science

Vibram

Vibram is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Vibram rather than just read about it. In short: Vibram S.p.A. is an Italian company based in Albizzate, Italy, that manufactures and licenses the production of Vibram-branded rubber outsoles for footwear. The company is named after its founder, Vitale Bramani, who is credited with inventing the first rubber lug soles.

Key takeaways

Vibram belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Vibram to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Vibram from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Vibram S.p.A. is an Italian company based in Albizzate, Italy, that manufactures and licenses the production of Vibram-branded rubber outsoles for footwear. The company is named after its founder, Vitale Bramani, who is credited with inventing the first rubber lug soles. Vibram soles were first used on mountaineering boots, replacing leather soles fitted with hobnails or steel cleats which were commonly used up until then. The soles produced by Vibram are called Vibram soles, Vibram rubber, or simply Vibram.

History

The deaths of six of Bramani's mountaineering friends in the Italian Alps on September 15, 1935, were partly blamed on "inadequate footwear". The tragedy drove Bramani to develop a new climbing sole. Two years later, he patented his invention and launched the first rubber lug soles on the market with a new tread design called the "Carrarmato" (i.e. "tank tread"), with the financial backing of Leopoldo Pirelli of Pirelli Tyres. The sole was designed to provide excellent traction on the widest range of surfaces and have high abrasion resistance. It was made using the latest vulcanized rubber. The first successful ascent to the summit of K2 was made by an Italian expedition wearing Vibram rubber on their soles in July 1954. The company opened a store in Boston in 2012 to showcase their FiveFingers line of glove-styled shoes. The shop was relaunched in April 2020. A Vibram Academy opened in London in 2016.

Products Vibram soles are manufactured in Brazil, China, Italy, the Czech Republic, and the United States and are used by more than 1,000 footwear manufacturers in their products. In the United States, the soles are made under exclusive license by Quabaug Corporation of North Brookfield, Massachusetts, which was acquired by Vibram in June 2015. Although the brand is best known among the outdoor and mountaineering community, Vibram produces numerous models of soles that are specifically designed for fashion, military, rescue, law enforcement, or industrial use. Vibram also produces soles that are used exclusively for footwear resoling. With its FiveFingers line of shoes, which mimic the look and mechanics of being barefoot, Vibram helped to inspire the movement of barefoot running and running while wearing only minimalist footwear. Referring to the period of the late 2000s, SneakerFreaker Magazine said, "A barefoot revolution was underway, and the Vibram FiveFingers was leading the charge." However the company also agreed to settle a lawsuit that claimed that it had misrepresented the health benefits of running in its shoes. Vibram soles are a market leader in hiking soles, chosen by shoe manufacturers for their reputation for traction and durability.

Controversies A lawsuit was filed against Vibram in April 2012, over claims made about their Vibram FiveFingers, their minimalist shoe. Vibram claimed that the shoe "reduce(s) foot injuries, and strengthen(s) foot muscles." The claim was based on Gert-Peter Bruggermann's research, accepted at the 2005 Conference for the International Society of Biomechanics. Later, a controlled study published in July 2013 showed that the risk of bone marrow edema among new wearers increased during their respective transition periods to minimalist shoes when worn for extended periods. While Vibram, according to court papers, expressly denied "any actual or potential fault... or liability", it was announced in 2014 that the company had moved to settle the suit and agreed to set aside $3.75 million to pay refunds of up to $94 to anyone who had purchased the product since March 21, 2009.

Trivia Vibram shoes were sported by European statesman Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the European Union. He specifically mentioned them in an interview he gave in 1955 to French journalist André Fontaine for French newspaper Le Monde, in which he hinted at the forthcoming creation of the Action Committee for the United States of Europe. Vibram soles were used as a product placement for Bee Movie in 2007.

References

External links

www.vibram.com — (official site)

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Vibram

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Vibram claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Vibram before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Vibram ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Vibram

In research: Vibram appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Vibram in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Vibram is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Climbing and mountaineering equipment companies, Clothing companies established in 1937, Companies based in Lombardy, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Vibram outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Vibram in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Vibram means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Vibram out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vibram in simple terms?

Why does Vibram matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Vibram?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Vibram.