Charging Mobile Phone With Lightning

For most of us, lightning can be a truly terrifying, powerful and awe-inspiring force of nature, but scientists from Nokia and University of Southampton, UK, have successfully used simulated lightning to charge a Nokia phone.

Scientist Neil Palmer at University of Southampton has created a 200,000 volts man-made lightning bolt using AC current driven by a transformer, sent across a 300mm gap and then stepped into a second controlling transformer to charge a Nokia Lumia 925 phone. The phone circuitry somehow stabilized the noisy signal, allowing the battery to be charged wirelessly.

“This discovery proves that the device can be charged with a current that passes through the air, and is a huge step towards understanding a natural power like lightning and harnessing its energy,” Neil said.

“This is a first for any mobile phone company to trial this kind of technology,” said Chris Weber, Nokia Executive Vice President for Sales & Marketing. “We obviously aren’t recommending people try this experiment at home, but we are always looking to disrupt and push the boundaries of technology and find innovative ways to improve the performance of our products.”

“As one of the first companies to introduce wireless charging into our products, we believe that this experiment has the potential to jump-start new ideas on how we charge our phones in the future.”

Source: http://conversations.nokia.com/2013/09/27/harnessing-the-power-of-lightning-to-charge-a-nokia-lumia-925/

New Laser-Based Lighting Device, Alternative To LED Lighting

LED emerges as an efficient and energy-saving alternative to conventional incandescent or fluorescent light sources for meeting the ever-escalating demand for more lighting in more places and to improve the bulbs used in sports stadiums, car headlights and street lamps.

With all the advantages, LED is also facing a challenge that its efficiency falls as operating current rises, making it too hot to power in large-scale applications.

Researchers at University of California, Santa Barbara, led by material scientists Kristin A. Denault and Michael Cantore, have come out with an alternative to LED technology using laser diode, combining with inorganic phosphors, to create high-power white light source.

The laser-based lighting devices are high in efficiency and high in performance metrics, according to the study. The team used 2 methods to create white light.

(1) Using blue laser diode and yellow-emitting phosphor powder.

(2) Using a near-ultra-violet laser diode and a combination of red-, green-, and blue-emitting phosphors.

With these technologies, the team is able to achieve variety of other color temperatures with high color rendition, broadening the range of applications for these new lights.

Source: http://www.newswise.com/articles/bright-laser-based-lighting-devices

Malaysia Legoland Trip

Brought my family to visit Malaysia Legoland which located at Nusajaya, Johor. My 3 and 5 year-old daughters enjoyed the trip a lot. Just like to share some pictures taken during the trip.

Below shows the "welcome dance" performed by the Legoland staffs right before the theme park opened.

 

Below pictures were taken from the "Observation Tower".

The kids were waiting to get their first driving test.

 

Aquazone Wave Racers which could get wet as passer-by could detonate "water bomb" by pressing buttons located outside the blue fence.

What Does It Truly Cost to Recycle?

I always wonder how costly is it to start a recycling program in the local community? It is important, especially for small towns, to decide whether or not it will be economically sustainable to begin a recycling program.

Costs of a Recycling Program

The costs involved in creating a recycling program fall into two categories.

(1) Around 2/3 of the cost associated is allocated to the collection of garbage from the community. There are multiple options available like using city owned trucks picking up the garbage from homes, to self dropping off at the collection center.

(2) The other 1/3 of the cost is associated with the processing of the material which is to be recycled. This can be very costly if a town chooses to create a processing facility solely for their use. The cost of this aspect can be reduced by using a centralized processing facility which is shared with nearby towns or the local population which would also be using the facility.

Spread of Recycling

As the technology associated with recycling programs becomes more affordable and available to smaller populations, more and more towns are turning to recycling as a solution for their waste disposal. This trend is anticipated to continue as technology advances. Soon it may be possible to create cost effective recycling programs in even smaller communities in order to spread the responsibility out from the central municipal power.

Long Term Benefits of Recycling

Towns that institute recycling programs will not only reap the environmental rewards of their efforts; it is possible that a town will be able to bring in a small amount of money above the operating costs of the program that they have created once the initial costs of creation have been paid off.

With the current technology it is not feasible for the most part to make a large profit margin off of the value of a recycling program, however as technology advances and becomes less costly, new opportunities could very arise down the road.

Source: http://2greenenergy.com/2013/10/01/cost-to-recycle/