News

SmartCap is a new type of high-tech headgear that promises to let drivers know when they are becoming too tired to drive. Driver fatigue results in many thousands of road collisions each year, and while it is not possible to know the precise number of crashes caused by tiredness, research shows that lack of sleep may be a contributory...

If you are suffering post-holiday blues, take solace from news that time travel is possible - or at least it might be in the future. Speaking at the British Science Festival this week, professor Brian Cox revealed that it would be theoretically possible to build a working time machine; the perfect way to fast-forward through the gloom of...

Although there are an estimated 300,000 people using mobility scooters in Britain, there is little differentiation in the styles on offer. A US-based dental technician and part-time inventor dedicates his spare time to remedying the situation with his characterful contraptions. American Lance Greathouse has been making mobility scooters and...

Despite warnings that its withdrawal will harm the fledgling electric car industry, the government’s £5,000 grant against the purchase cost of a fully-electric, or plug-in hybrid, car is to be dropped. Over the last two-and-a-half years, the fund has awarded £11m and helped put an estimated 2,200 electric cars on the road. However, uptake...

Not content with building himself an impressive tree house in the woods outside Sandpoint, Idaho, Ethan Schlussler has devised a unique pedal-powered means of ascending the 10 metres to reach it. The lift is based around a bicycle supported by two strong ropes and counter balanced by a 50kg concrete block, so little effort is required to...

A new design of bicycle claims to be the most compact folder on the market. Weighing in at 7kg, the Kwiggle is arguably also the lightest, but is it too small to compete against Brompton and Dahon? The Kwiggle relies on 8” wheels of the kind more commonly used on childrens’ scooters, an upright cycling position and an unusual frame...

Shoppers, commuters and tourists in Barcelona can now hire electric scooters as a quick and quiet way to explore the city. The Motit electric scooters can travel at 40mph for up to 40 miles and cost less than £3 per hour to hire. To use the...

With urban populations on the increase, commuters who prefer the freedom of personal transport will have to take a more flexible approach to the type of vehicle they choose. Congestion charging, restricted parking, traffic jams and increasing fuel costs have already pushed many towards two wheels, but a 300cc scooter from Piaggio that can...

Like a bicycle, the umbrella is a design of such simplicity that it no longer needs to evolve, but that does not stop people trying to make improvements. Nubrella is a shoulder-mounted, folding canopy designed to shield people, including cyclists, from rain, wind and snow. The device has already found customers in 70 countries and a new-and...

Much is said about the risks of cycling while listening to music, but a new type of ear phone, which forgoes speakers in favour of ‘surface sound technology’, promises a safer alternative. Sound Band fits behind the ear and uses a process referred to as surface-excitation to produce sound without the need for traditional in-ear speakers....