For these organisms, getting down from a cloud may be more of an ordeal than getting up: spore-releasing fungi tend to shed spores at the times of day and year when thermals are most likely, and bacteria are so small and light that the slightest puff of wind can send them flying.

ECONOMIST: Aerobiology

Not so with Gambarota's new micro-turbines, which can generate electricity with as little as 2 mph of wind, and keep turning at all times from the slightest of breezes.

ENGADGET: Micro-turbines output micro-electricity for Hong Kong's micro-apartments