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Topic Review
Impact of Self-Driving Cars
The impact of self-driving cars is anticipated to be wide-ranging on many areas of daily life. Self-driving cars have been the subject of significant research on their environmental, practical, and lifesyle consequences. One significant predicted impact of self-driving cars is a substantial reduction in traffic collisions and resulting severe injuries or deaths. United States government estimates suggest 94% of traffic collisions are caused by human error, with a 2020 study estimating that making 90% of cars on US roads self-driving would save 25,000 lives per year. While this has significant benefits, other health downsides of self-driving cars are predicted; self-driving cars are suggested to worsen air pollution, noise pollution, and sedentary lifestyles, and may contribute to shortages of donor organs. Self-driving cars are anticipated to increase productivity and housing affordability, as well as reclaim land used for parking. However, they are also predicted to cause greater energy use, traffic congestion and sprawl. The impact of self-driving cars on absolute levels of individual car use is not yet clear, with commentators alternatively predicting increases and decreases. Self-driving cars are one of several potential autonomous vehicles, and other forms of self-driving vehicles, such as self-driving buses, may decrease car use and congestion in ways self-driving cars are unlikely to. The effect of self-driving cars on various employment fields is predicted to be wide-ranging. Impacts are anticipated on the healthcare, insurance, travel, and logistics fields. Auto insurance costs are expected to decrease, and the burden of cars on the healthcare system to reduce. Self-driving cars are predicted to have substantial and wide-ranging effects on transportation industries, with significant job losses in these fields.
  • 4.2K
  • 24 Nov 2022
Topic Review
International Harvester Metro Van
International Harvester's Metro Van is a step van, also known as walk-in or multi-stop delivery truck. This vehicle type was one of the earlier, mass-produced forward control vehicles, once commonly used for milk or bakery delivery, as well as ambulance services, mobile offices, and radio transmitter vans. Typically, they were 1/2-, 3/4-, or 1-ton panel trucks that allowed the driver to stand or sit while driving the vehicle. Variations included a passenger bus called a Metro Coach, a Metro partial cab-chassis with front-end sections (for end-user customization), and a cab-over truck called a "walk-in cab". The truck (also called a chassis cab) variation could be configured with a separate box or container for cargo transport or left open to be fitted with other equipment such as a compactor for a garbage truck or a stake bed.
  • 4.2K
  • 05 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Combat History of the T-26
Though nearly obsolete by the beginning of World War II, the T-26 was the most important tank of the Spanish Civil War and played a significant role during the Battle of Lake Khasan in 1938 as well as in the Winter War. The T-26 was the most numerous tank in the Red Army's armoured force during the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. The Soviet T-26 light tanks last saw combat in August 1945, in Manchuria. The T-26 was used extensively in the armies of Spain, China and Turkey. In addition, captured T-26 light tanks were used by the Finnish, German, Romanian and Hungarian armies.
  • 4.2K
  • 29 Sep 2022
Topic Review
International Roughness Index
The International Roughness Index (IRI) is the roughness index most commonly obtained from measured longitudinal road profiles. It is calculated using a quarter-car vehicle math model, whose response is accumulated to yield a roughness index with units of slope (in/mi, m/km, etc.). This performance measure has less stochasticity and subjectivity in comparison to other pavement performance indicators, but it is not completely devoid of randomness. The sources of variability in IRI data include the difference among the readings of different runs of the test vehicle and the difference between the readings of the right and left wheel paths. Despite these facts, since its introduction in 1986, the IRI has become the road roughness index most commonly used worldwide for evaluating and managing road systems. The measurement of IRI is required for data provided to the United States Federal Highway Administration, and is covered in several standards from ASTM International: ASTM E1926 - 08, ASTM E1364 - 95(2005), and others. IRI is also used to evaluate new pavement construction, to determine penalties or bonus payments based on smoothness.
  • 4.1K
  • 31 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Flat Twin Engine
A flat-twin is a two-cylinder internal combustion engine with the cylinders on opposite sides of the crankshaft. It is a flat engine with two cylinders. Used in motorcycles for more than a century, flat-twins have also been used in automobiles, light aircraft, stationary powerplants, and household appliances. Early flat-twin motorcycles' engines were mounted with the cylinders in line with the frame. This caused uneven cooling of the cylinders and required the motorcycle to have a long wheelbase. Later flat-twin motorcycles' engines were mounted with their cylinders across the frame for better air cooling and a shorter wheelbase. Disadvantages of this layout include torque reaction in the motorcycle in turns and the potential to damage cylinder heads.
  • 4.1K
  • 27 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Gowind-Class Corvette
The Gowind design is a family of steel monohull corvettes developed since 2006 by France 's Naval Group, formerly known as DCNS, to conduct missions in littoral zone such as anti-submarine warfare (ASW). The Gowind family includes vessels with lengths from 85 m to 102 m and displacement from 1,000 t to 2,500 t. The Gowind design can deploy Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs) and Underwater Unmanned Vehicles (UUVs). An aft deck has been provided allowing for a 10-ton class helicopter or Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations. The platform's weapon system consists of a multi-functional radar and MICA SAM. It is armed with Exocet anti ship missiles. The propulsion system is based on Combined Diesel and Diesel (CODAD) and includes water-jets for improved maneuverability in shallow waters and high-speed performance. There is no funnel (smokestack) on these ships. The radar and other sensors are mounted on a single central mast thus allowing 360-degree view. Naval Group offers two variants of the design: Gowind 1000 and Gowind 2500.
  • 4.1K
  • 02 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Fiat CR.42
The Fiat CR.42 Falco ("Falcon", plural: Falchi) was a single-seat sesquiplane fighter developed and produced by Italian aircraft manufacturer Fiat Aviazione. It served primarily in Italy's Regia Aeronautica both before and during the Second World War. The CR.42 was an evolutionary design of Fiat’s earlier CR.32 fighter, featuring a more powerful supercharged Fiat A.74R1C.38 air-cooled radial engine and aerodynamic improvements to its relatively clean exterior surfaces. The aircraft proved to be relatively agile in flight, a factor that had been attributed to its very low wing loading and a sometimes decisive tactical advantage. RAF Intelligence praised its exceptional maneuverability, further noting that "the plane was immensely strong", though it was technically outclassed by faster, more heavily armed monoplanes. While primarily used as a fighter, various other roles were adopted for some variants of the type, such as the CR.42CN dedicated night fighter model, the CR.42AS ground attack aircraft, and the CR.42B Biposto twin-seat trainer aircraft. During May 1939, the CR.42 entered service with the Regia Aeronautica; it was the last of the Fiat biplane fighters to enter front line service. By 10 June 1940, the date when Italy entered the Second World War, roughly 300 of the type had been delivered, which were initially tasked with defending Italy's cities and key military installations. By the end of 1940, the Falco had been involved in combat on various fronts, including the Battle of France, the Battle of Britain, Malta, North Africa, and Greece. By the end of the war, Italian CR.42s had been used on further fronts, including Iraq, the Eastern Front and the Italian mainland. Following the signing of the Italian armistice with the Allies on 8 September 1943, the type was primarily relegated to use as a trainer by the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force , while some Italian CR.42s were seized by the Germans and used by the Luftwaffe to perform ground attack missions. In addition to its service in Italy, the CR.42 was produced and entered service in smaller numbers with the air forces of several nations, including Belgium, Sweden and Hungary. By the end of production, in excess of 1,800 CR.42s has been constructed, making it the most numerous Italian aircraft to be used during the Second World War. Aviation author Przemyslaw Skulski has claimed that the fighter had performed at its best during its service with the Hungarian Air Force, specifically during its deployment against Soviet forces on the Eastern Front of the war, where it reportedly achieved a kill to loss ratio of 12 to 1.
  • 3.9K
  • 18 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Battery Swapping Stations for Electric Vehicles
Battery Swapping Stations (BSS), refers to the rapid recovery of electric vehicle energy by replacing batteries when the electric vehicle energy is about to run out.  Figure 1 shows the structure of BSS. The Electric vehicle users only own cars and rent batteries from service operators, thus greatly reducing the purchase cost of electric vehicles and solving the problem of long charging times.
  • 3.9K
  • 19 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Fire Engine
A fire engine, also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry, is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters to an incident as well as carrying equipment for firefighting operations. Some fire engines have specialised functions, such as wildfire suppression and aircraft rescue and firefighting, and may also carry equipment for technical rescue. Many fire engines are based on commercial vehicle chassis that are further upgraded and customised for firefighting requirements. They are normally fitted with sirens and emergency vehicle lighting, as well as communication equipment such as two-way radios and mobile computer technology. The terms fire engine and fire truck are often used interchangeably to a broad range of vehicles involved in firefighting; however, in some fire departments they refer to separate and specific types of vehicle.
  • 3.9K
  • 12 Oct 2022
Topic Review
U-Boat Campaign
The U-boat Campaign from 1914 to 1918 was the World War I naval campaign fought by German U-boats against the trade routes of the Allies. It took place largely in the seas around the British Isles and in the Mediterranean. The German Empire relied on imports for food and domestic food production (especially fertilizer) and the United Kingdom relied heavily on imports to feed its population, and both required raw materials to supply their war industry; the powers aimed, therefore, to blockade one another. The British had the Royal Navy which was superior in numbers and could operate on most of the world's oceans because of the British Empire, whereas the Imperial German Navy surface fleet was mainly restricted to the German Bight, and used commerce raiders and unrestricted submarine warfare to operate elsewhere. In the course of events in the Atlantic alone, German U-boats sank almost 5,000 ships with nearly 13 million gross register tonnage, losing 178 boats and about 5,000 men in combat. Other naval theatres saw U-boats operating in both the Far East and South East Asia, the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean and North Seas.
  • 3.9K
  • 29 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Aeroflot Fleet
The Aeroflot passenger fleet consists of narrow-body and wide-body aircraft from six aircraft families: the Airbus A320, the Airbus A330, the Airbus A350, the Boeing 737, the Boeing 777, and the Sukhoi Superjet 100. As of March 2020, there are 247 passenger aircraft registered in the Aeroflot fleet. For most of its history, Aeroflot's fleet consisted almost entirely of aircraft built by Soviet manufacturers such as Antonov, Ilyushin, and Tupolev. Following the Soviet Union's dissolution and subsequent partition of the airline, Aeroflot began replacing its old Soviet aircraft with modern Western and some new-generation Russian models. Aeroflot's CEO Vitaly Saveliev intends to make its fleet younger in accordance with its corporate strategy to keep the airline competitive with other international airlines.
  • 3.8K
  • 29 Nov 2022
Topic Review
L-Twin
A V-twin engine, also called a V2 engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Although widely associated with motorcycles (installed either transversely or longitudinally), V-twin engines have also been used for industrial engines and in several small cars. The V-twin design dates back to the late 1880s.
  • 3.8K
  • 28 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Driver Drowsiness Detection Systems
Continuous advancements in computing technology and artificial intelligence have led to improvements in driver monitoring systems. Numerous experimental studies have collected real driver drowsiness data and applied various artificial intelligence algorithms and feature combinations with the goal of significantly enhancing the performance of these systems in real-time. 
  • 3.8K
  • 23 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Airbus Beluga XL
The Airbus BelugaXL (A330-743L) is a large transport aircraft based on the Airbus A330-200F built by Airbus to replace the original Airbus Beluga in the movement of oversized aircraft components like wings. The aircraft made its first flight on 19 July 2018, and received its type certification on 13 November 2019. The BelugaXL entered service with Airbus Transport on 9 January 2020.
  • 3.8K
  • 27 Oct 2022
Topic Review
List of Aircraft in the Smithsonian Institution
The List of aircraft in the Smithsonian Institution includes aircraft exhibited in the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, and the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility. The Smithsonian Institution's collection of aircraft and spacecraft is the largest on display in the world.
  • 3.8K
  • 21 Oct 2022
Topic Review
MOSE Project
MOSE (MOdulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico, Experimental Electromechanical Module) is a project intended to protect the city of Venice, Italy, and the Venetian Lagoon from flooding. The project is an integrated system consisting of rows of mobile gates installed at the Lido, Malamocco, and Chioggia inlets that are able to isolate the Venetian Lagoon temporarily from the Adriatic Sea during acqua alta high tides. Together with other measures, such as coastal reinforcement, the raising of quaysides, and the paving and improvement of the lagoon, MOSE is designed to protect Venice and the lagoon from tides of up to 3 metres (9.8 ft). The Consorzio Venezia Nuova is responsible for the work on behalf of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport – Venice Water Authority. Construction began simultaneously in 2003. On 10 July 2020, the first full test was successfully completed, and after multiple delays, cost overruns, and scandals resulted in the project missing its 2018 completion deadline (originally a 2011 deadline) it is now expected to be fully completed by the end of 2021.
  • 3.7K
  • 10 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Instituto Superior Técnico
Instituto Superior Técnico (IST, also known as TECNICO LISBOA) is a public school of engineering and technology , part of Universidade de Lisboa (University of Lisbon). Founded in 1911, IST is the largest and most prestigious school of engineering in Portugal, having a large degree of scientific and financial autonomy. Its alumni have held prominent positions in both the private and public sectors of Portuguese society, having produced numerous CEOs, government ministers, 2 Prime Ministers of Portugal, and 1 Secretary-General of the United Nations. Some Rankings: Instituto Superior Técnico - World's TOP 50 Eng Univ 2018 Instituto Superior Técnico. World's 8th Best Civil Eng Univ 2017 IST, since its foundation, has been the largest school of engineering, science and technology in Portugal, at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It has three campi, all located in the Greater Lisbon area (Alameda in Lisbon, Taguspark in Oeiras and Tecnológico e Nuclear Campus in Loures), and consists of ten Departments that are responsible for teaching the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Each Department is organised in sections, which group together specific subjects within its scientific area. In addition, the laboratories of the several Departments are an important source of support to the teaching and research activities carried out at IST. IST offers 18 undergraduate programmes attended by more than 6,000 students, covering a wide range of areas of knowledge, including not only all the traditional engineering specializations, but also other modern areas such as Biomedical Engineering, Aerospace and Physics Engineering. Over 4,500 students are enrolled in 33 masters, 31 doctoral and several specialized programmes. IST has produced 1,292 Ph.D. holders. IST is also actively involved in several networks and international programmes to promote student mobility, both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Through a large number of agreements with other institutions worldwide, IST participates in more than 20 Dual Master programmes, and joint PhD programmes with MIT, CMU, UT-Austin and EPFL. IST benefits from an IBM supercomputer built in 2007, which is one of the most powerful in Portugal (1.6 TFLOPS as of 2007).
  • 3.7K
  • 30 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Roadable Aircraft
A roadable aircraft is a type of flying car. It is a hybrid vehicle that combines the flying capability of an aircraft with the option of being driven as an automobile on the ground. The roadable aircraft is typically recognized as a small plane with retractable wings that can fly in the open sky and to drive along roads. Most roadable aircraft have either integrated or modular components. In the U.S., the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has shown an interest in the concept with a $65 million program called Transformer to develop a four-person roadable aircraft by 2015. The vehicle is required to take off vertically, and have a 280-mile (450 km) range. AAI Corporation and Lockheed Martin were awarded contracts in late 2010 for the Phase 1 program. Lockheed Martin's design was selected to continue to Phase 3.
  • 3.7K
  • 10 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Shipunov 2A42
The Shipunov 2A42 is a Soviet/Russian 30 mm autocannon. It is built by the Tulamashzavod Joint Stock Company.
  • 3.7K
  • 11 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Merchant Vessel
A merchant vessel, trading vessel or merchantman is a boat or ship that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This excludes pleasure craft that do not carry passengers for hire; warships are also excluded. They come in a myriad of sizes and shapes, from twenty-foot inflatable dive boats in Hawaii, to 5,000 passenger casino vessels on the Mississippi River, to tugboats plying New York Harbor, to 1,000 foot oil tankers and container ships at major ports, to a passenger carrying submarine in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Most countries of the world operate fleets of merchant ships. However, due to the high costs of operations, today these fleets are in many cases sailing under the flags of nations that specialize in providing manpower and services at favourable terms. Such flags are known as "flags of convenience". Currently, Liberia and Panama are particularly favoured. Ownership of the vessels can be by any country, however. The Greek-owned fleet is the largest in the world. Today, the Greek fleet accounts for some 16 per cent of the world’s tonnage; this makes it currently the largest single international merchant fleet in the world, albeit not the largest in history. During wars, merchant ships may be used as auxiliaries to the navies of their respective countries, and are called upon to deliver military personnel and materiel.
  • 3.7K
  • 25 Oct 2022
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