Ever been at a party where the bass rhythm is SO LOUD, that you can “feel it”, I mean physically feel it in your heart. Your whole chest seems to be vibrating ?

It has happened to me – to be honest, as a highly strung and body aware individual, my reaction to the unwanted thudding was not “how cool, the music is rocking my soul”, it was more “OMG, I am going to have a heart attack, let’s get out of here – NOW !” cardiovascular

Translating the beat into power

Inspired by beating chests in rap concerts, researchers from Purdue University, wondered if the rhythm couldn’t be harnessed, to quite literally, keep body bits and pieces, beating.

Many people end up with artificial bits and pieces inside of them, helping them perform functions that have malfunctioned, usually as a result of an accident or due to disease.

The trouble, these bits and pieces NEED POWER, more-often than not, the devices include a tiny long-life battery. But long-life is relative, the battery is not going to keep going for a lifetime and at some point will need to be changed or charged.

Unfortunately yanking it out and plugging it into the wall for an hour or so, is often not an option, although some devices can use inductance technology to be powered up from the outside. But most of the time, charging is out, and changing is in, but changing a battery in a medical device, typically involves surgery – which is always a little risky, costly and never pleasant.

Recharging batteries in the body

Enter the microelectromechanical system, or MEMS, the brain child of the Birck Nanotechnology Centre.

The team have designed a medical sensor, which harvests the acoustic waves from music and uses the music, to recharge the device.

At the heart of the device, is a vibrating cantilever beam, made from a ceramic material. The music gets the lever bopping up and down, this generates electricity, which is stored in a capacitor. The electricity then keeps the device working.

Plugging in to the music

Charging the device would require a daily dose of music. And a little dancing in the sunlight is always good for the heart and soul.

The research team tried four different types of music to get the device going : rap, blues, jazz and rock. The best music for buzzing the cantilever bean was rap muscie. Rap seems to have just the right beat, because the music has a lot of low frequency sound, with a lot of bass.

Music creates sustainable energy

In this year of Sustainable Energy for All, we need to be dancing to the beat of a different drummer by thinking and acting a little greener.

Do your bit to use energy in a sustainable way.

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Further reading

Flower power bouncing the way to sustainability	How to juice up the heart battery so it pumps in a crisis	Did you know that you have taste buds in your ears ?

The 7 Big Spoons™…. are master switches that turn health on.

Balance Eicosanoids	Rein in insulin	Dial down stress	Sleep !	Increase Vit D	Culivate microflora	Think champion

Hire Dr Sandy from a Spoonful of Science to be the keynote speaker at your next event.

Did you learn something new or do you have a different perspective ? I’d love to hear from you so post me a comment below