Today’s backpacker may be way off-grid on a remote island or up a perilous mountain – but they usually still expect to enjoy a decent cup of quality coffee. For alpha trekkers, a tepid stewed flask of instant coffee just won’t cut it. So Seattle-based high-end outdoor kit specialist Grayl has just launched an accessory that demonstrates how much those North Westerners value their caffeine hit.

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Category: Gear, Outdoors

Tags: Water, Filters, Survival, Coffee, Backpacking, Camping

The hot trends of civilian supersonic flight and artificial intelligence collide as Boom Supersonic announces that, as a new revenue stream, the core technology of its Mach 1+ Symphony jet engine has been adapted to run power-hungry AI data centers.

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Category: Energy, Technology

Tags: Boom, Turbine, Data Center, Electricity

The best flashlight is the one you have on you – but it sure helps if your flashlight is easy to bring with you everywhere. That's where the ED08 from Rodman scores major points: it's roughly the size of a coin, and is thoughtfully designed to earn its keep in your EDC and adventure kit.

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Category: Gear, Outdoors

Tags: EDC, Flashlights, Titanium, Camping, Lighting

The expression of symbolic behavior, such as drawing, dates back to Paleolithic societies. Alongside modern humans (Homo sapiens), we now know that Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) also engaged in abstract behavior.

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Category: History, Science

Tags: Archaeology, Evolution, Art

Over the past few years, chocolate fans may have noticed a concerning change in the taste and texture of their favorite brands, due to confectioners adjusting their recipes in response to global cocoa shortages and sky-high prices.

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Category: Science

Tags: National University of Singapore, Chocolate, Food

Analog cameras are nowhere near as efficient as biological eyes. If you’ve ever handled a single-lens reflex (SLR) camera, especially if it had a zoom lens attached, you know how heavy they are, and how tricky and time-consuming adjusting their focus can be.

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Category: Robotics, Technology

Tags: Georgia Tech, Soft Robotics, Eye, Biomimicry, Hydrogels, Optics

Want to call someone a quick-thinker? The easiest cliché for doing so is calling her a computer – in fact, “computers” was the literal job title of the “Hidden Figures” mathematicians who drove the success of early NASA.

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Category: Computers, Consumer Tech, Technology

Tags: Aalto University, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Optical Computing

There's a well-established link between depression and chronic low-grade inflammation. Now, a new meta-study shows that treating the inflammation can reduce depression in two ways, offering a potential alternative to antidepressants and their side effects.

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Category: Mental Health, Brain Health, Body and Mind

Tags: Depression, Anti-inflammatory, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, antidepressant

With its modest footprint and low ceilings, you're not going to be throwing any wild parties in the Nozawa. However, provided you don't want to host a rager, this compact tiny house sleeps two people in a practical interior that blends traditional Japanese design with modern space-saving ideas.

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Category: Tiny Houses, Outdoors

Tags: Building and Construction, Tiny Footprint, Micro-House, House, Home

I'm always excited to learn what Pebble is up to, because this gadget brand – which made a name for itself with its lo-fi smartwatch – decidedly does things differently. Its latest product is an AI-enabled device that seeks to avoid the pitfalls of recent fiascos in this category, with thoughtful features and an approach to packaging you don't often come across.

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Category: Wearables, Consumer Tech, Technology

Tags: Gadgets, Voice Recorder, Voice, Speech, Artificial Intelligence, Pebble

A massive global study has turned up some grim news: that nearly 87% of us are not routinely getting quality sleep and meeting physical activity levels needed for our long-term health. Now, scientists have discovered that one is more influential than the other.

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Category: Wellness and Healthy Living, Body and Mind

Tags: Flinders University, Sleep, Exercise, Physical activity, Obesity, Metabolic syndrome

Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works has shown how combat drones can think on the fly with a demonstration of its AI-Driven Mission Contingency Management (AI/MCM) system that can adjust missions in the face of unforeseen events.

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Category: Military, Technology

Tags: Lockheed Martin, Skunk Works, drones, Artificial Intelligence

What do the likes of the BMW R 1300 GS, Triumph Tiger 1200, KTM 1290 Super Adventure, and Ducati Multistrada V4 all have in common? They’re all top-shelf adventure motorcycles from Europe’s premier manufacturers, packed with every bell and whistle you could imagine.

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Category: Motorcycles, Transport

Tags: CFMoto, Adventure Bikes, Off-road, KTM, BMW Motorrad, Ducati, Triumph, Honda Motorcycles

The all-new Float tent from startup FLFQ-Aloner looks to make camping faster, easier and tailored to the conditions on the ground. Thanks to an inflatable exo-frame construction, it pitches in under a minute with minimal effort. And when the ground gets too rocky, soggy or scratchy, the tent leaps up into the trees on a stable spreader hammock, creating a compact, free-hanging camping pod that won't tilt or twist. The design is even built to hold up to light hurricane-level wind.

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Category: Tents, Gear, Outdoors

Tags: Tent, Tree tent, Hammocks, Camping, Outdoors and Camping, Backpacking, Kickstarter, Inflatable

Most pet dogs carry a little wolf inside them; tiny snippets of wolf DNA that slipped into dog genomes after domestication. A new study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has found that almost two-thirds of dog breeds have a small amount of wolf genes, which may have provided them with unique advantages to survive in diverse human environments.

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Category: Biology, Science

Tags: Pets, Dogs, Genetics, DNA, Evolution

DNA can sustain serious injuries called double strand breaks, in which both strands of the helix snap. These breaks are among the most dangerous forms of DNA damage and immediately trigger the cell's damage response. Because DNA damage constantly threatens the stability of our genome, the ability to repair it is vital. When repair systems weaken, diseases can arise. That's why scientists study the molecular pathways of DNA repair: they could lead to new therapies.

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Category: Imaging & Diagnostics, Medical Innovations, Body and Mind

Tags: DNA, Repair, Research

Needles for sewing together seemingly disparate RV categories continue to be threaded. The new Atlas Cabin Box from Hotomobil is similar to a few concepts and products we've looked over during the course of 2025, but it ultimately pulls together a full-bodied pickup camper and a rooftop tent in a way we haven't quite seen before. It's an affordable truck camping option that keeps the truck extremely lightweight and relatively compact ... until it's time to unfurl a full truck-back base camp.

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Category: Pickup Campers, Adventure Vehicles, Outdoors

Tags: Pickup, Truck, Camping, Off-road, roof-top tent, RV, Outdoors and Camping

If you’re going to kill animals for food, don’t waste their parts – that’s just rude. Use everything, snout-to-tail, and not just bones for glue or stomachs for drink-bags, either. Get creative!

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Category: Robotics, Technology

Tags: EPFL, Biomimicry, Recycling

Adding to the growing body of research that proves our microbiome is a powerful ally in fighting disease, scientists have found that an easy-to-get nutrient in our food causes our guts to produce powerful insulin-regulating compounds.

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Category: Diet & Nutrition, Wellness and Healthy Living, Body and Mind

Tags: Type 2 diabetes, Diabetes, Imperial College London, Diet, Insulin, Microbiome, Gut health

It'll likely be a while before we have humanoid robots taking over our household chores, but what you can count on sooner is seeing more robots in industrial settings, like factories and warehouses.

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Category: Robotics, Technology

Tags: Artificial Intelligence, Robots, MIT