odd look at news on the web
Speedster Gen 2 blends modern Porsche performance with vintage style
8 February 2026 @ 7:03 am
In Paris, Stärke Motors is talking German cars. The newly-unveiled Speedster Gen 2 is a modern Porsche 718 with a retro 356-style body and interior. For about US$135,000, anyone with a 2017 or newer 718 can have Stärke transform it into a Speedster. For about $50k more, the company will source a donor car for you.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportTags: Starlink moonlights as satellite traffic cop
8 February 2026 @ 4:03 am
SpaceX's Starlink communications satellite constellation is doing double duty as the company announces that it's moonlighting as the Stargaze Space Situational Awareness system that can track and manage traffic in low Earth orbit.Continue ReadingCategory: Space, ScienceTags: SpaceX, Starlink, Space JunkMathematical thinking may have developed long before writing
8 February 2026 @ 12:03 am
We generally associate the origins of mathematical thinking with the emergence of writing, about five to six thousand years ago. However, a new study challenges this assumption looking at floral designs found on the painted pottery sherds from the Halafian sites across northern Mesopotamia, dating back 8000 years.Continue ReadingCategory: History, ScienceTags:Review: 2026 Mazda3 hatchback refines a winning formula
7 February 2026 @ 6:03 pm
If you’ve followed Mazda over the years, you know the 3 has always been the brand’s emotional core. For 2026, Mazda’s latest Mazda 3 Hatchback continues that tradition, polishing the edges of a well-worn formula rather than reinventing it. What you get is a car that feels more expensive than its price tag suggests, and more alive than its rivals.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportTags: End of the Line? Futuristic Saudi megacity facing major redesign
7 February 2026 @ 3:03 pm
There has been a lot of architecture news coming out of Saudi Arabia recently, little of which has been good. Now the jewel in the crown of the desert kingdom's ongoing transformation, the Line, appears to be facing a major rethink.Continue ReadingCategory: Architecture, TechnologyTags: Building and CoWhat's the deal with space-based data centers for AI?
7 February 2026 @ 1:03 pm
Terrestrial data centers are so 2025. We're taking our large-scale compute infrastructure into orbit, baby! Or at least, that's what Big Tech is yelling from the rooftops at the moment. It's quite a bonkers idea that's hoovering up money and mindspace, so let's unpack what it's all about – and whether it's even grounded in reality.Continue ReadingCategory: Plants that touch each other are more resilient to stress
7 February 2026 @ 11:03 am
New research has found when plant leaves physically touch each other, they seem to form a biological signalling network to warn each other about the upcoming stress. This can boost their resilience to withstand intense light, which is a common environmental challenge.Continue ReadingCategory: Biology, ScienceTagsOne-off special-edition hypercar honors Bugatti Veyron creator
7 February 2026 @ 7:03 am
Bugatti is marking the 20th birthday of its extraordinary Veyron with a special-edition hypercar that pays tribute to the 'mad genius' who designed it, Ferdinand Karl Piëch. But there’s bad news if you’re a billionaire car collector. The 'FKP Hommage' is a one-off, coach-built creation. And it has already been sold.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportFrontier-smashing camper hides rustic lodge inside shimmering shell
7 February 2026 @ 12:04 am
As Silicon Valley works overtime at developing camping trailers around technology platforms, fellow Californian RV badge Bowlus steps back into the spotlight to remind us why RV design has traditionally started with stylish aerodynamics and comfy living amenities, keeping the tech in the background as a complement. The all-new Endless Highways Frontier Edition takes the brand's most powerful trailer to new aesthetic heights, warming up the interior of the vintage riveted-aluminum fuselage with a rustic cabin inspired by the mountain ranches and pioneer homesteads of the American West.Futuristic concept scooter is clad in flax-based body panels
6 February 2026 @ 9:00 pm
When Bangalore, India-based electric two-wheeler outfit Ather unveiled its bold Redux concept scooter last September, it was all I could do to keep from banging down the company's doors and demanding they put it into production immediately. This stunning machine combined a number of innovative ideas and race-inspired styling, and the design went harder than any other maxi scooter in recent memory.