Journal 2, September 3

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/02/wireless.electricity/index.html

This article describes ways in which technology is advancing to bring wireless power to a new level. We already do have the ability to send electricity wirelessly, but it is not very efficient at this time, and that's what scientists are trying to improve. This could end up being expensive for consumers, since the technology itself is more expensive to research, develop, implement, and produce. It would bring a new level of convenience to electronics, though. For example, you could have one power pad to charge multiple electronics in your house, or simply drive an electric car into a garage fitted with a charger as stated in the article, as opposed to plugging these things in. The way society is progressing, people who can afford it are generally in favor of things like this, it brings more convenience to their every day lives. In the article, it also says that this technology may not increase the cost of things such as cell phones and mp3 players by much, although it would go up. The majority of people own these devices, at least a cell phone, and this technology would be widely popular if it were developed effectively. Wireless technology is already a big part of the technological world, as described in this article. The article talks mainly about use of devices without cords, not specifically charging them without cords. The fact that so many people already use this technology, support it, and are helped by it means that providing wireless power sources and even more convenience would definitely not be a bad thing. This could also be very environmentally friendly, especially if a solution for electric cars can be worked out. If people can charge things wirelessly, though, they won't need batteries, which just get thrown out when they're dead, creating trash that is far from biodegradable. In the more distant future, perhaps we could progress to electric cars with the assistance of this technology, which would reduce pollution greatly and probably be cheaper for people driving these cars.