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Hacking the Fluorescent Light

DynaSoar writes "MSNBC reports on an elegant hack performed on the common fluorescent tube. By mixing phosphorescent material with the usual white fluorescent material, American Environmental Products has developed a tube that continues to glow when shut off. Originally intended for submarines, and then used in places where terrorists could disrupt services, they are also perfect for power outages, providing some light so you don't have to thrash around in the dark looking for your candles and flashlights. Since the 'hack' is inside the tube, they can also be removed from their fixtures and carried around, as well as provide light even if they're shattered."

22 of 284 comments (clear)

  1. Light Sabres ! by cosmic_0x526179 · · Score: 3, Funny

    OMG, all they need to do is put a hard-shield around the glass tube ;P

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    1. Re:Light Sabres ! by Triple+Click · · Score: 3, Funny

      And install speakers that make "vumph" noises. (hey, you find a better way to describe lightsaber sounds)

  2. wait a minute... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    how do you turn these lights off.

    1. Re:wait a minute... by nxtr · · Score: 2, Funny

      You shoot them out. Oh wait.

    2. Re:wait a minute... by RevengeOfPoopJuggler · · Score: 3, Funny

      They come with a rusty spoon for you to gouge your eyes out with. Clever, really...

    3. Re:wait a minute... by DrWhizBang · · Score: 3, Funny

      think "duct tape".

      If the women don't find you handsome...

      --
      Schrodinger's cat is either dead or really pissed off...
    4. Re:wait a minute... by Mr.+Bad+Example · · Score: 2, Funny

      > how do you turn these lights off.

      Every box of tubes comes packaged with a hammer and a black bag.

  3. Old people will freak out by acidradio · · Score: 4, Funny

    While this is a great product, I can see people like my granny going nuts over this. She can't handle the TV anymore (called me because it wouldn't work - I guess it has to be plugged in!), the telephone (has no idea how voicemail works, thinks that I am my answering machine). When lightbulbs exist that won't turn off, that might just be over the top.

  4. Re:uses by ciroknight · · Score: 4, Funny

    Are you kidding? I think if they make it commercially available I'll replace every light in the house with these!

    Glow in the dark lightbulbs is one of the best ideas I've ever heard. Think about when you're leaving a room and someone has left before you and turns out a light. No big deal you can still see. And how about everything that the blurb mentions? So quick to dismiss all of that?

    These things even glow when broken, which is just mega cool. Innovation at its best.

    --
    "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
  5. Well, now... by Tiberius_Fel · · Score: 5, Funny

    I am installing these in my fleet of nuclear subs right away! :P

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  6. just what I need by egburr · · Score: 3, Funny

    I always wanted a light bulb that I couldn't turn off. I suppose I could just remove the switch and connect the wires, but this solution is so much simpler.

    --

    Edward Burr
    Having a smoking section in a restaurant is like having a peeing section in a swimming pool.
  7. Has to be said... by thewiz · · Score: 4, Funny

    What a bright idea!

    I'll be here all night, ladies and gents!

    --
    If "disco" means "I learn" in Latin, does "discothèque" mean "I learn technology"?
  8. Re:uses by ciroknight · · Score: 4, Funny

    Don't put it in the room where you sleep. Or for that matter your TV room.

    And if you still live with your mom, that could possibly be the same room..

    --
    "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
  9. Re:Erm.. by fbjon · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yes but it's great for preventing murder mysteries!

    --
    True confidence comes not from realising you are as good as your peers, but that your peers are as bad as you are.
  10. Re:Portable -- nice by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Where's the door? how do I get out of here, it's all dark - Oh fuck, somebody unscrewed all those glow-in-the-dark lightbulbs!"

  11. A simple solution by grozzie2 · · Score: 3, Funny
    Executive Summary: Marketing to the traditional 'hot button' market bullets of efficiency and ecological awareness is no longer effective in the marketplace. Recent changes in marketplace mindset require an adjustment in marketing philosophy that will allow for increased margins on traditional commodity items. Initial trials of the new marketing concepts have proven very effective, and an overall shift of marketing strategy is necessary for the company to continue operations.

    Problem: Domestically produced commodity items are no longer cost competetive in the marketplace. Increased competition from overseas manufacturing is producing insurmountable pricing pressure on commodity items. Company is approaching insolvency.

    Solution: Minor cosmetic changes to commodity product manufacturing process. Re-write marketing material to reflect the change, emphasis on the 'terrorist' application. Increase sale price dramatically to reflect the new 'terrorist' application.

    Results: Small increase in sales volume, substantial improvement of product margins. Financial insolvency averted.

    Conclusions: Terrorist hysteria is an effective marketing tool. Properly exploited in the marketing literature, the terrorist hysteria can breath new financial life into any product that is no longer producing adaquate margins through traditional channels.

    Future Risk Analysis: A fundamental shift in marketing strategy brings with it inherent market risks. The major risk of this conceptual change is that the public mindset will begin to discard the 'terrorist threat', rendering increased marketing efforts in this area ineffective. This risk is deemed minimal at this time, the majority of the expenditures required to maintain the public mindset are being undertaken by the federal government, with a virtually unlimited budget for this marketing effort. This paradigm shift by our company is essentially parasite marketing where our relatively small marketing budget is being used to leverage the expenditures of the federal government. This strategy should remain effective for a minimum of one election cycle, so we should see improvements in the bottom line for at least the next 10 quarters. The primary risk moving forward is that the federal government expenditures to promote terrorist hysteria are reduced, with a resultant loss of marketplace mindset for this strategy. This is a relatively small risk moving forward, and partially offset by hundreds of companies such as our own, all focussed on re-working marketing strategies to promote and extend the terrorist hysteria.

    Recommendations: Marketing budget needs to be re-allocated. Television advertising should only be purchased on networks whose news organizations properly emphasize the terrorist threat. The same for print media advertising. The marketing department needs to re-allocate human resources, emphasis on 'product efficiency' needs to be lowered, with appropriate staffing reductions. A new team needs to be established to emphasize the 'security' aspect of the product. A 'threat analyst' should be hired, and put in charge of this new team, who will be responsible for producing white papers emphasizing the 'security' aspect of the product, with particular detail on the 'terrorist' aspect.

  12. Re:Bleh by Blapto · · Score: 4, Funny
    Personally, I prefer "The War Against Terror(ism)." If only for the acronym.

    (You may need to check with a British person/google for a definition.)

  13. hotaru, the firefly? by serutan · · Score: 4, Funny

    Sheesh! Those Japanese have a different word for Everything!

  14. Re:Erm.. by JediTrainer · · Score: 2, Funny

    For example, I work in a bizzare housing complex near a Canadian public university.

    This wouldn't be U of Toronto Scarborough Campus, would it? That whole place is a freaking bomb shelter.

    --

    You can accomplish anything you set your mind to. The impossible just takes a little longer.
  15. Re:Found the patent by The_Wilschon · · Score: 2, Funny

    scotopic

    What? What about SCO? They're suing the inventor of the lightbulb now?

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    wait... not that kind of sig.
  16. Re:Portable -- nice by archgoon · · Score: 2, Funny

    You are likely to be eaten by a GRUE.

  17. Re:Don't they glow already? by John+Miles · · Score: 2, Funny
    You forgot:

    All of the electrons in your lamp's strontium phosphor have returned to their ground states.
    You are likely to be eaten by a grue.

    --
    Dahlmann tightly grips the knife, which he may have no idea how to use, and steps out into the plain.