Getting a charge from radiation

Radiation is all around us, buzzing in the bricks of your abode and inside your body, not to mention your frozen lasagna. Might as well put all that wasted radiation to use, decided Hawaii start-up Ambient Micro. It's figured out how to harness ambient radiation as an energy source that could be used for all kinds of gadgets. Reports the Honolulu Star-Bulletin:

The possible applications are mind-boggling. The most obvious, near-term uses include smoke alarms, burglar alarms or other sensors that never need a battery change. They simply recharge themselves with a device that harvests the electromagnetic waves, or photons, that already flood the space around them from a myriad of sources.The innovation carries huge ramifications in terms of reduced labor and battery disposal. Batteries contain toxic heavy metals that can contaminate the environment.

Just when you can't stand more science fiction coming true, consider that already the Air Force has paid Ambient Micro to cook up a radiation-based power supply for tiny, flying sensors (left) that could buzz around military sites like nosy houseflies, or sniff out poisons in the air where human noses dare not poke. If you were already worried about the cell phone frying your brain, just wait until it's a totally wireless, radiation-powered device.

Comments

[Rob Miller]

Thanks for sharing this article in Carnival of the Green. I would point out that these power sources must absorb radiation, leaving less from your cell phone to fry your brain, although not a lot less.