Fabric

Science, which is confusing to many people — some to the point that they regard it as a form of superstition — has always needed its champions, its spokespersons, its interpreters, big brains who also function efficiently as celebrities and have a knack for taking impossible-sounding theories and making them sound, at least for the moment they're speaking, comprehensible. Here comes Brian Greene, again. (He is TV's favorite theoretical physicist.) Like Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking before him, Greene — whose "The Fabric of the Cosmos" begins a four-week run Wednesday in the framework of the PBS series "Nova" — is both mediagenic and a working scientist.

Palmela Green sits amid hundreds of fabric rolls in her West L.A. swimsuit shop, surrounded by pink and red sequins, animal prints, knits and faux furs. A photo of one of her recent projects, a swimsuit in a Lexus ad, is proudly displayed on a wall. Green, who works by appointment, is one of only a few designers - the pool also includes Lissa Walker and Merrilee Madrigal, who are both based in Orange County - in the area who create custom swimwear. Green's customers pick a fabric and then choose one of her styles or order a one-of-a-kind pattern.

'Nova: The Fabric of the Cosmos' Where: KOCE When: 9 p.m. Wednesday Rating: TV-G (suitable for all ages)

On the eve of an international wrestling meet at the Sports Arena, American officials remain at a loss to explain why the Iranian team - making its first visit to the U.S. since 2003 - has unexpectedly withdrawn and flown home. Los Angeles was supposed to be the second stop in a two-city tour. The Iranians competed in New York earlier this week. Iranian media reported Friday that team officials had security concerns and that U.S. officials refused to guarantee their safety on the West Coast.

Riitta Immonen, 90, a co-founder of Marimekko, the Finnish fabric and fashion design company, died Aug. 24 in a Helsinki hospital, according to news reports. The cause of death was not released. She was born in Ilomantsi, Finland, and studied dressmaking at a trade school in Helsinki before she went into the fashion business. Immonen was designing women's clothes for her own boutique when she and a friend, textile designer Armi Ratia, started Marimekko in 1951 to create hand-printed cotton fabrics.

How's this for cool threads? Scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have been crafting a high-tech fabric for the military made out of tiny carbon nanotubes - hollow structures that stay breathable in hot weather yet are small enough to block out pathogens. For an extra layer of safety, they're planning to add a special coating that will block out even the smallest toxins, such as anthrax spores and other chemical and biological warfare agents. The technology is still in the concept stages, but the research has already received funding from the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency.

Six people were burned in a fiery explosion at a textile-manufacturing company, and authorities said a buildup of fabric particles may have been responsible for the blast. Deputy Fire Chief Ron Godin said Sunday that a heavy buildup of fabric particles in the air, a byproduct of the manufacturing process, may have been ignited by the mill's machinery.

Ten gunmen tied up and gagged three employees at a Carson textile business and made off with about 35 40-pound rolls that the company says are worth $100,000, authorities said Thursday. About 8 p.m. Wednesday the gunmen bound and gagged three employees at Sunflower Textiles, said Sgt. Mike Browne. The suspects took the rolls of fabric stored in 16 carts and fled. Browne said the employees were able to free themselves and called authorities. He said the incident is under investigation.

"I simply can't believe that the world needs a $50 T-shirt," said my editor, forever banning reviews of "high-tech" clothing in this column. Well, in the eight years since that conversation, high-tech's gone higher and attitudes have mellowed. "Performance" clothes for sports and fitness are everywhere, and a few of them actually work. A few examples are below — including a $99.95 T-shirt. Stand up straight AlignMed Posture Shirt: Polyester-spandex compression shirt designed to improve your posture and reduce muscle fatigue by pulling and tilting kyphotic (rounded-forward)

THIS IS PURELY an idea book, and one that--despite a chapter called "Keeping It Simple"--leans toward the elaborate in window treatments. Few plain draperies here; what you'll find instead are pages of french pleats, beribboned swags, tails and ruching designed to cover bay windows, shuttered windows, dormer windows, arched windows and bed canopies. Each section has a brief introduction (offering a historical perspective on styles as well as such tips as "If you like to use table and floor lamps to create distinct pools of light at nighttime, heavily ruched fabrics might be a good choice: Deep shadows will gather in the folds, conveying an air of mystery and sophistication")

He mixed with the well-to-do in the upscale suburb of San Marino, proclaiming himself an English baronet who taught film at USC. He briefly settled in a wealthy Connecticut enclave, convincing locals he was a successful television producer. He talked his way onto Wall Street, persuading one firm to let him run a bond trading desk. But it was his fraudulent claims of being a member of the famous Rockefeller family that led to his most lucrative success - and, ultimately, his downfall.

On a piano keyboard, which mimics the human vocal range, the middle C is the C closest to the center. That's Joseph Skizzen - the protagonist of William H. Gass' long-awaited follow-up to his 1995 masterpiece "The Tunnel" - a middle-of-the-road yet slightly off-center academic who wants nothing but "the chance of an unnoticed life. " But it just might be a stand-in for the author. If Gass' body of work were a keyboard, you'd have his debut novel, "Omensetter's Luck" on one end and of "The Tunnel" at the other.

Mood Designer Fabrics, best known as the shopping destination for “Project Runway” contestants in New York, is offering free sewing instruction in the company's bright new L.A. store on La Brea Avenue. The six-class series for beginners will be taught in a sewing studio called the Mood School and will cover basics such as using a machine, reading a pattern, marking and cutting fabric, and assembly. Current class projects include tote and messenger bags, but a spokeswoman said more home decor will be added.

In a city reeling from earthquakes, riots and a deep recession, Tim Leiweke emerged as a powerful force in Los Angeles. He made his mark in 1999, opening Staples Center in a moribund section of downtown. Then the L.A. Live complex, which changed the downtown skyline for the first time in a decade. Leiweke's departure Thursday as head of entertainment giant Anschutz Entertainment Group sent ripples through not only L.A.'s business community but also its civic and political circles.

Packed with colorful hand-printed textiles, vintage furnishings, unusual housewares and original artworks, the new Henry Road store in Studio City is a lot like the old Henry Road around the corner. Owner Paula Smail has kept the vibe of her former 500-square-foot retail space alive while adding a sophisticated warmth to the new 1,200-square-foot showroom. “It's just bigger,” Smail said of the new space. “I hope it's still a quirky and eclectic mix of things.” That eclecticism includes an array of striking pillows of Smail's design, Moroccan poufs, baskets from Ghana and artworks by Max Neutra, Karen Sikie, Patrick Haemmerlein and Misha Ashton-Moore.

The critical acclaim for the new Kathryn Bigelow movie "Zero Dark Thirty" has renewed the debate on the efficacy of torture. The movie dramatizes the decade-long effort to find and eventually kill Osama bin Laden. In a riveting opening section, the film obliquely credits the discovery of the key piece of information in the search for Bin Laden to the torture of an Al Qaeda prisoner held by the CIA. This is at odds with the facts as they have been recounted by journalists reporting on the manhunt, by Obama administration intelligence officials and by legislative leaders.

Planning to redo the interior of your home? This is the paperback reference book to consult if you want to compare construction and decorating materials. This book describes just about every imaginable substance that can be used in a home improvement project, including woods and wood composites, papers, fabrics, concrete and ceramics.

There is one category of merchandise that I buy whether I need it or not--and that is fabric--gorgeous fabric at low prices. Somewhere down the line there will be a use for it, either for a chair, curtains, a wall hanging or a gift. A new source for a fabric foray, Stern's, has arrived in the San Fernando Valley after 40 years in downtown Los Angeles.

Actors and costume designers have a rare relationship on set: They're both involved in building a person, using the actor's body as the raw materials. It's a relationship built on trust and talent, and when everything goes well, clothes really do make the man (or woman). Here's a peek behind the scenes of four such recent partnerships. 'Hitchcock' Toni Collette (as Peggy Robertson) Julie Weiss (costume designer) The character: As Alfred Hitchcock'sreal-life assistant, Collette's outfits had to establish her as a mid-century working woman but never be too flashy, since Peggy always stood in the reflected glow of the master of suspense.

David Oliver Relin, a journalist who coauthored the celebrated but controversial book "Three Cups of Tea," has committed suicide in Oregon, authorities said. He was 49. Relin, who lived in Portland, died Nov. 15 in the Portland-area community of Corbett, Multnomah County Deputy Medical Examiner Tom Chappelle said Monday. He said Relin died of self-inflicted blunt-force head injuries. Relin's body was found along railroad tracks near the Columbia River, Multnomah County sheriff's officials told the Associated Press.