Technology for Luddites
Penterbak shows a dozen scale models of traditional Dutch Windmills. The text is in Dutch, but that should not stop you. Above: a saw mill. Some building plans are here, here and here. Related: Wind powered factories – the history (and future?) of industrial windmills.
Low-tech energy revolution in Africa by William Kamkwamba and the Moving Windmills Project. Simple diagram (pdf). Image by Tom Rielly (TED).
Finally, a real-world use for small windmills: the wind-powered knitting machine.
“Chapter XII. On the way of making a second waggon which is propelled by the wind without draught animals, and which dashes violently over open country to the confusion of all troops”
“The study found that predicted performance exceeded actual performance by a factor of 15 to 17. With the worst-performing systems, the electricity required to run the electronics exceeded the electricity production, so the wind turbines were net consumers of electricity”. Read.
Thanks, Brent Eubanks. Related: Small windmills put to the test / Urban Windmills harm the environment.
This unconventional sailing boat, named the SailRocket, reached a record speed of 47.35 knots (87.6 km/h or 54.43 mph), on average over a distance of 500 meters. During another run, the boat reached a speed of 52 knots before lifting off
for a spectacular in-the-air wipeout (also caught on video). More below.
