Weekly Roundup: NASA Would Like Some Money, Tesla's Million Mile Battery, Robot Gymnast May Unsettle You

Lawren Henderson
Staff Writer at Cluster

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It's Friday so it's time for your look back at the interesting stories you might've missed in hiring, aerospace, and engineering including video of a humanoid robot gymnast from Boston Dynamics that gives off slightly eerie iRobot (2004, dir. Alex Proyas) vibes.

The Road Back to the Moon Goes Through Congress

NASA’s Artemis program intends to land another man and the first woman on the moon by 2024, but there’s just one not insignificant problem with that ambition – money. The venture is expected to cost somewhere between $20 billion and $30 billion. Former Republican representative and current NASA Administrator Jim Bridentstine is tasked with getting Congress to approve an additional $1.6 billion in next year’s budget. It’s easier said than done, and will require a lot of sweet talking by Bridentstine to convince his former colleagues to fund a program that doesn’t translate to votes back home.

Read more at The Washington Post >>

Apple Wants You to Know It's Investing in the US Economy

Apple quashed rumors that it was moving production of its flagship desktop computer Mac Pro abroad by confirming it will be manufactured in the same Austin, Texas facility as the previous model. The tech giant is on track to pump $350 billion in the US economy by 2023, and says its investment in innovation supports 2.4 million jobs across all 50 states. To date, Apple has invested over $1 billion in American companies from its Advanced Manufacturing Fund — and has committed to spending $5 billion in total.

Read more at Apple >>

Ask a Business Space Reporter Anything

How do you begin to value the space industry and why is it at $400 billion? Will we see space lasers in action rather soon or is that a technology for +5 years from now? Why are so many billionaires investing in space travel?  If you’ve ever pondered these questions then ponder no longer. Michael Sheetz, a space business reporter for CNBC, recently held a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything), where he illuminates the internet on the business of the final frontier.

Read more at Reddit >>

Tesla’s Million Mile EV Battery Not a Pipe Dream After All  

Like any good showman CEO, Elon Musk is fond of making headline-grabbing claims when it comes to Tesla products. Last April, he teased that Tesla would soon be able to power its electric cars for more than a million miles over the course of their lifespan – double the current mileage. While some might've written off the boast as hyperbole, an article published in The Journal of the Electrochemical Society suggests that he wasn’t blowing smoke. If the report is any indication, these high-performance batteries may appear in Tesla vehicles a lot sooner than anyone, save for Musk, would have guessed.

Read more at Wired >>

This Robot’s Gymnastics Routine Will Astound and Unsettle You

A robot gymnast from Boston Dynamics is fixin’ to give Simone Biles a run for her money. The bipedal humanoid machine named Atlas was recently filmed performing a pretty basic but no less exciting tumbling pass consisting of somersaults, spinning jumps, a balletic split leap and handstand. The robot moves with an eerie locomotion that is as impressive as it is chilling. See the video for yourself and tremble.

Read more at The Verge >>

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www.clusterinc.com/articles/weekly-roundup-boston-dynamics-robot-gymnast
Published on
September 26, 2019