EDUC 8848: Emerging and Future Technology

      
Rhymes of History Technology: Wind Turbines

Man’s need to harness wind power goes back to 1000 B.C. with the development of a “drag” device designed to collect wind in order to provide power to move an object by dragging it. A simple example of this is a sail boat (Dodge, 2006). Utilizing the sail design, in 500 A.D. in Persia the first windmills were designed using a vertical axis to automate the grinding of grains and to pump water (Dodge, 2006). Windmills were found in China and across Europe beginning around 1300 A.D. The Dutch made many modifications and redesigns of the windmill towers and are the images most people today think of when talking about windmills. Windmill technology remained mostly unchanged until America perfected its water pumping system with the Halladay Mill of 1854 (Dodge, 2006). By 1888 the first windmill designed for generating electricity came online in Ohio (Dodge, 2006). Moving along, in the 1920’s, small, personal sized wind turbines were developed for things like lighting for farms, charging batteries, and running house hold appliances that required electricity (Dodge, 2006). Wind turbines continued to go through developments and changes over the next several decades.

The 1980’s kicked-off a real focus on wind power as a source of electricity both in the USA and globally. Today we are seeing wind farms pop up everywhere from the plains, to ridge tops, to floating islands in the ocean. The design, power, and capabilities of these new wind turbines improve each day. Not only are we focused on how to best capture the wind and get the most out of it, but there are turbines designed now to also take into account aesthetics and wildlife. Turbines are being designed now so that birds will be less likely to get injured or die from crashing into the. Here is a news clip about some of these new designs:

New Wind Turbine Design Good for Rural, Urban Environment

The resurgence of wind turbines and wind farms harkens back to the Dutch windmills most of us think of when we discuss wind power. These new wind turbines do what the windmills of thousands of years ago do. They are just more efficient, effective, and depending on your point of view, elegant to look at.

Reference

Dodge, D. (2006). Illustrated history of wind power development. Retrieved from http://telosnet.com/wind/index.html