World

20:00 September 27, 2009 PDT

Looking more like a long, blurred, red flash than a motorcycle, the BUB 7 Streamliner is now the fastest motorcycle on earth (pending FIM verification) after Chris Carr set a new FIM world record and AMA national record at 367.382mph (591.244kmh) through the mile - and an exit speed of 372.534mph (599.534kmh) - at the Cook Private Meet at the Bonneville Salt Flats Utah. It probably also makes Carr one of the bravest men on the planet. BUB 7 beat the previous record of 360.913mph (580.833kmh), set by Team Ack Attack last year. We originally covered the BUB 7 when it broke through the 350mph (563km) barrier back in 2006. Read More

AUTOMOTIVE

British Steam team achieves dream: smashes two world speed records

By Michael Mulcahy

02:39 September 15, 2009 PDT

The 'fastest kettle in the world' on its way to breaking a 100-year-old land speed record

Last month, we reported that the British Steam Car had its sights set on several long-standing world records – and we’re happy to report that they’ve smashed not one, but two in the last week of August at Edwards Air Force Base in California. On Tuesday, August 25, they broke the world’s longest-standing speed record with a 139.843mph measured mile and then, the next day, clobbered the record for a measured kilometer with a speed of 148.308mph. Read More

AUTOMOTIVE

Gumpert Apollo Sport claims Nurburgring lap record for road legal cars

By Darren Quick

18:27 August 24, 2009 PDT

German manufacturer Gumpert Sportwagenmanufaktur is claiming a lap record for road legal cars on the world famous Nurburgring Nordschleife. Florian Gruber completed the 12.93-mile track (20.81km) in a standard factory specification Gumpert Apollo Sport equipped with road legal Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires and an adjustable suspension by KW suspensions in a time of 7 minutes, 11.57 seconds. That averages out at 106.78mph (171.84kmh) and is 3.32 seconds faster than the Donkervoort D8 RS06, which posted a time of 7 minutes 14.89 seconds in November 2005. Read More

MOBILE TECHNOLOGY

National Geographic dual SIM phone makes great travel companion

By Michael Mulcahy

22:47 June 18, 2009 PDT

National Geographic dual SIM card mobile enables two numbers in one phone.

National Geographic’s new Duet Travel Phone is the ideal traveling companion: a dual SIM card mobile that lets you have two numbers in a single phone. So, no matter where you go in the world, you can always keep your own number while also having a low-cost one available for local use. Read More

AUTOMOTIVE

214 mph in 2.5 sec: water-powered record stands the test of time

By Paul Evans

01:27 May 7, 2009 PDT

WORLD RECORD Water Rocket Car 0 - 343.5 kph in 2.5 sec

May 7, 2009 In 1974 Evel Knievel launched himself across the Snake River Canyon in Idaho aboard the rocket powered Sky-Cycle in what was to be the biggest stunt and biggest flop of his daredevil career. The Skycycle X-1 and X-2 were more rocket than they were motorcycle and both were powered by overheated water rockets. This incredibly powerful means of propulsion also saw the team at Swissrocketman achieve a blistering 214.7 mph in 2.5 seconds back in 1992 - a water-rocket record that has remained unbeaten ever since. Read More

AUTOMOTIVE

2025 Sunbeam Tiger electric car concept

By Paul Evans

16:52 April 16, 2009 PDT

The 1925 Sunbeam Tiger was a supercharged V12 four-liter racing car, driven by Sir Henry Segrave at 145 mph (233 km/h) and was the smallest-engined car ever to hold the world land speed record. The Sunbeam Tiger electric sports car concept has been designed to "virtually" commemorate the 100th anniversary (1925-2025) of the Tiger's land speed record win. The Tiger concept car is powered by a Siemens 3 phase AC motor powering the rear wheels with a 26 kilowatt/hour lithium-titanate battery pack and has a curb weight of 600kg (1323lb). Read More

PERSONAL COMPUTING

FON shares the love with the new La Fonero 2 router

By Mick Webb

21:19 April 12, 2009 PDT

FON, the world’s largest Wifi community, continue their ethos of give and take with the release of the La Fonera 2 router. The self-confessed “hippie-love-in” style products work as such – a user purchases the router and once connected to the internet, gives away a small part of their bandwidth via a second public facing connection. This network can be accessed for free by other FON owners. In return for this show of generosity the user can then access other FON hotspots anywhere in the world. This latest addition also boasts Bit Torrent and Network Storage capabilities. Read More

ECOGIZMO

Could changing the color of the sky to counter global warming backfire?

By Stephen Saunders

03:38 March 25, 2009 PDT

The world's largest solar power facility, located near Kramer Junction, California, consis...

The concept of delaying global warming by adding particles into the upper atmosphere to cool the climate could unintentionally reduce peak electricity generated by large solar power plants by as much as one-fifth, according to a new study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Read More