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The Future of the Light Bulb: LED Light Bulbs
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According to a MSNB article, an accidental invention using a quantum dot mixture could revolutionize the future of light as we know it and take us to the next level: LED lighting. From the article:
'The main light source of the future will almost surely not be a bulb. It might be a table, a wall, or even a fork. An accidental discovery announced this week has taken LED lighting to a new level, suggesting it could soon offer a cheaper, longer-lasting alternative to the traditional light bulb. The miniature breakthrough adds to a growing trend that is likely to eventually make Thomas Edison's bright invention obsolete. LEDs are already used in traffic lights, flashlights, and architectural lighting. They are flexible and operate less expensively than traditional lighting.'
Read more...
I can most definitely see the benefits of LEDs when compared to other forms of electric light. They do produce more lumens per watt than most other sources, but they do produce a good deal of heat when combined together into a large array, despite what people may tell you. They also have the added benefit of efficiently producing (since they only produce light in a certain wavelength) just about any color you would want through color mixing of different color LEDs (check out the tunnel in the Detroit airport if you'd like to see a well done example). Personally, though, I would love to see more daylight in spaces rather than a push for the latest and greatest in electric light. If done properly, daylighting can greatly increase light levels in the workplace and lower energy consumed by electric light. Generally, this will lead to an increase in cooling load, but this is almost always smaller than the amount of energy saved by eliminating electric lighting (again, if done properly). So while I'm all for more efficient electric lighting, it would be nice to see no electric lighting used during daylight hours when the sun is readily available.
In the meanwhile, you can start having fun from thinkgeek with 35 bucks. Or, of course, you could always make your own. |
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