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Grad student invents a gravity clock
Blacksburg, Va. (UPI) Feb 18, 2008 A U.S. graduate student has won second place in a "Greener Gadgets Conference" competition for his invention of a floor lamp that's powered by gravity. Clay Moulton of Springfield, Va., who received his master's of science degree last year from Virginia Tech, created the lamp as a part of his master's thesis. The LED lamp, named Gravia, is an acrylic column a little more than 4 feet high. The entire column glows when activated by electricity generated by the slow, silent fall of a mass that spins a rotor. The light output of 600-800 lumens lasts approximately four hours. To "turn on" the lamp, the user moves weights from the bottom to the top of the lamp and into a mass sled near the top. The sled begins its gentle glide down and, within a few seconds, the LEDs are illuminated. "It's more complicated than flipping a switch," said Moulton, "but can be an acceptable, even enjoyable routine, like winding a beautiful clock or making good coffee." Moulton estimates Gravia's mechanisms will last more than 200 years. A patent is pending on the Gravia lamp. Related Links The Physics of Time and Space
A New Window On The Universe
Milwaukee WI (SPX) Nov 18, 2007Using new tools to look at the universe, says Patrick Brady, often has led to discoveries that change the course of science. History is full of examples. "Galileo was the first person to use the telescope to view the cosmos," says Brady, a UWM professor of physics. "His observations with the new technology led to the discovery of moons orbiting Jupiter and lent support to the heliocentric model of the solar system." |
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