The Hot List: Volume 10

Every week we sift through a truly amazing amount of “stuff” in the dozen or so hours we spend online—you know, the time spent not driving sweet cars. A lot of the cool stuff we find has to do specifically with new cars, naturally, but there’s also a huge amount of awesomeness that doesn’t completely fit in the normal Winding Road world. Once, we were in the habit of simply reading, watching, or talking amongst ourselves about this web detritus, but recently we thought it might be a good idea to start sharing it with you all. Thus, The Hot List.

 

We aim to bring you a list of the most interesting bits of information we run across. Ten worth-knowing-about things that may or may not be related directly to the world of cars, but all of which we think our typical enthusiast readers will be able to really dig into. We don’t know, from week to week, what will show up on this list, which is part of the fun for us and for you.

 

Read, enjoy, and comment. If you happen to know of something that you think would make for a good inclusion on next week’s list, drop us a line at [email protected].

 

 

British automakers Morgan and Zytek are teaming up to create a performance EV, called Electric Morgan +E. It will be based on the Morgan Aero SuperSports (pictured), and will be powered by Zytek’s 70-kilowatt electric motor. They’ll start by making two examples of the car, then decide where to go from there.

 

 

At the 16^th Annual Supercharging Conference is Dresden, Controlled Power Technologies showed off a 48-volt electric supercharger. Using electric power, the supercharger can rev up much more quickly than a standard version, basically elimination lag for instant boost. Even better news, it could produce up to 93 horsepower.

 

 

 

Science, man! The red tide effect of a certain phytoplankton in the waters of southern California has an interesting effect at night. When disturbed, these microorganisms release a blue light. That means breaking waves and surfboards cause the water to light up beautifully. Check out the stunning video.

 

Speaking of beautiful, this limited edition book about Marilyn Monroe combines Norman Mailer’s famous text with very “intimate” photography by Bert Stern. Here’s the catch: It costs $1000. It will be available beginning next month.

 

 

 

 

Next month, the Navy will be sending the K-Max unmanned helicopter to Afghanistan to support the US troops. It’s treacherous territory for choppers, what with all the mountains and those pesky rocket-propelled grenades. K-max will be able to ferry supplies to dangerous areas without risking the lives of a crew onboard. Check the demo in the video.

 

 

Forza Motorsport 4 comes out on Tuesday for the Xbox 360. If you aren’t excited already, let Jeremy Clarkson impart some stirring words of inspiration. The video shows a man having some fun in an Aston Martin until the cops spoil the party. Luckily, you can drive like this in a video game, and nobody gets hurt.

 

 

 

Also in virtual racing news, Mario Kart 7 releases in December for the Nintendo 3DS. Looks like there’s some interesting stuff going on, including some hanggliding karts, apparently.

 

 

 

Porsche Design has created a magnificent private bar for the scotch lover—Johnnie Walker Blue Label to be specific. It stands over six feet tall, and features a hidden chilled compartment and a motion-activated opening sequence.  It costs the rough equivalent of $155,000, and, yes, it comes stocked with booze.

 

 

A slightly less expensive car-related product is the Mini Auto Mouse. It’s a computer mouse that looks like a car. It’s only $7.99. It also has a cool name.

 

 

ReCycle Clocks makes clocks using—you guessed it—recycled materials. We’re particularly fond of this one, made from repurposed motorcycle parts. They’re hand made, and can be custom ordered.