🍄Mushroom computing power

Say hello to a fresh new week

A wee while back we began a short experiment in time travel. Kind of. We moved the send time of our newsletters back by a couple of hours, and we asked you all to let us know what you thought of this scheduling tweak.

Apart from some minor interference from daylight savings adjustments around the world, the change was well received by the vast majority of those who responded. Sadly, we can't please everyone, but we will be retaining the new send window going forward. So thank you all for your valued input.

Onward to this edition, where boffins have been tapping into mycelium power to fuel computer brains, plus there's a new smartphone that's friendly to the eyes and the story of a lukewarm start for an offset icon. Enjoy !

Paul Ridden

Headliner

Biochips made from mushrooms rival power of manmade semiconductors

by Bronwyn Thompson

They may be better known for stir-fries than supercomputing, but shiitake mushrooms have now been harnessed to function as living processors, storing and recalling data like a semiconductor chip but with almost no environmental footprint.

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Highlights

MotorcyclesTransport

Modular electric moto adds over 60 miles of range in just 9 minutes

by Utkarsh Sood

Imagine pulling over for a coffee and gaining another 60 miles of range before your cup cools. That’s the kind of promise BBM Motorcycles is making with its new Hiro platform that might just rewrite the rules for small-to-mid electric motorcycles.

Aging WellWellness and Healthy LivingBody and Mind

Dog testes offer clues to healthy aging and ‘frailty resilience’ in men

by Paul McClure

A new study of exceptionally long-lived Rottweilers revealed that keeping their testes for longer may help them age more gracefully, offering fresh clues for how hormones shape frailty and resilience in both dogs and humans.

AircraftTransport

World Record: Longest non-stop flight is WAY longer than you think

by Joe Salas

"You can either go to Vegas, or you can go to The Hacienda," is what got this world-record-setting idea off the ground and into the air for a couple of months. Yep, I said months.

Mobile TechnologyConsumer TechTechnology

E Ink goes mobile with budget eye-friendly smartphone

by Paul Ridden

Catching up with the latest viral TikToks on your smartphone can be a strain on the eyes. E Ink alternatives are few and far between, and they can be pricey for what you get. Bigme has now launched more budget-friendly options.

MusicConsumer TechTechnology

All That Jazzmaster: Ode to an icon that luckily missed its mark

by Barry Divola

How did a guitar that failed to grab its intended market – the market it was literally named after – end up becoming the instrument of choice across surf-rock, post-punk, new wave, power pop, shoegaze and more?

Tiny HousesOutdoors

Weekender tiny house is designed for a good time, not a long time

by Adam Williams

As its name suggests, the Weekender isn't intended for full-time living. However, the compact tiny house offers a well-designed, light-filled interior that's well-suited to regular travel and short stays.

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MotorcyclesTransport

MV Agusta's Brutale 800 is its gateway drug to middleweight ecstasy

by Abhimanyu Ghoshal

You can now get astride an MV Agusta without totally breaking the bank – well, at least not by a whole lot more than you'd spend for other middleweight naked motorcycles, anyway. That's the promise with the updated Brutale 800.

AutomotiveTransport

The Rebelle Rally isn’t about speed or tech, but there’s a lot of both

by Aaron Turpen

I stood in the windy desert of Nevada watching one vehicle after the next launch out of the inflatable arch and into the sand ahead. These women were heading out into the unknown with nothing more than a map and a pencil to guide them. It was pretty badass.

Science

Tectonic plates colliding may influence Pacific Northwest seismic risk

by Chelsea Haney

For the first time in geologic history, scientists are bearing witness to the Juan de Fuca Plate tearing apart in pieces and losing its connection to the upper mantle. This is the first glimpse of what happens when one of Earth’s most powerful engines begins to wind down.

EnvironmentScience

It takes EVs just 2 years on the road to beat gas cars on emissions