🚁 Transformer-like flying tank, sexual rejection in female mammals, China's record-breaking cable-laying beast

A hobbyist has created a vehicle that morphs between tank and quadcopter modes at the press of a button.

Michael Rechtin’s vehicle transitions from driving to flying via a four-bar linkage system. A retracting linear actuator rotates the wheels and prop guards to a vertical position for flight.

The main structure is reinforced with carbon fiber plates, while critical load-bearing parts are made from lightweight carbon fiber nylon for strength and heat resistance. Dive deeper into this Must-Read.

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> VP Access Engineering
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🚁 Flying tank? Inventor creates real-life Transformers robot with drone tech

“It took hundreds of 3D-printed parts, countless design tweaks, broken hardware, faulty software, and some questionable choices—but in the end, I built something that actually works,” said Rechtin, in a video posted on YouTube.

The inspiration for this project came from a desire to combine two earlier creations: an RC car and a quadcopter. A quick online search by Rechtin revealed that only a few universities had attempted similar designs, making this a unique challenge that required original thinking.

The project began with computer-aided design (CAD) software called Onshape. This program allowed the designer to sketch ideas, test linkage systems, and ensure the transformation mechanism would work.

🌊 China’s cable-laying beast dives record 36,089 feet to conquer ocean’s deepest trenches

China has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by developing the Haiwei GD11000, the “world’s first machine capable of laying submarine cables at record depths.”

The cutting-edge system can deploy cables more than 11,000 meters (36,089 feet) below sea level, making it suitable for the Challenger Deep, the deepest part of the ocean in the Mariana Trench, claimed Chinese media reports on Monday.

“Haiwei GD11000 could conduct marine scientific research ‘at the maximum depth of all the oceans in the world'” said the chief scientist on the project, Li Wenhua, a professor at the university’s marine engineering college.

🧠 Neural guards: Markers of sexual rejection discovered in female mammals

Researchers at the Champalimaud Foundation (CF) have identified a neural circuit in the brain that governs sexual rejection in female mammals, providing key insights into the mechanisms shaping social and reproductive behaviors.

The study reveals how a specific population of progesterone-sensitive neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) acts as a switch between acceptance and rejection of mating attempts based on a female’s reproductive state.

“Sexual rejection isn’t just the absence of receptivity, it’s an active behaviour”, explains Susana Lima, senior author and head of the Neuroethology Lab at CF.

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