Coming in two different models, the pink and white egg-shaped KIR-SE1S is single-sided in heat, and gives four hours of warmtimes, whereas the rectangular silver or pink KIR-SL2S is double-sided and lasts between one to three hours. Available soon in the US for $34.99 and $44.99 each, O Frosty Ones. [Sanyo via Hot Hardware via Engadget]

Opening in January, the center, run by IT firm Academica, will save $563,000 each year in energy costs, with all 500 homes benefiting from the shared heat presumably saving quite a few Euros too. [Reuters and Fast Company]

The Gadget: The toasted bliss that is Ardica's heated jacket pack. I will never brave the cold without one.

The Price: Varies but around $375 for jacket and system

The lowdown: The idea of a heated jacket isn't new. But neither is the perception that such a set up would be heavy, bulky, sweaty and involve making sacrifices in the core material, features and breathability of the garment itself. Not here! Here's what Ardica's system is, and here's why it works and why I want it so badly.

The Ardica system is, basically a battery pack powered heating system that manufacturers can build into their jackets.

Ardica the company has a background in fuel cells, but they knew that making a consumer jacket heating system would require it to work in the real world at a relatively affordable cost, today. So the entire system is built around a power source of lithium ion batteries arrayed in a soft pack that looks like a waffle, and that fits in the upper back between a person's shoulder blades, in a pocket in the heated garment. The power source is 10 watts, enough to heat a person's core — and therefore their whole person — for 3-8 hours. 10 Watts of juice goes to the jacket's 2 elements on a wearer's front chest and one on their back, or through a USB jack which can power a USB device directly, or a 1watt sub-battery that can charge devices with its ipod/iphone and usb mini jack variants. The heat output is controlled via a LED lit waterresistant switch that toggles between three settings.

I still wonder what happens if the system gets drenched. Lithium ion packs have advanced management in them, but that management is electronic, and, can be foiled as we saw with all the exploding laptop stories from a few years back. What if you fall on this a lot?
You'd think that such a system would be uncomfortable, but within a few seconds of wearing it and turning it on, it had all the coziness of heated seats in a car on a cold winter morning or sitting next to a roaring hearth or napping in the sun one summer afternoon after a cold dip in a pool. The weight of the battery is about that of a large laptop battery, and since it's placed on my back, it was not noticeable, nor did it swing around while I moved. (Maybe while wearing a backpack I'd notice it.) The jackets are going to go for $375 with the system and a premium jacket. A little steep for an regular, non waterproof jacket which you'd wear as a layer under a shell, but the potential for comfort in the cold is well worth it and the fact that the system will be built into brand name gear like Mountain Hardware makes it a little more bearable. [Previously mentioned Marmot — I think I might have imagined that.]

The Velcro strap ensures that even the thickest of wrists can get the benefits of this little gadget. You can even get a longer add-on strap in case you want to use it on other parts of your body—neck, back, legs... heck, you can even warm your coffee mug! Available on Thanko's site for roughly $21. [Thanko]

The beauty of a thermoelectric device is that it has no moving parts, making it extremely durable and easy to produce. The high durability means students were able to install it in flues at the cogeneration plant, where it will capture waste heat and use it to create more energy for the campus air conditioning, heating and electricity. Eventually, the team hopes to install the device in the waste heat nirvana, hot water pipes, which could ramp up that 80% number a few more percentage points.

In addition to increasing the efficiency of the MIT campus, the device could also have an effect on the environment by trapping waste heat before it's ejected into the atmosphere as exhaust. And after that, home heating in general could be revolutionized as consumers install the device in their home furnaces.

Ultimately, said Daniel Kraemer, graduate students in mechanical engineering, this simple device could work anywhere there's excess heat. Gizmodo writers are pretty full of hot air, Kraemer, why don't we start here? [MIT]

Not only could it be used to harvest waste heat from humans, it can be used to harvest heat from regular engines or combustion turbines, and has no moving parts at all. The National Science Foundation has granted Mr. Super Soaker funding, which means that we could soon have stuff attached to siphon off our waste heat. Or be connected to the Matrix by robots. Either/or. [Popular Mechanics via Treehugger]

Using "rough" silicon wires, produced by a process known as "electroless etching," where silicon nano-wires are synthesized in an aqueous solution, over a thin, semiconductor crystallized base, the scientists have been able to exploit the process of galvanic displacement of silicon. This displacement technique, which uses silver ions, causes the thermoelectric efficiency to be increased on the rough surfaces of the nano-wires.

The breakthrough comes from the boffins at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California, who believe they have found a way to increase the conversion efficiency by a factor of 100. Though they are unable to pin the exact physics of why this works, what they can be certain of is that it definitely does work.

The potential uses for such a technology are mind blowing; from power-jackets that recharge gadgets kept in their pockets to vehicles that utilizes your farts for headlight juice, and pretty much everything else in between. It will be a long while before anything like this makes it to the consumer market, but the development is an exciting one. Expect my son to blog about future developments concerning these nano-wires in 2016. [Tom's Hardware]

last year's American Inventor who made the solar-powered pet fan that sits in your cars window. [Product Page via Washington Post]

It can sit on a desk and blow cool or hot air at a person, at 90% more efficiency than a space heater. It's all done by electrics, and the unit has a high quality filter built in.

I can't see this being very powerful or effective for cooling a full human, but you know when your pants get really sticky and hot and sweaty in the Summertime? Yea.

c2 [Herman Miller via i4u]

Nacho lovers will love the electric Chip and Dip tray [Shiny Shiny]

Helio Heat [Gizmodo]

However, there is a trade-off. (Isn't there always?)

Compared to its bigger brother it does give up a bit in the control and spec department. First of all, it has a 2.0MP camera for the 1.3MP setup. One gripe: The electrostatic buttons aren't much better than the ones on the LG chocolate phone (which I hated ). And I still have issues with the browser, which is a piece of total trash compared to the Opera Mini browser. It crashes browsing Youtube, never mind the inability to play those videos. That would be a rare ability, but I expect that kind of feature from Helio, with its 3G connection and forward thinking attitude. Come on, Sky Dayton — Open up the phones for Java support, and get us a flash player! Most geek care about openness as much as MySpace T&A.

A recommendation? I'd choose this over the Drift. Size matters.–Brian Lam

Helio [Gizmodo]

The scraper has a 15-foot cord which plugs into your car, and produces a "gentle heat" to help melt away the ice. Pretty smart, and not at all expensive at $14.99. Grab one to last you through the next few months. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Amazon via Luxury Housing via Oh Gizmo]

Convenient seat heating will set you back $100, but once February rolls around and you're watching Sheva draw blanks at the Bridge you'll be glad you're as warm as can be. Pretty cool, we just hope it doesn't get too warm and start a fire or something. 'Cause that'd be painful. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page [SkyMall via Ubergizmo]

The pants are controlled by a wired remote which goes into a pocket, and they're powered by a rechargeable li-on battery. The phrase "honey, did you recharge my pants?" will probably less awkward after you pick up a pair. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Brookstone via Red Ferret via Sci Fi Tech]