Neoprene (polychloroprene) is best known as the heat-insulating, outer covering of wetsuits—but it has far more applications than most people are aware of. Medical supports of various kind use it because, tightly fitted, it compresses and warms injured bits of your body, promoting faster healing. Since it's flexible and waterproof, it's also widely used as a building material, for example, as a roof and floor sealant, and as a spongy absorber of sound and vibration in door and window linings.
A recycled rubber mouse mat made from an old car tire
Although the world has a vast appetite for new rubber, we also produce a huge quantity of rubber waste, especially from discarded vehicle tires—and that's becoming an important raw material in its own right. According to the Rubber Manufacturers Association, the United States alone produced almost 270 million waste rubber vehicle tires in 2011, which is about a third of all the tires used worldwide. While some of these are retreaded and others are ground up to make a low-grade aggregate that can be used for the floors in things like children's playgrounds, over half of them are wasted (either burned as a fuel or buried in landfills). Rubber manufacturers have recently turned their attention to recycling tires in all kinds of new ways, making everything from mouse mats and sports bags to shoe soles and car components.