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Body Heat Could Charge Your Cellphone

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the powered-clothing dept.

An anonymous reader writes to mention Nature is reporting that scientists have discovered a much more efficient way to use silicon to convert heat into electricity. This offers the possibility of many different applications including possibly charging your portable electronics just by wearing them close to your skin. "The concept of converting waste heat into electricity isn't exactly new, but it never really materialized due to efficiency hurdles. Now, scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California at Berkeley think they may have found a key [to] increase the conversion efficiency by a factor of 100."

7 of 94 comments (clear)

  1. So... by Icarus1919 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Between the cell phones being charged by shaking them, by solar power, and by body heat - at what point will they be blowing up in our pockets?

  2. Downsides by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

    Slap Slap Slap - But m'aam, I just wanted to charge my cellphone and your breasts were handy.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
    1. Re:Downsides by Joebert · · Score: 4, Funny

      This will sound funny, but, that's perfectly natural.

      I'm sure plenty of people here have at one point thought that way about your mom.

      --
      Wanna fight ? Bend over, stick your head up your ass, and fight for air.
    2. Re:Downsides by taiwanjohn · · Score: 3, Funny

      Hehe... "Hey baby, if I said you had a hot body, would you hold it against my phone?" ;-)

      --
      XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, you're not using enough of it. --AC
  3. I want to see the users manual by Brett+Buck · · Score: 5, Funny

    I just hope the word "insert" doesn't appear in the instructions.

            Brett

  4. Re:Basic physics: no. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    the most energy we could possibly get out of this generation system is 0.6 * 1.7% = 10 milliwatts ... but combined with a form of fusion, the devices will have all the energy they would ever need.

    Oh wait!
  5. Copper Top by Layth · · Score: 5, Funny

    "[Scientists] may have found a key increase the conversion efficiency by a factor of 100." Let me guess, this is involves some form of fusion.. and the machines have found all the energy they will ever need. This happened in a dream once, that I was so sure was real..