Posts

Media Platforms Design TeamWhen Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo (better known as the French synth duo Daft Punk) made a cameo appearance on a balcony overlooking last month’s Monaco Grand Prix, the stunt represented a carefully curated merging between Formula 1 racing and mainstream music, based on the band and Columbia Records’ relationship with the Lotus F1 team. Daft Punk, clad in custom tailored one-off racing suits designed and executed by motorsports apparel giant Alpinestars, was only appearing in public for the third time in a 20 year music career....

Media Platforms Design TeamMars is hot! Well, actually, it’s frigid. But since searching for signs of former life on the Red Planet is all the rage, we asked Jenny Young of the Brooklyn Robot Foundry to help us devise a minirover project. It teaches the basics of electrical circuitry, motors, and even lighting. The build is complex enough to engage experienced gearheads, yet simple enough for novices to do with a little help....

Media Platforms Design TeamThe growing disenchantment with SUVs means family-size sedans are finding their way back into American garages. We selected four of the largest, most powerful models–the Dodge Charger R/T, Toyota Avalon Limited, Ford Five Hundred SEL and Buick LaCrosse CXS, all new within the last year–and ran them through our testing protocol at California Speedway in Fontana. Then we stuffed them with people and luggage for a weeklong cruise around Southern California....

No rightsA European drone hobbyist has apparently flown a DJI Phantom 2 to a record 11,000 feet up. It takes about three-and-a-half minutes to reach that altitude, and once the drone gets up there, the operator has to race the aircraft back to the surface before the remaining 27% of battery life runs out, making it just in time with 4% left, according to the video.To pull off this stunt, the operator most likely had to disable software restrictions that prevent out-of-the-box hobby drones from flying above a certain limit....

You’re crawling along in traffic and, despite the fact that your pickup bed is empty, the coolant temp is uncomfortably high. Then you realize that the air conditioner is blowing warm. You turn off the a/c and open the windows just as the traffic breaks and you speed up. The coolant temp drops. Stretching your luck, you try the a/c again–and it works fine.LISTLESS AND LAZYAt home, you lift the hood, puzzled....

Media Platforms Design TeamA week before the official reveal at the Geneva Auto Show, Ferrari released pictures and specs for the most powerful road car the company has ever produced. Dubbed (a bit akwardly) the F12berlinetta, the front-engined coupe replaces the exisiting 599 GTB. Under the hood is a 6.3-liter V-12 that produces 730 hp, a staggering 118 more than the 12-cylinder in the 599. The new motor revs to 8700 rpm....

Media Platforms Design TeamThe unmanned K-MAX, helicopter successfully conducted a firefighting mission during a demonstration on Nov. 6. (Photo by Lockheed Martin)Can a remotely piloted medium-lift helicopter used by the Marine Corps to supply frontline troops in Afghanistan also help fight wild fires back home? That’s the question an industry team from Lockheed Martin and Kaman is currently exploring with support from the U.S. Department of the Interior.Earlier this month, the team conducted what it said was a successful demonstration of a Kaman K-Max helicopter fitted with a Lockheed unmanned mission/sensor suite at Griffiss Air Force Base, in Rome, New York, one of six FAA-approved test sites for drones....

Media Platforms Design TeamAs the perilous situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan continues to unfold, anxieties increase about how far a toxic plume of radioactive gases could spread through the atmosphere. To find out where it’s headed, researchers will rely on the complex science of airborne plume modeling—computer simulations that can predict the movement and concentrations of material in a plume. Here in the U.S., decades of rocket launches, tanker spills, and volcanic eruptions have helped scientists hone their models and prepare for disaster....

Richard MajchrzakEven the athletes who medaled at Sochi didn’t have these: the new Madshus eMpower Redline Carbon Classics ($760), cross-country skis equipped with a radio-frequency identification tag. If you’re one of the more than 3 million Nordic skiers in the United States, you’ll love them. If you’re not, they may lure you in.What it is and why: The RFID tags collect data during every major step in the manufacturing process: pressing and molding, flexibility testing, and camber, or arch, profiling....

Media Platforms Design TeamAhead of next month’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Honda today released a teaser image of an “Urban SUV concept.“Although the photo reveals only the car’s roof, belt, and shoulder lines, there’s a good chance that we’re looking at the upcoming SUV variant of the Fit. Rumors of the vehicle were already circulating: Just last week Automotive News reported that Honda will build three vehicles with the Fit platform: a compact, sedan dubbed the “City”, and this Fit-based crossover....

It’s a common problem–as evidenced by the fact that twice in the past month I had to go out and help someone get his car started. Here’s the scenario: Get into your car, try to start it. The ignition key won’t turn the lock cylinder. Try again, this time twisting the key hard enough to worry about breaking it off. Nope–now you’re going to have to call a tow truck to get your car hauled to the dealership....

Reach into your pocket and you’ll find a device that’s evolving into the dominant piece of technology for this century: the smartphone, Star Trek’s tricorder on steroids. Modern cars interface with smartphones for a world of entertainment and connectivity options. But smartphones are also changing so rapidly that cars have a terrible time keeping up. A medium-priced car only 5 years old probably won’t have Bluetooth connectivity for hands-free phone calls and audio streaming, a USB port for charging and data connections, an aux input for MP3 players, or an SD card reader and other features standard in center consoles these days....

The People’s Liberation Army Navy Air Force—the Chinese Navy’s air force for short—has sent advanced fighters to two islands the South China Sea. The deployment of fighters to Woody Island (or Xongxing Island as it’s known in China) comes on the heels of the USS Lassen coming within 12 miles of an artificial Chinese island in the South China Sea.Last week the destroyer USS Lassen sailed within 12 miles of an artificial island built in the Spratly Islands....

Over the weekend, NASA and MIT made spaceflight history when their Lunar Laser Communications Demonstrator (LLCD) beamed data at 622 megabits per second—5 times the current rate—back from a spacecraft in lunar orbit.In an interview with Popular Mechanics, Don Cornwell, mission manager at NASA’s Goddard Fight Center, said that LLCD “is working better than expected” after its initial tests. “We just finished the first four days, and it has been extremely successful, beyond our expectations....

Media Platforms Design TeamApple is betting a lot on the new iPhone (probably called iPhone 6), reportedly ordering 70 to 80 million units ahead of launch, according to the Wall Street Journal. The number is so high in part because Apple is making two versions of the iPhone 6—a 4.7-inch model and a 5.5-inch model. The iPhone 5S has a 4-inch screen.This is Apple’s biggest order yet. Prior to the launch of last year’s iPhone 5S, Cupertino ordered 50 to 60 million units....

Remember when you used to physically download MP3 files to listen to music? Those days are long gone. For the first time, a major record label says it’s getting more revenue from streaming than from downloads, Re/code reports. During an earnings call, Warner Music Group announced that streaming services like Spotify, Pandora, and YouTube gave them 33% more revenue this quarter, while downloads reportedly went down. The boost in streaming helped their digital revenues spike by $1 million....

Media Platforms Design TeamInside the Tesla factory in California.Yes, subcompacts are back. And automakers are building lighter, more efficient vehicles to meet future government-mandated mpg standards. But there’s one thing those small-car trends can’t change: Americans still want their trucks. This year the Ford F-150 will top the year-end list of best-selling vehicles in America. Again. And the Chevy Silverado and Ram 1500 make the Top 5.Elon Musk wants a piece of the action....

If you’re planning to build a wooden deck this summer, you may have noticed that choosing a decking material has become much more difficult than ever before. Just a few years ago the only option was wood, which came in perhaps two or three species. Today, there are dozens of different decking materials available, including composite lumber, plastic decking and hardwood imports.So, before breaking ground on your new deck, let’s take a close look at f basic types of decking, each with its own aesthetics, maintenance requirements, and price range....

Media Platforms Design Team Credit: SLAC National Accelerator LaboratoryMost consumer cameras go up to roughly 24 megapixels resolution, which is pretty good. But for a shiny new telescope meant to peak into the deepest parts of our universe, that just won’t cut it, and so the Department of Energy just approved something just a little more powerful: a 3,200-megapixel camera that is the most powerful in the world.The camera has some big work ahead of it as part of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, set to open in 2022 high in the mountains of Chile, where it will be charged with looking deep into our universe....

The big muzzle on the handgun you see above can effectively muffle gunfire, without the need for that big cylindrical attachment you see James Bond putting on his Walther PPK. Or the add-ons you get in Call of Duty. For an auditory understanding, check out the shotgun Javier Bardem uses in No Country for Old Men.“The functioning parts are behind the suppressor,” Joshua Waldron, a former photographer and current CEO of manufacturer SilencerCO told me....