Image from Applied Materials & Interfaces, published by the American Chemical Society (click for larger version)

Anyway, there are many things to be said; about a needle and some thread.

This Applied Materials & Interfaces article takes something I know that you already like, microfluidic devices, and throws in cotton thread. If you like cotton thread too, this article is going to the best thing that's happened to you in a long time.

Wei Shen and colleagues at the Australian Pulp and Paper Institute in Melbourne report in the article that they've "stitched together" a microfluidic device that can be used to take analytical measurements out of cotton thread and paper.

The device they constructed was used to test for certain chemicals (uric acid) and data was taken with "colorimetric assay," wherein the authors use a scanner and photoshop to build their data. The authors report: "Our results demonstrate that thread is a suitable material for fabricating microfluidic diagnostic devices for monitoring human health, environment and food safety, especially for the population in less-industrialized areas or remote regions."