If You Can Make Solar Power Better, Google Will Give You $1 Million

“Smaller is baller,” “Min it to win it,” “Think shrink.”

Those are the puns Google is using to promote its new competition: $1 million to whomever can invent a working power inverter for solar and other forms of renewable energy that’s roughly as small as a laptop. The company has teamed up with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers to launch the competition.

For background, a power inverter is a box that takes alternating current (AC) out of a direct current (DC) — such as a solar array — and applies that AC to run things in our homes, offices, and businesses. In order to use the DC power generated from wind turbines and solar panels, it must be converted into alternating current, via a power inverter.

“Much of our domestic world relies on AC,” the tech blog Venture beat explains. “And AC needs robust power distribution grids, huge power plants and either fossil fuel, nuclear power, or falling water.”

As they are currently, inverters for solar and wind are, according to Google, too big — “roughly the size of a picnic cooler,” the company said on its new website for the “Littlebox Challenge.” But if they can be shrunk down to the size of a tablet or laptop, the company says, it would “enable more solar-powered homes, more efficient distributed electrical grids, and could help bring electricity to the most remote parts of the planet.”

“There will be obstacles to overcome; like the conventional wisdom of engineering”, Google Green’s Eric Raymond said in a statement announcing the competition. “But whoever gets it done will help change the future of electricity.”

The challenge for engineers is to design and build a 1-kilowatt-minimum power inverter with a power density of at least 50 watts per cubic inch — not an insane amount of power, but enough to fuel some lights and a box fan. Applicants must register by September and submit their ideas by July 15 of next year. Eighteen finalists will be chosen, and a grand prize winner will be announced sometime in January 2016, the company said.

Google has long-promoted increased use of renewable energy, but its relationship with it has been a bit of a puzzle. The company’s Google Green subsidiary has invested millions in clean energy projects throughout the last decade, with an eventual goal to power its data centers with 100 percent renewable energy. The company claims that, with purchased offsets, its carbon footprint is zero, meaning it does not contribute to climate change. So far, Google has sunk more than $1 billion into wind and solar projects that in total generate more than 2 gigawatts of power.

At the same time, however, Google has hosted fundraisers to benefit one of the U.S. Senate’s most vehement climate deniers, and is a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) — a corporate lobbyist group that actively works to thwart statewide renewable energy programs.

The two-way relationship has raised questions about the company’s intentions among some environmentalists, who are asking Google to cut ties with the anti-climate group. But one possible explanation for the company’s partnership with interests purportedly contrary to their own is that it’s necessary to help sway them to their side, as Tim Worstall in Forbes notes.

“Sadly, the way that the modern economy works is that government, at all levels, has a great deal of influence over how business works,” he writes. “So, it is necessary for a large business to flash the cash around to both sides, to join lobby groups from all sides of the political compass.”

 

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Touch And Hold Hands With Your Loved Ones Online

 Touching a loved one can be so soothing and when you are going through tough times, a mere squeeze of hand could help uplift your mood. However, this changes when you are away from your loved ones. You can talk and now video chat, all thanks to technology, but there has been no such thing to mimic touch, well not until now. Meet Frebble that has been designed by Frederic Petrignani, an entrepreneur from Netherlands. The gadget is currently raising funds at Kickstarter.

Frebble relies on Bluetooth to connect to your system and in words of its manufacturers; ‘For a granddaughter calling grandma with special news, for a husband far away from a wife, for distant grown daughters who crave the comfort of their mother’s touch, for a best friend who wants to let her friend know it will all be ok, Frebble connects – as simply, subtly and as powerfully as though the person was right there with you. While there are many ways to see and hear your loved ones through the power of the internet, the tactile element has been missing – until now. With Frebble, you can cut through the distance and share that smallest gesture – the squeeze of the hand – that means so much.

 Moving on to the design of the gadget; it has been designed ergonomically so that it can fit easily and comfortably in the hand of the user and better stimulate the feeling of holding and squeezing other person’s hand. When you press your Frebble unit, the corresponding unit will apply pressure to the other intended receiver’s hand. This is true irrespective of the fact that where they are. The effect is achieved by making use of two pressure sensors on the front of the device that register the ‘squeeze’ and two vibration motors that are located on the side in order to make the sensation feel more realistic. The gadget also has an integrated bar known as squeeze bar in order to replicate the holding hands.

An LED will light up to indicate the connection status and also when you have got a squeeze waiting. Yup, you can send offline squeezes too folks. The gadget will be compatible with Skype, Hangout and other apps (iOS, Android) that are set to release in September along with Frebble. Each unit measures about 5” in length and comes equipped with a rechargeable Lithium Polymer battery that can survive for 4 hours if being used or more if on standby. The gadget is made from plastic while also imparting rubberized padded areas in order to impart easy gripping.

The gadget will be able to charge by employing a micro-USB cable and will be able to work with Google Chrome version 24 or higher and Firefox version 16 and higher. The gadget is available as a pair for a price of $89 on Kickstarter.

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What is a Surge Protector?

What is a Surge Protector?

A device that shields computer and other electronic devices from surges in electrical power, or transient voltage, that flow from the power supply. Standard American voltage for home and office buildings is 120 volts. Anything over this amount is considered transient and can damage electronic devices that are plugged into an outlet. Even though power surges are so brief that they are measured in nanoseconds, they can cause considerable damage to electronic equipment.

How it Works

A surge protector works by channeling the extra voltage into the outlet's grounding wire, preventing it from flowing through the electronic devices while at the same time allowing the normal voltage to continue along its path. Electrical surges can damage computer equipment by burning its wires or gradually over time wearing down the device's internal components and even wipe out any saved data. Surge protectors can also protect telephone and cable lines as these also carry electric current.

Surge Protectors and Lightening

It is a common misunderstanding that surge protectors will protect systems from lightning, the most familiar source of power surges. Even the most effective surge protectors cannot protect equipment from the sudden increase in electrical pressure of millions of volts that lightning can supply.

The best way to prevent damage during from lightning storm is to unplug devices that could be irreparably damaged. Surge protectors more commonly protect equipment from lower-voltage surges that occur frequently in modern electrical wiring. For example, devices such as refrigerators and air conditioners require large amounts of energy to switch motors and compressors on and off, creating surges in power that disrupt the steady flow of voltage. Faulty wiring, downed power lines and faulty equipment at the power source (utility company) can all cause power surges as well. Surge protectors are also called power strips, surge suppressors and transient suppressors.

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