JVC’s W-VHS VCR made a splash in the analog tape world when it debuted in 1993, and with good cause. Engineers at the business decided to go all out on the tried-and-true VHS cassette casing, upgrading the tape and devising some ingenious ways to load high definition video onto it a few years before digital formats truly took hold. From the outside, the product appeared to be any ordinary VCR, but, surprise, under the hood, it is managing signals far beyond the capabilities of a standard VHS.
The 1996 Nissan NISMO 400R is one of those rare, ultra exclusive performance cars that came out of Japan in the 1990s and currently up for auction. To be honest, NISMO built this model mostly as a tribute to their work on the Le Mans GT-R LM. Engineers took the R33 Skyline GT-R V-Spec base and made it into something far more capable than a production car.
The Razer Orochi V2, priced at $29.99 after clipping the on-page coupon (was $69.99), is a rare piece of hardware that quietly influences talks long after it initially appears on the scene. At first appearance, it is evident that size was the design priority for this mouse. Razer designed it to be 108mm long, 60mm wide, and 38mm tall, making it easy to fit inside a laptop bag. It’s also incredibly light, weighing less than 60 grams without the battery and more than doubling to 73 grams with a regular AA.
In a large aerospace plant where massive jet engine components are assembled, a four-legged robot named Spot has nearly become a necessary fixture. ST Engineering MRAS, a 1.5 million-square-foot plant in Maryland, manufactures thrust reversers and nacelle systems to help planes regulate their thrust and noise levels. You must maintain a close eye on hundreds of machinery and systems here; many of them are running hot and high voltage, which is where spot comes in.
Photo credit: EADS Astrium
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope delivers the first 3D map of Uranus’ aurorae, providing a spectacular view into the planet’s upper atmosphere at previously unheard-of clarity. This was accomplished by a team led by PhD student Paola Tiranti of Northumbria University.
A new Tesla Cybertruck model will make a limited appearance at $59,990, with a dual-motor all-wheel-drive option available for only the next ten days. Elon Musk has set a tight timetable for it, giving a sense of urgency to a truck that is already turning attention with its angular design and stainless steel body.
A low-key demonstration high in the hills of central California recently showcased some new military technology. Scout AI, a new defense startup, integrated its Fury software into a self-driving ground vehicle and two armed drones. The entire system collaborated to hunt down a truck and blow it up, all activated by a single simple instruction written in plain English.
Douglas Trumbull’s 1972 sci-fi film appeared just as space tales were becoming increasingly cold and remote. Silent Running changed that by firmly rooting its futuristic vision in the kind of realistic, beat-up features found in everyday life. On board the Valley Forge, a gigantic converted cargo based on a real, retired aircraft carrier, the sets appeared to be in constant use. The pipes, consoles, and congested halls appeared practical rather than sleek. This method lured the viewer into a world that seemed plausible, one in which technology serviced human needs rather than the other way around.
Tesla has made considerable progress toward fully autonomous vehicles, and its staff at Gigafactory Texas are clearly excited. Just the other day, they gathered around the first Cybercab to roll off the assembly line, a streamlined two-seater with no visible steering wheel or pedals, and Tesla even shared the moment on social media, complete with a congratulatory message from Elon Musk himself on the team’s excellent work.