‘Hyperloop’ Could Send People From L.A. To San Francisco In 30 Minutes

by Libby Zay on

It might not be long before people are being whisked from Los Angeles to San Francisco in an underground pipeline akin to the tubes drive-up banks use. The wild idea comes from Elon Musk, who has or has had high stakes in PayPal, Tesla Motors and SpaceX. Here’s what Musk told PandoDaily:

“How would you like something that never crashed, was immune to weather, that goes three or four times as fast as the bullet trains we have now or about twice the speed of an aircraft, that would get you from downtown L.A. to downtown San Francisco in under 30 minutes and it would cost you much less than any other type of transportation.”

There’s been a lot of futuristic means of travel proposed in the past — flying cars, hover boards and teleporting, to name a few — but with billionaire backing, this idea seems like it’s actually on track. Get ready for the fifth form of transportation, folks; one that blows planes, trains, automobiles and boats out of the water. Here’s a few reasons why:

  • It’s solar powered.
  • It leaves leave as soon as you arrive “so there is no waiting for a specific departure time,” according to Musk.
  • It’s better than a bullet train: capsules will be propelled as fast as 4,000 miles per hour, but passengers will be exposed to the G-forces of an ordinary car ride.
  • Musk wants to keep the invention open source, and not apply patents to it.

[via Smithsonian magazine]

An App For Apps Makes Travel Easier, Maybe Too Easy

by Chris Owen on

In the world of travel apps, we’ve seen geo-based, crowd-sourced and sharing technology that has opened up a lot of possibilities for travelers. We can automatically create a travel log with one, find a hotel on the fly with another and map our way through unknown lands with ease. The result? A home screen full of apps that demand to be sorted, modified and updated to be useful. But now, in a new generation that leverages a bit of artificial intelligence, app developers have a plan to make that easier. Gaining a mind of its own, your smartphone can do much more than we ask of it.

Tempo is a calendar app that uses learning algorithms to figure out what information you’re looking for, if not anticipate your needs. It’s a first generation of artificial intelligence applied to smartphones that considers all information sources available to present relevant information.

“After you grant Tempo access to your email and calendars, the app searches for all the tidbits of schedule-related information you have stored in your accounts, gathering it together and presenting it cleanly inside individual calendar events,” notes a Wired article.Going to a meeting across town? Given authorization, Tempo will take that calendar note to “meet client for lunch” and add access to recent email, relevant documents for the meeting, provide parking information at the location, information about the restaurant and check you in on Facebook or Foursquare, automatically.

Right now, we would need to open multiple apps to make that happen. In the future, we may just be along for the ride.

Tel Aviv Gets First Beachside Library

by Meg Nesterov on

Need a good beach read? Visitors to Tel Aviv‘s Metzizim Beach can now borrow books for reading on the sand. The city has launched the first beachside library, providing over 500 free book rentals in five languages, including English, Hebrew, Arabic, French and Russian. Prefer to read online? Tel Aviv is also one of the most connected cities, with more than 80 free Wi-Fi spots for public use on the beaches, boardwalk, in parks and in major tourist areas.

Scientists Explain Veggies Suffer Jet Lag, Too

by Libby Zay on

Humans aren’t the only ones whose internal clocks get all out of whack when they fly. It looks like vegetables also feel the effects of jet lag, which happens when our light and dark cycles are thrown off. Toward the end of this factoid-filled video from Mashable there’s a longer explanation, plus a silly skit about a jet-lagged eggplant. And here’s a report from NPR that explains how scientists are using this knowledge to coax vegetables into producing more beneficial compounds.

Toying with the idea of conducting an experiment of your own? Make sure you follow the rules of the Transportation Security Administration, or any other international agency, before bringing any food on board a plane or across borders. Carrot circadian clocks aside, here are some tips from Gadling readers that might help you ward off jet lag on your next trip.

Seamless Travel Plan In The Works For EU

by Chris Owen on

Traveling in, around or through the European Union‘s 28 nations is not like traveling around the 50 United States. Different countries have different rules, systems and procedures in place.

But what if it was?

Looking to streamline the process, the European Commission is working on a system to make travel across the continent easier.

One of the intended points of having a European Union was to allow more freedom of movement of people, goods and services. While the euro zone monetary union has helped standardize forms of payment, plans to develop a model for a pan-European information and booking system could standardize the procedure for booking various modes of transport including air and rail.

“To make the best use of all existing transport modes and infrastructure, we need to ensure the availability, accessibility and exchange of all relevant information, such as schedules, capacity and paths,” said Siim Kallas, Vice President of the European Commission in charge of transport, in a Travel Mole report.

Think that sounds like a good idea? Not everyone agrees, as we see in this video: