2004 Saturn Curve Concept
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An evolution in Saturn styling : At first glance, even the most devoted Saturn owner might not have recognized the CÚRVE as one of their own. The Saturn CÚRVE concept explored an exciting evolution in Saturn’s styling direction.
CÚRVE was loaded wîth interesting details that emphasize its contemporary design aesthetics while staying true to its sports car roots. “Altogether, the CÚRVE has a very sophisticated and relaxed feel,” said Shuichi Yamashita, Lead Exterior Designer.
Fluid, classic sports car lines merged wîth modern, minimalist styling to take the shape of a compact, athletic coupe. Full-figured wheel wells house low-profile performance tires mounted on ultra-modern, seven-spoke, 20” milled billet aluminum wheels. A front-hinged, clamshell hood nods to great sports cars of the past.
“Functionality is paramount, but the look, feel and spirit of everything is becoming increasingly more important,” said Anthony Lo, Design Manager.
Inside, an open-gate shifter and analog instruments evoked the feel of a pure sports car, while the interior was warmed and enhanced wîth unique “floating” lighting and carefully chosen organic materials. A blonde wood was used on the center console and dash to convey lightness and airiness, while charcoal-colored leather and terra-cotta inserts accent the dashboard and upholstery.
“As people spend more time in their vehicles, a warm, personal environment becomes more important,” said Nicho Vardis, Lead Interior Designer.
Beyond the delicate balance maintained by an effortless design, CÚRVE delivers sports car performance. A supercharged 2.2-liter Ecotec™ four-cylinder engine produces more than 200 horsepower and more than 200 ft. lbs. of torque through its rear-wheel drive train. Again, balance is struck by using variable valve timing technology which can increase fuel economy and reduce emissions without sacrificing performance.
The Saturn CÚRVE made its debut at the 2004 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. It was one of three vehicles that utilize GM’s then- (via 2004 Saturn Curve Concept Images, Information and History | Conceptcarz.com)new rear-wheel-drive Kappa architecture. “The contemporary style of the CÚRVE demonstrates how a great-lòòking coupe could look on the adaptable architecture,” said Lo.
(via 2004 Saturn Curve Concept Images, Information and History | Conceptcarz.com)
Chuckle Bros by Brian and Ron Boychuk on Creators.com
May 8, 2013
(via Chuckle Bros by Brian and Ron Boychuk on Creators.com - A Syndicate Of Talent)
Source: Flickr / 3205_km
The FlipStands is a versatile, portable tablet stand
The hallmark of the FlipStands tablet stand ($30 MSRP, but available online for under $15) is its versatility. Weighing just six ounces, this plastic stand provides 20 viewing angles plus a dedicated typing position, all in a package that folds flat for easy transport—it fits easily in a backpack, tote, shoulder bag, slip case, or brief case.
Looks are not the FlipStands’ strong suit—made of black, heavy-gauge-plastic, it’s not designed to enhance your home decor. The stand features two thin, rubber bumpers across the back to keep your tablet from slipping around, as well as four rubber pads on the bottom. A pair of plastic brackets with rubberized interior ridges hold your tablet securely in either portrait or landscape orientation.
At 8 inches high by 5 inches wide (and just over 0.4 inches thick when folded up), the FlipStands can accommodate iPads and other tablets from 5 to 11 inches in size. The brackets are large enough to fit a tablet in a thin case.
If your tablet charges using a Lightning-connector or standard USB cable, a cutout just above the bracket is large enough to string that cable through to charge in portrait orientation. If you’ve got an older (30-pin-connector) iPad, you can still do this, but you’ll need to thread the cable through USB-end first—it’s easier to just connect the cable in landscape orientation.
My biggest complaints about the FlipStands stand are that it feels a little flimsy and plasticky, and that sometimes the little rubber brackets pop off, although they fit back into place with an easy snap.
If you need a stand for use on flat surfaces, and that you can toss in your bag or briefcase, the FlipStands is a good prospect. While the construction feels a bit dime-store thanks to the lightweight plastic, and the stand isn’t exactly attractive, it’s not meant for home decoration. Rather, it’s intended to provide a flexible, portable way to hold your tablet at multiple viewing angles—and that mission is accomplished.
(via Review: The FlipStands is a versatile, portable tablet stand | Macworld)
Source: macworld.com
Lamborghini Egoista
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The Egoista is a car forged from a passion for innovation and alternative solutions, the same passion which has always set the Lamborghini brand apart. “This is a car made for one person only, to allow them to have fun and express their personality to the maximum. It is designed purely for hyper-sophisticated people who want only the most extreme and special things in the world. It represents hedonism taken to the extreme, it is a car without compromises, in a word: egoista (selfish).”
Powered by a 5.2-liter V10 engine supplying it with 600 horsepower, the Lamborghini Egoista is an intentionally extreme and unusual vehicle with absolutely unique characteristics, created by the Volkswagen Group design team - Alessandro Dambrosio responsible for the exterior and Stefan Sielaff for the interior, in particular. De Silva’s team chose to create a single-seater, pushing all the characteristics in Lamborghini’s make-up meaning pure driving pleasure, performance and style beyond their limits. The cockpit, designed like a tailor-made suit for the driver, is a removable section which, once combined with the rest of the vehicle, creates a perfect technical, mechanical and aerodynamic unit. Inspiration, as per Lamborghini tradition, once again comes from the world of aviation, and in particular the Apache helicopter, where the cockpit can be ejected in an emergency.
“The cockpit, made completely of carbon fiber and aluminum, represents a sort of survival cell, allowing the driver to isolate and protect themselves from external elements,” De Silva explained.”We kept an eye on the future when designing the Egoista, with the idea that its cockpit could have been taken from a jet aircraft and integrated into a road vehicle, to provide a different travel option.”
The exterior is characterized by two fundamental aspects: its architecture, and the materials used. The design is determined by a highly muscular structure, in which empty and solid areas fit together with strength and vigor. The bodywork is dominated, on its sides, by the stylized profile of a bull preparing to charge, its horns lowered. The bull is driving towards the front wheels, conferring a futuristic dynamism and lines which are already, in themselves, highly aggressive. Naturally, this is a homage, a bold stylistic citation which can only be a reworking of the Lamborghini brand icon, the well-known raging bull. The challenge of efficiently inserting the Lamborghini symbol as an integral part of the bodywork was met courageously and artistically. The plan view reveals a trimaran profile, where the central hull forms a unique section with the cockpit, underlined by the carbon-fiber cover on the front hood.
The upper part of the vehicle does not have aerodynamic appendages, but rather flaps integrated in the bodywork profile which act automatically depending on the driving conditions. Two rear flaps activate automatically at high speeds to increase stability, while a series of air intakes on the back of the engine hood provides the cooling air flow to the powerful V10 power plant. While the front of the vehicle has a profile intended to increase downforce, the rear is fully open with the mechanics in view, reducing weight but also with the result of creating a more aggressive look. The Lamborghini Egoista’s lights are more like an aircraft’s than a road vehicle’s. It does not have traditional headlights, rather LED clearance lights which determine its position not just on a single plane such as the road, but rather in three dimensions, as is required in airspace. Two white front lights, two red rear lights, a red flashing light in the upper part of the tail, two orange bull’s eyes as side markers, and a further two lights on the roof, red on the left and green on the right, make this four-wheeled UFO unique even in the dark. Finally, hidden behind the front air intakes at the base of the join between the central body and the two side sections, are two powerful xenon headlamps, two eagle’s eyes able to scan the darkness for great distances. As it is made from lightweight materials such as aluminum and carbon-fiber, the vehicle has no-walk zones, duly marked like on airliners. The parallels with the world of aeronautics do not end here, however, as the body is made from a special antiradar material, and the glass is anti-glare with an orange gradation. The rims are also made from antiradar material, flat and rough, embellished with carbon-fiber plates to improve their aerodynamics.
The cockpit’s interior is extremely rational, its functionality taken to the extreme. There is a racing seat with a four-point seatbelt, each strip a different color, the airbags, and the bare minimum of instruments. The focal point of these is a head-up display, typical of jet fighters. To get out of the vehicle, the driver must remove the steering wheel and rest it on the dashboard, open the dome with an electronic command, stand up in their seat, sit down on a precise point of the left-hand bodywork, then swivel their legs 180 degrees from the inside of the cockpit to the outside of the vehicle. At this point they can set their feet down and stand up. Even in getting out of the vehicle, the Lamborghini Egoista requires a pilot more than a driver, a real top gun.
The Egoista contains, in Walter De Silva’s opinion, all the product criteria which are part of Lamborghini’s make-up. “It’s as if Ferruccio Lamborghini were saying: I’m going to put the engine in the back, I don’t want a passenger. I want it for myself, and I want it as I imagine it to be. It is a fanatical vehicle, Egoista fits it well.”
If Lamborghinis are cars for the few, this one goes further. It is a car for itself, a gift from Lamborghini to Lamborghini, resplendent in its solitude. The Egoista is pure emotion, Never Never Land, which no one can ever possess, and which will always remain a dream, for everyone.
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The pros and cons of a man sitting down to pee - The Oatmeal
(via The pros and cons of a man sitting down to pee - The Oatmeal)
Iceland - Geysir Sunset
Summer 2013 - All Iceland… all the time
Source: Flickr / saleh100
Zagg PROplus iPad Keyboard
The ZAGGkeys PROplus is an iPad keyboard cover equal to Logitech’s in design and typing comfort that goes one step (actually, make that seven steps) further by adding a week’s worth of backlight color options.
Pair it to your tablet (it’s compatible with iPads 2 to 4) via Bluetooth and, like other keyboard covers, you slot the iPad into the groove just above the keys. Zagg has chosen the familiar island-style (aka chiclet) keys. The keys are shaped and spaced in a way that feels balanced on the otherwise compact keyboard. The keys offer a just-right level of travel. Not to be outshined by other models with extra built-in features, Zagg has also added a top row of function keys for cutting and pasting, controlling media playback, and adjusting volume. Where the Escape key normally resides on conventional keyboards, ZAGG places a contextually appropriate embellishment: a Home key that instantly brings users back to the iPad Home screen.
Like other keyboard covers, Zagg’s aluminum cover, which matches the iPad’s look and thinness, fits perfectly over the tablet’s display and attaches securely with sub-surface magnets. When attached, the cover automatically puts the iPad to sleep. But unlike Logitech’s cover, there are no plastic magnetic hinges, so the cover pops off completely when you open it.
And here’s the killer feature. Working in a dark space? Push the key beside the spacebar to illuminate the keyboard. Keep hitting it, and the Zagg toggles through seven different colors. One color would have been enough. But no, seven — white, yellow, green, cyan, blue, purple, and red. Also, each color has three different levels of brightness, so choose whatever works best for the room you’re in.
There is one downside to Zagg’s keyboard cover: It adds nearly an extra pound to the weight of the iPad. The total weight ends up about equal to that of an 11-inch MacBook Air.
(Main Image and text via Review: Zagg PROplus iPad Keyboard). Other images are hyperlinked to the source websites.
Source: Wired
Guardium UGV unmanned vehicle
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The Guardium UGV developed by G-Nius has been used by the Israeli army for border patrol. Since they started the program in 2008. Between 8 to 10 units have been built.
The computer software used for the Guardium UGV is designed to act like two people: one that drives the car, and one that scans the area and identifies suspicious activity. When such activity is detected, we don’t know what happens since information about the Guardium UGV having weapon systems has not been disclosed.
Its obstacle avoiding capabilities and off road performance make it an invaluable asset for the Israeli army.
Bedrock Entrada Handlebar Bag
The San Juan Mountains of southern Colorado offer some of the best mountain biking in the lower 48; the ideal R & D lab for Durango-based Bedrock Bags. They make bombproof bags for biking and bikepacking. If you like to do it in the dirt, their growing line of handmade handlebar and frame bags will carry your cargo proper-like.
A visual comparison of hammer pants VS hipsters - The Oatmeal
(via A visual comparison of hammer pants VS hipsters - The Oatmeal)
