Glass-bottomed panda train debuts in China
On June 26, the funds of Sichuan province debuted the Zhongtang Air Railway, a sky practice with a “glass” bottom riders can see by way of. It has 270-diploma visibility as the leading is not clear. Vacationers who glance at the teach head-on will discover that it is painted to resemble a panda.
The Dayi Air Rail Job is the world’s initial new electrical power tourism air rail check line (translation: an aerial suspended rail prepare employing lithium battery energy packs as traction energy), and is about 11.5 kilometers (about 7 miles) in length.
The cars on Chengdu’s new Zhongtang Air Railway have clear floors.
CCTV
A most of 120 people today can fit in every single auto. Simply because the glass can reflect the heat, the trains are air-conditioned to equilibrium it out. It is manufactured of lightweight carbon fiber components.
The train can travel about the similar pace as a subway, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) for each hour.
At present, the educate line has four stops: Dayi Station, Guanghua Avenue, Sujiazhen Station and Anren Station. At Dayi, riders can join to the Chengdu Specific Rail Line and Planning Line 12 of the Chengdu city subway.
Nevertheless the Zhongtang Air Railway is geared more towards sightseeing tourists than locals commuting to work, it is really a different feather in the cap of the Chinese rail network.
The educate can journey about 80 kilometers (50 miles) for each hour.
CCTV
In linked news, Tibet not long ago welcomed its first-at any time bullet educate support. A 435-kilometer (250-mile) rail line connecting Tibetan funds Lhasa with the metropolis of Nyingchi created its to start with journey on June 25.
Tibet, known as “the roof of the globe,” is so large up — 3,000 meters above sea stage — that excess oxygen has to be pumped into the autos so that coach travellers can handle the altitude.
Ultimately, the line will increase all the way from Lhasa to Chengdu, cutting down the transit time amongst the two metropolitan areas from 48 several hours to 13.
Smart foam material gives robotic hand the ability to self-repair
July 6, 2021
By Travis Teo and Lee Ying Shan
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore researchers have developed a smart foam material that allows robots to sense nearby objects, and repairs itself when damaged, just like human skin.
Artificially innervated foam, or AiFoam, is a highly elastic polymer created by mixing fluoropolymer with a compound that lowers surface tension.
This allows the spongy material to fuse easily into one piece when cut, according to the researchers at the National University of Singapore.
“There are many applications for such a material, especially in robotics and prosthetic devices, where robots need to be a lot more intelligent when working around humans,” explained lead researcher Benjamin Tee.
To replicate the human sense of touch, the researchers infused the material with microscopic metal particles and added tiny electrodes underneath the surface of the foam.
When pressure is applied, the metal particles draw closer within the polymer matrix, changing their electrical properties. These changes can be detected by the electrodes connected to a computer, which then tells the robot what to do, Tee said.
“When I move my finger near the sensor, you can see the sensor is measuring the changes of my electrical field and responds accordingly to my touch,” he said.
This feature enables the robotic hand to detect not only the amount but also the direction of applied force, potentially making robots more intelligent and interactive.
Tee said AiFoam is the first of its kind to combine both self-healing properties and proximity and pressure sensing. After spending over two years developing it, he and his team hope the material can be put to practical use within five years.
“It can also allow prosthetic users to have more intuitive use of their robotic arms when grabbing objects,” he said.
(Reporting by Lee Ying Shan and Travis Teo; Writing by Xu Xiao; Editing by Karishma Singh and Stephen Coates)
Exxon lobbyist said carbon tax is "not going to happen"
CEO apologizes after lobbyist caught on video saying oil company views carbon tax as a “talking point” that “is not going to happen.”
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