Making electricity from potholes - the shocking truth

It's possible to build a regenerative apparatus on a car that takes advantage of the power absorbed when a car's wheel goes over a pothole.

A team of MIT undergraduates came up with a prototype that gains a boost of 10 percent in overall vehicle fuel efficiency through regenerative shock absorbers.

To make our cars go longer per unit of energy, we're going to have to be more inventive, which these MIT students obviously are.

Now, we should put the concepts to work in buildings. Elevators, for instance, are a prime candidate to regenerate electricity on the downward haul. Buildings with rotating doorways could generate modest amounts of electricity.

Even floors could be designed to absorb the impact of footsteps and transfer the energy into electricity. Think about the foot traffic in a mall or other public spots.