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Focuses on several automotive technologies developed by car manufacturers to enhance performance. Advantages of the development of computer-controlled variable valve timing to the car's engine performance; Benefits of purchasing cars with automatic transmissions; Significance of the introduction of screen-based interfaces that controls audio and navigation functions to drivers.

Discusses the factors that contribute to the expensiveness of road bicycles. Cost of a bicycle; Comparison of building a Serotta bicycle frame and a Mercedes-Benz automobile; Remarks from racer Paul Levine on bicycles.

Focuses on the disappearance of Vietnam-era planes that provide an effective proof-of-concept for the notion of stealth reconnaissance. Features of the YO-3A aircraft; Development of the QT-2, a Schweizer aircraft, to improve the effectiveness of the riverine interdiction craft of the Navy; Outcome of the operational test of the aircraft in Vietnam.

Presents several concept car designs. Description of the Concept 2096, a slug-like car designed by a team from Coventry University in England; Comparison of the concept car design between the 1950s and the 20th century; Features of the Autonomy prototype car from General Motors.

Presents an article about the restoration of a Porsche 911SC automobile. Details of the restoration of the engine of the classic sports car; Cost of the automobile restoration project.

Describes the Symmetry aircraft created by aeronautical engineer Cory Bird. Features of the airplane; Reason for its creation; Estimated costs spent for its creation.

Presents information on the Melmoth 2 homebuilt airplane created by Peter Garrison in the U.S. Background on the construction of the airplane; Information on Melmoth 1; Kinds of aircraft homebuilders.

The ejection seat, introduced in 1942, is Exhibit A in the case for the value of escape technology. It is from ejection statistics that people learn how dangerous it is to fly military fighters and bombers. Approximately 1 out of every 10 seats manufactured since the end of World War II has been used. The vast majority of those chairs saved lives, and the success rate for most sophisticated ejection seats hovers somewhere north of 99.6 percent. British ejection-seat maker Martin-Baker claims 7,001 lives saved by mid-July 2003, 31 in 2003 alone.

Describes the iDrive computer system in the BMW 745i automobile. Purpose of iDrive; Performance of the system during a test; Details on the driver accommodation of the automobile; Criticism on the system. INSETS: Jef Raskin's Rules for Interface Design;Heads Up: Civic at 3 O'Clock.

Describes bush pilots in Alaska. Competition for clients among bush pilots; Flying experiences of Frederick W. Scott Jr., Don Jonz and Harmon Helmericks; Problems with weather-reporting systems; Differences between veteran and novice flyers; Coping with harsh weather conditions.

Presents information on several automobiles. 2005 Land Rover LR3; 2004 Bentley Continental GT; 2005 Honda Odyssey; 2005 Lotus Elise.

Provides information on GE Evolutions, an advanced diesel-electric locomotive. Goal for developing the locomotives; Description of the modern locomotive; Advantages of driving Evolution.

Relates a personal experience of a Porsche car owner as his online Porsche bulletin group hires the dynamometer of the DeMan MotorSport Porsche racing shop in New York City. Information on how a dynamometer rates a Porsche's horsepower; Description of a classic chassis dyno; Risk of running an automobile on a dynamometer.

Features the Hinckley single-engine Picnic Boat. Price range; Description of the hull of the boat; Function of the Picnic Boat's controller.

The article presents information on how to handle a high-performance car. The car culture suggests people to buy cars that are fast enough to get any ordinary driver into a world of hurt in about six seconds. Television advertisements of automobiles urge viewers to buy a high-performance automobile and drive it as if they knew how. Yet aside from the tiny minority of drivers who attend performance-driving schools, people don't know how to drive high-performance cars. Performance-driving schools cost thousands. The author gets his Porsche automobile onto a racetrack for a hundred bucks by renting a track with about 150 other drivers, under the auspices of the Porsche Club of America, and the C-note — the cost varies a bit depending upon the track and the sponsoring PCA region — is the fee to participate in a driver-education day. This basically consists of screaming around the track as fast as you're able to, with a club instructor — usually a serious amateur racer — in the right-hand seat. It isn't racing, but it can push you to the limit of your driving skills in a safe and smart way. One of the best-kept secrets of enthusiast driving is that a number of marque clubs do much the same thing as Porsche's, and many of them welcome a variety of other models. These events are low-key and noncompetitive. Cars are allowed to pass only on selected straights and only after the slower driver has signaled. It's probably safer than the drive to the track.

Troy Irving's 18-year-old Dodge Caravan has the world's most powerful sound system. It has 72 amplifiers, 36 big 16-volt batteries to put out the 130,000 watts of power needed to rumble his nine 15-inch subwoofers. At a curb weight of about 10,000 pounds, the Caravan is basically undrivable. Irving's audio system can't play music. It's designed to play a single frequency, 74 Hz and very loud. Irving is a decibel drag racer. In this race competitors go head-to-head for two or three seconds at a time to establish whose sound system is loudest.

Focuses on the braking systems of automobiles. Different kinds of braking systems used in automobiles by Porsche AG; Use of disc brakes in racing cars; Importance of slow deacceleration automobiles from fast speeds.

Reports on the development of a machine Steinway Model D which is a combination of musical instrument, fine furniture and high-performance engineering. Contributions of Steinway family to various instrument development; Invention of Piano by Henry Steinway.

Discusses various developments in the aircrafts engine manufacturing industries. Features of DB-601 fighter planes; Capabilities of Me-108, a private plane; Benefits of the fuel injection system.

Comments on the experience of handling hawks in sport hunting. Anatomical features of hawks; Power of hawk's vision; History of the sport of falconry.

Presents an article on go-kart racing. Description of go-karts; Experiences during a kart endurance race at Oakland Valley Race Park near Port Jervis, New York; Lessons learned.

Discusses the Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros military jet designed by Czech aeronautical engineer Jan Vlcek. Comparison of L-39 to other jet fighters; View of airshow pilot Larry Salganek on flying a military jet; Two L-39 accidents.

Describes an experience in target practice using a handgun. Type of pistol used; Description of the event; Views on U.S. culture.

Comments on the mystique of the pilots flying small airplanes. Effects of the September 11, 2002 terrorist attacks on the operation of flight schools in the United States; Advantages of general aviation pilots over commercial pilots; Characteristics of pilots in the general aviation.

Provides information on technological innovations in the automobile industry. H2R hydrogen-powered car from BMW; Honda Accord hybrid engine; Acura all-wheel-drive system in the 2005 Acura RL automobile; Gentex Smartbeam automatic headlight brightness system from Gentex.

Presents an article about the competition between BMW and the Volkswagen Group in the automobile industry. Background on the acquisition of Rolls-Royce and its subsidiary Bentley by Volkswagen in 1998; Comments on the Rolls-Royce automobile launched by BMW in 2003; Victory of Volkswagen in the 2003 Le Mans endurance race using a Bentley automobile; Features of the 2004 Bentley Continental GT from Volkswagen.

Provides information on the 118 WallyPower, a turbine-driven yacht. Description of the yacht; Power and speed of WallyPower; Fuel consumption of WallyPower.

Discusses the pros and cons of several technological features of cars. Danger of having an automatic lock door; Features of the Audi RS 6 car; Information on the Mercedes Keyless Go system.

This article focuses on boats.Hydroplane race boats are mated to the water only by the lower half of the spinning prop's disc and the occasional touch of a sponson. Sea kayaks as a sport has been spreading wildly as people with a sense of humor and adventure discover the pleasures of taking a fine boat up a narrow and otherwise inaccessible inlet. The modern sea kayak is one of the most efficient human-powered devices ever invented if you include in the measure not only efficiency, simplicity and speed but utility too.

Presents an article on the experience of a veteran airplane pilot in flying a helicopter. Performance of a student helicopter pilot; Comparisons on the controls of airplane and helicopter.

Describes the design of an ambulance. Brief history on modern ambulances; Cost of the vehicles; Interior design of an ambulance; Type of equipment used.

Explains the reason for the indifferent behavior of U.S. citizens toward Formula 1 (F1) automobile race cars. Description of F1 cars; Manufacturers of F1 cars; Reflection of a Grand Prix racing.

Discusses the impact of Simulation, Training, Assessment and Research (STAR) on the development of bridges, engines and cargo trains. Details of training at the STAR center; Features of voyager-class bridges; List of corridors set up by STAR.

This article profiles Tom Sines, who has spent 27 years building a three-wheeled, battery-powered car, which can hit 60 mph and runs on up to 40 sealed lead-acid batteries. Sines estimates that it would last for 400 discharge/recharge cycles with a maximum range of 100 miles per charge. A joystick handles both steering and throttle and it is very maneuverable.

The article reports on the plan of CalCars, a California eco-car consortium that has converted a handful of Priuses to plug-in models, to issue a free do-it-yourself instruction dossier with photos, a video and a shopping list of all the components you need to convert your car into a hybrid car. The hardware will cost you about $3,000, a third of it for a trunkload of lead-acid electric-bike batteries, so Costco runs are out.

The article evaluates the 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo automobile and offers information on its features and cost.

This article describes some compact cars that are finally available in the U.S. market in 2006. They include the Nissan Versa, Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit. These cars will sport premium features such as Bluetooth, satellite radio, MP3 jacks and elegant interiors.

The article presents information on the Electronic Wedge Brake electronic automobile brakes prototype from Siemens. Screwjacks are driven by electric motors. Several small rollers are trapped between the surface and an opposing corrugated plate. The compression of rollers stop the wheel.

This article presents information on the Hurricane concept truck from automobile manufacturer Jeep. The truck is equipped with a twin 5.7-liter Hemi V8 engine, a carbon-fiber body and a central transfer case called the T-Box. It can move in different directions, including diagonal and rotary. With a top speed of 120mph and a vertical clearance of 14.3 inches, it can go just about anywhere.

Evaluates the Hornet V-120, an electronic deer-avoidance device. Price of the device; Inability of deers to notice the device.

Interviews Lena Ekelund, deputy manager of the design team at Volvo, on the YCC concept car. Reason for aiming a car for women; Views on the possibility that YCC will be perceived as a girly car; Features of the car.

Evaluates the PT Cruiser four-seat convertible from Chrysler. Designs; Features; Benefits from the airfoil-like sport bar.

Presents 5 things to bear in mind before driving at a high speed. Sitting position; Tire condition; Suspension alignment; Brakes.