This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American
Saul Griffith likes kites - but not the kind that you might have flown during your childhood. I'm talking about kites with wingspans bigger than a Boeing 747 - kites that are capable of generating (several times) more electricity than today's stationary wind turbines. In his March 2009 TED talk, Saul - with Makani Power - spends just over 5 minutes discussing the history of kites as a mode for harnessing energy, specifically drawing focus on massive kites bring used to produce electricity. In this talk, he explores this toy's potential to become a significant piece of the world's energy generation mix. And, according to Saul, if we were to dedicate ourselves to the development of this type of wind power, we could make "all of America's electricity in about 10 years."
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