SKATE THE FOLD: Skateboards are great for riding on but a pain to carry around. SNAP Skateboard fixes that by making its boards foldable. The aluminium skateboard has 3 sections. For storage, the two ends fold away rather like a drop-leaf table. In use the ends are locked into position by high strength steel support pins. When folded, it's 36 cm long. Aircraft grade aluminium makes for a very strong board. Very discreet. SNAP Skateboard elaborates. Click here for the video.
FLY AND DRIVE: The 3-wheeled PAL-V flying car is in a class of its own — Personal Air and Land Vehicles. The small, sleek 2-seater handles like a motorcycle on the roads. Stop and unfold the single rotor and propeller though and you can fly it as a gyrocopter. It flies below 1200 metres, runs on petrol and can reach speeds of up to 180 Kph both on land and in the air. Now that would be a great holiday vehicle. Read more at PAL-V. Video here.
QUAKING ELECTRONS: A scientist at Hokkaido University in Japan noticed something very interesting around earthquakes. It seems that as much as 40 minutes before an earthquake the number of electrons high in the ionosphere increases. The observation was made while using the Total Electron Content of the upper atmosphere to analyse GPS signals and find out why they fluctuate. No-one knows yet why or how this increase happens, but it promises a useful area of study for
earthquake prediction. Fascinating. BBC has the details. Watch the video.
CABLE FREE KIT: Soldiers these days carry loads of equipment, plus all the cables, batteries and chargers that make it work. A new fabric from Intelligent Textiles in the UK will help reduce the load as the material itself conducts both electricity and data. Built-in redundancy will allow devices to still receive the power they need even if the fabric is ripped or cut. The fabric's ability to carry power and data also means the soldier need only worry about a single battery that powers everything. Hmm: less clutter but potentially a single point of failure. Visit BBC for more info.
CLEAN KIT BAG: Doing your OE and wondering how to wash your clothes effectively on the cheap? The Scrubba bag makes it easy. The bag has a built-in flexible washboard. Add a few litres of clean water, some shampoo or other soapy liquid, seal it up and knead it for 30 seconds. Rinse and dry. The bag weighs around 150 grams and is almost pocket-sized. Fresh and clean on your OE. Scrubba explains. Here's the video.