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Off Grid Via Slow Moving River?
einstein writes "I live out in the middle of nowhere, and I lose power at the drop of a hat. My house is right next to the Susquehanna river, and all the kinetic energy going past my house makes just want to go off grid. Most homebuilt hydro power is lower volume/high speed. What would be a good, unobtrusive way to generate electricity from a high volume/low speed body of water? I'm between two large hydro dams, so the water level is fairly constant, but does tend to fluctuate 4-6ft in the winter due to ice floes and melting snow. I think maybe a miniature version of one of the recent submerged tidal generators might work... Does anyone have some suggestions on how I might go about this project?" More than a few people have done this before.
You woudn't happen to wear a 50's era bifocals and live in a van down by the river?
I've noticed while wearing socks and walking on carpet, I often generate static electricity. Is there any way to harness this electricity to power my home, rather than shock me when I touch metal objects? In a related question, could I somehow generate power by rubbing balloons against my hair?
Why not just use humans? Just make a computer based reality world to keep them happy, and harness the energy.
do cats know to keep the fish out? And do they work in shifts or what??
Some work in shifts. A few work in loincloths, but most wear the catsuits they were born with.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
That's freaking brilliant. I'm sure the massive gear and belt-driven factories that were the peak technology of the Industrial Revolution were designed by engineers that constantly thought to themselves, "what a disaster, I'm wasting 20% of this FREE ENERGY."
Sheesh.