Important Innovations

Terrafugia's TF-2 & Future of Travel Plane and Ground Vehicle Terrafugia invented the world's 1st FAA and NTSB approved flying car, The Transition.  The TF-2 is a next generation concept design they're working on now.  It promises door to door service for 4 passengers and their luggage.  There's a detachable pod. It goes from a flight vehicle to a ground vehicle in 2 minutes. Going to Market The TF-2 will enter the market as a hybrid electric aircraft that will be flown by a pilot.  But as the technology they're working on matures, the plan is to go all electric and with autonomous systems.  At the moment the company says the maximum cruising speed is 240 km/hr.  The cost per hour of flight is $400.  No time frame for launch has been announced. China, Sweden & US  US based Terrafugia has a deep pockets parent company Geely of China and its "sister" company Volvo of Sweden is also owned by Geely.  As I blogged yesterday, the 3 are lau

Inspired by Ancient Egyptian Scrolls MagicScroll - a Rollable, Scrollable Screen It's called MagicScroll. The device was created by computer engineers in Canada and it's a first. It's essentially a high resolution display.  It can be rolled and unrolled around a 3D printed cylinder that has the device's computerized inner workings.  The developers were inspired by and created it based on ancient Egyptian scrolls. Canada Made for Many Uses like a Phone MagicScroll  was developed by researchers at Queens University Canada.  The device's light weight and cylindrical body make it easy to hold in one hand.  Importantly when rolled up, it fits into your pocket and can be used as a phone, dictation device or pointing device.   2 rotary wheels at either end of the cylinder allow the users to scroll thru information on the touch screen. Goal: Any Device Can Be a Screen  Here's the ultimate point of the research.  The researchers want to bring the MagicScroll de

Terrafugea's FAA Approved Flying Car, Volvo and their Chinese Parent Go to Market Terrafugea's TFX Concept Flying Car Changing Your Commute Forever Volvo and Terrafugea have the same parent company, Geely Automotive Group of China.  Thanks to Geely, the intersection of MIT engineering at Terrafugea, Swedish automotive expertise and a lot of cash from China is supercharging production of the world's 1st FAA and NTSB approved flying car.  Volvo hopes to make it available for you to buy in 2019. The Transition and TFX US-based Terrafugea, started by MIT Ph.D engineers, has been developing flying cars for the past decade.  They have The Transition, a flying and driving car/plane and a prototype the TFX with vertical takeoff and landing like a helicopter, that also drives.  The Transition can travel speeds up to 200 mph, has fold out wings, dual electric motors and a range of 400 miles on a charge. The Transition seats 2 and will go to market first at a provisional pr

Mars' Dusty Skies and a "Selfie" Courtesy:  NASA   Panoramic View of the Red Planet NASA's Curiosity rover has captured a new and stunning view of its current location on Mars.  It's a 360 perspective at its location on Vera Rubin Ridge.  As you can see, the picture shows reddish brown dusty skies.  The skies are darkened by a fading global dust storm that has draped the planet for weeks.  Also there's a very rare "selfie" of Curiosity.   And you can see Curiosity's most recent drill target in the foreground. Exploring Mars Curiosity has been exploring Mars since 2012.  The rover has found evidence of an ancient lake on the planet.  It's currently being used to investigate how Mars transformed from a warm, wetter planet that could have sustained life to a dry, icy place.  Curiosity drills into Mars' surface because sedimentary rocks hold clues about environmental conditions going back deep into the past.

Strange Health Case of US Embassy in Cuba US Embassy Havana US Embassy Havana In 2016, US Embassy staffers and their families started experiencing strange symptoms - dizziness, headaches, insomnia, inability to concentrate.  These symptoms were triggered by high pitched sounds in their homes and apartments, such as buzzing, humming and grinding metal. New Theory Being Advanced Several scientists believe the cause may be weaponized microwave beams. They make the argument that people can hear certain types of microwaves.  Bioelectromagnetic researcher Prof. Emeritus James Lin of the University of Illinois at Chicago is convinced of it, as are other experts, according to The New York Times. Mystery and Debate The illness experienced by some Embassy staffers is severe and has resulted in brain damage.  There is no evidence that microwaves can do that kind of damage.  University of Pennsylvania Professor of Engineering Kenneth Foster thinks the weaponized microwave theory is not

No Wheels, No Engine, No Noise, No Pollution, No Problem Maglev Train So Why Aren't They at a Train Station Near You? They're green, clean, fast, quiet.  No wheels, one track. Maglev stands for magnetic levitation.  They glide on a cushion of air.  Because of the way Maglev works, there's now little chance of derailment.  The higher the train gets from the track, the stronger the magnetic force pushing it back.  It's a greener transit solution.  One problem - they're very expensive. Magnetic Levitation Travel  The tech uses magnetic fields to lift the train a small distance above the track and make it move. It's much faster than a regular train.  A Maglev in Japan has broken a world record at 600 mph. A trip from Toronto to Vancouver is forecast to take 3 hours on Maglev by 2035. All Aboard in Asia Only a handful of commercially viable systems have been built.  Only 3 survive - all in Asia.  China likes the system so much it plans to launch it in 1

Underwater and Forgotten for 1600 Years Lake Iznik's Ancient Basilica Technology Captures Ancient Past An ancient Christian Church dating back to 390 AD has been discovered submerged in Turkey's Lake Iznik.  It's a Roman style church known as a basilica.  It's under 10 feet of water, 160 feet offshore near the western tip of Turkey. Archeologists believe an even older pagan temple dedicated to Apollo may lie underneath it. Archeological Search For years a team of archeologists from Bursa Uludag University had been searching the shores of the lake for the ancient ruins.  They were shocked by the aerial photos (taken by government surveyors) showing the site resting in the lake.  The Basilica was built in 390AD when Istanbul (about 2 hours away) was the eastern center of the Roman Empire. Archeological Finds The basilica was destroyed by an earthquake in the 8th century and sank into the lake.  It's been forgotten for 1600 years until now.  Archeologists

Thwarting Bird Strikes on Planes Miracle on the Hudson Caltech, Imperial College London & South Korean scientists have just developed an autonomous flying drone that herds birds out of airspaces.  They investigated the problem of flocking birds hitting aircraft, which happens daily, putting passenger lives in danger.  They've developed a robotic aerial device - a robo bird that herds.  Their research was inspired by the "Miracle on the Hudson" - the US Air jet hit by birds that the pilot landed on the Hudson River. Robo Bird Just one of the new drones can redirect an entire flock of birds.  It has a new herding algorithm.  The algorithm enables a flying drone to herd a flock of birds away from an airspace without hurting them or breaking their formation.  The scientists and engineers created the algorithm by carefully observing flock dynamics and how the flock interacts with flying objects. Successfully Tested The herding drone was successfully tested in So

Stratolaunch Space Ventures - 4 New Satellite Launch Vehicles Paul Allen's Space Innovation Fleet Space Service 2020 Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's space company Stratolaunch is targeting growing demand for satellite launching vehicles.  He wants to make booking and getting into orbit on a satellite as easy as booking an airplane flight.  Sounds like the Microsoft way.  Stratolaunch just announced a fleet of 4 space vehicles:  a reusable space plane and 3 launch vehicles for satellites.  They expect to start space service in 2020. Capabilities Include World's Largest Plane as Launch Platform This system is proprietary and unique.  It will use the world's largest aircraft as a mobile launch platform.  It's capable of deploying launch vehicles to carry satellites to multiple orbits and inclinations on a single mission. More Details The vehicles just detailed by Allen's company include the space plane, the Pegasus (access into orbit with 35 success

Sat Capable of Measuring Temperature on Sea Surface China's Marine Satellite   China just launched a satellite to help improve global understanding of climate change and oceans.  The satellite is so powerful it can detect temperatures on the ocean surface.  It also has the power to detect chlorophyll, suspended sediment concentrations and dissolved organic matter which impact the color of the ocean. Retrieving Vital Data on Climate Change and Global Oceans The Chinese satellite will help monitor ocean color and water temperatures.  The purpose is to retrieve data to research the global ocean environment.  The satellite is a HY-1C and has a design life of 5 years.  It will study global environmental changes like El Nino and the role of oceans in the global carbon cycle. Monitoring Chinese Waters According to the Chinese State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, the sat will also survey China's offshore waters, islands, coastal zo

DARPA's ALTA Project - Up, Up & Away Flying Wind Currents at 90,000 Feet The U.S. Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency DARPA is going back into stratospheric balloon research and development.  After a hiatus of several years, it's launched a project to demonstrate that balloons, lighter than air, can drift between wind layers and go into the stratosphere for days and weeks at a time.  The balloons can reach altitudes up to 90,000 feet. Potential Uses:  Delivering the Internet to Remote Locations - A Google Idea DARPA is working with Raven Aerospace on the project.  Raven has developed super pressurized balloons capable of long duration.  The fact that DARPA has gotten back into developing this technology tells you the capabilities are very promising. The balloons could obviously be used for surveillance and intelligence.  And, there's an intriguing idea that Google is separately working on.  Using the high altitude balloons to deli

France Partners with India to Explore Space India's Space Launch Planned for 2022 Gaganyaan 2022 France has announced its intention to work with India on India's planned manned missions to space starting in 2022.  The Indian space mission is called "Gaganyaan" for 2022. French Innovation Expertise for Space France is offering to provide a wide range of innovation expertise.  The areas include space medicine, astronaut health monitoring, astronaut life support and space debris & radiation protection.  France has already developed these technologies for manned space missions. Indo-French Cooperation in Space The Indo-French cooperation is across the fields of Climate Change, joint groups working on future launch vehicles and deep space exploration with the French contributing to India's future missions to Mars and Venus. Unique, International Cooperation  It's a unique, multitiered international partnership designed to support and forward In

Added Layer of Safety Stanford University scientists have just developed an artificial intelligence camera that could be used to help robot cars avoid obstacles and better navigate the roads. Image Recognition System The image recognition technology underlying this breakthrough relies on artificial intelligence.  The computers teach themselves to recognize objects like a pedestrian crossing the street, a dog running across a road and stopped cars. Stanford System "Lightning Fast" The problem has been the computers currently running AI algorithms are too big and slow for applications like the rapid decision making needed for autonomous cars or hand-held medical devices.  The Stanford team combined 2 types of computers to create a faster and less energy intensive image process.  They say it works lightning fast and circumvents millions of calculations. Next Steps The system has been successfully tested by simulation and in the real world.  It accurately identifies