Weekend Edition: Braeden Kelekona on his staggering 40-seat flying bus

Forget traffic jams and crowded subways, a jaunt across town will soon be as simple as hailing your friendly flying taxi service, right? That's the vision promised by [electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft]( and companies are lining up to get a piece of the action. Loz Blain continues his outstanding reporting on this emerging sector in a chat with the founder of one of the most radical startups we've seen. Read on for that interview, plus our regular look back at the biggest stories of the week. Noel McKeegan Editor-in-Chief [Aircraft]( [Flying bus: Braeden Kelekona elaborates on his staggering 40-seat eVTOL]( [New York City startup Kelekona is proposing a mass transport-sized eVTOL air bus service capable of carrying 40 people long distances]( Kelekona's colossal mass-transit eVTOL is one of the most unique and wildly ambitious proposals we've seen in this space, flying heavier and further than anyone else on its monster 2.3 MWh battery. We caught up with the founder for a fascinating chat. [Read more]( [Technology]( [Ground-breaking night-vision film can be applied to regular glasses]( [ANU researcher Dr Rocio Camacho Morale has led the development of a groundbreaking night-vision film that could find widespread use]( Scientists at the Australian National University (ANU) have developed a new type of night-vision technology that is the first of its kind, taking the shape of an ultra-thin film that can be applied directly to glasses. [Read more]( [Materials]( [Extraordinary new material shows zero heat expansion from 4 to 1,400 K]( [A new material could find applications in medical implants and aerospace components in advanced aircraft like that being developed by Raytheon]( Australian researchers have created what may be one of the most thermally stable materials ever discovered. This remarkable advanced material, made of scandium, aluminum, tungsten and oxygen, doesn't change in volume at all between 4 and 1,400 Kelvin. [Read more]( [Architecture]( [Amazing video shows 10-story high-rise built in a day]( [The Broad Group says that its prefabricated building system can be used to make residential high-rises, dormitories, hotels, hospitals, and more]( Prefabricated buildings are designed to be put together very quickly, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a building that goes up as quickly as this recently completed 10-story high-rise by China's Broad Group, which was assembled in just over a day. [Read more]( New Atlas Plus [Support New Atlas and get our ad-free, premium layout]( New Atlas has been a reliable source of inspiring science and technology stories for almost two decades. Now we’re asking for your support so we can continue to deliver no-nonsense, independent journalism – without the distraction of ads. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [Researchers discover how gut bacteria can influence stroke severity]( [Research has found a metabolite produced by certain gut bacteria can amplify the severity of a stroke]( A striking new gut-brain link has been discovered by researchers at the Cleveland Clinic. The findings show how a metabolite produced by gut bacteria can amplify the severity of a stroke and impair a person’s recovery. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Surprising study shows how wind turbines can work better behind hills]( [Wind turbines could benefit from placement behind hills, according to a new study]( To maximize the exposure of wind turbines, blades are placed atop tall towers on the crests of hills or miles off shore. But a new study has shown how turbines behind hills could actually produce higher amounts of energy than those out in the open. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [Caloric restriction beats fasting diets for weight loss, new trial finds]( [A trial found fasting subjects lost as much muscle mass as fat, whereas those eating a calorie controlled diet lost mostly fat]( A trial led by researchers from the University of Bath questions the value of popular fasting diets, finding a simple calorie-controlled diet is more effective at reducing weight. The trial also found fasting can lead to greater losses of muscle mass. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [T7 Multivan brings plug-in power and more autonomy to VW van life]( [Volkswagen will offer gas, diesel and plug-in hybrid powertrains]( Volkswagen pulled the sheets off the new T7 Multivan this week, charting a new path for its multifunctional passenger van. No longer part of the Transporter family, the Multivan stands on its own with a fresh plug-in hybrid option and semi-autonomy. [Read more]( [Outdoors]( [Adorable Beachy camping trailer roams like a motor-less VW surf van]( [Beachy debuts as a cheaper, more youthful alternative to existing Hobby caravans and motorhomes]( Bringing to mind a classic Volkswagen camper van lurking quietly behind a rocky oceanside outcropping, the new Beachy caravan adds a fresh injection of retro, laid-back sand-and-surf vibes to the modern camper market. [Read more]( [Energy]( [Mass-produced floating nuclear reactors use super-safe molten salt fuel]( [Even in the worst-case scenario of a terrorist bombing, molten salt nuclear fuel simply hardens into rock, vastly reducing the consequences of an accident while making these next-gen reactors cheap, effective and small enough to put on floating barges]( A tiny, cheap molten salt reactor that fits in a shipping container could radically disrupt the nuclear power industry. Denmark's Seaborg says it will mass-manufacture them and deploy them globally on floating barges, on a paradigm-smashing timeline. [Read more]( [Materials]( [Self-healing concrete eats CO2 to fill its own cracks in 24 hours]( [Prof. Rahbar (R) and his team have developed self-healing concrete using an enzyme found in red blood cells]( We have seen some interesting developments around what's known as self-healing concrete that repairs its own cracks, and scientists have now demonstrated an exciting new form of this that makes use of an enzyme found in human blood. [Read more]( [Space]( [Massive cosmic corkscrews are largest spinning structures ever found]( [An artist's impression of cosmic filaments. Galaxies appear as bright spots inside the filaments and concentrated in clusters at the ends. Light from the top halves of the filaments was found to be red-shifted (moving away from us) while the bottoms were blue-shifted (moving towards us), indicating the filaments are spinning]( Planets rotate, stars rotate, galaxies and galaxy clusters all rotate. Astronomers have now discovered evidence that larger scale structures of the universe also rotate – mind-bogglingly gigantic filaments that pipe galaxies around the cosmos. [Read more]( [Space]( [Scientists map the boundary of interstellar space for the first time]( [A diagram depicting the boundary layer of the heliosphere, called the heliopause, and the termination shock, where the solar winds slow to subsonic speeds]( Scientists have uncovered some new details about the heliosphere. They've produced the first ever map of its boundary, called the heliopause, where solar winds are brought to a stop by the interstellar medium. [Read more]( [Health & Wellbeing]( [Novavax COVID-19 vaccine hits 90% efficacy in large US trial]( [Over one billion doses of the Novavax vaccine have been pledged to low-income countries]( Novavax has announced data from its Phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial, revealing over 90 percent protection from symptomatic infection and 100 percent protection from moderate to severe disease. The vaccine is hoped to be a vital new weapon in the pandemic. [Read more]( [Automotive]( [Microlino electric microcar moves into pre-series development phase]( [The completion of the third prototype signals a move to the pre-series phase of development, where the company will seek homologation ahead of series production]( In development for over five years, and originally due for production in 2019 before a complete redesign put the brakes on that timeline, the third prototype of the Microlino electric bubblecar from Micro Mobility Systems AG has now been completed. [Read more]( [Marine]( [World's most powerful electric outboard pushing for world speed record]( [Vision Marine technologies is offering the E-Motion 180E outboard for preorder now]( Back in May, Vision Marine opened reservations for its E-Motion 180E, the world's most powerful electric outboard. The motor could soon become the world's fastest, too, as Vision teams up to go after the world's fastest electric boat title. [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 © 2021