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Imagine generating electricity with every step you take; that every time you drive or cycle, energy is sent to the national grid; and that even your workout is powering the lights and heat of the gym, replacing fossil fuel – sounds great, right?  Well, piezoelectricity is here.

Piezoelectricity is basically the use of certain materials to transform kinetic energy into electricity.  I wrote in another blog about the development of piezoelectric floor tiles that turn foot traffic into electricity; now the first practical installation of this kind is in place at a Sainsbury’s supermarket in Gloucester, England, where “kinetic road plates” are being used to produce 30 kW of electricity every hour. The company’s press release describes the process as a more physical process (plates are pushed down by passing cars to create rocking motions that turn generators) than a piezoelectrical one, but the broader concept of using transient motion to generate electricity is the same.

There’s no reason why this simple, cheap and sustainable type of energy conversion can’t be used in businesses and homes all over Ireland.  And genius scientists are also working on an even more Irish-friendly form of energy conversion: raindrops into electricity, in my next post!

Hello world!  Here we are in a new year (whose digits total 11, which is always exciting for those of you with a taste for numerology: a gateway year, transformation from the earthly to the divine, and more) and so as well as our repeated call for everybody to carpool, rideshare, hitch a lift! I also wanted to share some good news stories, of which there are, happily, several:

1: The Motorola Renew phone - entirely made of rubbish, and totally recyclable!  Let’s all tell the other manufacturers that’s what we want.

2: Malawi, one of the most afflicted and poorest countries on earth, is turning its fortunes around by rejecting chemical fertilisers and returning to organic composting methods, with bigger, healthier yields. There’s more on this at The Independent website.

3: Speaking of traditional methods, an even bigger scheme is being hatched by the founders of Green & Black’s chocolate and Future Forests, the first carbon offsetting company.  Backed by Silicon Valley funding, trials are under way to use charcoal to stuck the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and bury it, where it will be a powerful fertiliser.  This method was developed by pre-Columbian Amazonian Indians. Cool, eh?  More on this when you got to The Independent among other places. The thing is, no matter how bad things get, humans are actually extremely ingenious creatures and there’s always a solution.  All you have to do is…imagine!  Imagine in 2009!  Okay, so maybe the rhyme isn’t so hot…but you get the idea. Anyone with other good news please share it - let’s look on the bright side as Monty Python said…

It’s great to see the media recognising that rideshares are the transport of the future -(see The Irish Independent) - I do wish, however that the writer had covered more than just the Dublin City carpool website!  While that site is commendable in its ambitions, it has its limitations and it would be nice for people to know that there are several carpool websites - of which Tripmi.ie is the best, of course!  The fact that Tripmi.ie is all-Ireland and keeps your details private are two of the main differences between us and them…But hopefully the media will continue to acknowledge the importance of carpooling in the current economic climate but next time give people all the information!