The legendary Area 51 may not be a place of mysterious alien missions ... but it is certainly a place for experiments, for success and failure, joy and horror. Popular Mechanics explores the latest going-ons in the flight test fields of the Mojave Desert.

Pictured: The Proteus, created by Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites

Filed under: area 51, mojave, and test flight

So what are they like, the available electric cars? WhatCar magazine decided to do a group test, between a Fiat, a NICE Mega City, a G-Whiz and a Smart.

The Fiat wast most car-like and had the best range, but blew a fuse or two on the way and was by far the most expensive at 30,000 pounds, or almost $60,000. Top speed is a nearly civilized 75mph.

The Smart was easily the best built, garnering very good crash ratings, had the second best range (but that's only 71 miles) and reaches a top speed of 60 mph.

The other cars made those figures look good.

A video of the test is at the link. The testers clearly looked forward to the more advanced American products, the Tesla Roadster and the Chevy Volt. Either car would make those look laughable, but unfortunately the Tesla's production line seems to have stalled, and the Volt won't be ready for another two years yet.

Filed under: smart, g-wiz, nice mega city, fiat doblo, electric cars, test, and tesla

Top Gear magazine of the UK pitted a BMW M3 against a Toyota Prius for fuel economy.

An easy win for the Toyota, right?

Turns not, no, not if the Toyota is driven as fast as possible. If you're trying to get the most performance out of your car, it's better to drive the performance car.

In their test, the Toyota got 17.2 miles per gallon and the BMW 19.4.

So if you want to drive fast, don't buy an economy car. You'll get just as bad economy and have less fun.

The hilarious video is at the link.

Filed under: prius, BMW M3, test, fuel, and economy

In 1954, a 15 megaton hydrogen bom was exploded over three islands of Bikini Atoll. The islands were vaporized and a giant crater was created, bereft of life.

Fast forward over 50 years later and what do you see? A thriving coral reef showing the resilience of life everywhere. Scientists believe it was reseeded by a nearby reef.

Virtually untouched by radiation fearing humans, the new reef is now truly spectacular, and the radiation has long since dissapated.

Don't eat the coconuts, though. They have absorbed radiation through the soil and are highly radioactive, and the island is said to still be unsafe for human habitation.

Filed under: coral reef, environment, and nuclear testing

The rules:

• It must be mechanical


• It must be useless


• It must make people laugh

Sounds like rules to live by.

Filed under: japan, stupid, robot, and contest