A couple of weeks ago, we showed you that you need 2,380 orange slices to charge an iPhone. A very well done video, that you can take as a joke or you can try it for yourself. You might think that today’s story is pure science fiction but it’s not. Scientists say it’s cotton in 2010…
Incredible but true, a renewable, green resource may still prove the ultimate charging mechanism for our mobile gadgets like the iPhone and iPod. The unusual resource in question? A wad of cotton.
Scientists are reporting the development of cotton threads capable of conducting electricity as efficiently and safely as metal wire. The potential benefits, of course, are plentiful, like the ability to charge mobile devices via the cotton-based clothing we wear. A team of researchers captained by Cornell University Assistant Professor Juan Hinestroza say cotton can conduct electricity and the possible impact of the discovery could be monumental.
We can definitively have sections of a traditional cotton fabric becoming conductive, hence a great myriad of applications can be achieved,” Hinestroza said. “Previous technologies have achieved conductivity, but the resulting fiber becomes rigid and heavy. Our new techniques make our yarns friendly to further processing, such as weaving, sewing and knitting.
[via UPI]
FSM EXCLUSIVE DEAL Hard to predict how this technological advancement will be materialized into affordable consumers products , but this weekend the discovery will be displayed at the annual League Fashion Show in Ithaca, New York. As it stands, a “solar-powered” dress showing off the technology will be unveiled.