New Atlas

Gizmag is now New Atlas:  Why we changed our name SCIENCE First gene-edited meal served up from CRISPR cabbage ​It’s not often that a dinner makes history, but that was the case when two men tucked into a meal of pasta and fried vegetables. The historic ingredient? Cabbage that had had its genome edited with CRISPR-Cas9, marking the first time such a plant had been grown, harvested, cooked and eaten.   Read more MUSIC Synths of the 70s provide inspirational flavoring for hand-made music workstation There's something almost magical about the boxy look of synthesized tone creators of yesteryear. Sweden's Love Hulten has drawn on iconic designs from 40 years ago to create the Voxarray 61, a modern sonic laboratory encased in vintage-looking real wood gorgeousness.  Read more ARCHITECTURE British architecture competition showcases fresh talent RIBA has revealed its six finalists for this year's Stephen Lawrence Prize. The competition highlights projects built for under £1 million by fresh architectural talent, and this year's selection includes a mobile off-grid artists' studio and an environmentally-friendly school.   Read more AUTOMOTIVE VW and DoorBird let drivers see who's at the door Volkswagen wants to make it a bit easier to communicate with delivery drivers and mailmen, allowing people to connect their infotainment system to the video bell attached to their doors. ​   Read more SCIENCE Edible insect farms creep closer to reality in Europe Insects can be a delicious, not-at-all-creepy food source that could save us all from a looming global protein deficit. The good news is that the main objection – that they pose chemical and biological health risks – has been tentatively ruled out by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).    Read more AUTOMOTIVE Refreshed Mazda 6 gets G-Vectoring Control for sharper handling Although the 6 formula really didn't need tweaking, Mazda engineers haven't rested on their laurels. Instead, the facelifted midsizer from Hiroshima comes loaded with clever new chassis technology to keep keen drivers happy.  Read more AUTOMOTIVE Five must-do pilgrimages for motoring disciples What if you had to choose just five events to slot into your automotive bucket list? The question has been playing on our minds here at New Atlas, so we've put together five of our favorite celebrations of motoring passion.   Read more SPACE When worlds collide: Planetary impact may have brought life-giving carbon to early Earth ​All life on Earth is carbon-based, but where did that carbon come from? Most should either have escaped into space or become locked in the core. Now a study suggests a new answer: a collision with a Mercury-like protoplanet 4.4 billion years ago may have brought a fresh supply of the vital element.   Read more MARINE Royal Navy's self-driving speedboat takes to the Thames ​The Royal Navy's latest seagoing robot took to the waves today in the heart of London. Accompanied by patrol boat HMS Archer, the unmanned MAST autonomous speedboat negotiated the traffic on the Thames estuary.   Read more DRONES Drone captures rarely seen white whale calf cuddling up to mommy ​​Drones are becoming hugely valuable tools in adding to what we know about the creatures of the ocean. Now researchers have dispatched them to study the behaviour of southern right whales and captured a very rare sight, a white calf splashing about off the coast of Western Australia. ​   Read more ARCHITECTURE Himalayan retreat offers remote working, literally A great deal of co-living and co-working spaces are located in cities, but that doesn't always need to be the case. An extreme example of this is Carlo Ratti Associati's planned Pankhasari Retreat, which aims to let people work online from the Himalayas.   Read more SPACE Finding Philae: Scientists finally spy AWOL comet lander hiding in the shadows An almost two-year-long cosmic search party has come to an end, with scientists at the Euorpean Space Agency spying their Philae comet lander wedged into the dark crack on the surface of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.   Read more MUSIC Yamaha adds acoustic piano to MusicCast multi-room streaming range ​Last year, Yamaha added over 20 new products to its multi-room streaming platform. That momentum has slowed down a little this year, but the company threw a curve ball at the weekend by announcing that its Disklavier Enspire reproducing piano had been welcomed into the MusicCast family.   Read more ARCHITECTURE Light show signals opening of Bangkok's pixelated ribbon tower  The completion of Thailand's tallest tower was celebrated last week with a spectacular light show. The MahaNakhon, which covers an area of 14,950 sq m in Bangkok's Sathorn Central Business District and rises to 314-m, is wrapped in a distinctive ribbon of pixels.   Read more SPECIAL PROMOTION FOR NEW ATLAS READERS Privatoria VPN Offers Total Online Privacy For Life, Now Just $29 Imagine a world where anonymous communication, anonymous surfing, and secure file transfers exist in one easy-to-use service. The team at Privatoria made this a reality, helping your data to stay safe and confidential while you browse the Internet. Privatoria doesn't require an ounce of tech background to set up, and doesn't keep any logs of your activity.  Read more