This presentation by UK car dealers Evans Halshaw takes us on a ride through the history of Bond cars. Classics include the open-top Sunbeam Alpine seen in Dr. No, the submersible Esprit Series 1 in The Spy Who Loved Me, and the comically unconventional Citroen 2CV. The quintessential Aston Martin makes no less than eight appearances, including a vintage silver-birch DB5 in the upcoming Bond film, Skyfall.
Have a look at some the wonderfully minimalist illustrations of the Bond vehicles after the jump.
It turns out that quadrocopters can do much more than fly about in unison, sounding like a bunch of angry bees. Under the right direction, they can be made to perform music. The capable boffins over the University of Pennsylvania’s General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception Lab (or GRASP for short) have managed to program a group of quadrocopters to play different musical instruments to a familiar tune.
Here is the science-y stuff:
In this demonstration, the “stage” is in a room fitted with infrared lights and cameras. The nano quads all have reflectors on their struts, which allows the camera system to plot their exact position and relay that information wirelessly to each unit.
Lab members can then assign each unit a series of waypoints in three-dimensional space that must be reached at an exact time. In this case, those times and places translate into notes on a keyboard or a strum of a guitar. Figuring out how to get from waypoint to waypoint most efficiently and without disturbing their neighbors is up to the robots.
Watch the different rotorcraft as they play the keyboard, drums, cymbals, and a modified guitar to perform a robotic rendition of the signature 007 theme. Prepare to be amazed, Mr Bond.
