LED football could illuminate third world countries

Students from Harvard University prove having fun can make a difference as they have created an LED-based football that can generate electricity, according to Haiti Libre.

Harvard students Jessica Matthews and Julia Silverman started their project a few years ago when they wondered if it was possible to recover the velocity of a football to generate electricity.

They designed the sOccet football, which has the ability to create energy by simply playing catch. Their prototype balls have been tested all over the world, such as South Africa, Nigeria, Spain and Haiti.

According to the news source, the ball works through kinetic energy. The inner-workings of the football consist of an electric generator, which gathers energy and is able to power the device after only 15 minutes of use. There is a handy outlet where you can plug in an LED lightbulb, which can stay lit for 3 hours.

The girls have been revamping the design and will reveal it to the masses sometime next year. They hope that their technology will one day help to bring light to impoverished children worldwide.

As innovative ideas continue to thrive, a sustainable world could someday be a reality. For now, you can implement changes to your home to become more energy-efficient. Instead of wasteful incandescent lights on your deck space, LED rope lights are a welcome alternative. These fixtures come in a variety of colors and will use much less energy than old-style bulbs.