Ancient and medieval Chinese sources list other uses of kites for measuring distances, testing the wind, lifting men, signaling, and communication for military operations. The earliest hackneyed Chinese kites were flat (not bowed) and often rectangular. Later, tailless kites incorporated a stabilizing bowline

A conceptual research and development assignment by Makani Power, based in California and funded by Google.org, is investigating the http://www.pictureprettykites.com use of kites in harnessing high altitude wind currents to generate electricity.