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SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — A flying car project backed by Google co-founder Larry Page was closer to take-off on Wednesday, with a model for test flights by aspiring buyers. Kitty Hawk, funded by Page, unveiled a “Flyer” model it described as “an exciting first step to sharing the freedom of flight.” The company was created last year in Google’s home town of Mountain View, California, and has been testing a prototype in New […]
by Susan NJANJI Agence France-Presse SUTHERLAND, South Africa (AFP) — Scientists in South Africa on Friday launched the world’s first optical telescope linked to a radio telescope, combining “eyes and ears” to try to unravel the secrets of the universe. The device forms part of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project in the remote Karoo desert, which will be the world’s most powerful radio telescope system. The latest move combines the new optical telescope MeerLITCH […]
by Ben Simon Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The last three years were the hottest on record, the United Nations weather agency said Thursday, citing fresh global data underscoring the dramatic warming of the planet. Consolidated data from five leading international weather agencies shows that “2015, 2016 and 2017 have been confirmed as the three warmest years on record”, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said. It added that 2016 remains the hottest year […]
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Facebook on Tuesday added a way for people to know when their pictures are posted anywhere on the leading social network. The notifications will rely on optional new tools that tap into face-recognition capabilities and already suggest friends to “tag” in pictures uploaded to Facebook. Users will now get word when their images pop up at the social network, according to director of applied machine learning Joaquin Quinonero Candela. […]
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — Scallops may look like simple creatures, but the seafood delicacy has 200 eyes that function remarkably like a telescope, using living mirrors to focus light, researchers said Thursday. Most creatures’ eyes have lenses that focus light. But scallops have concave mirrors at the back of their eyes. Scientists have known since the 1960s that Pecten scallops see by reflecting light off these concave mirrors onto the retina above, said the […]
LA JOLLA, California (Reuters) — All hands are on deck at this lab at the University of California San Diego, where researcher Michael Tolley’s team are working on a human-like robotic gripper. Its three fingers are made of three flexible pneumatic chambers that move when air pressure is applied, allowing each digit to manipulate the object it’s holding. “These fingers are unique in that they can bend in any direction so we have enough degrees […]
PIRAPORA, Brazil (AFP) — Brazil has lagged far behind in the shift to solar power, but the biggest facility on the continent now being built in the south-east aims to give the country its place in the sun. The plant in Pirapora, in the south-eastern state of Minas Gerais, has 1.2 million solar panels, covering the equivalent of more than 1,200 soccer fields. It first began producing power in September, with the second of three phases […]
(AFP) — Richard Browning, founder and chief test pilot of Gravity Industries, has soared into the record books with the brand new Guinness World Records title for the fastest speed in a body-controlled jet engine power suit. On a dramatic day at Lagoona Park, Reading, Browning achieved a speed of 32.02 mph (51.53 km/h) on his third and final timed attempt before mistiming a turn and dropping into the lake in celebration of Guinness World […]
TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) — A concept car equipped with external airbags to protect against fender benders is raising eyebrows at the Tokyo Motor Show. The body panels of the Flesby II ultra-compact vehicle are covered by a soft, next-generation rubber that can absorb the impact of a collision. “We put airbags, which are mainly employed inside the car, on its exterior, such as its hood or fender, to protect the entire body,” Takashi Ishikawa, managing […]
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AFP) — A Turkish Airlines plane that crash landed at Kathmandu airport two years ago will be welcoming ticket holders on board again — not for a flight but as the Nepali capital’s first aviation museum. The Airbus A330 was carrying 224 passengers when it skidded off the runway at Kathmandu’s airport in March 2015, coming to a stop with its nose buried in the grassy verge on the edge of the tarmac. […]
(Reuters) — Commuters rejoyce! A vehicle traveling above a central reservation line may become the fastest way to travel by public transport in the future. Dahir Semenov, a Turkish engineer of Russian origin and his team have come up with a new concept – a two wheel, gyroscopic vehicle travelling along a suspended monorail. Dahir’s team of twenty engineers have in the past designed futuristic buses and trains and the team is currently working on […]
SHANGHAI, China (CCTV) — The Chinese government has been emphasizing the development of the rental market as a way to control the country’s real estate boom. The shift has encouraged the nation’s mega Internet companies like Alibaba and JD.com to explore apartment leasing. Alibaba has just launched its property rental service on its payment app Alipay. The service is similar to most rental apps — prospective tenants can find available apartments in suitable locations with […]
