Humans as an Electric Power Source?

If we can use human power for transportation (e.g., bicycles), what about for electric power generation? Many people have wondered this. When you look at the numbers, it may not make economic sense, and would have very small direct impact on reducing fossil fuel use. For example, an elite cyclist might be able to output about 500 Watts of power continuously (enough to power five 100 W light bulbs). Most of the rest of us could manage only some fraction of that power output (maybe 10%-20% of that). Even at 500 W, and assuming 100% efficiency electricity generation, an elite cyclist could produce only a half kilowatt hour (kWh) of energy per hour, which is worth at most about 10 cents in the U.S.

While the economic incentive is negligible, there are other motivations for human-powered generators that go beyond financial and direct environmental considerations. At the University of Oregon, exercise equipment has been fitted with electric generators. Steve Mital, the University’s sustainability director, explained that while the costs of upgrading the equipment won’t be recouped for 28 years, it does have educational benefit. He goes on to say that “so much of this talk about renewables is fairly abstract. You jump on one of these machines and 30 minutes later you have a deep visceral understanding of what that means.” This effect is definitely valuable, and may have a larger indirect impact on energy consumption. If facilities like this become more universal we will have many more individuals with a deep appreciation for what a kWh really is and how much work is required to produce it. We may not even need to harvest the electricity to get the educational effect: just add sensors and displays to communicate how much energy has been produced. This would cost less than installing working generators (but may not be as satisfying).

What do you think of human-powered generators in gyms (or at rock concerts)? Should we invest in this as an educational campaign?