A New Kind of Soft Battery, Inspired by the Electric Eel
(World News Science)

In 1799, the Italian scientist Alessandro Volta fashioned of zinc and copper discs, separated by salt-soaked cardboard. This `voltaic pile` was the world´s first synthetic battery, but Volta based its design on something far older-the body of the electric eel. This infamous fish makes its own electricity using an electric organ that makes up 80 percent of its two-meter length. The organ contains thousands of specialized muscle cells called electrocytes. Each only produces a small voltage, but together, they can generate up to 600 volts-enough to stun a human, or even a horse. They also provided Volta with ideas for his battery, turning him into a 19th-century celebrity. Two centuries on, and...