#minimal-footwear

#minimal-footwear

The fastest robot from Chinese smartphone-maker Honor notched a winning time of 50 minutes and 26 seconds while autonomously navigating the 13-mile (21-kilometer) route, according to the Global Times.

Getting shoes that work with your foot design rather than against it is a very good and necessary first step. A really great insole can help give much-needed support and stability.

The Nimbus has a midsole made of FF Blast+, which provides a soft ride but lacks energy return, making it best suited for slow, relaxed runs where pace doesn't matter.

Tuning frictional behavior on the fly has been a long-standing engineering dream. This new insight into how surface geometry governs slip pulses paves the way for tunable frictional metamaterials that can transition from low-friction to high-grip states on demand.

The system, tested in prototype form by NPR at the company's headquarters, consists of fairly standard-looking sneakers with a carbon fiber plate running through the soles. These sneakers are attached at the back to close-fitting, 3D-printed titanium leg shells that cinch to the calves. The battery-powered contraptions, containing complex motors, sensors and circuitry, weigh a couple of pounds and look like something out of Terminator or RoboCop.

Squeaking occurs across various contexts including shoes, bike brakes, rubber tires, and biomedical implants when soft and hard surfaces contact each other. Researchers used high-speed photography to study a rubber block sliding across hard acrylic to identify the source of these sounds. The investigation revealed that pulses similar to earthquake dynamics drive the squeaking phenomenon.

The gravel edition sticks with the same PEBA and EVA hybrid midsole with a transition-smoothing curved rocker, but adds extra grip in the form of a 2.5-mm lugged outsole. There's also some extra reinforcement around the toe box.

We were not expecting to find so much richness and depth from a physics point of view underneath the sole of a shoe, says Adel Djellouli, a scientist at Harvard University and co-lead of the study. In a new study, scientists explore the physics that give rise to the familiar squeak of basketball shoes sliding on a hard surface.

The results showed that the squeaking sound is produced by wave-like patterns across the rubber surface, contacting and then releasing from the glass, allowing the sliding between the surfaces. The waves move across the interface between the two materials at a speed of nearly 300 kilometers per hour.

At the end of the day, choosing your pair of Hokas will come down to personal preference. Think about your intended use and issues you have faced previously in walking shoes. If you're looking for a pair for walking that have more cushion than others, you will want to look for those that have the maximum cushion and stability. Or if you want a lightweight pair that you can also use for running, consider weight and versatility.

In addition to being comfortable to wear for long periods of time, I make sure my sneakers are supportive, don't give me blisters, and have a long-lasting quality. Skechers Hotshot Cool Transition Suede Sneakers from QVC met all of these requirements with flying colors after I tested them out recently, and they have become my go-to pair of walking shoes.

The Brooks Adrenaline GTS reaches a major milestone in 2025 with the release of its 25th edition. Outside of the ASICS Kayano, it's hard to think of another stability trainer that has remained in production for this long. That longevity speaks to a shoe built on a strong foundation, one that has continued to evolve over the years while maintaining its place as one of the best-selling stability shoes on the market.

I had to blink the first time I landed on the product page for the Nike ACG Ultrafly Trail. I'd seen lots of promotional assets ahead of the release (see here and here), where the trainer is caked with mud. But in the end, it's hi-vis orange - and like any other brand-new shoe, being sold without a stain or scratch.

The Hyperion Elite 5 has a midsole made entirely of DNA Gold, a PEBA foam. It's the foam with the highest level of energy return of all the Brooks midsole foams. The Hyperion Max 3 has a dual-density midsole with a top layer of DNA Gold and a bottom layer of DNA Flash, an EVA foam. The firmer DNA Flash provides a stable, durable base. Both shoes have plates in their midsoles but the Hyperion Elite 5 has a stiff carbon plate while the Hyperion Max 3 has a flexible nylon plate.