Otilia Drăgan
3,811 ARTICLES
A master’s in International Relations, as well as working in online media for more than five years, have given her a deeper perspective on how people everywhere can inspire each other.
Homes on wheels, aircraft or boats, these fresh, sometimes quirky, ideas from all over the world are worth sharing.
Say Goodbye to Watching the Clouds, Future Planes Could Ditch Windows Completely
5 Jul 2021, 12:51 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / No more social media posts and photos of the clouds and the sun setting, seen from inside a plane – future passenger aircraft will have no windows. This is one of the major current trends in aviation, and it’s not to take something away...
Killer Satellites Ramming Into Asteroids Could Save the Earth From a Catastrophe
5 Jul 2021, 11:23 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Whether we like it or not, the risk of a catastrophic asteroid impact is real, and it could happen in just a few years. The good news is that, with the right amount of cooperation and preparation, something can be done about it, and it involves usi...
Ghost 60 UAVs With Incredible Payload Are U.S. Special Operation Forces’ New Toy
5 Jul 2021, 09:45 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / The Special Operations Forces just got some high-performance multi-rotor drones that take payload and endurance to the next level. And these high-performance unmanned aerial systems (UASs) were developed by a woman-owned business in the U.S. It ...
Enjoy the Great View From this Flybridge Boat, Made for Cruising With Your Tribe
5 Jul 2021, 07:57 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / If private sailing had a motto these days, it would be “no more compromising.” In other words, why choose when you can have it all? This goes for family cruising, too. Until now, most of the boats in this segment weren’t that grea...
Husqvarna Team Conquers Mountains and Rivers in Spectacular Silk Way Rally
5 Jul 2021, 07:10 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / This is an interesting time for motorsports, to say the least. New types of competitors (the EV wave is coming on strong), new regulations and, to top it all off, the ongoing health crisis that is still causing last-minute changes and difficulties....
Skoda RE-X1 Kreisel Is the Newest Fully Electric Car to Enter the Rally World
5 Jul 2021, 05:26 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / A new fully electric rally car is getting ready to compete in future FIA rallies. After having launched its first electric road cars, the ENYAQ iV and Citigo e iV, Skoda has taken a step further and partnered up with Kreisel Electric, to devel...
U.S. Volvo Trucks Now Come With a Driver-Facing Camera and Added DVR Storage
2 Jul 2021, 13:22 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Volvo truck drivers and fleet managers in the U.S. get a safety boost - the company has recently introduced the 5th generation of the SafetyDirect processor from Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems on selected models. Volvo Trucks is known for e...
This Japanese STOL Amphibian Can Land on the Roughest Seas and Remote Islands
2 Jul 2021, 13:08 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / This versatile aircraft combines the benefits of an amphibian (meaning that it can land on both ground and water) with those of a short take-off and landing (STOL) model. The result is an impressive aircraft that can land on the roughest seas, with...
Hyzon’s 154-Ton Monster Is Now the Heaviest Fuel Cell-Powered Truck in the World
2 Jul 2021, 09:56 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Heavy-duty trucks and buses are the bad guys among long-haul vehicles when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions, but, on the other hand, the transport industry worries that switching to alternative fuels would reduce the range and efficiency of the...
EcoClipper500 Promises to Break Propulsion Power Record for Wind-Powered Ships
2 Jul 2021, 08:38 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / While part of the maritime industry is focusing on developing hybrid fuels for ships, another part is ditching engines all together and going back to basics, with the wind as a primary source of energy. It looks like we might be hearing about m...
Porsche 365 Outlaw Gets a Brand-New Aircraft Engine With Air-Cooling Fins
2 Jul 2021, 08:38 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Say you’re developing a new aircraft engine and you want to do some real-world testing. What’s the easiest and most fun way to go about it? Try it out on a car, first. And if it’s not just any car, but the infamous Porsche 356 Out...
All-Electric Plane Alice Ready to Conquer the Sky and Redefine Commuting by Air
2 Jul 2021, 05:27 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / In only a couple of years, the first all-electric commuter plane could become a common sight. Eviation, the Washington-based company that intends to revolutionize air transportation, just got one step closer to launching its electric aircraft on th...
Next-Gen Micro Nuclear Reactors Could Be the Answer for Carbon-Free Electricity
1 Jul 2021, 13:07 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / When you think of nuclear energy, you’re probably picturing huge and dangerous power plants. But what if future nuclear power plants were actually so small that they could be called “nuclear batteries”, and so safe that they could...
Mercedes-Benz Supports the Famous 149th Open Golf Tournament as Official Patron
1 Jul 2021, 12:10 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / The oldest golf tournament in the world and one of the most prestigious, the Open marks a milestone this year, coming back to Royal St George’s for the first time in 10 years. Next year, the grandiose event will celebrate its 150th anniversar...
New Generation Chinese Pickup Truck GWM POER Is Making Waves in Australia
1 Jul 2021, 09:43 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / We are used to Chinese manufacturers copying popular models from American and European brands in the past, but some of the most recent offerings could actually turn out to be competitive. Drivers in the U.S. would probably raise an eyebrow at this ...
Russia’s Tu-160 Blackjack and Tu-95MS Bear Strategic Bombers Play Together
1 Jul 2021, 08:11 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / If there’s one thing that’s impressive about the Russian Air Force, it’s that most of its aircraft have a long, rich history behind them. Even though the initial warbirds ended their service within the Army years ago, the newer se...
Volta Zero Is Taking the Trucking World by Storm, Prototype Chassis Ready to Go
1 Jul 2021, 07:20 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Volta Trucks is not wasting any time in getting the Volta Zero from prototype to a fully-operational product. Trying to catch up with some of its more prestigious competitors, like the recent eActros, the manufacturer is getting closer to beginning...
Rolls-Royce Engines Get a Second Life in a New $17M U.S. Overhaul Center
1 Jul 2021, 05:40 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / Well known as one of the top engine and propulsion systems manufacturers, Rolls-Royce Holdings is taking an important step towards sustainability – one of the industry’s buzzwords these days. Used engines will get a second life thanks t...
Lincoln Luxury Vehicles of 2040 Are Reimagined by Design Students in California
30 Jun 2021, 12:38 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / What will cars look like in 2040? Instead of relying only on experienced designers and technicians for the answer, maybe we should take a look at how the most creative young minds see the future. This is what Lincoln did, through a recent project i...
1949 Skoda Sport Redefined Racing Stamina Before a Baffling Ending at Le Mans
30 Jun 2021, 12:19 UTC · By: Otilia Drăgan / The 1950 Le Mans marked a new beginning for the competition, with the 24-hour race taking place for the first time after WWII, but also an ending - for the Skoda Sport. A mix of partial triumphs, politics and sheer bad luck tells the story of the l...