TechMobility Topics

Five years, 1.8 billion miles - NASA's Europa Clipper is the largest robotic probe its ever built.  The mission is to determine if Jupiter's Europa moon has the critical features considered necessary for life. 

For the record, the 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is a true muscle car with a fire breathing 5.5L twin-turbocharged  LT7 DOHC flat-plane crank V8 engine! 

The Saffir-Simpson scale is the familiar five point rating system used to convey the strength of a hurricane to the public.  Problem is, there are a number of other ways that a hurricane can do damage, like storm surges, tornadoes and rain-caused flooding.  Those events are NOT directly relatable to the wind strength - and there lies the problem.  We discuss. 

As artificial intelligence technology becomes infused with most of the applications, software and devices that we interact with daily, a growing list of concerns and ethical issues are coming to the surface.  This is the first of several episodes where we explore those issues. 

The Fiat 500 goes electric on a new electric-specific platform for 2024!  I slide behind the wheel to review this small city car. 

In the middle of America's continuing love affair with all things truck, crossover and SUV, comes BMW with a performance wagon - a passenger car!  Offering the new high performance hybrid, BMW believes that there are just enough folks who would be willing to purchase an over-the-top wagon that retails in the six-figure realm. 

Most consumers are aware of the large Lincoln Navigator, which has been the nameplate's flagship vehicle for almost 30 years.  But how well is the rest of their small line-up known by consumers?  More importantly, can Lincoln even make the short list of vehicles to consider when consumers shop for new wheels?  The Ford luxury nameplate is in the midst of a major makeover that it believes will make them a relevant choice for the upscale luxury vehicle buyer. 

One of the major casualties of Hurricane Helene was thousands of miles away from the actual event - the semiconductor industry.  Turns out that the domestic supply of a critical raw material, was rendered unavailable as the extreme weather event flooded the mines and damaged the town.  Believe it or not, the raw material is quartz, and the town in question is Spruce Pine, located deep in Western North Carolina. 

We discuss the impact of a new Tesla Semi truck that veered off an Interstate highway in California, crashed and caught fire.  The Interstate was closed for nearly 16 hours as firefighters fought the blaze and worked to keep the public safe from noxious fumes. 

If you are a first time listener, I share my purpose for this program and how I go about the research for the topics we discuss during this podcast episode.