Today’s highly anticipated first flight of China’s enormous new Y-20 four-engined heavy cargo jet was, by all accounts, a complete success. The flight lifts China into a very exclusive club as the Y-20 now joins the United States’ C-17 and Russia’s Il-76 in the ranks of the world’s largest military jet transport aircraft.
Raining today? Bring an umbrella. Smoggy again? Put on a face mask. Since checking both the weather and the current level of air pollution before going out is the new normal in China, the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau is making the latter a lot easier by featuring a new air quality mascot at their website.
Be afraid, Ralph Kramdens of the world, be VERY afraid: Shanghai’s imminent experiment with driverless, magnetically-guided, electric-powered buses could be the start of a new urban transportation revolution.
Texting while driving is obviously really dangerous, and many states have already banned the use of mobile phones altogether while driving, with more and more states moving closer to that goal. However, with voice controls in smartphones becoming more prevalent, drivers are resorting to hands-free texting in the car, but recent studies show that hands-free texting is just as dangerous as hands-on texting.
California just passed a law that states that drivers are allowed to use mobile phones while driving, as long as its all done by voice. However, several groups, such as the National Safety Council for California, are begging the state to rethink the new law, saying that voice-texting while driving is still unsafe, and may be even just as dangerous as regular texting while in the car.
Researchers and psychologists have demonstrated in the past that people suffer significant impairment when they use a mobile phone while driving, and a study conducted by David Strayer of the University of Utah says that participants talking on a mobile phone had slower reaction times and were involved in more simulated accidents than when they weren’t on their phones — hands-free or not.
The participants’ cognitive impairment levels were around the same as those of participants who got in the simulator after drinking enough alcohol to register a 0.08% blood-alcohol content, which would be considered illegal in all 50 states. While hands-on texting certainly seems more dangerous than hands-free texting, studies have shown that sending a simple voice text led drivers to take their eyes off the road more often than usual, and they reported a higher mental demand during the experiment.
While you may be quick to retort that voice texting and chatting with people sitting in the passenger seat are the same thing, Strayer says that each of the two activities use different parts of the brain. Strayer’s research has shown that the mobile phone distractions in the car isn’t just physical, but also cognitive, meaning that drivers who use mobile phones “create weak memories of objects in the driving environment, suggesting a great deal of attention is drawn away from the road.”
[via The Atlantic Cities]
Hands-free texting while driving is still dangerous, according to studies is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Controversial backscatter body scanners which could show “nude” images of airport travellers will be retired, the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has confirmed, after the manufacturer couldn’t deliver privacy software swiftly enough. The 174 Rapiscan scanners in use across the US will be returned to the manufacturer, OSI Systems, Bloomberg reports, after “it became clear to TSA they would be unable to meet our timeline” on developing masking software that would obscure individual identities, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed.
Pressure to develop a software update that would prevent the images from the backscatter scanners from being personally identifiable to the travellers themselves came from the US Congress, after increasing complaints from privacy advocates and passengers. That resulted in a new contract back in August 2010, with the TSA demanding new software that preserved highlighting of potential weapons or other contraband, but did not overstep the mark on identification.
OSI Systems eventually revealed that it did not expect to have such a fix until 2014, despite rival suppliers to the TSA being able to meet the requirement in 2011. “As a result of that,” assistant administrator for acquisitions Karen Shelton Waters said, “we terminated the contract for the convenience of the government.”
The manufacturer will foot the bill – expected to amount to around $2.7m – for pulling the Rapiscan machines from airports and shifting them to other US government agencies (which have less stringent privacy demands). Still in operation, however, are other body scanning machines manufactured by L-3 Communications Holdings, which use a different technology and have had a privacy patch installed for several years.
Sixty of the L-3 scanners – which use millimeter-wave technology rather than X-rays – are in operation across US airports; the TSA also has contracts out with L-3 and two other providers for new models. Far more prevalent, of course, are the equally-controversial “enhanced pat-downs” introduced in late 2010, in which TSA agents investigate with their hands the groin, inner-thigh area, waistband, and other parts of the body. Exact details of the enhanced procedure are confidential, with the TSA citing security concerns.
In addition to the new scanners, the TSA apparently intends to broaden the existing PreCheck program, which trades personal information supplied in advance of travel for the potential for reduced checks while at the airport. However, the scheme only operates for domestic flights within the US, and only US citizens are eligible to register for membership.
The TSA doesn’t want to see you naked any more (just fondle you) is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Today American Airlines announced and unveiled their first new look since 1968. And to catch up with modern times, CEO Tom Horton says that the new livery is meant to be light, vibrant, and modern. The airline is also making some strides in implementing more technology into their workflow, like outfitting pilots and flight attendants with tablets and smartphones.
The new logo and livery will be introduced on the airline’s new and upcoming Boeing 777-300 airplanes at the end of the month, and have ordered hundreds of other new planes that will be delivered throughout the coming years. Many of the new planes will be made of composite materials to make them lighter. However, they must be painted over, making the iconic unpainted silver look of current AA planes no longer an option. Instead, though, the airline plans to paint them using silver mica paint that will at least maintain AA’s long-lasting heritage.
The new planes will features redesigned first- and business-class seats, and every seat on the new planes will feature all-new in-flight entertainment systems, as well as power outlets and WiFi access. The entertainment systems will feature a huge selection of movies, TV shows, music, and games.
Flight attendants will be equipped with Samsung Galaxy Note Tabs to better assist passengers, and pilots will be given iPads to “fly more efficiently” and to cut down on paper products to save on fuel costs. Gate agents at the airport will also be given mobile devices to help passengers check-in quicker by speeding up the boarding pass process and checking-in luggage.
[via Gizmodo]
American Airlines unveils new look, more tech is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
It felt like only a matter of time, and now it’s reality. After numerous problems occurring with multiple Boeing 787 Dreamliners, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has decided to ground all 787s in the US for inspection, but plans to get all of the new planes back in the air as safely and as quickly as possible.
After two fires caused my malfunctioning lithium-ion batteries were reported, the FAA has ordered all US airlines to ground their entire 787 fleet, and the administration also warned international airlines as well, and all of them have heeded the news and grounded their respective 787 Dreamliners.
The battery failures in question are said to possibly start a domino effect with on-board critical systems and structures, as well as the possibility of fire starting on board. The FAA has said that it’ll work with Boeing to come up with a plan to fix the issues and put the new aircrafts back in commission safely and quickly.
Currently, there are only six 787 Dreamliners in commission in the US, all which are operated by United Airlines. Furthermore, Japanese airlines operate 24 Dreamliners, with other international airlines operating 20 of the new planes. In total, there are 50 787 Dreamliners in operation, all of which have been grounded until further notice. United Airlines has said all passengers who were scheduled to fly on a 787 will be flying on different aircrafts for the time being.
[via WSJ]
FAA grounds all US Boeing 787 Dreamliners after multiple battery failures is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
This week the folks at United Aircraft have let it be known that they’ll be bringing wi-fi connectivity to their planes, this making them the first US-based international carrier to offer said connections while traveling over the ocean. Jim Compton, Vice Chairman and Chief Revenue Officer for United, spoke up about the service, noting that this is part of their efforts to make the airline the top choice for international flight – “With this new service, we continue to build the airline that customers want to fly.”
This service will be working with your wireless device galore, including but not limited to your laptop, smartphone, and tablet. You’ll be able to get internet on the flight starting at $3.99 ranging all the way up to $19.99 depending on the service you’d like to work with. Standard prices range from $3.99 to $14.99 depending on how far you’ll be flying – that including basic speeds (the exact internet speed not being shared at the moment by United).
If you’re working with Accelerated internet, you’ll be paying between $5.99 and $19.99 USD – these prices also based on the length of flight you’ll be taking. The hardware being installed to make this all a reality is none other than Panasonic Avionics Corporation’s Ku-band satellite technology – this is different from air-to-ground technology being used by many national companies today.
The roll-out of this tech for you and I will be starting with two Airbus 319 aircraft right here at the start of 2013 with connectivity hitting 300 mainline aircraft by the end of this year – that’s a whole lot of connectivity! You’ll be able to work with this tech on Airbus 319 and 320 aircraft for starters as well as Boeing 737, 747, 757, 767, 777 and 787 sooner than later!
United becomes first international US-based airline with wi-fi is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Booking a flight can be a stressful experience. Ticket prices can fluctuate dramatically and you never know what time is the best time to buy. To help alleviate ticket-buying stress KAYAK has a launched a new price forecasting tool that will predict whether the prices in your search are likely rise or fall over the next week.
In addition to the fare history chart we’ve provided for some time, KAYAK flight search results now include a forecast of whether the prices in your search are likely to rise or fall within the next 7 days. The feature also provides the statistical confidence level behind the forecast.
Giorgos Zacharia, KAYAK’s Chief Scientist, led development of KAYAK’s price forecasts and comments, “our algorithm incorporates data from multiple faring and availability providers across the over one billion annual queries performed on KAYAK sites and mobile apps. As we continue to collect data and test the algorithm, the forecast accuracy will continue to improve.”
If you are looking to corner the market on ticket prices head over to KAYAK and try your luck at timing the best deal. The service is currently available on KAYAK.com in the US and KAYAK.co.uk in Great Britain. Unfortunately the current version of the service DOES NOT work on predicting stock prices. I tried that.
[KAYAK]
Big data used for small prices: that’s the sort of number crunching we can get behind, and with more than billion price records to go on, KAYAK‘s promise to warn you if airline tickets are likely to rise or fall in the near future could supposedly save you a bundle. The price comparison service has been collecting up queries from the past year of searches, cooking up an algorithm in the process that can suggest you hold out a little longer if it predicts prices might fall within the next seven says, or conversely alerting you to a likely increase. [Updated after the cut]
“Our scientists develop these flight price trend forecasts using algorithms and mathematical models” KAYAK says of the system, which also gives an indication of how certain the company is of each suggestion. “Predictions based on past history can never be perfect, so we can’t guarantee they’ll be correct, which is why we also let you know the confidence of the statistical analysis.”
In the background, meanwhile, KAYAK tracks “a certain number of flights throughout the next seven days (or between your search and departure date whichever is shortest)” and then uses that data to see if its predictions were correct or not. That feeds back into the algorithm and, hopefully, makes it more accurate; obviously that’s of little benefit to you if you paid more than you necessarily needed to, unless you opted for a refundable ticket.
We tried KAYAK’s new system out with a few test journeys, with Price Trend variously warning us of variations either up or down based on the historic data. Clicking on the graph brings up a pop-up with the confidence percentage, as well as the likely change in fare, and even suggestions as to what day you should consider flying on to get the best deal.
As with any data-crunching system, the proof of KAYAK’s algorithm will be over the long-term. Still, with most airlines doing little more than showing a matrix of prices for the week, but preferring to encourage travellers to book now rather than fare-check later, any online travel agent giving more insight has to be a welcome addition.
Update: Thanks to the commenters who pointed out that Bing Travel (aka Farecast) and other services offer their own price prediction systems as well. It’s not clear how much data Bing Travel uses to figure out its predictions, and when we tried to do a direct comparison between its forecast and those from KAYAK, Bing sometimes failed to show a Price Predictor at all. Microsoft does warn the following:
“Predictions are only available when searching for:
Bing Travel cities indicated in bold when entering your search.
Round trip, economy flightsPopular dates:
U.S. domestic trips from 1 night to 3 weeks long within the next 180 days
Trips to or from Canada from 1 night to 8 days long within the next 90 days
Europe and Caribbean trips up to 2 weeks long within the next 120 days”
In short, as always, checking around multiple airlines and price comparison sites is usually the best way to find the most competitive deal.
Kayak’s Price Trend crunches big-data for travel save promise [Updated] is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
