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Media Platforms Design Team LOS ANGELES—In recent years, Victory has unleashed some serious design firepower. The company’s swoopy Vision touring model dropped jaws when we took it on a Southern barbecue road trip last year. This year, the Minnesota-based manufacturer has unleashed two more aggressively designed bikes—the all-new Cross Country and Cross Roads. Powered by the same 106-cubic-inch (1731-cc) V-twin found in the Vision, the new models stick to the air-cooled engine formula....

Phase-Change IncubatorMedia Platforms Design TeamPlug-in incubators used for culturing bacteria to diagnose disease and test water safety don’t work in locations that lack electricity. To create an inexpensive alternative, Smith identified a waxlike substance that melts when warmed and maintains a steady 98.6 F temperature as it changes from a liquid back to a solid. Her incubator can keep a sample at a precise temperature for more than 24 hours.Screenless Hammer MillMedia Platforms Design TeamIt takes half an hour to grind 2....

Geologists have discovered what they believe to be an Arctic Ocean-size reservoir of water lying deep beneath the Earth’s surface. The so-called “Beijing anomaly” could have a significant impact on the study of water as a catalyst for geological activity.Michael Wysession of Washington University in St. Louis and Jesse Lawrence of UC San Diego discovered the anomaly while creating a 3D model of the Earth’s mantle—the 1800-mi.-thick layer of rock just beneath the crust....

Last week, The Intercept, a website led by investigative journalist Glenn Greenwald released its analysis of leaked classified documents detailing America’s drone strike intelligence and targeting program. Greenwald, a former lawyer and columnist for the UK newspaper The Guardian who is well-known for his reporting of leaked documents from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, sifted through and interpreted documents obtained from a whistleblower. He and colleagues Laura Poitras and Jeremy Scahill compiled a picture of how the Obama Administration uses drone strikes to meet its security policy objectives—often by killing people....

Deltacolor BambuMedia Platforms Design TeamThe chrome-plated steel Bambu from Deltacolor and Studio Dell’Acqua Bellavitis turns a traditional radiator into a metal hedge. The Italian device, which measures about three feet tall and three wide, uses irregular pipe spacing to resemble grasses in the breeze.Ciussai: The HoseMedia Platforms Design TeamRadiators can’t get much more stripped-down than the PM favorite of the exhibit: Gruppo Ragaini’s Ciussai, about 10 feet of braided steel supply line draped in snaky spools on a 6-foot-high hook on the wall....

Forensic scientists work with law enforcement to locate and identify corpses at crime scenes and in the wake of disasters. Forensic teams typically rely on highly trained cadaver dogs that are expensive to maintain. DNA or dental records are then used to determine a recovered body’s identity. Although these well-honed methods are considered the gold standard, forensic experts are faced with scenarios where these conventional tools are impractical, as when the body is badly decomposed or buried by debris....

“Honey, can I borrow your car?” No problem. She tosses you the keys. But at the first stop sign you draw a startled breath–the pedal’s going, going, almost gone! There’s even a little dent in the carpet under the pedal. Didn’t she notice? Well, no she didn’t. Typically, low-pedal trouble develops so gradually that people don’t realize it.Hydraulic brakes have been around since Duesenberg introduced them in 1921, but apparently a long history is no defense against troubles....

Media Platforms Design TeamThe most commercially significant new product unveil at the 2014 North American International Auto Show, or perhaps any auto show this year, is the 2015 Ford F-150. The truck is the single biggest selling nameplate in the biggest market in the world, and has been for over 30 years. And now it’s got an almost entirely aluminum body. It’s a big risk for Ford, and a big change for the industry....

If you’ve ever felt slightly ripped off at the auto shop (pro tip: learn how read a work order) just remember it could always be worse. Prosecutors in Budapest, Hungary have indicted an unidentified man for pretending to be a mechanic and making off with victims’ money.The con worked like this: The man would approach women driving alone (according to prosecutors, he targeted 29 women in total), and tell them he was a mechanic and they had a serious car problem, anything from an oil leak to sparks flying from the car’s muffler....

Media Platforms Design TeamFRANKFURT — The new Verve concept introduced here by Ford may take cues from the design themes laid down by the earlier Iosis and Iosis X concepts, with a sprinkling of Ford of Europe’s Mondeo and S-Max and a striking resemblance to a Peugeot 308, too. But it’s actually the precursor to the new Ford Fiesta, the smallest four-seat car that Ford sells in Europe. The production Fiesta will reportedly be based on the new Mazda 2 platform, already for sale in some markets, and between Mazda and Ford, they will sell several versions of this small four-seater platform in markets around the world, including North America....

The iOS 9 beta dropped yesterday afternoon, and unlike in years past, when getting an early peek at the next Great Leap Forward in iOS would cost you a $99 developer’s account, this beta is free and open to the public. Want to get a glimpse of the future before your friends? (And there’s at least 12 reasons you should.) Here’s a quick guide to how. Before we begin, two quick caveats: By signing up, you are essentially become a crash test dummy for Apple’s new iOS, which means your phone may experience odd battery drain, weird crashes, or apps not working quite right....

BOOST PHASE | 3 to 5 minutes1. Airborne LaserMedia Platforms Design TeamThe Missile Defense Agency is outfitting a Boeing 747-400F with infrared sensors and a high-energy laser in the nose that destroys missiles within the first minutes of a launch. The first test against a flying target is planned for 2009.2. Kinetic Energy Interceptor The KEI fills the Pentagon’s need to field a land-based mobile interception system. A launcher on a vehicle will fire a 36-ft-long missile that is fast enough to destroy an ascending ballistic threat....

Media Platforms Design TeamCecil the lion, who met his untimely demise at the hands of an American dentist (sending the internet into a fit of rage), was hardly a domesticated cat—but he did wear a collar. He was one of a few African animals outfitted with special tags that track and report their locations, helping conservationists keep tabs on their dwindling populations.Radio tracking, GPS transmitters, and even drones are now used to monitor wildlife throughout the world, from wandering albatrosses to rhinos to sea turtles....

Media Platforms Design TeamWhat has response to the system been like so far?Alex Kipman: It’s been pretty phenomenal. What Kinect does is create unique, never-before-seen experiences designed from the ground up in a way that’s simple and approachable for everyone. From young to old, from gamer to nongamer, people say, “Wow that really does work. That’s pure magic.” It’s the most humbling experience that I’ve ever had. The Kinect technology is composed of an RGB camera, a depth sensor and a mulitarray mic....

Media Platforms Design TeamWhen did buying a TV set get so complicated? Understanding the difference between plasma, LCD and DLP technologies is tricky enough. Explaining the distinction between 1080i and 720p HDTV picture formats already leaves the average electronics salesperson mumbling. Now, along comes the new math: 1080p. In theory, 1080p offers the highest picture quality available today. A host of gorgeous 1080p sets are now hitting stores (at the upper end of the price scale, naturally)....

The only skatepark in Folkestone, England, is soon to close. But don’t worry: Developers have a plan to pave paradise and put up a skateboard parking garage. Sort of. Guy Hollaway Architects wants to build this structure modeled after a parking garage that’s actually a five-story skate park and sports complex, with everything from ramps to rails to BMX stunt slopes.The first floor will house a cafe. On the top level, there will be a deck where people can enjoy the fresh air....

Media Platforms Design TeamWhile draped in sheetmetal and fit for fashionable Paris, Jaguar’s newest concept is actually most interesting for what’s inside—an electric hybrid system with turbine-powered backup generators.The C-X75 is a plug-in hybrid with four in-wheel electric motors. Make that four, 195 hp, motors that combine to vault the C-X75 to 60 mph in just three seconds. Once the battery is charged, the car can theoretically travel—it’s a concept and not a prototype—roughly 70 miles....

Happy Camper The quest to bring the comforts of the great indoors to the great outdoors has spawned a wide variety of gargantuan RVs and trailers. But fuel doesn’t grow on trees, and maneuvering through traffic and narrow roads is no picnic in a Winnebago the size of a Greyhound. These days, it’s refreshing to see anything on the road that makes efficient use of its own space. Which brings us to the T@B ($8843 to $15,213, depending on exterior and options), a lightweight ’60s-retro teardrop trailer that can be accessorized with red, orange, yellow or silver trim....

The largest moon in our solar system may be hiding an ocean, according to NASA and ESA’s Hubble team. So you can add Jupiter’s Ganymede to Europa, Enceladus, and others on the ever-growing list of bodies in our solar system that might be home to water and good candidates for finding extraterrestrial life.The researchers here focused in on an aurora phenomenon on the surface of Ganymede, one of the four large Galilean moons of Jupiter....

Media Platforms Design TeamIt was in an M1A2 Abrams main battle tank that I first discovered how to see properly. The U.S. Army Armor School had invited me to spend a day in its simulator in Orlando, Florida, and, after looking through the commander’s thermal camera unit, it occurred to me that I should have one of my eyes replaced by a cybernetic thermal device. The imager allowed us, day or night, to penetrate camouflage and clearly observe adversaries glowing several thousand feet away....