Just had to share this, courtesy of the Daily Mail:
Mobile phone owners could soon be able to give their batteries a boost with their own urine.
British scientists at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory have developed a way of using urine as a power source to generate electricity and claim to have created the world’s first microbial fuel cells (MFC) powered mobile phone.
While many people might turn their noses up at the energy source, the researchers said that it is the ‘ultimate waste product’ and does not rely on the erratic nature of the wind or the sun….
You have to wonder — is this for real, or is the Mail taking the p___ out of us?
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Just wait til you see where they have to stick the nozzle…
The practical implication is the development of sanitary waste disposal in places without plumbing or electricity. Pee powered toilets!
The British continue to amaze me. And as usual, only the ignorant should “turn their noses up at the energy source”.
Why? A large drug company for which I once worked used human urine in making a widely used prescription. The best source to obtain pharmaceutical grade (USP) raw material was from the Japanese Army, which in the industry was known for reliable purity and consistency. The joke was getting it from U.S. college students would have cost 90% less.
As long as you don’t try it on your car battery.