 |
Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
|
 |
Vendetta 2023 All-Terrain Skateboard Could Use Neal Stephenson's Smartwheels
The Vendetta 2023 is from Ungoverned and has front and rear independent traction control. Basically, you can skateboard over anything in nature.
The Vendetta does NOT do all the thinking and balancing for you, you will require balance, skill, judgement, flexibility, coordination, muscle core, a proper childhood playing outdoors and ideally in dirt.
This is not an electric snowboard, this is not an electric skateboard / longboard or non hovering hoverboard.
We are simply Ungoverned.
And we are here to push the boundaries of fun, adventure, human agility and mechanical & electrical engineering in a safe and respectful manner as we seek to explore further our awesome planet.
FYI: The greater % of our customers are elite athletes, X-sports enthusiasts or are in special operations units so before purchasing please first ask yourself...
"Is this for me?"
As I note in my post, the 1903 Pedrail Wheel uses a similar idea to provide mobility over any and all obstacles.
The Vendetta 2023 was in principle predicted by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 novel Snow Crash; he envisioned a skateboard with smartwheels:
Smartwheels use sonar, laser range finding and millimeter wave radar to identify mufflers and other debris. Each one consists of a hub with many tiny spokes. Each spoke telescopes into five sections. On the end is a squat foot, rubber tread on the bottom, swiveling on a ball joint. As the wheel rolls, the feet plant themselves one at a time, almost glomming into one continuous tire. If you surf over a bump, the spokes contract to roll over it.
(Read more about Neal Stephenson's smartwheels)
Another example of this idea (except that you can sit down!), implemented in a living creature, is the buggaroo from The Secret of the Canali by Clifton B. Kruse, published by Astounding Science Fiction in 1938.

(Buggaroo from 'The Secret of the Canali' by Clifton B. Kruse)
About eight feet long, and half as high, their grub-shaped bodies completely covered with chitinous plates, they creep over the hot sands on their dozen stumpy legs with the grace and speed of a caterpillar.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 9/9/2023)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.
| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories -
("
Vehicle
")
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
'I hope all those other cars are on automatic,' he said anxiously. - Arthur C. Clarke, 1976.
Caterpillar Electric Mining Loader Not Yet Ready For Moon
'...the excavations were already in progress, for he saw gray slopes of rubble.' Jack Williamson, 1939.
Engineer Creates Crazy Motorized Track Hospital Bed
The Roujin Z system provides care to fully bedridden patients - and then some!
Xiaomi Self-Driving Self-Balancing Scooter
'Norman... had never ridden any motorized device that lacked onboard steering and balance systems.' - Bruce Sterling, 1998.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!)
is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for
the Invention Category that interests
you, the Glossary, the Invention
Timeline, or see what's New.
|
 |
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
LLM 'Cognitive Core' Now Evolving
'Their only check on the growth and development of Vulcan 3 lay in two clues: the amount of rock thrown up to the surface... and the amount of the raw materials and tools and parts which the computer requested.'
Has Elon Musk Given Up On Mars?
'There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.'
Bacteria Turns Plastic Into Pain Relief? That Gives Me An Idea.
'I guess there's nobody round this table who doesn't have a Crosswell [tapeworm] working for him in the small intestine.'
When Your Child's Best Friend Is An AI
'Figments of his mind in one sense, of course, for he had shaped them...'
China's Drone Mothership Can Carry 100 Drones
'So the parent drone carries a spotter that it launches...'
Drones Recharge In Mid-Air Like Jets Refuel!
'...nurse drones that would cruise around dumping large amounts of power into randomly selected pods.'
Australian Authors Reject AI Training Of Llama
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.'
Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.'
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
'I hope all those other cars are on automatic,' he said anxiously.
Is Agentic AI The Wrong Kind Of Smartness?
'It’s smart enough to go wrong in very complicated ways, but not smart enough to help us find out what’s wrong.'
Heat Waver - The First Ever Combo Solar Collector And Wind Turbine
'...like a spray of tulips mounted fanwise.'
Tesla 'Fleet Response Agents' Bolster FSD Autonomy
'You hate the whole idea that some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre has got your life... in his hands.'
Mori3 Autonomous Shapeshifting Robot
'My homeland is being threatened by the Replicators. Thus far all attempts to stop them have failed.'
Tesla Seeks 'Tesla Robotaxi' And 'Robobus' Trademarks Ignoring Prior Art
'A robobus had just rolled up to the curb.'
Scary Grid Safety Robots
'The ultimate horror for our paranoid culture...'
Does AI Provide A Way Forward For Talk Therapy
'And there in the next room by the sofa sat a familiar suitcase, that of his psychiatrist Dr. Smile.'
More SF in the News Stories
More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories
|
 |