http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...ates-eerie-glowing-lamp-runs-human-blood.html
The Dracula bulb: Designer creates eerie glowing lamp which runs on human blood
By Rob Waugh
Published: 13:52 GMT, 28 May 2012 | Updated: 15:02 GMT, 28 May 2012
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With its strange blue glow it looks like it belongs in a trendy nightclub - but this lamp is actually a chemical light that runs on human blood.
A U.S. designer has created a lamp where you are supposed to break the top off, use the jagged glass to cut yourself and pour your blood in where it reacts with the chemicals inside.
It is also one use only in what creator Mike Thompson said is an attempt to 'make us think twice'about our disposable society.
A U.S. designer has created a lamp where you are supposed to break the top off, use the jagged glass to cut yourself and pour your blood in where it reacts with the chemicals inside.
A U.S. designer has created a lamp where you are supposed to break the top off, use the jagged glass to cut yourself and pour your blood in where it reacts with the chemicals inside
The U.S. based designer Mike Thompson said that the average American uses 3383kwh of energy per year, which is the same as leaving the light on in four rooms for 12 months.
On his website he writes that the bulb is an attempt to make people ask: ‘What if power came at a cost to the individual?’
Just as losing too much blood can put your life in danger, using too much energy can put the environment at risk, he says.
A disturbing video which Mr Thompson has created shows a woman in a dark room pushing her finger into the sharp edge and blood pouring into the lamp, which starts to glow bright blue.
The lamp is powered by chemicals in the tablet, which release energy when mixed with blood.
Each lamp is designed to be used just once - to show, its designer claims, how irresponsible our consumer society is
Each lamp is designed to be used just once - to show, its designer claims, how irresponsible our consumer society is
On his website Mr Thompson writes: ‘For the lamp to work one breaks the top off, dissolves the powder, and uses their own blood to power a simple light.
‘By creating a lamp that can only be used once, the user must consider when light is needed the most, forcing them to rethink how wasteful they are with energy, and how precious it is’.
Mr Thompson adds that today ‘the simple flick of a switch allows us to power appliances and gadgets 24/7 without a thought to where it comes from and the cost to the environment.’
