Levitating Light Bulb: Wireless Power Transfer + Magnetic Levitation - YouTube

The wireless power transfer setup consists of a single wire ring connected to the power source (a hacked benchtop unit made from an old 350W power supply unit and banana plug ports) and pulling 0.5A at 12V. Send and receive coils were then tuned to matched frequencies.

The drive coil and wireless mechanism are hidden from view inside a wooden enclosure raised on two cardboard box columns and, with the power switched on, the LED light floats in the space underneath.

Rieger says that when the power to the levitating system is turned off (or in the event of a power failure) the LED light unit jumps up to attach itself to the base of the wooden box rather than falling to the ground.

Describing LevLight in words is all well and good, but it really needs to be seen to be fully appreciated. To that end, have a look at the demo video.

Source: Chris Rieger via Hack a Day

Artificial Lightings Seen in Kuiper Belt: Alien World?

ET watchers may be able to find an alien world through telescopes that may spot artificial lightings "out there."

A new study points to the possibility of finding extraterrestrial civilizations that may have also developed artificial lighting sources which our next generation telescopes can detect.

Researchers Abraham Loeb from Harvard and Edwin L. Turner of Princeton, said it is possible to peer into space and spot artificially illuminated objects, adding that current optical telescopes and surveys have the ability to see this amount of light at the edge of our Solar System and observations with large telescopes can measure a Kuiper Belt Objects spectra to determine if they are illuminated by artificial lighting.

Distinguishing an artificial illumination from solar illumination on KBO with typical albedo may be tricky, but the researchers said the existing telescopes and surveys can spot the difference as it will carry the dead give-away which is the spectral signature.

According to Loeb and Turner, our civilization uses two basic classes of illumination, thermal (incandescent light bulbs) and quantum (light emitting diodes and fluorescent lamps). "Such artificial light sources have different spectral properties than sunlight.

The spectra of artificial lights on distant objects would likely distinguish them from natural illumination sources, since such emission would be exceptionally rare in the natural thermodynamic conditions present on the surface of relatively cold objects.

Therefore, artificial illumination may serve as a lamppost which signals the existence of extraterrestrial technologies and thus civilizations," the researchers said.

Not all random light source detected where there should be darkness might be considered a sign of life, the study said, as there are many factors which could contribute to illumination, such as viewing angle, backscattering, surface shadowing, outgassing, rotation, surface albedo variations and more.

Mercury vapour released from broken energy saving light bulbs can exceed safe exposure levels

Once broken, a compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) or energy saving light bulbs continuously releases mercury vapour into the air for weeks to months, and the total amount can exceed safe human exposure levels in a poorly ventilated room, according to study results reported in Environmental Engineering Science, a peer-reviewed online only journal published monthly by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

The amount of liquid mercury (Hg) that leaches from a broken compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) is lower than the level allowed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), so CFLs are not considered hazardous waste.

However, Yadong Li and Li Jin, Jackson State University (Jackson, MS) report that the total amount of Hg vapour released from a broken CFL over time can be higher than the amount considered safe for human exposure.

They document their findings in the article "Environmental Release of Mercury from Broken Compact Fluorescent Lamps."

As people can readily inhale vapour-phase mercury, the authors suggest rapid removal of broken CFLs and adequate ventilation, as well as suitable packaging to minimize the risk of breakage of CFLs and to retain Hg vapour if they do break, thereby limiting human exposure.

Tests of eight different brands of CFLs and four different wattages revealed that Hg content varies significantly from brand to brand. To determine the amount of Hg released by a broken CFL, Li and Jin used standard procedures developed by the EPA to measure leaching of mercury in liquids and used an emission monitoring system to detect Hg vapour.

"This paper is a very nice holistic analysis of potential risks associated with mercury release from broken CFLs and points to potential human health threats that have not always been considered," according to Domenico Grasso, PhD, Editor-in-Chief and Vice President for Research, Dean of the Graduate College, University of Vermont (Burlington).

Thomas Edison and the Incandescent light bulb

Though Thomas Edison is usually cited as the father of the light bulb, it's more accurate to give Edison credit as the creator of the first commercially viable light bulb.

As early as 1820, inventors were honing in on the principles that would lead to the first electric illumination.

An English inventor, Joseph Swan, took their early work and developed the basis of the modern electric light bulb in 1879 — a thin paper or metal filament surrounded by a glass-enclosed vacuum. When electricity runs through the filament, the light bulb glows.

Edison refined the design, trying filaments made out of platinum and cotton before eventually settling on carbonized bamboo, capable of burning for more than 1200 hours. With Edison's design — and settlement of a lawsuit with Swan that resulted in the two inventors joining forces in 1883 — electric lighting became viable for the first time.

Incandescent Bulb Banned in Europe
Europeans bid farewell to the 100 watt bulbs today. From now on, Edison's brainchild can no longer be legally made in, or imported into, the European Union, thanks to a European Union-wide ban which kicks off today.

Shed a tear, but don't let your sentimentality tempt you into smuggling one into the EU under your jumper: you'll be hit with a £5,000 fine. That's the price for individuals caught transgressing the ban but companies will face unlimited fines.

The EU hopes that the ban on incandescent light bulbs will force businesses and consumers to invest in low-carbon Light Emitting Diodes and Compact Fluorescent Lamps, which use up to 80 per cent less energy.

The ban could save the EU anywhere from 15 to 53 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, says Matt Prescott, founder of the Ban the Bulb campaign.