Tesla Motors has apparently taken to heart the idea that they should go big or go home. The company behind the Model S electric car has announced their ambitious Supercharger network, which will allow their cars to charge at ludicrous speeds compared to other electric offerings. There are currently only six stations, all of which are in California, but Tesla is already planning on expanding across the continental United States. The kicker? Model S owners … Read More → "Tesla unveils solar-powered supercharger network, ambitiously plans to cover entire United States"

It’s about to become a heck of a lot easier to get your hands on a consumer light-field camera. The Lytro, that marvel of post-picture-taking-focusing, is finally expanding its reach well beyond the confines of its own site. The camera will be hitting Amazon and Best Buy and Target’s sites come October 9th.
via Engadget

< … Read More → "Lytro light-field camera hitting Amazon, Target and Best Buy sites next month"

In the future, your automobile will be locked in the same cycle of never-ending software upgrades that holds sway over computers and smartphones. For Tesla Model S owners, the future is now.

Over 100 Model S drivers will receive the auto industry’s first ever over-the-air operating system update for their new sedans within the next two weeks, Tesla says. In addition to a handful of minor code changes, the  … Read More → "In automotive first, Tesla pushes over-the-air software patch"

NASA and SpaceX have announced that Elon Musk’s company is scheduled to fly its first commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station on Oct. 7. SpaceX successfully completed the demonstration flight of NASA’s Commercial Orbital Transportation System back in May, which did include delivering some non-essential cargo. Elon Musk also sent out a video over the weekend showing the first (very short) flight of the company’s vertical take-off … Read More → "SpaceX’s first contract cargo mission set for next month"

At 3 p.m. on the third Saturday in June, 56 cars stream past the starting line of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in a multicolored, roaring blur. Two hundred forty thousand spectators have gathered around the 8.5-mile circuit in central France for the 80th edition of the race. Cars of wildly varying speeds will compete in four distinct classes, with the fastest entries vying for overall victory in a … Read More → "How a tiny group of designers built the most efficient race car in history"

Last week, a 747 took the Space Shuttle Endeavour on its final trip — a voyage to the California Science Center in Los Angeles. But that’s not the only way 747s break away from the everyday task of hauling around airline passengers. Scientific American has a slide show of other amazing uses for these great big planes — from testing laser weapons to serving as … Read More → "What else can a 747 carry?"

A recent report by British Petroleum (BP) found solar power generating capacity surged 73.3% last year. If you’re a dedicated fan of the singularity, statistics like that are reminiscent of Ray Kurzweil’s solar dictum—that solar power is on an exponential path, doubling every two years. To what end? A cheap, clean, and virtually boundless power source for humankind in two decades. Nothing major.

The report has … Read More → "Surging solar in 2011 proof of Ray Kurzweil’s bold prediction?"

via xkcd

Discovery News has details on a bike that could break 100 mph. The current human-powered bike speed record is at 82 mph and held by Sam Whittingham. This record will be challenged by Graeme Obree, who has broken speed records before.

But enough about the news, how about some physics?

Let me assume that for this bike the primary problem is the air resistance. At a constant speed, the bike would have the following forces on it.

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Microsoft’s desire to avoid a fine combined with a power company’s strict electricity use rules resulted in the software giant deliberately wasting millions of watts of power, according to the New York Times. Redmond’s Quincy data center, which houses Bing, Hotmail and other cloud-based servers, had an agreement in place with a Washington state utility containing clauses which imposed penalties for under-consumption of electricity. A $210,000 fine was levied last year, since the facility was well below its power-use … Read More → "Microsoft deliberately wasted energy at data center to avoid fine, says NY Times"