For a town where there are plenty of pedestrians at night to do something for the common good, install street lamps that run by storing up energy from passersby. Hanging from the lamp is a long cord with a comfy handle that you tug on for a few minutes to store up energy.

You might have seen an infomercial for the flashlight that uses Faraday's law to store up energy by shaking it. If those flashlights actually work, I suppose streetlamps could work by the same principle. Let's vamp them up with reflective mirrors if the light isn't too powerful. Our mayor will give you a sales tax rebate on your next purchase if you swipe your Good Citizens Card before yanking on the lamp.
-- ShaneSezWhat, Jan 03 2010

There's a farm near us with advice to the local youth to wee in specific places. This reminds me of that [+].
-- nineteenthly, Jan 03 2010


Alright we've got a parade coming up. Can you make it to pine street by sundown, Tarzan?
-- leinypoo13, Jan 03 2010


Somewhere I heard about street lamps where you lift a weight which then slowly falls back to the earth while powering the light. Yours beats it in the fun category, but it could lead to a further fostering of youngsters' perception that fun is constructive.
-- fishboner, Jan 07 2010


//Somewhere// that wouldn't work... so probably here.
-- FlyingToaster, Jan 07 2010



random, halfbakery