Woman invents bra that converts to gas mask

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To you, that cute pink bra with black lace trim might
conjure up thoughts of sexy lingerie. To Dr. Elena Bodnar, it represents a
possible lifesaver.

Behold the bra-mask — a bra that in an emergency can be
turned into a pair of protective face masks.

Bodnar’s invention the Ig Nobel Prize, given by the Annals
of Improbable Research magazine for achievements that “first make people
laugh and then make them think.”

“The brilliance of my idea is that it’s very
simple,” said Bodnar, of Chicago, who is the director of the nonprofit
Trauma Risk Management Research Institute.

To use the bra mask, the wearer unsnaps the brassiere from
under her shirt, which breaks it in two. Because each cup has hooks on its
side, the strap is wrapped around the head and hooked to the cup, which goes
over the mouth. Bodnar said an experienced user can don the mask in mere
seconds.

The bra mask could be used during such disasters as fires,
terrorist attacks, dust storms or a swine flu outbreak, Bodnar said. Indeed,
she first thought up the idea while treating victims of the 1986 Chernobyl
nuclear disaster as a medical university graduate in her native Ukraine.

Bodnar is now pursuing commercialization of her bra mask.
She hopes all women will eventually have one.

What about the men?

As Bodnar noted in her Oct.1 acceptance speech at Harvard
University, “Isn’t it wonderful that women have two breasts, not just one?
We can save not only our own lives, but also a man of our choice next to
us.”

Via McClatchy-Tribune News Service.