Can a swimsuit make you swim faster?

­If today's female Olympic swimmers were still weight­ed down by the swimming costumes of the 1890s, women would be "racing" in no less than stockings, bloomers and a short-sleeved dress. It took movie star and athlete Annette Kellerman boldly sashaying onto a beach in a one-piece in 1907 to make an important cut to swimsuits. Without her, women might still be sinking like stones in the <a href="http://science.howstuffworks.com/h2o.htm">water</a>. At the very least, they wouldn't be breaking world records at the current rate. K­­ellerman was arrested for her troubles. ­Fast forward to the 1970s, when male swimm­ers wore spandex briefs the size of dinner napkins, following the idea that less material brought about faster times. Now, swimsuits are again approaching full-body coverage, this time trying to resurface the swimmer's body to be better than -- well -- the swimmer's body. ­Th­ese days, honest swimmers aren't trying to gain a lap­ on competitors, but to win by hundredths of a ...  more

Can a swimsuit make you swim faster? ­If today's female Olympic swimmers were still weight­ed down by the swimming costumes of the 1890s, women would be "racing" in no less than stockings, bloomers and a short-sleeved dress. It took movie star and athlete Annette Kellerman boldly sashaying onto a beach in a one-piece in 1907 to make an important cut to swimsuits. Without her, women might still be sinking like stones in the <a href="http://science.howstuffworks.com/h2o.htm">water</a>. At the very least, they wouldn't be breaking world records at the current rate. K­­ellerman was arrested for her troubles. ­Fast forward to the 1970s, when male swimm­ers wore spandex briefs the size of dinner napkins, following the idea that less material brought about faster times. Now, swimsuits are again approaching full-body coverage, this time trying to resurface the swimmer's body to be better than -- well -- the swimmer's body. ­Th­ese days, honest swimmers aren't trying to gain a lap­ on ...  more