New research has predicted that driverless cars could worsen traffic congestion in the coming decades, partly because of drivers' attitudes to the emerging technology and a lack of willingness to share their rides.
Read moreUrban commuters may be less likely to encounter automobile accidents if they are willing to increase trip time, researchers report. A new study introduces a tool that helps quantify the connection between traffic accidents and city road networks.
Read moreThe leading edges of aircraft wings have to meet a very demanding set of characteristics. New research shows that a combination of steel composite metal foam and epoxy resin has more desirable characteristics for use as a leading-edge material than the aluminum currently in widespread use.
Read moreA recent study finds that people are likely to blame robots for workplace accidents, but only if they believe the robots are autonomous.
Read moreA team of researchers performed wind tunnel experiments to determine the role of asymmetry caused by the orientation of a volleyball on its aerodynamic characteristics. They found that switching from the standard panel arrangement to a hexagonal or dimpled pattern may improve the consistency of flight, with many potential applications in aviation.
Read moreEngineers have developed decision-making and motion-planning technology to limit injuries and damage when self-driving vehicles are involved in unavoidable crashes. After recognizing that a collision of some kind is inevitable, the system works by analyzing all available options and choosing the course of action with the least serious outcome.
Read morePeople who illegally ride off-road vehicles, such as dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles, on city streets suffer similar crash injuries as motorcyclists, but are less likely to die even though many riders don't wear helmets, according to new research.
Read moreIn an effort to make robots more effective and versatile teammates for Soldiers in combat, researchers are on a mission to understand the value of the molecular living functionality of muscle, and the fundamental mechanics that would need to be replicated in order to artificially achieve the capabilities arising from the proteins responsible for muscle contraction.
Read moreEngineers are advancing what researchers know about hypersonic flight. A new study describes a series of tests that elucidate the conditions a future aircraft may experience traveling faster than 10 times the speed of sound.
Read moreResearchers have surveyed more than 2000 drivers across Australia, France and Sweden for two separate studies investigating what people think about travelling in automated cars. The first international study found French drivers were more likely to one day buy an automated car than drivers in Australia or Sweden. The second study surveyed local Queensland drivers and identified what they saw as the pros and cons of letting a car drive itself.
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