In-home power consumption monitors are trendy pieces of kit lately, with a new one popping up every few months. But, while they're all happy to just kick back and tell you what a wasteful pig you're being, a new service from UK security company AlertMe could actually make you more efficient. Subscribers to the company's monitoring plans, which start at about $260 plus another $17.50/month, will be able to purchase Smart Plugs for $43 each that can communicate wirelessly to an AlertMe Heating Controller.

From there subscribers can monitor their energy usage online via computer or phone. That's all standard stuff, but the service also includes keyfobs that will automatically turn down the heat and deactivate devices when you leave, and allows users to manually control the plugs and the thermostat by text message, meaning you'd never be more than a few thumb-presses (and a 20 cent service charge) away from a warm and inviting home.

[Via SmartPlanet]

Our current energy crisis is spurring some novel ideas for generating electrcity. Design labs around the country are churning out ideas like this cell phone-charging yo-yo, which can generate small amounts of energy to power personal electronics in hopes of taking that small burden off the grid.

The cell phone-charging yo-yo is a simple concept: A conductor and a magnet are housed inside the yo-yo, and energy is created as the yo-yo spins. The charge is then held in a battery which can be connected to a cell phone, providing the power to place calls.

If it ever gets manufactured, you'll be able to keep your restless children (or inner child) busy while squeaking out some extra talk time on your iPhone. Check out the video concept after the break. [From: Textually.org]

We've seen a lot of ways for humans to generate electricity for their electronic toys, from energy producing dance floors, to people powered gyms, and boat loads of solar clothing. But the oddest concept we've heard about so far is a kinetic energy bra.

The bra, which is currently just an idea being tossed around by Slate contributor Adrienne So, would convert breast motion to energy using special fabric made of nano-wires. As the breasts sway, they would cause the wires to rub against each other generating small amounts of friction and electricity, about 80 milliwatts, just enough to power a cell phone.

The idea will likely never see the light of day, but it did give us a good excuse to write about electricity-producing bras. Hee hee bras... [Source: Slate, Via: Textually]

Unlike Rock Port, Missouri, the entire state of Delaware won't be 100-percent wind-powered after Bluewater Wind constructs a $1.6 billion wind park just off its shore, but the state will be able to "light about 50,000 homes a year" for the duration of the 25-year contract. Said agreement was just nailed down between the aforesaid firm and Delmarva Power, and it hopes to start powering homes via wind by 2012.

The offshore site will sit around 12 miles off Rehoboth Beach, with a number of turbines to be planted 90-feet into the sea floor and sport three blades apiece measuring 150-feet long. It's noted that vacationers and locals alike won't be able to notice the park from the beach except on a few remarkably clear days, but if their energy bills sink because of it, we don't really think they'll mind, anyway. [Source: CNN]

Generating usable amounts of power without burning fossil fuels or collecting piles of nuclear sludge has become the holy grail of the environmental movement and much of the scientific community. Solar has proven too expensive and inefficient so far, while wind power is criticized as unsightly and occasionally dangerous to wildlife.

Scientists have been searching for a way to harness the power of ocean waves and tidal flows, with varying degrees of success. Salt water corrodes electronics and the forces involved aren't nearly as dramatic as those at work at Niagara Falls or the Hoover Dam. A company out of Minnesota, Independent Natural Resources (INR), has developed the Seadog Pump, which churns out power from ocean waves at a relatively high efficiency, converting 22 percent of the ocean wave energy into usable energy. The Seadog also lacks any electronics, making it extraordinarily cheap and simple to build as well as making it much more resistant to the corrosive powers of the sea.

INR plans to have their first commercial facility up and running by the end of the year or early 2009. [Source: Crave]

Every step you take could soon be the power source for your mobile phone, MP3 player or portable GPS device. A group of university researchers from the United States and Canada have developed a prototype knee brace that captures energy in a way that's similar to how some hybrid cars charge their batteries by converting energy while they brake.

"There is power to be harvested from various places in the body, and you can use that to generate electricity. The knee is probably the best place," said Arthur Kuo, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan, in a statement released yesterday.

Kou and colleagues determined that when a person stops his or her lower leg from swinging forward into a step, the majority of the energy expended is just lost. The new prototype knee brace is built to capture and store that energy more efficiently than other human powered electricity generators. For example, a hand-crank generator requires 6.4 watts of metabolic power from a person to generate one watt of electricity because of inefficiencies -- but the knee brace requires less than one watt of metabolic power to produce one watt of electricity.

The challenge for the team of researchers, which also includes staff from Simon Fraser University in Canada and the University of Pittsburgh, is to make the device lighter so it doesn't tire the wearer. For now it is too bulky and heavy to be practical.

Kuo says that in the future, a light device could be very useful to hikers or soldiers who don't have quick access to an energy source. For people with a prosthetic limb, the energy capture device could be on one knee while a battery is implanted within the fake limb.

From The Daily Mail, Engadget and Reuters.

Related links:

• "Robo-Moth" Gives Hope to Amputees
• Pentagon to Implant Chips in Soldiers' Bodies
• Get Power from Your Own Blood?

You may not know it, but your electronics use electricity even when they're "off." Most home electronics, including your microwave, TV, and DVD player, continue to consume small amounts of power even after you're done using them. Why? Because rather than switch off all electronic circuits, gadgets and devices often switch into "standby" mode.

This small amount of power adds up over time. It's estimated that five percent of all electricity in the United States is wasted powering devices that are not in use, and that figure could rise to 20 percent by 2010, according to the Department of Energy.

California, which is usually at the forefront of conservation efforts, passed the Vampire Slayers Act last year, which requires that electronics have a tag detailing the amount of energy used not only during normal use, but also in standby mode, as well as when turned off.

Even chargers, such as those for cell phones, are a major drain on the system. They use up a trickle of energy after the phone is completely charged, or even if the phone is disconnected.

You can avoid adding to the problem with some simple tips:

• Unplug any devices you can when not in use. If you're done charging your phone, don't simply disconnect the phone, but unplug the charger completely. The same goes for laptops, electric razors and toothbrushes. When you're done watching TV, unplug the set from the wall.
• Utilize power strips. Plug your home entertainment system, as well as your computer, monitor and other peripherals into power strips or surge protectors so that you can easily shut off the whole set up when you're done. You can try "Smart" power strips, which shut off automatically if a device isn't on for a certain period of time, as well as shut off, say, all your peripherals if you turn off your computer. (That said, make sure to keep your cable box plugged in to a separate, always-on power strip, since the cable box often de-authorizes itself if left unplugged for too long.)
• Look for the Energy Star logo. The government backed program rates electronics on energy efficiency. Looking for electronics with the highest Energy Star rating possible will guarantee you waste as little electricity as possible.

Vampire electronics not only drive up your electricity bill, but also drive up the price of energy in general and pollute our environment. These tips along with switching your light bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs will make sure you contribute as little as possible to global warming.

From AOL News (AP)

Related Links:

• Earth-Friendly Tech
• Earth-Friendly Tech Tips
• iPhone Bad for Environment, Says Greenpeace
• Internet Eats Up Nearly 10% of US Electricity
• Ford Developing 100 MPG Escort Hybrid

It may be tough to imagine a future in which batteries for your cell phones (or AC adapters for your media players) are things of the past, but scientists are hard at work trying to make this very thing a reality. It looks like a group of German researchers have designed circuitry that converts heat from the human body into electricity.

But before your cell phone can be powered by the warmth of your hand, you'll have to wait for some scientists to overcome some hurdles. Because the temperature difference between the body and the air around it is only a few degrees, the circuits can only produce about 200 millivolts of power. Most electronic devices require 1-2 volts. The researchers are now working on new circuitry that will allow devices to operate at those extraordinarily low voltages.

Though the circuitry was developed with the human body in mind, the technology is applicable to any situation in which a difference in temperature occurs. It could be used to reclaim small amounts of power from a running radiator or air conditioner, for example.

From Gizmowatch

Related Links:

• iSolarX Jacket Charges Your Gadgets
• Smart Clothing Monitors Health
• Wireless Electricity = WiTricity

Seems tech has a contract out for geeks.

Let this be a warning to all of you: Don't touch the inside of your PC when you are wet. According to Shanghai Daily, a young man, simply identified as "Wu," was shocked to death by his PC.

Wu took the case off the outside of his PC to prevent it from overheating. For some unexplained reason, he was not running the air conditioner in his home, so he wasn't wearing that much clothing. At some point, his sweaty leg came in contact with his PC's innards and Wu was dealt the deadly jolt -- 380 volts right from his PC's power supply.

Let's not forget that gadgets are electric, after all, and these kinds of deaths can happen just like that, so follow the precautions you'd take with any other electricity-powered device (like don't touch it if you're wet!).

But electrocution is not the only hazard that can come with a gadget. Take a look at some of the other tech-related deaths we have covered in the past few months (surprisingly, there are a lot more than just these).

We hope each of the following examples will serve as some kind of warning for you:

• Cell Phone Battery Explodes, Kills Worker: This one happened in China, where a factory worker's cell phone in his chest pocket exploded, sending shards into his chest.
  
• Kid Drowns in Lake After Cell Phone Sinks: This poor kid went diving after his cell phone in a lake. He never came back up.
  
• Man Drowns After Phone Drops in Sewer: This one isn't good for the claustrophobes: This Michigan man went after his dropped cell phone in a sewer, got stuck face-down, and drowned with his feet sticking up street level.
  

From Engadget via Shanghai Daily

Related Links:

• Are Your Gadgets Making You Sick?
• Cell Phones Causing Skin Rashes
• Lightning Strikes iPod-Wearing Jogger

Though it's too early to throw out our AC adapters and powerstrips, a team at MIT has taken us one step closer to a wire-free existence by managing to power a 60 Watt lightbulb from seven feet away without any cords! WiTricity, as the technology is being called, uses the simple physics of resonance.

Resonance causes an object to vibrate when energy at a certain frequency is applied. This is similar to the premise behind the old shattering wine glass gag. If a glass resonates at the same frequency as the singers voice, it will vibrate and shatter once enough pressure has built up. In the case of WiTricity, a charging device sends out low-frequency electromagnetic waves to a gadget. If those waves and the gadget to be powered resonate at the same frequency, presto, you've got wireless electricity. Of course, it's not that simple, but that's the gist anyway.

This technology has the potential to power a roomful of gadgets and appliances with just wireless charging device. It can even work through obstacles, including walls. The next step for the group is to shrink the technology down since the current copper coils used for demonstrations are two feet wide.

And before the paranoid technophobes out there start beating their drum again, let it be known that there is no danger to humans from this technology. The field is almost entirely magnetic and the human body doesn't respond to magnetic fields.

From USA Today and BBC

Related Links:

• Wi-Fi While You Drive
• Health Fears Surrounding Wi-Fi Unfounded
• New, Faster Cellular Internet