Through that wonderful process of creative thought that collects random ideas, the following dawned on me:
What if we could power our gadgets from our bodies?
This would solve two needs:
- Our gadgets need more and more juice
- Most people (Americans at least) could loose some weight. Or stated more positively, we would love to have a way to burn more of the calories we consume.
I googled "draw energy from people" and found this:
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Nanogenerator-Could-Draw-Energy-from-Human-Blood-60580.shtml
Zhong Lin Wang and colleagues at GA Tech are working on a nano generator that will draw energy from the flow of liquids in the body.
Anyone that has talked with me for more than 15 minutes knows that I am enamoured with carbon nanotubes (CNT) and their cousin, graphene. I'm certain that there is a way to draw current directly from the body by inserting properly configured CNTs into the skin or muscles. I'd happily try it now, if I had a CNT lying around.
In this article, http://www.physorg.com/news66308334.html, scientists have figured out how to carry electrical signals to and from nerve cells.
Scientists are also working on a display technology based on CNTs: http://www.physorg.com/news188730439.html. Combine that with the CNT stuck into flesh and you have a display on your arm powered by your body.
This must be how the descendants of the Predator Drone will use us a batteries to power the Matrix.
So we really need to get going on this idea.