@Poon: Much appreciated.

skittlzncombos

They mean it will generate enough to _sustain_ power to 1000 homes, given average per-household consumption and average current strength. Obviously it won't be hooked into homes directly, but fed to the grid, which should help reduce kWh prices for coastal regions employing the technology. It could probably scale for large lakes, too, though obviously would generate much less power per unit.

Mindfield

"is" to "it" No post editor FTL.

Poon

@skittlzncombos: On an average annual basis is generates as much energy as 1,000 typical homes consume in a year.

Poon

This may be a stupid question, but when they say it can power 1,000 homes, what exactly does that mean? In one day it has the energy to power those home for one day, or in one week it has the power for one day? The answer is probably a Google search away, but I'm still laying in bed, so I'll let one of you guys give me a sarcasm filled response. Much thanks.

skittlzncombos

They should totally make little bitty ones I could put in my pipes at home, they could call it "The New Smart Home, Powered by FLUSH!"

chrisaroz

But how will it fuck with the currents?

monkeybars

Wow, this is bizarre...

Because this exact kind of thing was the subject of a movie released last year called Southland Tales... same guy that did Donnie Darko.

Anyway, they had this exact same concept, saying that the ocean is the real perpetual motion machine and used it to gather energy. Only difference is that they combined it with a Tesla-inspired wireless eletricity delivery system...

Evil J

Near the surface of the water... So what happens when somebody drive a boat over them?

michaelwiggins

@monkeybars: While this will "steal" energy from the movement of the water it won't change currents. This probably will have just the same effect as kelp or some other seaweed slowing down the movement of water. Plus, if they put these in areas near shores with more waves then it won't affect the currents at all, since it will be well out of the way of the main ones.

LazyPanda

@michaelwiggins:
It'd probably be seperated...

Think Wind Farms but... wave farms.

Evil J

@michaelwiggins: "So what happens when somebody drive a boat over them?"

You get a power surge.

GadgetPlay

... beautifully simple, elegant, free (virtually) and almost non-invasive use of what is to power our greedy needs... now, imagine if "they" could encircle the Britsh Isles with a chain of genetically created 650' long electric eels...

ANoel

Sounds like a great idea to me.

cbandes

How about a [NSFW] tag on this post? Maybe I've seen to much porn in my day, but my first thought, while about diving, was not about SCUBA diving.

OMG! Ponies!

@LazyPanda: It might not change the currents, but it will change something. Nothing is free. But so far we're doing ok with wind turbines - we're not really changing anything environmentally, just killing a few bird and making an eye sore (yes, power plants aren't exactly pretty. But the horizon near my home used to be pretty, now it's lined with 300ft towers and flashing lights).

James

i would like a bit more information then "generating a bulge in the sea water inside. This gets pushed down the tube by the wave to a generator built into the tail end."

damnElantra

Previously some of the tidal and wave powered generators were mushroom shaped.
Now snake shaped.
When do the badger shaped power generators appear?

DeadWriter

@monkeybars: while I wait on my last comment to post...
In case you're not familiar with robot snakes, this is how they reproduce. They conspire to plunge a planet into a sun, causing the sun to explode (obviously) and sending robot snake DNA far and wide to many other planets. Isn't nature amazing?

itchytooth

@monkeybars: It will totally stop the currents, which will stop Earth's rotation and make us fall out of orbit and into the Sun. That's where the REAL free energy is!

itchytooth

@OMG! Ponies!: Objection.

The earth turning was not the cause of time. It was a metaphor for the passage of time. And I never metaphor I didn't like.

Superman, by moving faster than light, created a localized anomoly in the space-time continuum, thus allowing time to flow backward. This is documented thoroughly in the Segal and Schuster physics dissertations; this is not in dispute by any serious student of modern mechanical quanitzation. It is a simple application of the Theory of Those Special Relatives We All Have but Don't Like to Talk About (as distinguished from the Theory of Relatives That Are, In General, Annoying).

ps61318

@itchytooth: No, you're wrong.

If the Earth's rotation stops, time will freeze. It's just like that scene in Superman where he decides that keeping a promise to Luthor's floozy/secretary is more important than saving Lois, who evidently is also in charge of covering the California beat in addition to the Metropolis beat.

When he finds Lois dead, and gets all emo and stuff and flies through Don Corleone's ghost head, he reverses the rotation of the Earth, thereby turning back time.

If the flow of time is dependent on the rotation of the Earth, then logically, stopping the Earth's rotation will stop time. Because comic book movies are always true.

OMG! Ponies!

@OMG! Ponies!: Run it by Segal and Schuster. It's all in there.

ps61318

That is scary.. Chances of me dying from seeing that things is greater then getting my left leg bit off by a shark.

t3mur

@ps61318: (I've tried changing it like five billion times. My old JFK with a pony won't work. My picture of myself won't work. My picture of a doofus circa 1959 on a pony won't work. Nothing works.)

Do you need to fly through Don Corleone's ghost head to get it to work?

OMG! Ponies!

@ps61318: I always think it looks like Jason Schwartzman.

itchytooth

@OMG! Ponies!: (and dude, your avatar looks awfully Hitlerish at this resolution.)

ps61318

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: If you could somehow attach a small power-generating device to every teen-aged penis on the planet, that was powered by turgidity; there would be no further need for coal-fired power plants. Just lots more hot pictures of Angelina Jolie, etc.

That was even on-topic. Sorta....

Mandatory_Field

wave energy ftw. seriously a good idea. but i was under the impression electricity and water don't mix

MrBlahBlah

@MrBlahBlah: Hydroelectric power plants have been around for decades. I'm guessing that's not a major obstacle to deploying this.

CarrerCrytharis

Still say watch Southland Tales. Liquid Karma. That is all.

Well, that and this:

"Do you know what would happen?"

"Yes... the fourth dimension would fold in on itself and destroy space-time... bitch."

Evil J

@CarrerCrytharis: you're prob right. but how crappy would it be to get electrocuted while swimming? worst thing ever.

MrBlahBlah

What's going to keep things from growing on it (branacles and such) and reducing it to no more than another piece of sea trash?

squishyalt

@squishyalt:
Faith.

Darkest Daze

@squishyalt:

Always nay saying... Err wait, that's a good question.

UniComp

What happens when the enormous sea snakes emerge from the depths to mate with these things?

GeekyNerdGuy

Gosh durnit, Ethel, I furgit to close my first parenthesis!)

banmojo

This is a great effing idea. More elegant than the wave/electricity gen I've been thinking 'bout for years now (mine is based on a pier type structure that extends out over the water. Has large empty tanks all along the sides which can freely run up/down due to waves/gravity. Both directions cause a central shaft to turn (bicycle type chain/gear mech) and voila. But I was aware such a device, exposed to both air/water, would have a high chance to corrode and break down. This underwater snake type thing is looking to be more durable/less upkeep. And definitely cooler looking. Then again, we've had the tech to make my design occur for decades now, and I've had this idea for 20+ years now, no one I've told it to wanted to run with it, and I have other projects/interests which take up my free time (hey, some of us have to play GTA4 in order to keep the universe in balance, right?)

banmojo

I think that when placed in right place these thing will not destroy anything. It will only catch energy that would go lost otherwise (or damage coastal line).

kris2lee

lets just hope that some horny sea mammal does not mistaken this for a dildo....

snowy_coke

I'm sick and tired of these mother effin snakes on these mother effin waves.

NumberFiveIsAlive

Nice concept... and 1 MW is plenty for only one "anaconda". Lets just hope there's water by the time they finally roll them out.

For those of us who don't live in the coast - here's a tutorial on going green for SMEs and individuals in general: [www.internetevolution.com]

G2GdoB2B

I'm impressed by the generally on-topic nature of comments. I came here looking for the "my anaconda makes waves resulting in an increase of energy, hurr hurr" comments.

Whoops, mission accomplished, I guess.

Twp3pf2