Aerogenerator Wind Turbine - vertical axis is key

by DJ Neawedde September 11th, 2006 in Energy.

The Aerogenerator, designed by Grimshaw Architects (UK) in association with Windpower Ltd., is a new form of wind turbine. Unlike three bladed turbines that we have come to know which spin on a horizontal axis, the Aerogenerator spins on a vertical axis. Spinning at three revolutions a minute, the Aerogenerator could generate around nine megawatts, a massive amount compared to the average of around two megawatts we have come to expect from horizontal turbines. Because of the larger power output, it would be more economical to build out at sea. This design also has the potential to harness the energy of the waves and tides by sub-surface generators.

The design is derived from the Darrieus style of turbine, which rotates on a vertical axis – and as such is omni directional, accepting wind from whichever direction working something like a sideways water wheel.

Read More...

Summary only...

Kinetic Sculptures: Wind Powered Robots

by DJ Neawedde November 19th, 2006 in Robotics, Energy.

Theo Jansen is the Dutch creator of what he calls “Kinetic Sculptures,” where nature and technology meet. Essentially these sculptures are robots powered by the wind only.

BMW broadcasts Jansen’s creation in their new commercial (watch below) which is part of a new “campaign which serves to highlight BMW’s market leadership in the fields of technology and innovation”.

EcoGeek via Uber-Review

Read More...

Summary only...

Iced Trees

Read More...

Summary only...

Mute that commerical, change television forever

Posted Mar 27th 2007 12:32PM by Tom Barlow Filed under: Competitive strategy, Marketing and advertising, Walt Disney (DIS), CBS Corp 'B' (CBS)

A sea change is about to swamp your television shows, and the source of that tsunami might be a new Nielsen advertising metric to be unveiled this May. For years, television advertisers have complained about the lack of specific data on who views their ads. They have been forced to make decisions based on show viewership numbers, knowing full well that full bladders, the mute button and Tivo erode those figures substantially. Now Nielsen is tackling this question with new of data that measure advertisement viewership the same way they have measured the television audience. Commercial ratings will supposedly allow ad buyers to differentiate the number of eyeballs taking in their pitches from those watching the show in which they appear. TV networks such as CBS Corp. (NYSE:CBS) and the Walt Disney Corp. (NYSE:DIS)'s ABC along with advertising agencies are not so clearly enthused about this metric, though. If a few well-thought-of campaigns prove ineffective in holding the viewing audience, it could cast doubt on the entire industry. Nielsen, probably cognizant of how deeply their business is intertwined with the ad agency world, is taking a very cautious step into these waters. While advertisers want a second-by-second breakdown on viewership, something modern technology should allow Nielsen to capture, the new metric will only provide an average commercial viewership for each show. Once this door is breached, however, it's hard to imagine Nielsen long refusing the demands of advertisers for more discrete data. And if they don't like what they see, expect television to change quickly and dramatically. More about this later. I'm eager to see just how the new generation of entertaining advertisements stack up against one another. How does the snack fairy's numbers compare to the Energizer Bunny? if I had the ability, I would offer a huge prize to the first commercial that outdraws the show in which it appears.

Read More...

Summary only...

Samsung's "world's smallest" 8.4 megapixel CMOS sensor: so long CCD?

Posted Mar 27th 2007 9:54AM by Thomas Ricker Filed under: Cellphones, Digital Cameras

Chalk up another world's smallest title for Samsung this morning with this, their new 8.4 megapixel CMOS sensor. By implementing extended photo diode technology, Samsung has managed to achieve higher light sensitivity and saturation levels into less space. According to Samsung, their new sensor's high signal-to-noise ratio results in the equivalent image quality found in today's CCDs while using one-tenth the power. As such, Sammy expects it to "quickly replace" the CCDs used in mobile phones, camcorders, and even digital cameras. Yeah, they wish. We'll find out soon enough as this CIS hits mass production in the second half of 2007.

Read More...

Summary only...