"The attraction, or hydrophile, of the silicon becomes so great, in fact, that it overcomes the strong bond that water molecules feel for other water molecules.
Thus, instead of sticking to each other, the water molecules climb over one another for a chance to be next to the silicon."
wait: how is this still not free energy? Put a little hydroelectric generator at the end, form a pretty circle for the water to travel in... and free energy?Reply
@dazappa: This is just a form of surface tension they are taking advantage of, like where water rises up at the edges in a glass container, or the way water wicks its way up a strip of paper towel.
The water only rises until it coats the whole silicon surface, and then stops. It then takes more energy to draw the water off the surface, since they want to stick together. No free energy involved.Reply
@Zach Douglas: From what I could tell, the lasers are just used to carve a pattern in the silicon ahead of time, from then on the pattern does the work. The lasers are just how you make it.Reply
Looks suspiciously similar to what that Dyson guy did at the Chelsea Flower Show a while back, only these guys seem to have done it for reals. Well done!
@Aurailious: Apparently, if you read the description, the bubbles rising inside the tank would move up the underside of the transparent incline, giving the impression that the water on top of the transparent incline was flowing uphill.Reply
@Aurailious: You can't actually see the flow of the water because the sheet of water is so thin. However, the combination of the bubbles and your mind naturally thinking that water is flowing towards the water cascades cause you to see water as flowing uphill.Reply
@Thee Sea: I make this thing in a 4x square, and on the waterfalls, I put waterwheels. Now imagine it huge, and these waterwheels would turn an energy turbine, creating electricity. See the problem here?
@RT100 had an elephant: "(This might seem like getting energy for free, but even though the water rises, thus gaining potential energy, the chemical bonds holding the water to the silicon require a lower energy than the ones holding the water molecules to other water molecules.)"
This is as much a perpetual motion machine as osmosis is.Reply
Oh Carbon Nanotubes, what can't you do?
If it doesn't kill us all with it's toxicity, we'll have elastic bullet-proof clothing that can harvest solar power and store it, to be used to play music with hoodie noise isolation, and show the music video clip as the clothing design.
Also, it can be used as a mask to filter air and, in an emergency, water.
Oh, you also won't need to wash it because it doesn't get dirty.Reply
Used to cancel sound with lasers in buildings sounds hazardous. Constantly on creating heat and using electricity even the low powered ones. I would imagine you would need multiple light wavelengths to cancel out different wavelengths of sound too. Even constantly running AC power might not be that safe. At least at first until a few houses burn down and a few people die and a cry for new regulations and then the government stepping in.Reply
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