Eight360 Nova: A crazy, untethered, fully rollable VR motion platform

Things get extreme this weekend as we feature an incredible gaming and simulation platform from New Zealand startup Eight360, as well as look back on a week where we crossed paths with a 3,000 hp "ultracar" and the most monstrous motorhome you're ever likely to see. Enjoy New Atlas the Weekend Edition! [Virtual Reality]( [Eight360 Nova: A crazy, untethered, fully rollable VR motion platform]( [The ball is completely isolated, with its own battery system and VR computer, and is driven by Omniwheels in the base]( By far the most extreme gaming and simulation platform we've seen, the Nova places you in a fully untethered ball that's free to spin in any direction, creating all sorts of wild gravity effects for total immersion in a range of different vehicles. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [$1.5 million 6x6 motorhome roams off-grid with four people and an ATV]( [The Unicat MD56c comes powered by a 532-hp diesel engine]( Originally planned for debut at the now-postponed 2020 Adventure & Allwheel show, Unicat's latest MAN monstrosity is optimized for social distancing from the new normal. The 6x6 MD56c boasts two weeks of autonomy and a side-by-side on its back. [Read more]( [Medical]( [CRISPR combines with stem cell therapy to reverse diabetes in mice]( [Microscopic image of insulin-secreting beta cells (insulin in green), made from stem cells produced from the skin of a patient with a rare, genetic form of insulin]( Washington University scientists working on techniques to turn stem cells into pancreatic beta cells are now reporting another exciting breakthrough, combining them with the CRISPR gene-editing tool to reverse the disease in mice. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [The crazy organic details on Greece's 3,000-hp Project Chaos "ultracar"]( [That horrifying alien-like growth is a brake caliper, folks, designed using a proprietary generative process Panopoulos calls "anadiaplasi"]( This is a brake caliper, folks. It's been designed using a proprietary, generative "anadiaplasi" process as part of a fascinating Greek "ultracar" called Project Chaos that's launching soon with an unparalleled 3,000-hp combustion engine. [Read more]( [Holiday Destinations]( [Lost wonders: New Zealand's spectacular Pink and White Terraces]( [New Zealand's spectacular White Terraces, as painted by artist Charles Blomfield in 1882, just four years before their destruction. ]( The natural beauty of New Zealand is no secret these days, but back in the 1800s, there was a site so breathtaking, even compared to the rest of NZ, that it was spoken of as the 8th wonder of the world: the long-lost Pink and White Terraces. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [UPS delivery truck wirelessly charged over 11-inch gap]( [Researchers have successfully demonstrated a 20-kW wireless charging system on a medium-class hybrid electric delivery truck]( Back in 2016, ORNL developed a 20-kW wireless charger for electric vehicles with a reported 90 percent efficiency. That was for passenger vehicles, and now a system for a medium duty, plug-in hybrid delivery truck has been successfully tested. [Read more]( [Medical]( ["Elite" antibodies from COVID-19 survivors point to novel treatment]( [Potent antibodies from recovered patients may be cloned and turned into novel COVID-19 treatments]( As researchers rekindle a more than 100-year-old therapy, using blood from recovered COVID-19 subjects as a treatment for newly infected patients, a team in New York is thrusting this old, experimental treatment into the 21st century. [Read more]( [Space]( [Astronomers watch as "exoplanet" vanishes before Hubble's eyes]( [An artist's impression of a cometary collision around the star Fomalhaut, which is now proposed to be the explanation for a "disappearing exoplanet"]( Exoplanet discoveries are a dime a dozen – but we don’t see many being de-discovered. Now, an exoplanet observed by Hubble for 10 years has apparently vanished without a trace, leading astronomers to suggest it may never have been a planet at all. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Tethered high-altitude drones designed to replace wind turbines]( [Prototype Ampyx Power drone in flight]( Wind turbine towers have become a familiar sight in many parts of the world, but if Ampyx Power has its way, they could be replaced with fleets of tethered drones that harness the energy of high-altitude winds to run generators on the ground. [Read more]( [Science]( [Worm study offers new insight into link between obesity and poor sleep]( [A new study hypothesizes excessive fat stores disrupts regular metabolic signaling regulating energy, and this is how obesity causes poor sleep patterns]( For years, studies have linked short sleep patterns with obesity. Generally researchers have suspected poor sleep causes obesity but a new study has flipped it suggesting obesity may be causing the poor sleep, and not the other way around. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Semi-transparent solar cells could rival rooftop solar for efficiency]( [The first application of the semi-transparent solar cell technology will likely be multi-story buildings]( Windows capable of harvesting energy from the sun have been on the horizon for a number of years, but they're yet to help cut down a building's energy costs. A new development from Australian researchers may change that. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Diamond nanothreads could store thrice the energy of Li-ion batteries]( [Dr Haifei Zhan led a research team in modeling the energy density of diamond nanothread bundles]( Computer modeling has shown that an energy storage system based on diamond nanothread bundles could store three times as much energy as lithium-ion batteries. And because it stores energy mechanically rather than chemically, it would be much safer. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [The race for a COVID-19 vaccine: Should we infect healthy people?]( [Some scientists are advocating for healthy volunteers to be exposed to COVID-19 as a way of speeding up the vaccine trial process]( In the age of a global pandemic, some researchers are suggesting the current vaccine trial process is too slow, and to test potential COVID-19 vaccines we will have to deliberately infect healthy people. [Read more]( [Good Thinking]( [Aerogel quickly and cheaply purifies water – by turning it to steam]( [Because the material is 90 percent air by volume, relatively little of it is needed]( By converting liquid salt water – or tainted water – into steam, it's possible to obtain pure, clean drinking water. Doing so could soon be cheaper and easier than ever, thanks to a newly developed material. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [Brain region that influences binge drinking identified]( [Research suggests blocking kappa opioid receptor activity in the extended amygdala may help limit binge drinking behaviors]( New animal research has found binge drinking can be controlled by blocking a key brain region linked to emotion-related behavior. The mouse experiments suggest blocking certain opioid receptors in the extended amygdala may curb excessive drinking. [Read more]( [Space]( [NASA farewells Spitzer Space Telescope with final mosaic image]( [Spitzer's final mosaic shows how these images are normally seen by scientists – as the products of two different detectors (seen as cyan and red) imaging different wavelengths of light, before being combined into one (grey)]( The Spitzer Space Telescope was decommissioned on Jan. 30 this year, after more than 16 years in operation. Now NASA has released the observatory’s last-ever mosaic image, giving us a glimpse into how it works and revealing new features of a nebula. [Read more]( [Mobile Technology]( [iPhone SE (2020) vs iPhone 11, 11 Pro and Pro Max]( [New Atlas compares the specs and features of the iPhone SE (2020) to the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and Pro Max]( If iPhones have felt a bit out of your budget lately, the new iPhone SE shoots for a lower price. But how much are you actually missing out on? New Atlas compares the specs and features of the iPhone SE with the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max. [Read more]( You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at [newatlas.com]( (or [gizmag.com]( before August 2016). [Update profile]( | [Unsubscribe]( Copyright New Atlas © 2019