Australian researchers have figured out a way to harness the energy we use while typing to power a laptop. Using piezoelectricity, this method works in a similar way to cigarette lighters that create a spark by striking a piezoelectric crystal.

To power a laptop, though, a much thinner film of the piezoelectric material would have to be developed using nanotechnology. It's so thin, it can be coated onto various electronic parts and integrated into a variety of gadgetry.

"The power of piezoelectrics could be integrated into running shoes to charge mobile phones, enable laptops to be powered through typing or even used to convert blood pressure into a power source for pacemakers — essentially creating an everlasting battery," Dr. Madhu Bhaskaran, the study's co-author, told GizMag. The idea of an everlasting battery is mind-boggling. Scientists are also looking into ways to power touchscreen devices with piezoelectric film, putting all that energetic finger-swiping to good use.

Could this be a way around that perennial battery power conundrum?

[via Advanced Functional Materials, graphic by iStockphoto]