Lifeboat Foundation

NASA engineers are using some of the most powerful supercomputers in the world to design rotary wing vehicles that combine both piloted and autonomous operations. Urban Air Mobility is a safe and efficient system that can transport a small number of passengers and cargo, without the need for long runways. Check it out: https://go.nasa.gov/2FvGPfH

Richard Branson, the British billionaire who wants to transform air travel with supersonic jets, has put his sights on something decidedly more down to Earth: a passenger railroad.

Branson has agreed to make a small investment and lend the Virgin brand to Fortress Investment Group’s Florida railroad, the first privately-funded intercity passenger train to be built in the U.S. in more than a century.

The private-equity company’s Brightline, which currently operates high-speed service between Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, will rename itself Virgin Trains USA this month and use the brand and Virgin’s “marketing expertise” for existing and future developments, the company said Friday in a statement provided to Bloomberg News.

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Carbon fiber composites—lightweight and strong—are great structural materials for automobiles, aircraft and other transportation vehicles. They consist of a polymer matrix, such as epoxy, into which reinforcing carbon fibers have been embedded. Because of differences in the mechanical properties of these two materials, the fibers can detach from the matrix under excessive stresses or fatigue. That means damage in carbon fiber composite structures can remain hidden below the surface, undetectable by visual inspection, potentially leading to catastrophic failure.

Whether they’re in airplane wings, bridges or other critical structures, cracks can cause catastrophic failure before they’re large enough to be noticed by the human eye. A strain-sensing “skin” applied to such objects could help, though, by lighting up when exposed to laser light.

You’ve probably heard a lot about electric bicycles and electric scooters by now. These small personal electric vehicles (PEVs) are often touted as last mile vehicles that can help commuters travel short distances between home or work to other mass transit hubs, or as complete commuting alternatives in cities.

But one PEV you might not have heard about yet are electric unicycles. These odd-looking little EVs consist of just a single wheel that a rider straddles. They self balance like a Segway or hoverboard, but are much more narrow and nimble. Though they look like a toy, electric unicycles might be a more serious transportation alternative than many people think. Read on to learn why.

We must prepare for tough choices as we subcontract ethical decision making to machines, says author David Edmonds.

Fires creeping in on daily life are becoming the new terrifying norm.

The new fuel cell could be a cheaper, more practical way to generate energy to heat homes and eventually run cars.

After years of speculation, Tesla finally confirmed today that Model 3 is getting a CCS Combo 2 plug in Europe and an adapter is coming for Model S and Model X.

With growing third-party fast-charging infrastructure in Europe, electric vehicle owners are starting to have many options.

Tesla owners have access to those networks on top of Tesla’s own Supercharger networks, but they had to use an expensive CHAdeMO adapter, which has its own limitations and isn’t yet compatible with Model 3.

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