Flight Technobabble

# Tra-la la. Dooby-dooby-doo. #

Oh, hello. I was just having a relaxing soak.

Is it that time already?

Now I really am in hot water.

Let me just slip into something...

more comfortable.

Here's Technobabble.

Coming up on today's tech-tastic show...

Frankie's flying high when he checks out the world's largest aircraft...

I feel like an insect next to this - it's absolutely huge.

..Paul is back with tippity top tips for construction gaming...

I hope you've got your hard hats at the ready.

..and Jake has all you need to know

about the latest games for your phone.

Result! Oops!

But first, here's Elly to bring us her digital know-how

and more tech hacks.

Hello!

I've got some really awesome tech hacks for you guys.

What happens when you go to the movies and you order a large drink?

Well, if you're anything like me,

and I'm going to be really honest with you here,

you'll need a pee break halfway through the movie.

Get excited, I've found an app that can save us from this problem.

It's called RunPee and it's funny -

it tells you the best time to run and go pee during a movie.

You can even set a vibration alert

so your alarm will tell you the best time to go and pee.

It will change your life, much like this keyboard hack.

All you need to do is get a sticky note

and run the sticky side between the keys, like this.

Now your keyboard can be dust-free, crumb-free,

and you can type with super speed.

I've got something else to show you guys.

It's called...

It allows you to make your own font.

You just print out the template, fill it in with your letters

and symbols and upload it to the website,

and then you'll be able to download your own handwriting

in a font file and use it on your computer. I love this.

Thank you, Elly. Extremely helpful.

Loving your work.

OK, it's that time...

Babbler question time.

What delight beholds me with this week's messaging app name?

"Babblebox."

OK, I can work with that. Not quite as offensive as some we've had.

Let's check out what's in the box of babble...

Vlogster, what is the future of flying?

Who shall I send out on this one?

Frankie. He often finds it hard to keep his feet on the ground.

THEME SONG PLAYS

Cha-cha-cha.

What's this? VLOGSTER LAUGHS

Shake those hips, Frankie-boy.

7!

Vlogster, how much of that did you see?

Enough to know you need more than a rose

and a dance video to get on Strictly.

Now quickstep yourself out of here,

I have a viewer question about

the future of flying transport.

Oh, and Bruno Tonioli wants his shirt back.

I'm sending Frankie to see the world's largest aircraft.

It uses plane, helicopter and airship technology,

and is being put together in a hanger in Bedfordshire.

This is Chris, a flight Techspert

who is helping get this mammoth aircraft off the ground.

Wow, Chris, this thing is massive. What is it? Is it an airship?

It's not an airship, it's a hybrid aircraft.

It's called the Airlander and it's a mix between an aeroplane's wing

and an old-fashioned airship.

So why does it have these three sections?

This is actually the back of it.

That's where the engines go,

but also it means that we're spread out

so we get maximum aerodynamical wing shape lift from it.

Amazing. So when are we taking off?

We're still assembling it so we're not quite ready,

but let's go and take a look.

I feel like an insect next to this - it's absolutely huge.

How big is it exactly?

-It's the world's largest aircraft.

-Really?

It's 92m long, 45m wide,

so that's the size of a football pitch.

It's 26m high, which is about a ten-storey building.

Wow. I've noticed it's not actually touching the ground.

-Is it floating right now?

-It is floating.

It's filled with helium, which is

the same stuff that keeps party balloons up,

and there's about a million party balloons' worth

of helium in there right now.

If it's like a giant balloon, does that mean it could pop?

Well, no, it's made of special super-strong material.

I've got some in my pocket here.

-You can't rip it.

-I'll give it a go.

Come on, Frankie. Give it some welly.

Vlogster, I'm really trying here.

HE GRUNTS

Nope, that's not happening.

So how do you fly this giant balloon?

Well, let's go an visit the cockpit and find out.

How does this differ from flying a plane?

We can land and take off from anywhere, including water.

That gives us lots of different capabilities -

tasks that we can do that aeroplanes can't.

How long can it stay in the air for?

We can stay airborne for up to three weeks at a time.

Three weeks? That's incredible.

And will you be able to take passengers eventually?

Absolutely. It'll be an amazing experience

cos you'll be able to open the windows so you can see everything.

We'll be about two or three years and we'll have a passenger variant.

And to give Frankie a flavour of what it's like to fly this aircraft,

he's going to meet...

..and take the controls.

David...I'm sitting here in this simulator

and I'm not quite sure what's going on.

We're over San Francisco, simulated,

and you're flying along quite nicely at about 3,000 feet.

-This is really cool.

-You're doing a good job,

remaining absolutely level.

The picture's not changing, so we're flying nice and level.

We're just on a gentle left-hand turn, which is nice.

David, at the moment I'm just using this control stick here,

and the thruster's over here,

but there are a lot of switches.

Do you have to know what all of them are?

Fortunately they are all labelled. You get used to what they are.

You know what? I think I'm getting the hang of this,

but I can't imagine what it must be like to feel

the power of the engines.

Let's go outside and let you experience that for yourself.

No way.

Tell me a bit more about these bad boys.

They produce 350 horsepower each

and they've got butterfly vanes on the back,

which are like cowl blowers, so you can push the air

upwards, downwards, right or left -

basically go anywhere you like, and even hover.

They're not very noisy,

but they're a little but noisy so you better take some of these.

Brilliant.

Right, let's go.

FAN WHIRS LOUDLY

OK, Vlogster,

sign me up for a ticket.

Here's some tech that is ready for takeoff, Frankie-boy.

Is it a bird? Is it a plane?

Nope, it's Jetman, AKA Swiss pilot and aviation stuntman Yves Rossy.

These purpose-built jet packs 2.5m-wide Kevlar wings,

are powered by four jet engines and can fly at 160mph.

That is some serious tech, Vlogster. What else has got wings?

The next big thing is electric planes.

French Techsperts have developed the E-Fan,

an almost emission-free and silent aircraft.

With over 100 successful test flights,

the E-Fan has a range of around an hour.

Loving your work, Vlogster.

So construction - not something I can claim to be an expert on.

I've never lived in a house. Why would I want bricks

when I've got this multicoloured whirl of binary wonder?

Oh, sorry. I'm a little DETACHED from this subject,

but next up is Paul with some construction games.

Watch out, Babblers, this one could raise the roof.

Hey, guys. I hope you've got your hard hats at the ready,

cos today we're going to look at construction games.

..is a game all about getting cars, trucks and bikes over a gap.

You can build anything from plain old straight bridges

to really complicated suspension bridges.

Here's a tip - there's real strength in triangles,

and if you can't get your bridge to hold,

try adding a few to your construction.

You can hunt around the world exploring, finding vehicles.

Use the Lego you find

to build anything from

small gardens to giant castles.

My hint is to spend a lot of time exploring,

cos everything you find

can make a big difference

and help you build some cool stuff.

HE GROANS

Ooh, caught me having a tea break there.

Have you ever tried building in space?

Well, now you can.

You get to build your own spaceships and space stations.

There's also the option of multiplayer,

so you can grab a friend to help you explore the galaxy.

A tip - build in creative mode first

so you don't waste any materials

when you take it to survival.

Check out what people have built online

to see what you can do at home.

And on that note I think it's time for another dip into the Babblebox.

Vlogster, can we get super sight like a superhero?

Great question, Oliver, and I've actually...

no idea.

Let's see what I can find out.

First up, X-ray vision.

German carmakers have been trying this out in prototype vehicles,

using augmented reality glasses to overlay information to drivers,

such as speed, directions and points of interest onto the road ahead.

But the clever bit happens when the driver looks sideways.

Cameras on the outside of the car display a video feed

of what's going on, as if the doors aren't there at all.

Just like the driver is wearing X-ray specs.

The idea is that this tech could make tricky parking

a thing of the past.

Next, enhanced vision.

A Canadian company have developed a miniature optic implant that

gives you three times better than perfect vision,

and it helps you shift focus from close to far away faster than

a blink of an eye.

Similarly, Swedish researchers have developed contact lenses that

can zoom in like a camera lens when you wink

to get you three times closer to the action.

And American Techsperts are developing electronic contact lenses

that will give you humans all sorts of extra abilities,

from testing the levels of glucose in your body

to an in-built camera, and even special night vision.

Finally...

ROBOTIC: Cyborg vision.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute Of Technology have

created intelligent computer recognition software

that can identify a huge array of common objects.

When the software is combined with electronic smartglasses

it'll give you humans the power to find

and locate almost anything with complete ease.

If you booted your ball away and can't spot it,

just put on your glasses and they'll highlight exactly

where it is in a cyborg-like display.

You won't even bat an eyelid.

See?

Games...

they keep up gripped with exciting storylines and brilliant graphics,

and most are more addictive than pizza.

Next up is Jake with some more...

No, not pizza - phone game apps.

Hey, guys, I'm back and I have some super-fun phone games for you,

so let's get cracking.

First up is...

You will love this puzzle game - it is so cool...

..or ice cold.

Ey...

You have to push snowballs around the gardens

and through the mazes to make...

Yeah, you guessed it - a big, big snowman.

Sounds easy, but each part of the snowman

is made out of different size snowballs.

But remember, you have to make each one right

in order to make the snowman correctly.

If you get stuck, don't worry,

you can simply just reset the game.

Result! Oops!

Are you OK? Oh, I'm really sorry.

Let me put you back.

..a simple one-touch game where you time your movements

to avoid dangers and then eventually

collect the long-long treasure.

Here's a cunning tip -

if you make a mistake and want to go back a screen,

simply swipe up and your character

will reappear at the previous stage.

..offers a really cool and bright

colour-matching puzzle game.

The characters and graphics are great.

You simply drag your finger

along the balls of the same colour

to pop them.

And that's your lot. Till next time,

stay cool.

Brilliant. Thank you, Jake.

Did anyone get that order of pizza?

No? OK.

I'll let it go.

OK, Babblers, remember,

if you want a PIZZA the action,

you must ask permission before you download apps.

Right, you lovely lot, almost time to go,

but before I leave here's this week's...

..is for...

Electronic screens are divided into a matrix of pixels -

hundreds, thousands or even millions of them.

You can't see each one because they're so small.

A pixel can only be one colour at a time,

but when they blend together

it's possible to create almost any colour.

Take me, for example. I'm made out of 82,000 pixels.

Well, it takes a lot of work to look this good.

And on that note, I'm offskies.

People to see, places to go... I'm in demand!

Laters, Babblers.

Next time on Technobabble...

Elly is checking out the latest celebrity apps...

This app is just ridiculous.

..Aoife's here and she's browsing...

A free in-browser game can be

a great way to pass the time.

..and Rita visits Las Vegas, baby,

and the world's largest gathering of tech.

This is my new best friend, Buddy.

I'm keeping him.