2/7: Hamster car
 

http://cellar.org/2002/hamstercar.jpg

This is at some sort of auto show or new technology show, I think in Japan. This car is powered solely by hamsters on wheels. I imagine it stores the power they generate, or amplifies it somehow. But you know someone had to come up with the idea at some point... it was just a matter of time.

And when you think about it, that makes this car the least environmentally-friendly car in the world. Think about it: its fuel isn't hamsters, its fuel is hamster food. Its fuel is seeds, and its waste by-product is hamster shit. You think smog is a problem, wait until you see what it's like when your car leaves little droppings everywhere it goes.

And if you leave the car out overnight in cold climates, its engine goes into hibernation. (Hamsters will drop into hibernation almost automatically if the air temperature falls below about 40 F.) Brings a whole new meaning to "warming up the car".

oh. my. god.

this is the silliest thing i've ever seen.

but it's really cute :) heh. look at the little hearts on the wheels.

Only in Japan.

For the record, energy can't be "amplified" - i.e., you can't get more out than you put in. No doubt, they're actually losing some energy. But it's still pretty neat, and I'd be curious as to seeing how it actually worked.

Is that a Pikachu on top?

Brings new meaning to the phrase "I can't come to work today my hamster died" ;)

Datalas

Wow. It would be so fun to be mocking a person who drove a car like that (or LOOKED like that!)

Stored energy
 

I think the way it has to work is the energy is stored somehow. A hamster on a wheel generates almost no horsepower. You'd have to store the energy by using it to maybe incrementally compress a spring, lift a weight, compress a gas etc in very small amounts etc. You'd have to wait weeks until you had enough energy saved up to push the car...a few feet.

A much better alternative would be to use the hamsters *as* fuel. Hamsters are not in short supply, are not a monoply of OPEC nations, and are easy to catch. Once vaporized at high temperature in a non-oxygenated environment, the resulting gas be cooled and used to fuel a conventional engine. Or the hamsters could be liquified and the resulting sludge cracked for a variety of oil-based fuels which could be used to run turbine engines. You'd need a LOT of hamsters, but you could concievably use hamster-ene instead of jet-A to fly the Concorde across the Atlantic or run a power plant.

You're getting a little too close to that "evil mad scientist" archetype, there, Joe....

What about hamster turds for fuel? We could have the schools save them, just stuff the cedar chips into plastic bags and send them off to Washington DC. Volunteers could sort out the turds as part of their 2-year national service program.

The turds could also be formed into little bricks and used by Habitat for Humanity to build houses for the poor. Hence the term, "built like a shit brick house."

Er, or something.

Its a fuel, no its a food source. No, its the fuel that tastes like chicken. The preceding was brought to you by the hamster council, lil' friends who taste great and get you to work on time.

If we fatten them up a little, it might work -- it did in Atlanta http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/science....ap/index.html
Though me thinks it may stink...

[edit] works now [/edit]

gg URL

More "bad points" to the hamster run car
 

I totally agree! Although that is quite brilliant and funny, I own a hamster and I think it is cruel to do such a thing to these poor animals. As far as The engine goes, Traveling can be very hard on hamsters. And then what happens when the hamster has to sleep? Hamsters are nocturnal so if you want to drive at night then thats fine.

GO HAMMIE, GO!

Is that a Pikachu on top?

Slightly late answer, but everyone knows thats Hamtaro on top. Sheesh.

Oh goodness no.