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Posts tagged electricity
Simple Design That Saves Lives
Sep 7th
This design would win any safety design contest hands down. The “safety plug”rides on the success of “simplicity”. Yes – the same factor the iPhone succeeded on. The design simply covers up the naked power points on a plug to make something safe even more safer. Designed keeping child safety in mind i think this is one of the best designs I have come across. Images after the break.
Save Electricity, and the Birds
Aug 26th
The Empire State Building will be turning off its lights in order to aid migratory birds. Over 90,000 birds die every year by crashing into skyscrapers because their lights attract birds right into the window.
Use what you have. Rwanda has an exploding lake
Aug 21st
Rwanda’s Lake Kivu is on the doorstep of Nyurangongo volcano, making the lake’s waters the secret hiding place for thousands of years worth of volcanic gases. The Rwandan government recently built a power plant on the lake’s shore, producing 3.6 megawatts of electricity. This is enough to power more than 4 percent of the country. Doesn’t seem like much, but plans are to utilize more of the Lake Kivu’s dynamite power to provide one-third of the country’s energy needs. There are worries that as global warming increases, the warmer surface temperatures of the water could release the toxic gases. But if the plant keeps using and providing an outlet for the toxic gases, this will prevent a dangerous build up of the gases underneath the lake’s surface.
Design: Making Pylons Look Beautiful
Aug 16th
An eye sore can be taken care of by making small changes to any design. Choi+Shine Architects did that with Pylons. Choi+Shine designed pylons that look like giants holding up power lines. The design was called “Land of the giants” and consisted of 7 different postures in which men and women held the high tension cables. The design utilizes a library of pre-built joints to attain postures with the same components – a head, torso, hands and legs. The design is unbuilt but inspiring. Pictures after the break.
Hey, Now We Have Wireless EV Chargers
Jul 30th
TThink only the iPhone can be charged wirelessly? Evatran has released the first wireless “Car Charger” for your plugin EV. This tech works thanks to magnetic induction via a wireless charging tower and an adapter on the car’s charging port. 2 drawbacks – 1- its wireless, so expect some energy loss while charging. 2- it will take out about $4300 of green from your pocket before a $2000 tax refund. But come on, do you want to bend you back and plug that wire into the car everyday? Guess the loss of green is worth it. So much for wired power! Wireless power is the way of the future and I think technologies like these will keep the world on track for wireless power. Remember the wireless induction charging article we had posted some time back? Link to the trial program and images after the break.
Make Your Walking Useful, Make Some Electricity.
Jul 28th
We talked about the vibration powered battery but this one takes the cake. How about generating electricity out of your daily walk? Designer Stephen Chan Wing Tak wants to make this happen through his peizoelectric sidewalk slabs. A 6 layer sidewalk slab consists of a material that can harness the energy stores in vibrations generated by your walking. The energy is used to light up an OLED display on the sidewalk that tells you where you are headed. A completely energy self sufficient system that could change the way people walk. Pictures after the break
DIY: More Nuclear Fusion Reactors
Jun 30th
More DIY Nuclear fusion reactors coming to the fore, this time built by a high school student. Thiago Olson built the nuclear fusion reactor out of parts purchased from a hardware store and ebay in 2006. Olson achieved nuclear fusion in his DIY reactor which fused atoms at some 200 mil degrees. No, the reactor does not power his house yet. Image of the reactor after the break.
Wireless Induction Charging For Plugin Cars?
Jun 27th
While efforts are on to build entire networks of charging stations to fuel your power hungry plugin automobiles, a German company Vahle has been proposing induction coil lined roads to charge cars wireless while in motion. This type of charging works the way a Palm Pre’s touchstone based charging works – wireless induction. This could well be reality, now that German cars are getting all sorts of capabilities. Video after the break.
Schneider Electric Launches MiCST Collaborative Project
Jun 8th
Schneider Electric announces today the launch of the MiCST collaborative project, aiming to generate electricity produced by solar energy through an innovative process, in partnership with 11 French organisations. The MiCST project consists in designing and manufacturing an innovative solar plant, using sunlight to heat an energy supply powering a thermodynamic machine able to drive
Microsoft Announces Availability of Hohm Scores for 60 Million Homes in the United States
Jun 1st
Starting May 26 2010, more than 60 million homeowners will be able to answer one simple question: “Am I an energy hog or an energy miser?” Microsoft Corp. today announced the availability of the Hohm Score, an estimate of a home’s energy efficiency, offered as part of the company’s free online home energy management tool,
IBM Teams With Hildebrand to Bring Smart Metering to Homes Across Britain
May 29th
IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced it is teaming with energy consultant Hildebrand to help consumers make more informed decisions about their energy consumption with IBM data management software. As part of this effort, citizens and companies are working together to make more efficient use of energy by collecting, storing and analyzing detailed energy usage information in real
New nanoscale electrical phenomenon discovered
May 26th
At the scale of the very small, physics can get peculiar. A University of Michigan biomedical engineering professor has discovered a new instance of such a nanoscale phenomenon—one that could lead to faster, less expensive portable diagnostic devices and push back frontiers in building micro-mechanical and “lab on a chip” devices. In our macroscale world,
Tesla Motors and Toyota Motor Corporation Intend to Work Jointly on EV Development, TMC to Invest in Tesla
May 23rd
TESLA MOTORS, INC. (Tesla) and TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announced that they intend to cooperate on the development of electric vehicles, parts, and production system and engineering support. The two companies intend to form a team of specialists to further those efforts. TMC has agreed to purchase $50 million of Tesla’s common stock issued in
Nano parfait a treat for scientists
May 16th
In two new papers, Rice University researchers report using ultracentrifugation (UCF) to create highly purified samples of carbon nanotube species. One team, led by Rice Professor Junichiro Kono and graduate students Erik Haroz and William Rice, has made a small but significant step toward the dream of an efficient nationwide electrical grid that depends on
First U.S. Demonstration of Honda U3-X Personal Mobility Prototype in New York
May 13th
Honda held the first U.S. demonstration of the company’s U3-X personal mobility prototype, first introduced at the Tokyo Motor Show in October of last year. The three-day debut event will run through April 8 at the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel in Times Square. A second demonstration will be held April 13-15, at the 2010
