Tech, Home and Auto

AUTO

Pink Romeo
The Alfa Romeo 4C in its shocking matt pink looked like a prototype but will be on sale in the second half of 2012. The 250 kmph 4C is a mid-engined  rear-wheel drive two-seater sports coupe. It has an aluminium and carbon fibre chassis and a body structure with a traverse-mounted Alfa 1750 direct four-cylinder direct injection turbo engine developing more than 200 PS and a twin-clutch gearbox, five seconds to 100 kmph is claimed. Suspension is double wishbones up front and MacPherson struts at the rear. Just 850 kg, all told, it should guarantee terrific performance. Annually, 1,500 cars will be made and the price will be around 45,000 euros — cheaper than rivals like the Porsche Cayman and the Lotus Evora.
-    Ray Hutton


TECH

 




Giant, mutating mouse
Belkin’s mouse, despite its appearance, is not stolen from the set of Transformers 3: All the Money’s Run Out. This blue, glowing monstrosity is a top-end gaming mouse that unfurls to reveal 15 customisable keys, an eight-way non-slip thumb pad and a removable joystick, all of which can be programmed to suit different gaming requirements, from MMORPG to FPS via RTS.
belkin.com/in

 

Fatigue alarm, on the move
Statistics prove that a majority of road accidents are related to driver fatigue. The Anti Sleep Pilot app for the iPhone and the iPad, available now on the App Store, might be the solution. It calculates the driver’s fatigue level by evaluating 26 different factors in real time, maintains the individual’s alertness, and alerts the driver when he needs to take a break. To start off, the user is required to complete a short assessment test that helps create a personal risk profile. Based on this profile, combined with the user’s status before each trip, the time of day and cumulative drive time, the app calculates and displays the progression of the fatigue level and sounds an alarm to indicate break time.
antisleeppilot.com

 

 

 

EVENT

Bhutan literary festival
This May, you have more reasons to visit Bhutan other than its vivid landscapes, hiking trails and ancient temples. The India-Bhutan Foundation, in association with Siyahi, has organised a literary festival, Mountain Echoes 2011. The four-day fiesta will comprise several sessions that will be hosted against the most striking backdrop of mountains at Thimphu. The festival includes workshops and concerts at the quaint Clock Tower and engaging discussions at the best of locations and will see participation from the who’s who of Bhutan and India.

Events include Treasures of the Thunder Dragon, Stories of Earth and Sky: Folk Tales and Contemporary Themes, Crafting Identity, Memoirs and Biographies, Myth and Memory, The Power of She, Writings in Dzongkha and performances based on songs of Rabindranath Tagore.
mountainechoes.org

HOME

Green and Precious
The Pichwai Cow Handle is sand-cast in brass, its herringbone patterned grooves are fitted with semi-precious material such as malachite, lapis lazuli and mother-of-pearl. The Pichwai collection celebrates a joyous period in the life of lord Krishna, which is traditionally illustrated on cloth ‘pichwais’, and includes designs inspired by cows, peacocks, banana trees and lotuses.
viyahome.com

Dude, where’s my chair?

Invisibility is on everyone’s list of superpowers. That’s probably why British designer Ben Alun-Jones has crafted the Affinity Chair that explores the relationship between light and space. Made with acrylic juxtaposed with a one-way mirror, the chair reflects its surroundings and blends with its environment. Ultrasonic sensors detect movement and activate pulsating LEDs that have been built into the frame. The lights begin a frenzied dance at an increasing pace. The lit chair simultaneously becomes transparent in an effort to abscond but stays rooted to its place.benalunjones.co.uk


Pink Romeo courtesy Overdrive; Dude, Where’s My Chair, Green and Precious courtesy Better Interiors; Giant, Mutating Mouse, Fatigue Alarm, on the Move courtesy T3 (This material is reproduced from T3 magazine and is the copyright of or licensed to Future Publishing Limited, a Future plc group company, UK2010. Used under licence. All rights reserved.)