NORTHWESTERN RESEARCHERS INVENT AN INCREDIBLE POWER-GENERATING FUEL CELL THAT RUNS ON DIRT

The Debrief ^ | JANUARY 18, 2024 | CHRISTOPHER PLAIN

[daku]

Think of these poor microbes, what happens to the microbes ?
MLM

[lurk]

Isn’t it more efficient to create farms of unconscious people and plug them into the grid?

[stylin19a]

Their lead sentence from their abstract

Abstract
Human-caused climate degradation and the explosion of electronic waste have pushed the computing community to explore fundamental alternatives to the current battery-powered, over-provisioned ubiquitous computing devices that need constant replacement and recharging.

Wonder if it has to be implanted below the frost line...

[TangoLimaSierra]

In sum - limited applicability.

Yep. Fits in a backpack and powers your watch.

[catnipman]

“NORTHWESTERN RESEARCHERS INVENT AN INCREDIBLE POWER-GENERATING FUEL CELL THAT RUNS ON DIR”

Awesome! My lot just happens to contain a YUGE amount of dirt! AND, if i run out, it’s easy enough to get plenty more!

[Dr. Sivana]

Since when did researchers ever invent anything the free market could use.

It happens sometimes. Sometimes by accident. For instance a Searle researcher noticed that aspartame was sweet. Another researcher noriced that the chicolate bar in his pocket melted when exposed to microwaves. Teflon was a by-product of the research related to the Apollo missions. This is not the most efficient way, but it happens. You still need someone, if not the researcher himself, to come up with the “Ah ha!” moment. Most famously, the Palo Alto RESEARCH Center came up with LOTS of great ideas. Steve Jobs recognized the potential and cashed in, but it would not have happened without the research.

[catnipman]

gotta love the freebee harbor freight voltmeter!

[Gaffer]

If they could find a way to do this with processed trash waste from compost-producing plants many county waste handling departments have gotten taxpayers to fund that would be a good thing, I guess.

[moovova]

"Be back shortly, hon. Gotta run to Lowe's and buy some fuel."

[ProtectOurFreedom]

“Solar panels don’t work well in dirty environments because they get covered with dirt”

EUREKA! I've got the solution! We'll bury a fuel cell IN the dirt.

[telescope115]

I’m waiting for one that’ll run on cat poop….

[ProtectOurFreedom]

“limited applicability.”

Farms are going high-tech and there is a growing number of remote sensors. Maybe this could make enough power to run low-power remote sensors and RF communications.

[fightin kentuckian]

The point is lost on you. Researchers doing pure research are many times too myopic to see the potential in something they’ve invented. They are employed by a company to work as required.

You’ve just shown that inventions and byproducts of inventions were capitalized on by people other than the researcher. That was my point.

[Dr. Sivana]

No sir. You said, Since when did researchers ever invent anything the free market could use.

Not promote, not exploit ... invent. I gave several examples. If you meant to say something else, you should have.

[daler]

Or, another earth-shattering technological breakthrough destined to save the world multiple trillions in energy costs, never to be heard of again.

[fightin kentuckian]

Have you been a prissy libtard since you voted for biden or have you been one your entire life?

[Libloather]

Isn’t that where ze bugs live? Gonna have to pick one or the other.

[fireman15]

gotta love the freebee harbor freight voltmeter!

I have half a dozen free ones from Harbor Freight... some are yellow and some are red. A couple of them quit working after a while but it is nice to have them in the cars and trucks, the workshop, or just by the breaker box.

I paid $80 for my first digital multimeter from Radio Shack in the 1970s. It still works, but the display is now all screwed up.

[catnipman]

my first voltmeter was a radioshack analog one with the electromechanical needle ... it probably still worked, but got tossed during a cleanout a few months ago ... have several of the freebee harbor freight ones and a couple of really good ones like Amprobe ...

[fireman15]

I don’t have any premium multimeters, but I have quite a few specialty meters.