The History of Camouflage Patterns

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The name gilly suits comes from boy servants of yore who would accompany Scottish hunters into the field. The Army had to pull universal camo out of commission and replace it with a pattern called operational camouflage, which cost them about $5 billion in lost revenue. Today you can purchase an invisibility cloak if big five sporting goods for $36.99.

Invisibility cloaks. Transparent frogs. Stealth bombers. Gorilla mischief. Theoretical optical physicist and Invisible Photologist Dr. Greg Gbur joins Alie to chat about light, illusions, secret technology, science fiction inspiration, terrible camouflage, great movies, historical mishaps, and even a few great household life hacks – and why you should go read a book on your porch. Perhaps his book, Invisibility: The History and Science of How Not To Be Seen.

Visit Dr. Greg Gbur’s blogs, Skulls in the Stars and Science Chamber of Horrors, and follow him on Twitter, Mastodon, Instagram and TikTok

Buy Dr. Gbur’s book, Invisibility: The History and Science of How Not To Be Seen, on Bookshop.org or Amazon

His 2019 book, Falling Felines and Fundamental Physics, is also available on Bookshop.org and Amazon

A donation went to Doctors Without Borders