The original PlayStation console launched with only 2MB of main RAM, split across four 512KB chips soldered to the motherboard. That amount served the system well for its era, powering a library of games that still hold up today. Yet the central processor inside was built from the start to work with up to 16MB. Sony simply never populated the extra capacity in consumer units, even though some of its own arcade hardware ran with the larger amount in two separate 8MB banks.
Neuralink has taken a clear step toward simpler brain implant surgery. In May a team at University Health Network’s Toronto Western Hospital carried out the company’s first transdural procedure on a clinical trial participant. Within an hour of the operation the person began moving a computer cursor using only thoughts. Recovery followed the expected path with no surprises.
Inside a vast exhibition hall in Bologna, one student stepped onto a platform three meters above the floor and gave the aircraft a firm push. The wings extended farther than a city bus is long, yet the structure left the edge cleanly and settled into a steady glide. It traveled 59 meters before its nose met a line of columns at the far end of the space. That single launch secured the Guinness World Record for the largest paper airplane ever built and flown. Engineering students from the University of Pisa created the aircraft, known as ICARUS. It spans 20.04 meters from wingtip to wingtip, measures 7 meters in length, and weighs 28.49 kilograms at completion.
Northwestern University chemists have built a material that begins as an ordinary yellow liquid and rearranges itself into a black gel whenever it absorbs energy. The change locks electrons inside a new structure that can hold them for months when sealed away from air. Open the container later and oxygen triggers the release, powering chemical reactions even in complete darkness.
Apple launched the first iPhone Air last year as a deliberate step toward extreme thinness. At just 5.6 millimeters thick, the device used a titanium frame and careful internal engineering to deliver a phone that felt unlike anything else in the lineup. It sold well, roughly twice as strong as the model it replaced in some markets. Yet feedback quickly highlighted two areas where the bold design created clear compromises: a single rear camera and battery life that struggled to match expectations during long days of use.