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odd look at news on the web

This mind-reading beanie could make keyboards obsolete

3 May 2026 @ 9:03 am

Sabi's beanie is lined with tiny EEG-reading biosensors for brain imaging – and can turn your thoughts into typed textDictation tech for typing on your computer and mobile devices has gotten way better and more accessible over the last few years, thanks to sophisticated AI models. But an upcoming device can remove even more friction from the process of getting words onto your screen, by simply reading your thoughts.Continue ReadingCategory: W

Luxury car collection hidden inside a forest garage

3 May 2026 @ 5:03 am

A forest-set garage transforms car storage into a gallery-like architectural spaceRussian design studio ATRIUM has completed a private multi-use garage in Moscow. Set within a forested estate, Garage for Car Collection, is a bespoke building for a private collection of luxury and vintage vehicles. The 200-sq-m (2,153-sq-ft) garage is a modern extension to the site, and also features a home gym, office, lounge areas, practical storage, mud room, and ski racks.Continue ReadingCategory: Architecture,

BYD's upcoming hyperconvertible zooms from 0-60 mph in under 2 seconds

3 May 2026 @ 12:03 am

This 2+2 electric convertible features carbon fiber bodywork and seats, the DiSus-M suspension system that adjusts itself in real-time, and advanced driving featuresAs if it wasn't already running enough laps around its competition in the electric-vehicle (EV) world, BYD's now building a hypercar for drop-top aficionados.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive,

Ingenious unpowered sensor detects motion by generating ultrasound

2 May 2026 @ 8:03 pm

The main part of the sensor is a precisely-shaped metal ring (upper left)Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have created a passive motion/contact sensor that detects motion using only sound. Without electricity, electronics, or batteries. The sensors are small, uniquely shaped metal tags that each emit very specific ultrasonic sounds upon contact. They are smaller than a penny and cost only a few cents each.Continue ReadingCategory: Good Thinking,

Ukraine’s rapid rise as an anti-drone powerhouse

2 May 2026 @ 4:03 pm

Artist's concept of a Ukrainian drone interceptorIn only four years after the Russian invasion, Ukraine went from being a country knocked back on its heels and scrambling for military aid to emerging as a leading provider of battlefield-tested counter-drone expertise and exporter of anti-drone weapons systems. How did this happen? Let's find out.Continue ReadingCategory: Military, EngineeringTags:

Review: 2026 Lexus RX 450h+ is a true realtor’s car

2 May 2026 @ 1:03 pm

The Lexus RX 450h+ offers plug-in hybrid convenience and electric efficiencyThe RX 450h+ plug-in hybrid luxury SUV sits right at the intersection of pragmatism and indulgence, sipping electrons like a monk but wrapped in enough leather to make a cattle ranch nervous.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportTags: Lexus, SUV

Switzerland is building the world's most powerful redox flow battery

2 May 2026 @ 9:03 am

Energy firm FlexBase is building a giant battery in this pit in northern SwitzerlandIn northern Switzerland, a construction team is hard at work excavating a hole in the ground that will end up being over 88 ft (27 m) deep, and spanning the length of two soccer pitches. This pit will be home to Switzerland's first redox flow battery for storing clean energy – and it'll be the most powerful of its kind in the world.Continue ReadingCategory: Energy,

Tiny bike camper expands via slide-out to sleep 2 people + toilet

2 May 2026 @ 2:07 am

The latest bike camping trailer to cross our desk, the Alpencamper Eco Slide Out expands in a way we haven't seen from other pedaled campersMost bicycle campers just tow, but there are some that flip, that drop, that pitch and that straight blow up. The new Alpencamper adds another motion to that mix: sliding. The two-wheel towable borrows a trick from larger caravans and motorhomes, using a sidewall slide-out to expand its tiny interior enough to house a double bed comparable to what you'd find in a full-blown camper van – not bad for a little 'drop trailer that weighs less than the average adult.

Just call these tiny autonomous construction robots “antdroids”

1 May 2026 @ 10:00 pm

A top-down video-still image of RAnts in the lab working together to form coherent structuresRoboticists at Harvard and the Indian Institute of Technology Madras – very smart folks indeed – somehow entirely missed the great name “antdroids” when building the insectoid drones they call RAnts (robotic ants, which do not, in fact, rant about anything – not even against a tyrannical robotic ant queen).Continue ReadingCategory: Robotics, EngineeringTags:

Solar-boosted pedal-electric velomobile is new and improved

1 May 2026 @ 7:58 pm

Among other improvements over the original model, the Elf 3.0 will feature front and rear suspension, double the solar charging capacity, and a seat for a passengerFourteen years ago we first heard about the Elf, a pedal/electric velomobile that could be charged via a rooftop solar panel. Well, there's a new version on the way that'll be cushier, more powerful, and able to seat a second passenger.Continue ReadingCategory: Urban Transport, Transport