SCIENTISTS DEVELOPING 12-YEAR DEVICE BATTERIES

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are developing supercharged lithium batteries that would last 12 years, twice as long as current device batteries.

These new batteries would use organosilicon compounds to last longer, said Robert West, the school's professor emeritus of chemistry. "If you're going to implant these things, you want a [battery] lifetime of at least 10 years," he noted. The batteries would also be able to accept a charge from outside the body without the need for surgery.