In 1957, Charles and Ray Eames, an american couple, designed the Solar Do-Nothing Machine, a set of kinetic toys powered by the sun. It was created for an advertising program intended to show the virtues of aluminum as a material, by creating unusual things from the metal. This apparently useless invention represents an early use of solar power to produce electricity. A screen of shining aluminium strips focuses the sun’s ray onto a row of silicon cells. This converts light into electricity to power small motors. If we could build this lovely, useless little device and power it with sunlight, the Eames seemed to be saying, just imagine the magnificent, useful machines human beings could build if they really put their minds to it.
