According to chief chassis engineer for Honda’s CR-Z, the much-hyped hybrid was heavily influenced by the Lotus Elise.

Terukazu Torikai said–via YouTube subtitles–that the basic concept for the CR-Z was to be fun to drive. In fact, the car was not only inspired by Lotus. The MINI Cooper and Volkswagen’s Scirocco also played a part in its design. I’m just happy we’ve moved past the original Insight (fugly).

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If it were biologically necessary for movie characters to go to the bathroom, this would be the toilet in Blade Runner and 2001.  I half-expected the designer to be Syd Mead.

For futurists and conservationists (and other…

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In a move that clearly signals Toyota’s future intentions, the auto manufacturer, acting through an intermediary, has secured a deal with Argentinian lithium mining company, Orocobre, to supply a large amount of the lithium required for advanced electric car and plug-in hybrid batteries. The deal was shuttled through one of Toyota’s sister companies and main suppliers, Toyota Tsusho Corp, which is 22% owned by Toyota.

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The village of Brep in Pakistan doesn’t exist in the same place anymore. That’s because a torrential flood forced the community to move after a lake formed by glacial meltwater burst its bounds and leveled the town.  

Glacial lake outbursts have become a yearly occurrence across the high mountain region stretching from Afghanistan to Bhutan sometimes called the Roof of the World. 

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The electricity sector could shave up to 18 percent off its energy use and carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 by aggressively embracing smart-grid technologies, according to a new analysis.

Smart grid-related savings would come from a number of factors, most significantly from a "conservation effect" as consumers incorporate feedback on their energy use, the study found. Additional factors include the use of power diagnostics to tune homes and smaller commercial buildings and increased use of wind and solar generation .

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Planning on sewing something together to stay warm this winter? Then get
ready for our upcoming Sew Warm Contest with SINGER. We will have some
excellent prizes from SINGER to give away to any excellent project that
helps you fight the cold this winter. All we ask is that you involve
sewing in some …
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ESO has just released a stunning new image of the vast cloud known as the Cat’s Paw Nebula or NGC 6334. This complex region of gas and dust, where numerous massive stars are born, lies near the heart of the Milky Way galaxy, and is heavily obscured by intervening dust clouds.

Few objects in the sky have been as well named as the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a glowing gas cloud resembling the gigantic pawprint of a celestial cat out on an errand across the Universe. British astronomer John Herschel first recorded NGC 6334 in 1837 during his stay in South Africa. Despite using one of the largest telescopes in the world at the time, Herschel seems to have only noted the brightest part of the cloud, seen here towards the lower left.

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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — For decades, astronomers have analyzed the impact that asteroids could have on Earth. New research by MIT Professor of Planetary Science Richard Binzel examines the opposite scenario: that Earth has considerable influence on asteroids — and from a distance much larger than previously thought. The finding helps answer an elusive, decades-long question about where most meteorites come from before they fall to Earth and also opens the door to a new field study of asteroid seismology.

By analyzing telescopic measurements of near-Earth asteroids (NEAs), or asteroids that come within 30 million miles of Earth, Binzel has determined that if an NEA travels within a certain range of Earth, roughly one-quarter of the distance between Earth and the moon, it can experience a “seismic shake” strong enough to bring fresh material called “regolith” to its surface. These rarely seen “fresh asteroids” have long interested astronomers because their spectral fingerprints, or how they reflect different wavelengths of light, match 80 percent of all meteorites that fall to Earth, according to a paper by Binzel appearing in the Jan. 21 issue of Nature. The paper suggests that Earth’s gravitational pull and tidal forces create these seismic tremors.

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During the first three weeks in January, the latest in the series of Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites also known as GOES-P is being processed and prepped for launch. Meanwhile, the first and second stages of the Delta IV rocket that will carry it into orbit, are being assembled on the launch pad.

The GOES-P spacecraft is currently being processed at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Florida. Prior to the holiday break the Payload Attached Fitting (PAF) fit check was successfully completed on December 18, 2009. Functional testing on the spacecraft bus (the satellite) was successfully completed on December 22, 2009.

Over the last couple of weeks, the GOES-P spacecraft team commenced with instrument testing and cleaning on the Solar X-Ray Imager and the Imager and Sounder. Testing has completed on schedule and performance is as expected.

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