More solar gadgets

Pop quiz time, hotshot.  When I say “solar power,” what do you think of? Big panels on roofs, maybe a solar-powered racing car?  Pffft.  Wrong. Solar power has come a long way – it’s gone smaller. It’s gone weirder.   

Your average 19^th century British adventurer was a hardy sort, but even the best complained about the heat.  The stiffest upper lip might curl into a smile with a solar-powered cooling pith hat.  A miniature fan, powered by the sun, injects cool air into the iconic Victorian headgear.  

Not weird enough?  

What about the Power Purse?  Covered with solar panels, this is haute couture put to work.  It’s designed to charge all your mobile accessories – mobile phones, mp3 players, whatever. 

Weirdest of all, though, is easily the solar-powered rodent repeller.  No, it doesn’t shine an annoying light directly into tiny little mouse eyes, driving them underground.  It purports to do something much sneakier: it tricks them. The “solar moler” transforms light energy into sonic waves, which apparently mean “Danger, Will Robinson” to otherwise brave rodent explorers.  The manufacturer claims sound generated every 30 seconds is sufficient to cover 7,000 square feet of pest-free paradise.  

More?  What about a solar-powered helicopter…in miniature…made of wood?  It’s a simple wooden toy, with lightweight solar panels on the main blade.  Exposed to the sun, it makes the blade spin.  Does it fly?  Well…no.  It does spark conversations, though.  

Powering a house, or even a car?  Yesterday’s news.  When a technology goes “weird,” you know it’s arrived.