Fold-up paper Cybertruck beats Tesla to production

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/12/17/tesla-cybertruck-paper-fold-up-origami-model/

Despite the increasing popularity and regularity of Lego’s super-cool automotive kits, anything beyond the small starter cars can admittedly be a bit pricey. Not everybody has $300, $100, or even $50 to blow on a car toy for the desk. So we’re here to present a solution: fold-up paper cars. A website called FoldUpToys.com recently unveiled one of the most hotly debated vehicles of the year, the Tesla Cybertruck, and it’s available right now.

Graphic designer and paper engineer Alex Josephine Gwynne created the crafty design and released the template online for free download. According to her bio, she’s been shaping paper designs for about a decade, and she has experience working with game developers, book publishers, and educational providers. One quick glance at her work, and it’s obvious she knows what she’s doing. 

The CyberPaper is not meant to be an exact replica, but it does have quite a bit of detail. Using proper coloring and shading, the model shows the steel body, the massive windshield, the large rear cover, and the chunky wheels. Plus, the angular shape of the vehicle makes it a perfect candidate for folding hard edges. 

For this specific model, Alex recommends 250 gsm card stock. Once the design is downloaded and printed onto a single sheet of paper, the process is pretty simple. Using a craft knife, a pair of scissors, and some glue, the paper can be morphed into a Cybertruck using the dotted lines, numbered tabs, and included instructions.

Naturally, the Tesla fanatics are loving it, and some have already turned the toy into a a festive holiday ornament, as seen below. If you want to try building one for yourself, check out all the designs over at FoldUpToys, and send us a photo on social media once you’re finished.

via Autoblog https://ift.tt/1afPJWx

December 17, 2019 at 03:59PM

NASA’s X-59 supersonic jet is cleared for final assembly

https://www.engadget.com/2019/12/17/nasa-x59-supersonic-jet-assembly/

NASA’s experimental X-59 jet, which could make supersonic commercial travel a reality, has been cleared for final assembly. The X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft, designed by Lockheed Martin, could take its first flight as soon as 2021.

This is NASA’s first large-scale, piloted x-plane (or experimental aircraft) in more than three decades, and its goal is to reduce the loudness of a sonic boom to more of a sonic thump. When the long, slender jet transitions to supersonic speed, it will make about as much noise a car door closing, and since it will be flying 940 MPH at 55,000 feet, that could be essentially inaudible.

NASA will test the X-59 over select US communities to gather feedback, as it has done with the F/A-18 Hornet aircraft over Galveston, Texas. Those tests will help establish new rules for commercial supersonic air travel over land.

Source: NASA

via Engadget http://www.engadget.com

December 17, 2019 at 11:30AM