Human Blood Fuels New Light Source

Figuring that people would use less electricity if they had to cut themselves to turn on the light, a British designer has cooked up the “blood lamp.” The ingenious bulb is full of luminol, a chemical forensic scientists use to check crime scenes for blood, LiveScience explains. Just crack open the lamp, cut yourself, drip some blood into the liquid, and wait for the appropriately creepy blue glow.

They’re unlikely to replace your CFLs anytime soon, but designer Mike Thompson says he was just trying to make a point. “If energy somehow came at a cost to us, then maybe it would make us think differently about the way we use it,” he said. Plus, the lamp works only once, so you have to think long and hard before breaking it. “It makes it kind of a poignant moment.” (More luminol stories.)