One of the more common stereotypical futuristic technologies–aside from holograms and intelligent robots–is a self-driving vehicle of some sort. Usually something airborne, because who wouldn’t want to travel fast AND have great views while getting there? When I was a kid, I imagined when I was an adult, I would climb in my hover car, tell it where I wanted to go, and then sit back and relax as my intelligent flying car shuttled me there with no delay.

While I’m pretty certain that flying cars are never going to happen (at least not in my lifetime), self-driving vehicles are actually almost here. In fact, according to Volvo, we might start seeing them on the road as soon as 2017. read more

Oxi the cat, of Northamptonshire, England is a regular British Shorthair cat, just like any other. He enjoys cat things like pouncing on toys, jumping on surfaces and staring down passerby from his house in Desborough. But, at night, this little feline becomes an intrepid explorer, ranging as far as three miles from his home. read more

Earlier this week, the FAA has finally submitted the outline for the proposed regulations for small drone operation and use. But after the submission of the long-awaited proposal, companies like Amazon are far less than pleased. Under these new regulations, small Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) cannot be operated out of the line of sight of the operator, making proposed deliveries from companies like Amazon impossible.

The 200 page regulation draft was published on Sunday, and the President issued a complementary Presidential Memorandum to go along with it. The proposed rules are not set in stone yet, and the FAA will be accepting comments at regulations.gov for the next 60 days or so.

Here’s a brief overview of the important points of the proposed rules: read more

According to AP, Reuters and all those other super-informed organizations, the Wisconsin Assembly has passed a bill to make GPS tracking without consent of the individual a Class A misdemeanor. The bill was introduced earlier this week and is now headed to the Senate for approval. The bill was actually drafted and passed during last year’s session in the Assembly, but the Senate was unable to vote before the session ended. read more