The humble Brussels sprout has become obligatory at the Christmas table, whether you like them or not. Despite the vegetable being the subject of an easy joke, scientists have proven how they can be a welcome presence during the festive period.
A team from Designworks, a Windsor-based creative consultancy firm, has created a battery which is powered only by 1,000 Brussels sprouts and which is capable of lighting 100 high-efficiency LED Christmas tree lights.
It was conceived as part of the Big Bang UK Young Scientists and Engineers Fair after a survey of 1,000 children found that 68% of them hated Brussels sprouts.
As a result, Dreamworks decided to find alternative ways of using the vegetable during the festive season. The "sprout battery" that was made as a result can produce 62 volts of electricity. However, Sean Miles, Director of Prototyping at Designworks, said that any vegetable or fruit could be used in the battery, claiming that sprouts are actually one of the least efficient vegetables to use. Still, few may complain about using sprouts for power instead of having them on the plate.
Paul Jackson, the CEO of EngineeringUK which runs the Big Bang Fair, said, "We want young people to think about STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects in an interesting way and are always looking for different ways to do that. It being the festive time of year – and kids’ dislike of sprouts being well documented – using them to create a battery seemed like a unique way to achieve that aim."
A Christmas tree which is being powered by the sprout battery is currently on display on London's Southbank.
