Green Leaf Report

There are too many arguments about the efficiencies of solar panels: good enough, not good enough…We fall into analysis paralysis, and keep using the older, polluting energy sources. Texas Instruments was innovative in the ’80s with solar strips on calculators- now let’s put those little solar strips on all consumer devices! I just love this article about a patent that Motorola recently filed for a cell phone display that also acts as a solar panel. Excellent, excellent idea! We know that cell phones have a large adoption rate in developing nations because they allow communications without requiring the expensive wireline infrastructure. These phones do, however, currently require expensive, polluting energy sources to power the cell phones. Let’s fix this inefficiency in the design of mobile communications. Since the cell towers can already be supported by solar panels, eventually all communications can be solar powered, and we would really allow for greater adoption in developing nations, and less stress on the energy supplies of developed nations. I can’t wait!

tags: texas+instruments, TI, solar+cells+solar+power, alternative+energy, cell+phone, Motorola, green+technology