September 23rd, 2008

How to build your own wind turbine (it's not easy)

I like Instructables, if only because it’s reassuring to know that there are people out there who are not only have not only the knowledge to do something like this, but also the inclination. I can write blog posts and… uh, I can count real high (mom says), but even looking at the ingredients list for this particular tech recipe nearly gives me a panic attack. Still, it’s… → Read More

June 10th, 2008

Solar briefcase for your laptop-enhanced picnics

O brave new world, with such products in it! Now honestly, it sounds nerdy, but as a blogger I can’t think of anything nicer than taking a blanket and a wireless broadband card out to a park and blogging all day in the sun (if we had sun here in Seattle this spring). Trouble is, my old MacBook Pro only has enough juice for two hours maximum, what with me constantly having a Super Nintendo… → Read More

May 22nd, 2008

Biomimetic sharktail wave-action harvester

Now there are a few words you probably weren’t expecting to read today. I have to say I’m a little skeptical of this system; after all, sharks’ tails are part of a supremely aquadynamic design and are powered by enormous muscles, not the waves, though I’m sure the researchers are aware of that. The system is designed to oscillate in the current, driving against a… → Read More

October 12th, 2007

Water-powered phones by 2010?

New development on the liquid-powered battery front. Samsung’s apparently "developed a micro-fuel cell and hydrogen generator that runs on H20." Metal and water inside the phone bump uglies to produce hydrogen, which is supplied to a small fuel cell where it bumps uglies with oxygen. After all is said and done, you’ve got about three watts of power. That’s enough for… → Read More