Forum Post: UPDATE ON ZUCCOTTI PARK POWER: MIT student working on solution for generating power in Zuccotti Park with a device that Mayor Bloomberg doesn't have a right to steal --------- STERLING ENGINE??

Please be sure to check this new link out. Genius idea by efschumacher http://occupywallst.org/forum/genius-idea-from-efschumacher-heres-how-you-can-wi/

ARod1993 1 points 4 hours ago

MIT freshman, studying electrical engineering and computer science. I don't know that much, but I can think of a few ideas. First of all, a bicycle generator is probably not the best idea for doing something like this because it's not particularly practical. As Nate suggested, it would be a great idea to look into solar battery chargers and alternating banks of car batteries to see if that would provide enough power for most of what you need.

If that doesn't work out, you might try buying or building a Stirling engine to generate power. It's different from an internal combustion engine in that it doesn't require anything to be burned inside of it; it merely requires a temperature gradient across it. They sell small novelty ones for a couple of hundred dollars apiece that you stick on top of coffee cups to spin little propellers. I'm not sure how much it would cost to get a larger one that you could run off a garbage can fire or makeshift oven, but a few of the latter could give you a great deal of power with no extra emissions.

You can find out more about them here: http://www.stirlingengine.com/faq