This "Soil Lamp" by Marieke Staps is made of mud and lights an LED through the natural metabolism of the biological organisms contained within it. We've seen fruit powering electronics before, but building it into something that resembles a commercial product is still pretty far off.
Soil Lamp via Next Nature
Posted by Jonah Brucker-Cohen |
Nov 12, 2008 04:00 AM
Furniture, Green |
Permalink
| Comments (1)
| Email This |
| Digg this!
Oldest comments listed first.
Subscribe to MAKE Magazine!
Subscribe today, save 42% and get web access to MAKE free. MAKE Digital Edition is available only to subscribers.
$34.95 / 1 year
(4 Quarterly Issues)
Check out more videos from MAKE.
 |
MAKE on Facebook Visit our Facebook page and become a fan of MAKE! |
 |
MAKE on Twitter Follow our MAKE tweets! |
 |
MAKE on Flickr Join our MAKE Flickr Pool! |
Gareth Branwyn
Editor-in-Chief
Phillip Torrone
Senior Editor
| Web | Twitter
Becky Stern
Associate Editor
| AIM | Twitter
Marc de Vinck
Contributing Writer
| AIM | Twitter
John Park
Contributing Writer
| Twitter
Sean Ragan
Contributing Writer
| Twitter
Matt Mets
Contributing Writer
| AIM | Twitter
Dale Dougherty
Editor & Publisher
| Twitter
Shawn Connally
Managing Editor
| Twitter
Goli Mohammadi
Associate Managing Editor
Kip Kay
Weekend Projects
| AIM | Twitter
Collin Cunningham
Contributing Writer
| AIM | Twitter
Adam Flaherty
Contributing Writer
| AIM | Twitter
John Baichtal
Contributing Writer
| AIM | Twitter
More contributors: Mark Frauenfelder (Editor-in-Chief, MAKE magazine), Kipp Bradford (Technical Consultant/Writer), Chris Connors (Education), Diana Eng (Guest Author), Peter Horvath (Intern), Brian Jepson (O'Reilly Media), Robert Bruce Thompson (Science Room)
Why advertise on MAKE?
Read what folks are saying about us!
Click here to advertise on MAKE!
Behind the Scenes at MAKE and CRAFT
In January, many of the remote MAKE/CRAFT team members (myself included) convened at the Maker Media headquarters at O'Reilly Media in Sebastopol, California. Take a look behind the scenes of your favorite DIY publications as Goli Mohammadi gives us...
More...
Help | Write for MAKE | Contact Us | Subscribe | Advertise with Us | Privacy Policy| About MAKE | FAQ
© 2010 O'Reilly Media, Inc.
All trademarks and registered trademarks appearing on makezine.com are the property of their respective owners.
RSS
Ok - I was intrigued by the concept of "biological organisms" in the mud that produce electricity, so I followed the link. What the summary doesn't include are the parts where it says this:
"Free and environmentally friendly energy forever and ever . . . The mud is enclosed in various cells. These cells contain copper and zinc that conduct the electricity . . . The only thing the lamp needs is a splash of water every now and then."
Now, an LED lamp powered by copper/zinc cells with a mud electrolyte is kind of cool, but there are no magical biological organisms involved, and the lamp will inevitably stop functioning once the chemical reaction has run its course. In any case, they've been making little digital clocks powered like this for a long time, so it's not exactly a huge leap forward.
Reply to this comment