Gizmodo compiled a good list of predictions on what it might be. I think the most exciting (and plausible) one is the much-needed wireless USB hub.

Then again, it could finally be time for Apple to put those wireless power patents they have on file to good use too.... Fingers crossed for one or the other (or both)!

The folks at Intel have built on the previous attempts using magnetic induction technology and last Thursday demonstrated the latest in wireless electric systems at an Intel developers forum in San Francisco. Electricity was sent wirelessly to a lamp on stage, lighting a 60 watt bulb (see photo):

Intel is excited to one day initiate wireless power for use with laptops as well as other devices that fall in the < 60 watt range. Imagine, no more fighting for the single outlet at coffee shops - sounds good! In terms of efficiency, Intel's improvement to the wireless resonant energy link technology pioneered at MIT has taken a significant leap. Whereas MIT's researchers achieved 50% efficiency of power transmitted several meters via magnetic fields, Intel's latest test reached 75% efficiency. For a more in-depth look at Intel's wireless efforts, click here.

Intel research is showing off new technology where they can "print" objects.  (Programmable matter - that's what they call it.)  They also say they're developing technology to trasmit power wirelessly.  (aka your cell phone can always be charging when you're on the go)

Crazy stuff.  Read about it all here:  http://news.zdnet.com/2424-9595_22-217501.html

You know what's crazier?  That guy in the blue shirt with the light bulb is one of my buddies from college.  Great way to catch someone's eye to blog about it huh?  Small world.

Intel on Thursday showed off a wireless electric power system that analysts say could revolutionize modern life by freeing devices from transformers and wall outlets.

Intel chief technology officer Justin Rattner demonstrated a Wireless Energy Resonant Link as he spoke at the California firm's annual developers forum in San Francisco.

Electricity was sent wirelessly to a lamp on stage, lighting a 60 watt bulb that uses more power than a typical laptop computer.

Most importantly, the electricity was transmitted without zapping anything or anyone that got between the sending and receiving units.

"The trick with wireless power is not can you do it; it's can you do it safely and efficiently," Intel researcher Josh Smith said in an online video explaining the breakthrough.

"It turns out the human body is not affected by magnetic fields; it is affected by elective fields. So what we are doing is transmitting energy using the magnetic field not the electric field."

Examples of potential applications include airports, offices or other buildings that could be rigged to supply power to laptops, mobile telephones or other devices toted into them.

The technology could also be built into plugged in computer components, such as monitors, to enable them to broadcast power to devices left on desks or carried into rooms, according to Smith.

"Initially it eliminates chargers and eventually it eliminates batteries all together," analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group said of Intel's wireless power system.

"That is potentially a world changing event. This is the closest we've had to something being commercially available in this class."

Previous wireless power systems consisted basically of firing lightning bolts from sending to receiving units.

Smith says Intel's wireless power system is still in an early stage of development and much research remains before it can be brought to market.

Rattner spoke of technological transformations he expects by the year 2050.

"You'd like to cut the last cord," Smith said.

"It's great that we have wireless email and wireless internet and stuff like that but at the end of the day it would be nice to have wireless recharge as well."

For cool images - http://www.pcauthority.com.au/News/120402,intel-laptops-could-get-power-wirelessly.aspx

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/21/technology/21intel.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/08/22/wireless.power.ap/index.html

No, the guys from Intel didn't create a time machine, that would REALLY make Tesla proud.  They simply used a resonant magnetic field to send power two feet to a 60 watt light bulb.

Now, before you get too excited, there are several things that still need to be worked out.  First, it costs 25% more power to send power this way than through conventional methods.  This means it took 75 watts to power a 60 watt light bulb.  When America is importing millions of barrels of oil a day to power our current consumption this is exactly the kind of waste we don't need.

Second, I mean look at it.  It's huge.  They are going to start miniaturizing the device here pretty soon so that you could have it in your desk and charge your devices just by putting them on your desktop.  That and other adaptations will have to be made that will no doubt take years.

Finally, though there aren't any articles about it, I have to wonder what the health effects of such ubiquitous power would be.  In the example in the NY Times article they suppose that a whole kitchen counter top could be so powered.  But then isn't the person working in the kitchen going to be constantly bombarded with resonating magnetic fields?  And if so, what will happen to us?  At the very least it gives the tin-foil hat types something else to worry about.

Harvard University Photo: AP

1. Harvard University
Location
Cambridge, MA
2007 Total Enrollment
19,257
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,173
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

2. Princeton University
Location
Princeton, NJ
2007 Total Enrollment
7,334
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$34,290
Application Deadline
1/1
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3. Yale University
Location
New Haven, CT
2007 Total Enrollment
11,454
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$35,300
Application Deadline
12/31
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Semester

MIT Photo: AP

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Location
Cambridge, MA
2007 Total Enrollment
10,220
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,390
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
4-1-4

4. Stanford University
Location
Stanford, CA
2007 Total Enrollment
19,782
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,030
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Quarter

University of Pennsylvania Photo: Courtesy of U Penn

6. University of Pennsylvania
Location
Philadelphia, PA
2007 Total Enrollment
18,916
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,526
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

6. California Institute of Technology
Location
Pasadena, CA
2007 Total Enrollment
2,133
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$34,437
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Quarter

Columbia University Photo: AP

8. Columbia University
Location
New York, NY
2007 Total Enrollment
22,655
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$39,326
Application Deadline
1/2
Academic Calendar
Semester

8. Duke University
Location
Durham, NC
2007 Total Enrollment
13,598
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,525
Application Deadline
1/2
Academic Calendar
Semester

8. University of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
2007 Total Enrollment
12,336
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,632
Application Deadline
1/2
Academic Calendar
Quarter

Dartmouth College Photo: AP

11. Dartmouth College
Location
Hanover, NH
2007 Total Enrollment
5,849
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,915
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Quarter

12. Northwestern University
Location
Evanston, IL
2007 Total Enrollment
18,028
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,125
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Quarter

12. Washington University
Location
St. Louis, MO
2007 Total Enrollment
13,382
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,248
Application Deadline
1/15
Academic Calendar
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Cornell University Photo: AP

14. Cornell University
Location
Ithaca, NY
2007 Total Enrollment
19,800
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,504
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

15. Johns Hopkins University
Location
Baltimore, MD
2007 Total Enrollment
19,737
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,700
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

Brown University Photo: AP

16. Brown University
Location
Providence, RI
2007 Total Enrollment
8,167
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,718
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

17. Rice University
Location
Houston, TX
2007 Total Enrollment
5,243
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$28,996
Application Deadline
1/2
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Semester

18. Emory University
Location
Atlanta, GA
2007 Total Enrollment
12,570
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,336
Application Deadline
1/15
Academic Calendar
Semester

University of Notre Dame Photo: Courtesy of Notre Dame

18. University of Notre Dame
Location
Notre Dame, IN
2007 Total Enrollment
11,733
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$36,847
Application Deadline
12/31
Academic Calendar
Semester

18. Vanderbilt University
Location
Nashville, TN
2007 Total Enrollment
11,847
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$37,005
Application Deadline
1/3
Academic Calendar
Semester

21. University of California at Berkeley
Location
Berkeley, CA
2007 Total Enrollment
34,953
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
In-state: $8,932
Out-of-state: $29,540
Application Deadline
11/30
Academic Calendar
Semester

Carnegie Mellon University Photo: AP

22. Carnegie Mellon University
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
2007 Total Enrollment
10,493
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$38,844
Application Deadline
1/1
Academic Calendar
Semester

23. Georgetown University
Location
Washington, D.C.
2007 Total Enrollment
14,826
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
$38,122
Application Deadline
1/10
Academic Calendar
Semester

23. University of Virginia
Location
Charlottesville, VA
2007 Total Enrollment
24,257
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
In-state: $9,300
Out-of-state: $26,900
Application Deadline
1/2
Academic Calendar
Semester

University of California at L.A. Photo: Courtesy of UCLA

25. University of California
at Los Angeles
Location
Los Angeles, CA
2007 Total Enrollment
38,896
2008-2009 Tuition and Fees
In-state: $7,034
Out-of-state: $26,102
Application Deadline
11/30
Academic Calendar
Quarter

http://finance.yahoo.com/college-education/article/105598/Best-Colleges-2009

Couple weeks ago, she was complaining about all the power cords cluttering our kitchen, where we keep 2 laptops on the kitchen counter, and 2 camera battery chargers and 2 iPhone docks on the kitchen desk. She said, They should make a cordless charging for the laptops and the phones, I'm sick of plugging things in all the time. I sort of laughed at her and told her about the April Fools product ThinkGeek had a couple years back. But today, I see this: http://gizmodo.com/5039871/intel-says-theyve-taken-a-huge-leap-in-wireless-power-tech.

I've been trying to keep an eye on upcoming wireless power options (which is like watching grass grow), and it looks like the big wireless power developers are still crawling toward consumer solutions.

In an article I wrote for the April 15 issue of The Northern Light, I examined the different methods of generating wireless power and a few of the companies to watch. Since then, there have been a few new announcements that give me hope the technology isn't too far from store shelves.

Since then, Fulton Innovation (whose eCoupled technology is one of the most promising wireless power options) has acquired the assets of Splashpower, a competing wireless power developer that ran out of funds some time ago (read the short press release on the aquisition). To buy out a defunct competitor must mean Splashpower had some technology that eCoupled didn't; that means a likely improvement in Fulton's already impressively strong eCoupled technology, which uses an inductively coupled power circuit, as did Splashpower.

Also of note is Powercast's statement that it has come to an agreement with Pure Energy Visions, maker of rechargeable batteries. Unlike the inductive coupling technology mentioned above, Powercast uses radio frequency harvesting to trickle power to its enabled devices. While RF harvesting will never power a running laptop like eCoupled technology can, it can charge small devices from a much greater distance. Rechargeable batteries with this technology could be put in any device and you would never have to replace the batteries or place them in a charger -- it would all be done through the airwaves without you doing a thing. This is very promising, although rechargeable batteries in general still haven't caught on as well as they should have.

Most recently, HoMedics, maker of massaging cushions and other home health products, partnered up with Powermat to create products with wireless power capabilities. The press release doesn't give much detail, but it won't be full wireless yet, since any wirelessly powered device would still need a wireless power giver -- which, ideally, would be embedded in the floors, walls and furniture. That's the biggest obstacle to this technology: it's almost a catch-22 of putting out wireless devices while still needing to plug-in a powermat to give off the wireless power. That is, until enough homes have wireless power-givers already embedded, which nobody will make until they see a market filled with wirelessly powered devices.

Anyway, it's a step in the right direction, and I'm excited to see where wireless power goes next; the true potential of the technology is barely even tapped.

แต่นั่นมันอดีตครับ ดูนี่ เดี๋ยวนี้เค้ามีวิธีส่งพลังงานไฟฟ้าแบบ Wireless กันแล้ว

Click >> http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/video?id=442

ท่จริงไอเดียมันก็ไม่ได้ใหม่มากนะครับ มันมาจากการใช้หลักการ Induction หรือการเหนี่ยวนำแม่เหล็กไฟฟ้า เครื่องฐานมันจะส่งคลื่นแม่เหล็กไฟฟ้าออกไป เครื่องรับจะมีขดลวด เมื่อคลื่นแม่เหล็กไฟฟ้าผ่านขดลวดก็จะเกิดกระแสไฟฟ้าขึ้นมาได้ครับ แต่ที่ใหม่คือ เค้ามาปรับปรุงและสร้างให้มันใช้งานจริงๆ ได้ แถมยังเอาไปติดตั้งอยู่ใต้โต๊ะ ทำให้เราสามารถวางอุปกรณ์ไฟฟ้าบนโต๊ะไม้เรียบๆ แล้วมันจะชาร์จไฟได้ แจ๋วมากครับ

The only parts of the net that Tesla didn't have were the actual devices that make such a network possible.  He does not mention computers or network equipment and says nothing about packet communications.  In an earlier passage he describes an idea he had as a child to build an autonomous thinking robot, so he did have ideas about thinking machines.

Tesla became obsessed in his later years with his scheme for wireless transmission of power.  It's not surprising that he got nowhere with this idea.  There is no profit in power if the power company can't meter and charge for the power a person uses.  Still, the general idea was that all devices that used electricity would be connected together on a common medium where they could all communicate with each other.  That is pretty much what we have today with the net.  When reading about Tesla I am struck by the fact that one man had so many useful ideas.  It would be hard to find another person who has had such an effect on society as this one person.

Soljačić faced a dilemma: how in the world could he efficiently and effectively transfer electricity wirelessly?  One option, radio waves, proved to be extremely inefficient, losing much of its power in transition.  Lasers proved to be just impracticle, as the device would have to be in a strict line of sight.  After trial and error, he finally decided on magnetic resonance couplings, which allow two objects tuned to the same frequency to exchange power at strong levels, while they can only interact with other objects at very low strengths.

Soljačić and his team have now demostrated a 60 watt bulb powered from two meters away through a thin wall.  His most effective demonstration has shown 50% efficiency, and he comments, "While ideally it would be nice to have efficiencies at 100 percent.  So realistically, 70 to 80 percent could be possible for a typical application.”

For the next several years, I think Soljačić's wireless power will be just a work-in-progress, until he and his team are able to get at least 80% efficiency.  I don't think any less will be practicle, especially with rising gas prices and the state of the nation's economy.  When it is finally implemented, I think it will mainly be used to power or charge mobile devices, such as iPods, cell phones, and portable gaming devices, as this system really isn't designed for full-fledged wireless power for all your appliances.  I can't wait to see where this is going.

Or, not.

Powercast has developed technology that transmits power wirelessly.

A Powercaster™ transmitter chip, running on conventional current, broadcasts a low-power radio (RF) signal at a specific frequency across several feet of empty space. Powerharvester™ receiver chips built into one or more remote devices capture enough energy to continuously recharge batteries, or to power devices directly.

The technology has limits, including the transmission range and power levels. Currently, only devices that use small batteries can be supported, such as computer mice, game controllers, and wireless headphones.

However, the technology is young. As it matures and the limits are raised, more and more devices will be able to be powered wirelessly. In the future, expect to have one transmitter per room or building powering all of your electronics.

Read more about this fantastic find at this link below.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6129460.stm

1maig|\| eyoure cell phone gEtting charged all By itSelf the moment u bri|\|g iT intoy 0r house or any wi-fi o r(jane what Thi networks gonna be christened) ro wiMax z0ne it s1 brpougHt into/ hACK YOUUUUUUU cause u r lame imaginne a w0rld wtihotu aa7l t3hsE overhaed wires hwrae in we can see the clear blue skeis and wouldn’t quiute worry about oower cuts due to 4ny srot og exteroir reasons!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111~~ olololo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1~~ you are suck WELL THIS IS WHAT MARiN SOLJJAčIćD ESCRE1D wH3N HE HAFD HIS cELL PHONE BUZZING0VER L0W BATTERY tohugh |\|ot first too Be on teh Radar fro promulagtaing wirleess pwoer(nikol4 tews7a) he has much gr8 1mpercat1ons of sOon comijg up W1th one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~~~ he s trYing to zero in on medium-range p0wer tranmsission unlike tesla’s long range trialz.. tzhi sis one of th to p10 technol;ogeis fro the gfuture.

RADIO AVEES WERE TEH FIRST TO BE TESTEDD BUT WAZ FONUD THAT TEHSE COULD TRAVEL LONG D1StANCES BUT HDD TEHIR OWN PERNiCIOUS REAZSONZ tO PBBE AV01DED Az TWEH RATE Of PROPAGATION 7OSS3s WAR3 HIFh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~~~ ENXT W4S THDE LASER WHICH COULD TrQVE7 WITH MINMIUM LOSESSS BUT AH DT OHAVeA CLEAR Li|\|E OIF SIGHT 4ND A7S0 ‘ HAVE AHRMFUL EFFECTS ON TEH THINGS ON IT SWATY... RO OV4RCOME THIS PROBLEEM, HE CAME UP WITH 4 METHOD CALLED RES0N4N TCoUPLING WHOVCH IS STRONG UNTeRACCti0|\| BEWTE3N TEHH OBJECTRS THAT R TUNEWD TO SAMWE FFREuENCY AND WEAK INTEACTION WITH THOSE WHICH HAVEDIFFERENT FREQUIENCY, MAGNETIC R3SONANCE iS NOT aHRMFUL 4Z TEHIR AFFECTO N HUM4NB IENGS IS MINIMU MWHEn THHEYTRAVEL THR0GHAIR///  

teh reasaerchars built two resOnant C0;pper coilz and hung them fRom the cieling,, about two metars apart WHWE THE YPLUGFGED ONE COIL INTO TEH WALL,AlTERNATING CRRENT FLOWED THROUGH IT, cREATING A M4GNETIC fEILD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~~ the s3cond coi7, tUned to the samew frequenncy and ho0ked t0 a light bul,b reso­nzated with the magnetic feild, generat1ng 4n e7Ectric currnet that lIt up ythe bulb–even witj a thinw all betwee nthe coil!!!!!!!!1~~~~~~ HAX0 RY0UUUuUUU this w4s don3 uisng 60-watt bulb!!!!!!!!1~~~~ so far,t eh nost effective setup comsists of 60-cent1emt3r coppar c0ilS and a 10-megahetz mAgnetic feild; this transfers poeer overa distance of two meters with aboUt 50 aprcent efficeincy/// I will ahck becuz u suck... ololololol!!!!!!!11 the t3am s looking 4t silver and optehR matderialz to decre4dse coill size and boost effIceuincy.  

while staryuPz such 4s pow3rcaSt, fultton 1nnovaation and wild chjarge have indeed devised 4 method fo rw1relessd charging of cxell phonez and battereis us1ng azdaspters and pads  soljačuć’s way si mor3 iNnov4tive in automatically charging the cellso r batTeRe1s hw3n comes int0 ther vicin1tyy of 4ny Wirrelesz tx miNiuz any p4ds  

 potential industria lapplicAtionz aret o stillb e profgNosticated. OLOLOOLOLOLLOLO

—————-
now olayign: ppeter kayter - cleAr sk3is
via foxytunes

Enzimas celuloticas
Mineração Real
Connectomica
Aplicações web offline
Transistores baseados em Graphene
Magnetometros atomicos
Transmissao de energia por ar
Nanoradio
Chips probabilisticos
Modelagem de surpresa

Mais detalhes aqui

This year's list includes a technology for wireless power; there are quite a number of these developments around these days, including some the TR10 missed such as Splashpower in the UK. It includes "Modelling Surprise" – not magic, but developing a scenario modelling methodology that takes into account disruptive surprises of the past. Also modelling uncertainty is probabilistic chip design, which recognises the range of computational areas where absolute precision is un-necessary and thus enables power consumption of devices to be reduced: this technology may also come into its own as component sizes continue to reduce and the physics of uncertainty come into play in mainstream design.

Sandy Pentland's Reality Mining is also in the list: by enabling mobile devices to "recognise" each other when they're in range, data can be gathered about the social or professional encounters between their owners. Knowledge of their personal networks can then help facilitate serendipitous meetings (think "I didn't know you'd be here!")

Visit TR to review the complete list.

Links:

• Technology Review's Ten Emerging Technologies of 2008 (Tech Review, March/April 2008)

• Splashpower

"To demonstrate the versatility of eCoupled technology, Fulton Innovation will display wireless power in action with a variety of additional devices, including low-power applications like the Apple iPod and Microsoft Zune; to medium-power applications like the laptop; to high-power applications like an electric frying pan, George Foreman grill and food processor."

Even better, is that Fulton Innovation claims the eCoupled technology actually saves power by only drawing what it needs, unlike most plugged-in devices that continuously draw small amounts of energy even when not turned on.

Most of the announcements of new products to be showcased at CES are of the "bigger/smaller, faster, better" variety; and although a 1 TB disc or 32 GB flash drive are pretty cool, new concepts like wireless power really expand what's possible.

Powercast
Ecoupled