Plastic has shaped the modern world. From packaging and medical devices to industrial goods and consumer products, it's one of the most versatile materials ever created. But its durability has become ...

A single material that can be fashioned to different needs, on the other hand, “simplifies how you make plastics,” Dr. Patel said. It also would make plastic more sustainable because items ...

In seawater, it starts to break down into food for marine life, and just to top it off, it can self-heal and remember past shapes. Plastic is everywhere in our modern world, for better or worse.

That might sound like a dangerous proposition, but the kit, called Follies, consists of 45 flat plastic shapes in bright colors that slide together to create whimsical, Memphis-like structures ...