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Ford postpones new EVs once more, demonstrating the necessity for established automakers to embrace a startup mindset

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Ford has officially said that it will postpone the manufacturing of two electric vehicles, specifically a cutting-edge EV truck and a three-row EV SUV. The duo is now scheduled to arrive in 2026 and 2027, experiencing delays of one and two years, respectively. Instead, the company will replace them with hybrids in its entire U.S. range.

The CEO of Ford has been indicating delays for some months. In the previous autumn, it deferred $12 billion in scheduled investments. During a financial conference call in February, CEO Jim Farley indicated that hybrids will have a progressively significant impact on our industry’s shift and will remain a permanent fixture. That is the type of serious discussion that shareholders greatly appreciate.

The decision is expected to be well-received by Wall Street, particularly in light of Toyota’s announcement that its sales in the United States increased by 22% compared to the previous year, driven by high demand for hybrid vehicles. Ford’s strategic move seems to be aimed at enhancing cash flow and immediate profitability, a prudent decision for a firm of its magnitude, particularly during periods of unpredictability.

However, it is worth noting that Ford stands out from other well-established car manufacturers in its ability to excel by adopting a startup mentality, a mindset that it seems to have embraced more lately, despite the delays in electric vehicle production. It achieves greater success when it actively influences the market rather than simply reacting to it.

Recently, Ford showcased its startup attitude through the introduction of the Mustang Mach-E, an all-electric crossover. Initially, the intention was to create a practical crossover vehicle with an electric motor located in the front, when the concept of electric vehicles (EVs) first emerged about ten years ago. The design possessed aerodynamic qualities, although it lacked inspiration to such an extent that one of the company’s exterior designers expressed doubt about its marketability. Based on the appearance of the proposed design, it was reasonable to have misgivings.

However, the then-CEO, Jim Hackett, abandoned the concept and imposed a strict deadline of two years for the team to provide an alternative solution. Ford’s achievement of securing second place in U.S. EV sales for consecutive quarters can be attributed to the successful introduction of a crossover model.

The success of the Mustang Mach-E was not a result of luck or chance. Ford has a history of performing impressive feats or achieving unexpected successes. In the 1980s, when American automakers faced significant competition from Japanese imports, Ford abandoned its bulky and weighty designs and created the Taurus, which was introduced to the market in late 1985. The car, with its elegant design, spacious interior, and reasonable price, was a novelty for American buyers and quickly became popular. In the initial three years, Ford managed to sell one million units of the product, which may be considered a triumph that probably prevented the business from going bankrupt.

After a span of five years, Ford once again changed its direction by introducing the Explorer. Although SUVs were not a novel concept, at that period, the majority of them were two-door vehicles that prioritized practical features such as towing and off-roading. Automobiles continued to be the prevailing preference among customers. However, with the addition of rear doors and a wide range of amenities, Ford successfully converted the SUV into a vehicle that is suitable for transporting families. Although the debut of the Explorer may have negatively impacted the sales of the company’s automobiles, it turned out to be a wise decision. Not only did it drive the company’s growth for another ten years, but it also anticipated a future where SUVs would dominate the market.

Additionally, Ford employed a rapid and efficient strategy in the creation of the initial Mustang, enabling it to establish a completely novel classification of swift and costly “pony cars.” After World War II, the automaker created the ’49 Ford, a vehicle that defied traditional design and propelled the company to the forefront of sales. Additionally, it is important to acknowledge the original Ford assembly line, which, although not a tangible product, was undeniably a result of entrepreneurial innovation.

Farley is currently confronted with various obstacles. His predecessors were essentially combining and selecting designs, platforms, and manufacturing procedures, while the core component of each of those vehicles, the engine, stayed mostly unchanged. Manufacturers are faced with the task of completely rethinking their approach when it comes to electric vehicles, or at the very least, removing the core components without compromising the original vehicle’s exceptional qualities.

Ford has demonstrated exceptional proficiency in several endeavors. The Mustang Mach-E and the F-150 Lightning are widely regarded as not only outstanding electric vehicles but outstanding automobiles in general.

However, these products have not achieved the level of success that Ford had anticipated. One reason for their lack of popularity is their high cost; however, recent price reductions have demonstrated that there is still a desire for them. Another contributing factor is the insufficient development of the charging infrastructure needed to support these vehicles. If the act of charging is impeding Ford’s ability to sell more electric vehicles, perhaps the company should directly confront and resolve this issue. If Ford is unable to price its electric vehicles competitively while maintaining profitability, it may be necessary for the company to explore other cost-effective methods of manufacturing.

The corporation has initiated the process by establishing Skunkworks, headed by former Tesla executive Alan Clarke, with the objective of creating an affordable electric vehicle. If the team successfully introduces a product to the market, there is a possibility that some of the entrepreneurial energy will be present at Ford.

As Editor here at GeekReply, I'm a big fan of all things Geeky. Most of my contributions to the site are technology related, but I'm also a big fan of video games. My genres of choice include RPGs, MMOs, Grand Strategy, and Simulation. If I'm not chasing after the latest gear on my MMO of choice, I'm here at GeekReply reporting on the latest in Geek culture.

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The PS5 next-gen update for Fallout 4 is now available to be accessed by PS Plus subscribers

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Recently, we reported on the confusion that ardent Fallout fans were having playing the original PS5 version of Fallout 4, which was a result of Amazon’s outstanding adaptation. Individuals who have access to either PS Plus Extra or Premium are now able to upgrade at no cost, as a minor update was released during the weekend.

PSLS has observed that the problem has been resolved, as players are now able to access the next-generation version of the game. Both physical and digital purchasers are eligible for the upgrade, although physical owners will require their discs for the process.

Regrettably, only individuals who obtained Fallout 4 through the now-discontinued PS Plus Collection will be eligible for the upgrade. This decision is consistent with Sony’s current policies, which makes it less unexpected. It is likely that much of the confusion arose because players may have forgotten the precise origin of their digital copy of Fallout 4.

Can you confirm that you can get the PS5 version of Fallout 4 through PS Plus? Talk about how to handle the tricky world of digital rights ownership in the comments section below.

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Science

What was the initial food consumed in space?

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It’s true that space is the final frontier, but life in microgravity still has a long way to go when it comes to food. It seems like this has always been the case. While on the first trip around the sun, Yuri Gagarin ate the first meal ever eaten in space. How did he eat? Yes, it was a choice.

Cosmonaut Gagarin was the first person to go into space. He did one orbit of the Earth in 108 minutes in 1961. Gagarin’s Vostok 1 spaceship had enough food for 13 days in case the retrorocket didn’t work. He would have to wait for Earth to come back to him through natural orbital decay, but it was a good chance to try eating in space. Scientists weren’t sure if basic tasks like chewing and swallowing could be done in microgravity, even though tests had been done on the “Vomit Comet” back on Earth. “No crumbs” was a very important factor, so food that could be turned into a paste and put in a metal tube like toothpaste was used.

Gagarin had two courses, even though he was in orbit for less than two hours. Beef and liver puree was the main dish. Gagarin ate two tubes of it, so maybe it tasted better than it sounds. For dessert, he had a tube of chocolate sauce.

Scientists didn’t know what microgravity would do to people at the time, so they didn’t want Gagarin to lose consciousness, so the capsule was controlled from the ground with a code that could be used to switch to manual control in case of an emergency. This meant they could eat even if something went wrong with their digestion, but Gagarin’s first meal in space showed it was safe to do so.

More and more astronauts went into space and stayed there longer. This made it clear that our taste buds can change when we’re in microgravity. Body fluids move to the top of your head, and research has shown that this may make the smell and taste of food less strong, similar to eating while you have a cold.

As time has gone on, the food and drinks that astronauts and cosmonauts eat and drink in space have changed and gotten better. “Freeze-dried astronaut ice cream” is a thing of the past. Aside from being able to order pizza at the International Space Station (ISS), astronauts can also bake cookies there. Thanks to a specially made cup, you can even get an espresso and drink it in deep space.

Scientists have even been brave enough to see if they can fry food in space. Carefully planned tests were done with a special fryer on a parabolic plane that simulated weightlessness. The results showed that it is possible to deep fry things in microgravity, but please don’t try this at home.

The “no crumbs” rule, on the other hand, is still hard to break, and bread is still a problem. Wraps, pittas, rotis, and bread that doesn’t have crumbs are fine in space, but if you want a space sandwich, we still have work to do.

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Science

The Large Hadron Collider may be on the verge of discovering magnetic monopoles

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Two preprint papers from a large team of experimenters reveal their unsuccessful search for magnetic monopoles, the elusive north or south magnetic poles without partners. However, they express optimism as they make progress in narrowing down the potential locations for these elusive particles.

The preprints, which have not yet undergone peer review, also explored the possibility that we may have inadvertently created magnetic monopoles in the past and overlooked the equipment where they could have been detected.

We learn early on in physics that magnets consistently possess two opposing poles, commonly referred to as north and south. When a bar magnet is sliced in two, new poles will emerge near the break, ensuring that each smaller magnet retains one of each pole. With a magnet that is sufficiently brittle, this is something you can easily test on your own. While you’re at it, it might be worth considering the validity of more recent claims regarding magnets and questioning the reliability of the source.

However, the possibility of a single magnetic pole, also known as a monopole, existing apart from its counterpart has long intrigued scientists. Indeed, positive and negative electric charges can exist independently without requiring their opposites to be present.

James Clerk Maxwell, a pioneer in magnetic theory, believed he had successfully debunked the concept. However, many years later, Paul Dirac revived the idea by demonstrating that the existence of monopoles could provide an explanation for the quantization of electric charge. It is worth noting that if magnetic charge is quantized, it would consist of fundamental units known as the Dirac charge. The symbol for these units is 2/e, which is equal to 68.5 times the charge on an electron. Scientists in the field have become more and more convinced of this concept over time, yet researchers conducting experiments have yet to discover the evidence needed to support it.

Truly, the theory of monopoles has been extensively studied and has gained widespread acceptance among physicists, indicating their likely existence. In numerous circumstances that are significantly different from the ones that CERN is investigating, we have seen signs of these phenomena. However, the verification of subatomic magnetic monopoles continues to be an ongoing challenge.

Many theories regarding magnetic monopoles necessitate their adherence to laws of symmetry. As a result, it is necessary for there to be an equal number of north and south poles in the universe without the need for them to be attached like traditional magnetic poles.

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Since 2012, the MoEDAL collaboration has been utilizing the particle annihilations at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) to search for magnetic monopoles.

There are various ways in which scientists speculate that monopolies could potentially be created. In a recent study, scientists from MoEDAL investigated the detection of monopole production from virtual photons. It may seem far-fetched to those unfamiliar with the field, but in the realm of science, there is a concept that is crucial to our understanding of physics. This concept involves virtual photons, which serve as carriers of the electromagnetic force between two charged particles. However, it’s important to note that these virtual photons do not exist as independent particles.

Virtual photons can be generated through the collision of particles at high velocities, along with various other techniques. The creation of magnetic monopoles has two potential methods, according to theoretical physicists. One method involves the fusion of two virtual photons, while the other process, called the Drell-Yan process, can generate a monopole from a single virtual photon.

Contrary to expectations, the search for a magnetic monopole does not solely rely on its magnetic field. The charge that theoretical monopoles carry is quite significant. Discovering a High Electric Charge Object (HECO) would suggest the presence of physics beyond the standard model. Specifically, it could indicate the presence of hidden monopoles, along with other intriguing possibilities like remnants of microscopic black holes.

“The search reach of MoEDAL for both monopoles and HECOs enables the collaboration to extensively explore the theoretical ‘discovery space’ for these hypothetical particles,” stated MoEDAL spokesperson James Pinfold.

In the first preprint, the MoEDAL team presents their findings on the lower limits of the mass of a monopole, claiming that these limits are the most robust ones published so far. They assert that they have outperformed the larger ATLAS experiment, which utilized the LHC for the identical objective.

The second preprint discusses an alternative approach to searching for monopoles. It focuses on the monopoles generated through the Schwinger mechanism, which occurs when heavy ions are collided during the initial run of the LHC. According to the Schwinger mechanism, it is postulated that the presence of intense electric or magnetic fields has the potential to generate particles from a vacuum. “If monopoles are composite particles, this and our previous Schwinger-monopole search may have been the first-ever opportunities to observe them,” Pinfold said.

It was hypothesized that monopoles could have been generated during the experiment and subsequently become trapped and unnoticed in a section of the collider that had been taken out of service. No magnetic monopoles were discovered; however, the authors were able to deduce that the creation of a magnetic monopole requires a significant amount of energy. They confidently stated, with a 95 percent confidence level, that these magnetic monopoles must have masses exceeding 80 billion electron volts.

This comes as no surprise to most theoretical physicists. Understanding the role of magnetic monopoles is crucial in various endeavors to combine quantum mechanics and gravity in grand unified theories. These predictions often involve extremely high masses, on the scale of trillions of electron volts, and necessitate charges that are at least two or three times greater than the Dirac charge.

You can find both preprints on arXiv.org, here and here.

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