Pull Cord Generator

I've recently become interested in the One Laptop Per Child project. It is based in my hometown of Cambridge, MA, and seeks to produce a laptop which costs $100. The idea then is to make sure that every kid who wants one can have one. Anywhere in the world. It is am ambitious project, and on the face sounds impossible on many levels. But the world's best minds are involved and they are making rapid progress.

For example, consider the power problem. namely, many kids have no easy access to electricity. So in order to use a laptop they must get power from some off the grid source. Check out the power source for the laptop - It is a pull cord!. Before you scoff, here are the specs from Potenco, its designer.

A minute of pulling the PCG (pull cord generator) generates enough energy for:

* 20 minutes of talk time on a mobile phone
* 1 hour of Ultrabright flashlight use
* 4 hours play time on an iPod Shuffle

Just pull for a few minutes and then compute. Brilliant!