The Accidental Liquid Magnet

The first-ever permanent liquid magnet was made accidentally by scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory at the University of California. “For me, it sort of represents a sort of new state of magnetic materials,” Thomas Russell, the project’s lead researcher, says. The lab was working with iron oxides (compounds made from iron and oxygen) and a researcher there noticed that the particles within an …

Bright Pink Seesaw Unites People at US-Mexico Border

A set of neon pink seesaws along the US-Mexico border (in Sunland Park and Ciudad Juárez, respectively) have been installed by Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello—who work together as Rael San Fratello. The installation—called “Teetertotter Wall”—is playful and powerfully defiant. Rael calls it the “literal fulcrum for the US-Mexico relations” where it’s blindingly clear that “the actions that take place on one side have …

Kaiyun Motors’ Pint-Sized Electric Pickup Truck

Though it certainly didn’t start this way, the electric vehicle market is saturated and quite difficult for automakers to break into. Differentiating  can be nearly impossible, but Chinese automaker Kaiyun Motors is aiming to do so by offering pint-sized autos with top speeds around 30mph. Since May, the company has been selling their $7,999 truck in the US and European markets. Though the truck can’t …