Wind turbines built around an upright axis, rather than the horizontal axis  of a traditional three-blade turbine, look cool.  They use all sorts of swoopy spiral-ish designs to grab wind on one side of the axis while not being pushed back by it on the other side. Many are appealing as a form of kinetic sculpture, like giant gorgeous egg-beaters. They also take up a lot less space than a traditional design, and are often quieter.

There’s only one problem: They don’t work worth beans. This has been demonstrated many times, but inventors keep coming up with new designs. And they don’t work, either. 

 

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