Silent, energy ball wind turbine produces 1.4x more energy than large, loud, bladed ones

Swedish company Home Energy developed a wind generator that works slightly differently than your regular, bladed, mechanism.  The "Energy Ball" is safer for birds, makes less noise and has increased efficiency due to a principle known as the Venturi effect (the air is squeezed as it enters the ball and speeds up, causing increased spin).

According to the Technical University of Delft in Holland, the machine's utilization of the wind enables it to be 40% more efficient than bladed wind generators of the same diameter.

Here's one catching some major wind

Imaged Credit: http://inhabitat.com/energy-ball-by-home-energy/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venturi_effect

http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Home_Energy_Energy_Ball