Technology, Innovation & Outdoor News

Unassuming 1.6-oz EDC essential stashes serious survival capability

June 22, 2026 | C.C. Weiss
After packaging full fire-starting capabilities neatly inside a 2-oz (57-g) capsule that doubled as a high-pitched whistle, Outdoor Element is now integrating that same spark-flicking capability into a more useful everyday tool: the common pen.

Going retro: Commodore strips the smartphone back to essentials

June 22, 2026 | Monica J. White
The reborn Commodore brand has broken into the phone industry with the Callback 8020, a retro flip phone that runs 99% of Android apps through privacy-focused Sailfish OS while blocking social media and browsers for a calmer digital life.

Lizard-inspired wiggly wheels let Mars rover swim through sand

June 22, 2026 | Ben Coxworth
The sandfish lizard moves very efficiently through the sand, and not surprisingly, it doesn't use wheels to do so. Scientists have now copied the reptile's swimming motion in an experimental Mars rover that outperforms others in sandy soil.

Top Stories

Picture a tiny house in your mind and it probably looks a little like a cottage on wheels. However, Quadrapol's La Ruche takes a different approach and stacks its living spaces vertically like a tower.
Bosch has launched its first hub motor, the Hub Line, targeting urban riders who want electric assist in a compact, lightweight package. Canyon and Vello are already on board, with both debuting Hub Line bikes at Eurobike next week.
Gazelle Tents looks to streamline base camp setup by slimming its tried-and-true hub-frame formula into a tall, sturdy bathroom/privacy tent that pitches in a mere minute and a half.
The Felicia is a compact and easily towable tiny house that focuses on freedom and simplicity. The home can optionally run off-grid, making it well suited to life away from campsites and trailer parks.
One for the "why hasn't this been done before?" department: Norway has greenlit construction of the world's first ocean ship tunnel. If the final budget receives parliamentary approval, work on the Stad Ship Tunnel will begin on the country's west coast.
“Less is more.” CFMoto’s latest motorcycle embodies that philosophy, especially in a class that has not just been growing in popularity, but also in the size of the motorcycles themselves. This one’s simple and straightforward … and I like that.

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Health and Science news from our sister site: Refractor
New research on a pterosaur fossil reveals secrets of the creature’s life, including microscopic inner structures of its bones and traces of its biology and diet. The findings show that molecular evidence can survive for more than 100 million years.
An experiment conducted by a team of researchers from Texas A&M University has revealed a healing sequence in mammalian physiology that rebuilds lost skeletal structure, albeit with less than perfect results.
In simulations, Boston University researcher Brian Walsh and colleagues found that their system, dubbed StormWall, could halve the intensity of a geomagnetic storm.
People taking fish-oil supplements in an effort to shield their brain from Alzheimer's disease might be better off investing that money in their diet, with a two-year study finding that omega-3 pills offer no protection from cognitive decline.
The volatile seismic zone along the roughly 750-mile San Andreas Fault beneath California are "critically stressed" – a level of pressure that has reached its highest point in 1,000 years – increasing the likelihood of a big earthquake hitting the US.
Scientists have not just found a new way that aging cells drive inflammation, but have also blocked it from happening with an existing FDA-approved drug. This opens the door to an entirely new way to shield the body from age-related health decline.

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Editor's Picks

Dragon Tiny Homes' Webster is well-suited to full-time living on wheels and features a spacious interior with three bedrooms, sleeping up to six people. The tiny house is currently up for sale for $85,000.
High on sheer cliffs in China, ancient coffins are wedged into rock faces hundreds of feet above the ground. These dramatic burials, now re-examined using ancient DNA, point to a broader practice where disparate cultures all had their own "sky graves."
You could be forgiven for assuming that this pyramidal skyscraper project was a still from a sci-fi TV show, or perhaps another render that's never going to go ahead. But it is indeed real, and it's begun the early stages of construction.
Shoei has just launched the GT-Air 3 Smart, the world’s first moto helmet to feature fully integrated augmented reality thanks to a partnership with EyeLights, which specializes in head-up displays and Bluetooth audio kits.
The Unicamp Sienna Pop Top camper minivan is now rolling out to customers, filling a void of affordable, flexible small pop-up US camper vans. The van still carries 7 or 8 people but is ready to pull over at a moment's notice and camp the night.
For the last couple of years, Cixi has been working on a three-wheeled vehicle called Vigoz that's based on its chainless pedaling system. A skeletal prototype has been tested to 100 km/h, and now the company has revealed the latest production design.
The Food and Drug Administration has approved a landmark eye drop that uses a combined dose of medication to restore age-related near-sightedness, without the need for surgery, for longer than anything else on the market – and with fewer side effects.
Who could possibly compare to Superman, the Man of Steel? Definitely not a man of plastic! Right? Wrong. Scientists have discovered that unconventionally shaped plastics may rival steel bars as reinforcement materials in construction concrete.