Joseph Clois Shivers Jr. (November 29, 1920 – September 1, 2014) was an American textile chemist who was based in West Chester, Pennsylvania, best known for his role in the structural development of Spandex, a thermoplastic elastomer, in the 1950s, while employed at DuPont.

[1] During the course of the war, still as a student, he did work with the United States government to develop a drug to counter malaria for use by troops overseas.

[1] Though the project was shelved at a point, Shivers made a breakthrough in the 1950s when he attempted a modification of the polyester Dacron, which produced a stretchy fibre that could withstand heat, be spun into filaments, and stretch 5 times its original length while retaining elasticity.

[1] By the early 1990s, Lycra was one of the most lucrative facets of the synthetic fibre department at Dupont.

[1][5] DuPont awarded Shivers with their Lavoisier Medal in 1995, the highest honour for the company.