

 tablespoonfuls of lye in a quart of water. Place samples 

 of the two types of goods in different dishes and cover 

 each with lye solution. Boil each for several minutes. The 

 wool and silk fibers will be dissolved by the lye solution, 

 leaving the cotton fibers. 



Experiment 102. How does laundering affect differ- 

 ent fibers? 



Secure samples of cloth made of cotton, linen, silk, and 

 wool. Cut the samples into pieces of the same size. Make 

 two duplicate pieces of each type. Boil one set of samples 

 in water and lay them out to dry. When they are dry com- 

 pare with the original samples. Did any of the fabrics 

 shrink? Were any of the fabrics weakened by the boiling 

 water ? 



Wash samples of the fabrics in hot water with soap. 

 Rinse and dry. Were the fabrics affected in any way? 



Make a strong washing soda solution by dissolving as 

 much washing soda in the water as it will hold. Boil samples 

 of the different fabrics in the washing soda for about ten 

 minutes. Wash and dry the samples. Are any of the fabrics 

 weakened by this process? 



Experiment 103. How are stains removed from fab- 

 rics? 



The proper care of clothing and household textiles re- 

 quires a knowledge of how stains are removed. Most stains 

 can be removed easily at home, if reliable methods are 

 known and a few simple precautions taken. Some common 

 causes of stains are blood, grease, grass, fruit, coffee, writ- 

 ing ink, iron rust, ice cream, tar, axle grease, and shoe 

 polish. List these causes of stains in a column ; consult 

 references and write opposite each cause of stain the 

 method by which the stain may be removed. Farmers' Bulle- 

 tin No. 1474, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Stain Re- 

 moval from Fabrics bv Home Methods, is an excellent 

 reference. Write to the U. S. Department of Agriculture for 

 this bulletin. Try out some of the methods. 



READINGS WHICH WILL HELP ANSWER 

 THE PROBLEM QUESTIONS 



How is the temperature of our bodies regulated? 



We learned in a previous unit of study that the tem- 

 perature of our bodies remains at about 98.6 F. the 



