In Nintendo's video game Animal Crossing: New Horizons, you can use a slingshot to knock down gifts floating through the air. But what if you could snag an item from the sky real life?Thanks to a middle school librarian, children in Christiansburg, Virginia will be the first to find out what that's like. Google's parent company, Alphabet, operates an experimental air delivery service called Wing, which will soon begin using its fleet of drones to deliver library books to kids who need to complete their summer reading lists, according to a in The Washington Post.Signed, Sealed, Delivered"I...…In Nintendo's video game Animal Crossing: New Horizons, you can use a slingshot to knock down gifts floating through the air. But what if you could snag an item from the sky real life?Thanks to a middle school librarian, children in Christiansburg, Virginia will be the first to find out what that's like. Google's parent company, Alphabet, operates an experimental air delivery service called Wing, which will soon begin using its fleet of drones to deliver library books to kids who need to complete their summer reading lists, according to a in The Washington Post.Signed, Sealed, Delivered"I...WW…

manufacturing plants in Ohio and Turkey went offline on Tuesday, June 9 after a cyberattack compromised some of the Japanese automaker's facilities. While cybersecurity researchers say a ransomware attack is most likely to blame, it's unclear whether the attack targeted information technology systems or industrial control systems themselves."Honda has experienced a cyberattack that has affected production operations at some U.S. plants," Chris Abbruzzese, a spokesman for Honda North America, tells Popular Mechanics. "However, there is no current evidence of loss of We have resumed...…manufacturing plants in Ohio and Turkey went offline on Tuesday, June 9 after a cyberattack compromised some of the Japanese automaker's facilities. While cybersecurity researchers say a ransomware attack is most likely to blame, it's unclear whether the attack targeted information technology systems or industrial control systems themselves."Honda has experienced a cyberattack that has affected production operations at some U.S. plants," Chris Abbruzzese, a spokesman for Honda North America, tells Popular Mechanics. "However, there is no current evidence of loss of We have resumed...WW…

Researchers in Switzerland have found a (OLED) material that could scale the technology up to inexpensively light entire rooms and homes for the first time. The results come from a new arrangement of copper electrons, CuPCP, that replaces more costly precious metal diodes (PHOLEDs). Let’s have some alphabet soup and learn about OLEDs.Related StoryOLEDs are a natural descendant of original light-emitting diode (LED) technology. About 10 years ago, plasma and LED TVs competed head to head in different categories, and plasma was the clear winner. But plasma TVs represented a proprietary...…Researchers in Switzerland have found a (OLED) material that could scale the technology up to inexpensively light entire rooms and homes for the first time. The results come from a new arrangement of copper electrons, CuPCP, that replaces more costly precious metal diodes (PHOLEDs). Let’s have some alphabet soup and learn about OLEDs.Related StoryOLEDs are a natural descendant of original light-emitting diode (LED) technology. About 10 years ago, plasma and LED TVs competed head to head in different categories, and plasma was the clear winner. But plasma TVs represented a proprietary...WW…

has to make Tesla batteries that can live second and even third lives as they survive for a million miles. The has also announced plans to convert Tesla's “megafactories” into “terafactories” that are 30 times larger. And all of this is in service of Musk’s goals to to compete with existing electric utilities.Musk Must-ReadsReuters that Tesla made the new million-mile battery design in collaboration with a Chinese company, and that Musk plans to launch the new battery in China first. That comes after Musk described China as in an investor call several weeks ago. “New, low-cost batteries...…has to make Tesla batteries that can live second and even third lives as they survive for a million miles. The has also announced plans to convert Tesla's “megafactories” into “terafactories” that are 30 times larger. And all of this is in service of Musk’s goals to to compete with existing electric utilities.Musk Must-ReadsReuters that Tesla made the new million-mile battery design in collaboration with a Chinese company, and that Musk plans to launch the new battery in China first. That comes after Musk described China as in an investor call several weeks ago. “New, low-cost batteries...WW…

Scientists from Duke University have developed a they say can feasibly work even in the human knee. The revolutionary hydrogel could eliminate the need for hundreds of thousands of knee replacements each year, along with many thousands of other joint replacements.The new cartilage analog is made of three hydrogels—polymers boosted with absorbed water—with different structures, and these are “woven” together to make a multidirectionally flexible and redundant cushioning structure. It’s like a basket wrapped in flexible netting. When the material is stretched, , the third polymer is the one...…Scientists from Duke University have developed a they say can feasibly work even in the human knee. The revolutionary hydrogel could eliminate the need for hundreds of thousands of knee replacements each year, along with many thousands of other joint replacements.The new cartilage analog is made of three hydrogels—polymers boosted with absorbed water—with different structures, and these are “woven” together to make a multidirectionally flexible and redundant cushioning structure. It’s like a basket wrapped in flexible netting. When the material is stretched, , the third polymer is the one...WW…

The Madison, Wisconsin-based startup has scouted a team of nuclear elites for a new frontier: that can revolutionize medical imaging, munitions scanning, and even for quality assurance.And in the longer term, scientists say training people to run neutron generators helps to familiarize and speed up the future of nuclear fusion. Phoenix’s small reactor uses an age-old idea, but brings it from research programs into the commercial sector. Tiny reactors like are in a different category of tiny altogether—that’s power plant scale, not the small reactors used in physics labs in universities and...…The Madison, Wisconsin-based startup has scouted a team of nuclear elites for a new frontier: that can revolutionize medical imaging, munitions scanning, and even for quality assurance.And in the longer term, scientists say training people to run neutron generators helps to familiarize and speed up the future of nuclear fusion. Phoenix’s small reactor uses an age-old idea, but brings it from research programs into the commercial sector. Tiny reactors like are in a different category of tiny altogether—that’s power plant scale, not the small reactors used in physics labs in universities and...WW…

Advocates for hydrogen steel have in their long-term plan to wean the steel industry off of fossil fuel furnaces. Following the of a hydrogen-powered blast furnace, commercial steelmakers in Sweden have replaced liquid natural gas with hydrogen in their existing production setup. Despite the changeup, they experienced no change in outcomes.Read This: The World's Greatest AlloyWhile this demonstration is a big deal, it’s just one small step in the bigger question of steel production. The World Steel Association (WSA) says the overall energy efficiency of steel since the 1960s: “Sophisticated...…Advocates for hydrogen steel have in their long-term plan to wean the steel industry off of fossil fuel furnaces. Following the of a hydrogen-powered blast furnace, commercial steelmakers in Sweden have replaced liquid natural gas with hydrogen in their existing production setup. Despite the changeup, they experienced no change in outcomes.Read This: The World's Greatest AlloyWhile this demonstration is a big deal, it’s just one small step in the bigger question of steel production. The World Steel Association (WSA) says the overall energy efficiency of steel since the 1960s: “Sophisticated...WW…

Is NASA really working on . . . a warp drive? An suggests the agency might be, or at least that the idea of traveling through folded space is part of the NASA interstellar spaceflight menu.Must-ReadThe space agency isn’t building an engine that can approach the speed of light—yet. In the report, advanced propulsion physicist Harold "Sonny" White, PhD, , resolves a major paradox in the leading theoretical model for superluminal (faster than the speed of light) travel, what’s known as an Alcubierre warp drive.The colloquial term “warp drive” comes from science fiction, most famously Star...…Is NASA really working on . . . a warp drive? An suggests the agency might be, or at least that the idea of traveling through folded space is part of the NASA interstellar spaceflight menu.Must-ReadThe space agency isn’t building an engine that can approach the speed of light—yet. In the report, advanced propulsion physicist Harold "Sonny" White, PhD, , resolves a major paradox in the leading theoretical model for superluminal (faster than the speed of light) travel, what’s known as an Alcubierre warp drive.The colloquial term “warp drive” comes from science fiction, most famously Star...WW…

The Pentagon’s cutting edge research and development arm is working to develop autonomous fleets of small satellites. Project Blackjack is developing swarms of small satellites that could replace the large, expensive satellites that support U.S. military activities worldwide. Another effort, Pit Boss, will create the autonomous mission management system that keeps the constellation running and the data flowing into the hands of the troops—all without human interaction.One of the most innovative new space technologies in recent years is the idea of mesh networks, orbiting networks of small,...…The Pentagon’s cutting edge research and development arm is working to develop autonomous fleets of small satellites. Project Blackjack is developing swarms of small satellites that could replace the large, expensive satellites that support U.S. military activities worldwide. Another effort, Pit Boss, will create the autonomous mission management system that keeps the constellation running and the data flowing into the hands of the troops—all without human interaction.One of the most innovative new space technologies in recent years is the idea of mesh networks, orbiting networks of small,...WW…

A new report out of Russia's military research center suggests the Kremlin is close to realizing an army of Terminator-like robot soldiers that could soon replace humans in battle. "Living fighters will gradually begin to be replaced by their robotic 'brothers' who can act faster, more accurately and more selectively than people," Vitaly Davydov told the Russian news agency RIA Novosti on April 21, according to a Forbes Davydov is the deputy director of the Advanced Research Foundation, which is Russia's version of the U.S. Defensed Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).Killer...…A new report out of Russia's military research center suggests the Kremlin is close to realizing an army of Terminator-like robot soldiers that could soon replace humans in battle. "Living fighters will gradually begin to be replaced by their robotic 'brothers' who can act faster, more accurately and more selectively than people," Vitaly Davydov told the Russian news agency RIA Novosti on April 21, according to a Forbes Davydov is the deputy director of the Advanced Research Foundation, which is Russia's version of the U.S. Defensed Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).Killer...WW…