The Speedy Rise and Fall of Robot Babysitters

During the winter of 2017, an 18-year old college student named Canon Reeves spent much of his time trailing a knee-high robot around Fayetteville, Arkansas, as it delivered Amazon packages to students. The robot, created by a start-up called Starship Technologies in 2014, is basically a cooler on wheels; it uses radars, ultrasonic sensors, and […]

Porsche Panamera 4S Tested: Speedy but Sterile

– Any day that we can drive a new Porsche is a good day, although we admit we especially enjoy examples packed to the rain rails with performance-enhancing goodies. There are many such items on the German company’s famously long list of extras, including active suspension systems, carbon-ceramic brake rotors, chest-thumping exhaust systems, aggressive wheel-and-tire […]

Speedy DNA nanorobot could lead to molecular factories

DNA-based robots promise all kinds of microscopic machinery, but there’s a major obstacle: they’re slow. Existing designs that use biochemical processes for movement can take hours to shuffle molecules around, which makes them utterly impractical for anything time sensitive. That might not a hurdle for much longer. Scientists have developed a DNA nanorobot (specifically, an […]

‘Hovering’ antennas promise speedy 5G phone networks

Wireless networks already have to deal with increasingly crowded waves, and that’s only going to get worse when 5G rolls around. Any boost to the signal could lead to a big jump in performance, especially when you’re using very high frequencies that are more prone to interference. But how do you provide that boost? Researchers […]

2019 Porsche Cayenne Turbo: A Tall Glass of Speedy Utility

– Earlier this year, Jeep announced the Trackhawk, a Grand Cherokee with Goliath-level power arriving to seek and destroy any utility vehicles that have ambitions of going fast. It’s an incredible vehicle in its own right, particularly at the price point. But there’s already been a Goliath of SUVs for years now: the Porsche Cayenne […]

Tanker’s speedy Arctic crossing is bad news for the planet

Normally, smashing a transportation record is something to celebrate. This time, however, it’s not necessarily worth cheering. Sovcomflot’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker Christophe de Margerie has become the first merchant ship to cross the Northern Sea Route without an icebreaker clearing its path. The vessel, which can plow through ice up to 6.9 feet […]

Postmates’ speedy booze delivery begins drop-offs in NYC and Texas

Postmates’ on-demand alcohol service is now available well beyond California’s borders. On top of an expansion to Miami in May, the internet delivery mainstay is now making its Drinks feature available in New York City (in Brooklyn and Manhattan) as well as Austin, Dallas and Houston. As before, the aim is to bring neighborhood stores’ […]