Power from the people

A Danish hotel seems to have come up with a solution to two of the modern world's biggest challenges: generating clean electricity and fighting obesity. According to Reuters, guests at Crowne Plaza Copenhagen Towers can help power the building by jumping on one of the electricity-generating exercise bikes in the hotel's gym. Rather ruining the weight-loss possibilities, a free meal in the restaurant is on offer to anyone who cycles a certain distance.

That aside, we like this idea. Similar to the MO of Steve Miller from Sky 1's Fat Families who wires up his victims' TVs to exercise equipment so they can only watch Jeremy Kyle while working up a sweat: if they stop for a breather, the TV goes off. I'd certainly like one of these devices in my living room. And with the amount of rubbish telly I watch I'd probably produce enough surplus electricity to power the whole street (and have thighs of steel as an added bonus).

The winning product at ecobuild's innovation zone this year was paving slabs that generate energy from the pressure of being walked on, so maybe we are cottoning on to the fact that getting off the sofa and moving might be good for more than just our waistlines.