Teenager Invents Cheap Solar Panel From Human Hair

Milan Karki, 18, who comes from a village in rural Nepal, believes he has found the solution to the developing world's energy needs. A solar panel made from human hair. The hair replaces silicon, a pricey component typically used in solar panels, and means the panels can be produced at a low cost for those with no access to power. The solar panel, which produces 9 volts (18 watts) of energy, costs around $38 US (£23) to make from raw materials. Gentlemen, start your beards. The future of hair farming is here!

India

[Narpak]

I might be mistaken, but I seem to recall reading that a large part of the population in India donates their hair to temples/charity once a year; the hair being sold to make expensive wigs for westerners. If human hair can be used in the way suggested here then at least India could potentially access a huge amount of hair without much difficulty. Just a thought.

Re:9V != 18W

[rMortyH]

True, this is false.

There's a picture of a multimeter, and a lighted bulb, but the panel shown is IN THE DARK! Unless it's on a totally different panel that is in the sun, it's way fake. And, as pointed out, 9volts is trivial, but 18 watts is actually really hard.

Also, the reporter is not energy-literate, but that's not a surprise.

I once showed an artist a calculator running on a lemon battery. Not knowing about CURRENT and POWER, she then went and proposed a project to a museum where a classic Gameboy would run on lemons, and they accepted it. Of course this would take a few thousand lemons! Luckily, it was an art museum, not a science museum. We ended up hiding double-A's inside some of the lemons. (We came clean to anyone smart enough to ask!)

I suspect similar shenanigans...

Re:Everyday - Scams

[Fuzzy Eric]

If you know where this magic software is that knows almost every useful property of almost every known material, I and my employer would pay huge amounts of money for it. Because the reality is:

* Most materials haven't had any meaningful measurements made for any property that is actually interesting.

* Most measurements are crap. Many published measurements are crap. The amount of practice and control necessary to make useful measurements is outlandish.

* Published data for any but the most lavishly studied materials range wildly. What's the vapor pressure of, for example, RDX at STP. Checking the published sources, you'll find answers ranging over 6 orders of magnitude. So, ..., where does "somewhere between 1 millisquat and 1 nanosquat" fall on this sorted list?

This idea that there's a giant database of materials properties that contains accurate and precise data for all technologically interesting properties of most materials is bunk.

And then, ..., what's hair? Since when did hair become a specific material? Thick hair? Thin hair? Oily hair? Dry hair? Which property were you asking about? Is the hair split? Follicle attached? Old and dessicated? New and slightly less dessicated?

Yes, I think the claim made in the article is bunk. And I bet no one here can provide a single (real) citation to a source for the current-voltage relationship for hair.