Two interesting articles in today's USA Today

The cover story in their Money section is about Kevlar, the strong but light fabric found in bullet-proof vests. As usual, the invention of the stuff was intended for a different purpose (material for tires) than what finally became its most important use (armor for police and military). I think I read in Virginia Postrel's "The Future and Its Enemies" a passage that said the old cliche, "the mother of invention is necessity" is not really true because so often the invention or innovation winds up serving a purpose other than the original intent (necessity) or is even a failed experiment a la the often told tale of Post-It Notes utilizing a glue that was too weak.

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excerpt:

''The bullets knocked me over and took the wind out of me, but I didn't feel any pain,'' said the 21-year-old Ashline from the Army's 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, N.Y.

Both soldiers owe their lives to a retired 79-year-old woman in Delaware.

The Kevlar inside their vests was invented in 1965 by former DuPont chemist Stephanie Kwolek of Wilmington, Del.

''Not in a thousand years did I think the discovery of this liquid solution would save thousands of lives,'' says Kwolek, chuckling at the life-saving marvels of her creation. ''When I watch the war on TV, I take great pride in saying, 'We at DuPont invented that.' ''
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It's all pretty heady stuff for Kwolek, who came up with Kevlar as a flameproof, ultra-light fiber to reinforce the tread of radial tires -- not save lives. At the time, there were fears of a future global energy shortage, and DuPont wanted something that would make tires lighter and cars more fuel-efficient.

Now, the material is used in more than 200 products, including bullet-resistant vests and helmets that have saved the lives of 2,749 police officers.
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The other article that caught my eye as I read USA Today over lunch was about relgion. Do you ever wonder what happens to people when they leave their faith? The cover story in the LIFE section was entitled, "A season for new faiths" describes the results from a survey that asked such questions. More food for thought as ancient faiths try to adapt in our post-modern society.

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excerpts:

This is salvation season, when Christians and Jews retell and rejoice in the stories central to their religions. And this year, thousands will celebrate under a new flag of faith -- as converts.
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Tallying how many people have ''shifted their spiritual loyalties'' is difficult, says Egon Mayer, a co-author of the American Religious Identification Survey 2001. The survey of 50,000 people, conducted by the Graduate Center of City University of New York, updated a 1990 survey on religious identity.

It also asked for the first time whether someone had changed his or her religious preference, and 16% said yes. The biggest shifts were a move to no religion, not a new faith, or a move to shed any specific label. For example, ex-Catholics who now identify as Christian may be keeping Christ and their Catholic cultural heritage, but ditching the institutional Catholic Church, Mayer says.

Such statistics are snapshots of ''people on a journey that may not be over,'' says Ariela Keysar, another co-author of the survey, noting that 1% to 5% of people returned to their original religion.
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''Often, people who are finding a faith are finding a family,'' says Rabbi David Wolpe of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles. ''That's a good reason. When you join a faith and a community that reinforces it, this can be more powerful and lasting than purely an intellectual conversion. You have entree to a world of lived belief as opposed to theoretical belief.''

He cites Ruth in the Bible, ''who tells Naomi (her Jewish mother-in-law), 'Your people will be my people.' Only then does she say, 'Your God will be my God.' ''

In the end, conversion statistics will never be neat, Mayer says.

This religion. That religion. No religion. Some or all of the above. The spirit doesn't always color within the lines.

''It's not a question of what the demographer says or the priest or rabbi say. In society, where the individual is the king, you are who you say you are. You go to a meditation retreat in the summer, but you still go to Mom's for the Seder and church for Easter Mass.''