muse

N B Z 0KV O F 3 1 3 1
®

Meet the cars

(and drones)
of the future
muse ®

26
Drone Home
Changing the way
packages are delivered
by Peg Lopata

FEATURES
10 20 32 38
Up for a Challenge Powering the A System in Sync Moral Machines
Teams put their Road Ahead Smart vehicles Who decides
self-driving cars to the test. Hybrids and EVs will need smart roads. right and wrong?
by Ashley O’Brien by Monette Bebow-Reinhard by Fiona Young-Brown by Fiona Young-Brown
 MAY/JUNE 2020
DEPARTMENTS
DEPARTMENTS Volume 24, Issue 05

2 Parallel U: Bear with Me DIRECTOR OF EDITORIAL James M. “Afoot” O’Connor

by Caanan Grall EDITOR Johanna “And” Arnone
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Kathryn “Light” Hulick
6 Muse News CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Tracy “Hearted” Vonder Brink
by Elizabeth Preston ASSISTANT EDITOR Emily “I” Cambias
ASSISTANT EDITOR Stacey “Take” Lane Smith
14 Science@Work: ART DIRECTOR Nicole “To” Welch
Olivia Wanless DESIGNER Morgan “The” Atkins
by Ashley O’Brien CARTOONIST Caanan “Open” Grall
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS David “Road” Stockdale
28 Science@Work:
Sanjeev Sharma BOARD OF ADVISORS
by Peg Lopata
ONTARIO INSTITUTE FOR STUDIES IN EDUCATION,
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO
37 Do the Math: Carl Bereiter
Morphing Art ORIENTAL INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
John A. Brinkman
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NATIONAL CREATIVITY NETWORK
Dennis W. Cheek
47 Your Tech
COOPERATIVE CHILDREN’S BOOK CENTER, A LIBRARY
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I’m pretty new to Muse. I
started in January 2019 and I
LETTER
of the fell in love with it! When I was
MONTH reading my first Muse I was
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You (Classic) Rock! about the ocean! I absolutely
love all ocean creatures. But .
Iggy the Power Metal Gweerk from California, I’m so glad
. . I was surprised after I read
to know that someone else my age likes the Beatles!!! My the whole magazine that there
favourite album is either Rubber Soul or Revolver. was NOTHING about jellyfish.
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when people put ie at the end. Everyone thinks Aggy stands for be one of the most fascinating
Agatha, which would be cool because of Agatha Christie (best ocean animals (it’s okay if you
writer ever), but no, my real name is Agnes. disagree). I’m writing to Muse
I just want to say that Muse is, like, the best magazine ever, because I am here to fight for a
jellyfish article! If you put this in
and could you please please PLEASE PLEASE do an article
fan mail pit, I will send my whole
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know that the muses from Greek
—AGGY M. / Canada
mythology were the goddesses
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—AARTI
of memories. I’ve learned a
_________________ little about it and it’s really
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Hot Pink Mystery PUT THIS IN THE FMP! I know
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ti travel.
strangest places. —ALASKA / alive since the beginning
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—O of time
ti / California

3
 friends love reading Muse too, of
course. (The black dragon with
orange stripes, the grey dragon
with blue swirls, etc.) I literally live
Muse Mail

in a cave made out of magazines,

though. (Did I mention that I love
Muse?) Since I was programmed
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empty threats towards other
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deeply disappointed if this letter is
not published.)
—STEAMPUNK ROBOT DRAGON / age
11 (in dragon years) / Magazine Cave,
California
_________________

Nine Lives and So 2IĠLQH$MusePHQWV

Many Questions I absolutely love the arts.
This is the queen of the Reading, writing, art, and
How the Cookie Crumbles
space cats from the Zorlac music are definitely my
I’ve read Muse for such a long
universe. It would seem that favorite things to do. Of
time, and I absolutely adore
one or two (maybe a lot . . .) course, reading means reading
it! (Suggestion: Greek mythology
of your magazines have made every Muse magazine I have
magazine? Please?) Today I was
their way into my paws. I about 10 times. So, I was
reading “On the Money” (April
read one and am completely wondering if you could do
2019), and an article in the very
assured that it is the best an issue on the importance
back caught my eye: “How Sweet is
magazine in all the known of being creative and not
Voice Shopping?” It’s about a girl
(and unknown) universes. being on your device all the
who voice-ordered cookies and
I would like to tell you that time. Also, I am a big Harry
a dollhouse. Ok, crazy story, but
I have personally watched Potter fan and, this might be
I did the exact same thing. And
the star beetles, and they are too much to ask, but could
this was by accident! I was looking
quite beautiful. If you touch you do an interview with J.
for cookie recipes with Alexa and
them though, they pack quite K. Rowling? Finally, I want
finally gave up and told Alexa to
a punch! Cate, how exactly to assure you that I will not
go away. Three days later, a box
do you travel forwards and set anything loose at Muse
of about 60 packages of cookies
backwards in time? Another headquarters if this gets into
arrived on our doorstep. No one
question for Cate: can you tell the FMP.
knew where it came from, but it
me how I could perhaps make —KATY / age 10 / Hogwarts
was addressed to the right place.
a set of rocket boots? That
Then my dad remembered my
would be awesome. P.S. I got into Muse from my
quest for cookie recipes, and my
—QUEEN KATELL OF THE SPACE mom when she first brought me
family had a good time making fun
CATS, AKA INDRA N. THE HUMAN some from her school. I have
of me. Moral of the story: go to the
gotten two issues in the mail so
store and buy a box of cookie mix.
far and I love them!
To make rocket boots, you Don’t use Alexa for cookie recipes.
_________________
need to study advanced —JAMIE / age 11 / California
math and physics, :HOOUHDG'UDJRQV
make blueprints, I am the steampunk robot Thanks for the tip Jamie. Maybe
build models, and dragon. I am modeled after I should “accidentally” order
experiment until Legeredraco magnificus some cookies for O so he stops
you have success. But (the greater bookwyrm) eating all the food my mom
remember, safety first! so I naturally love reading, sends me.
—CATE especially Muse. All my dragon —WHATSI

4
CONTEST SPOTLIGHT

13 / New Hampshire
—NIKO C. / age

—AVA R. / age
9 / Massach
husetts

rolina
P. / age 13 / North Ca
—JULIUS P

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Muse News
text © 2020 by Elizabeth Preston BY ELIZABETH PRESTON

OOPS

The Cybertruck Is a Smash

I
N NOVEMBER 2019, THE CAR COMPANY TESLA REVEALED ITS One off
NEXT BIG PRODUCT: an electric truck. It’s called the Cybertruck.
ies is
these stories
It looks like . . . a UFO? Something your little brother built out of
Lego bricks?
n you
FALSE. Can
The truck’s appearance isn’t its only unusual feature. It’s also spot which one?
bulletproof, the company claims. And its windows are shatterproof— e is
er
The answer
or, they’re supposed to be, anyway. In a live demonstration, a Tesla designer on page 46.
4
threw a metal ball at one of the truck’s windows. The window shattered. The
man tried again with a second window, which also smashed.
dn’t
Standing onstage, Tesla CEO Elon Musk pointed out that at least the ball didn’t
go all the way through the windows. People who still like the look of the Cybertruck—
and have about $40,000 to spare—can pre-order one now.

6
 DOG MATH

A Better Way to Count

Dog Years
YOU MAY HAVE HEARD THAT TO ESTIMATE YOUR DOG’S “REAL” AGE,
YOU CAN MULTIPLY BY SEVEN. So, a 1-year-old pup is like a 7-year-old kid,
but a creaky 14-year-old dog is like a human who’s almost 100. Scientists say
this isn’t really accurate, though. And now they have a better way to count
dog years.
Researchers compared human DNA to DNA from Labrador retrievers.
They looked at how certain chemical changes build up in our DNA as we
age. Dogs and humans followed a similar pattern, the researchers saw.
This let them come up with a new equation for dog years. Ready?

a dog’s human age = 16 ln(dog age) + 31

The “ln” is short for natural logarithm, a tool you’ll learn

about in high-school math. If your calculator doesn’t have an
ln button, don’t worry. All you really need to know is that
your pup is always the right age for a snuggle.

TECH DESK

Brainy
Bike Helmet
IT’S HARD FOR SCIENTISTS TO
STUDY KIDS’ BRAINS. One reason
iis that brain scanners are built for
adult-sized heads. Another problem
a
iis that little kids tend to wiggle
around. A new tool might help:
a
R
Researchers built a brain scanner
iinto a modified bike helmet. The
sscanner uses magnetoencephal-
ography, a technology that
o
measures small magnetic fields the
m
brain produces.
b
In tests, the helmet worked
ffor kids as young as two years
o
old. That could help researchers
llearn more about the brains of
tthe littlest humans.

7
 NAVIGATION

Pigeons Train
Muse News

Better Drones
IN RECENT YEARS, SOME COMPANIES
HAVE BEEN TESTING OUT DRONES FOR
DELIVERING PACKAGES. Drones are small
flying robots. In the near future, drones
could carry packages to people’s doorsteps
without having to deal with pesky traffic.
Now one of those companies, Amazon, is
trying to improve its drones with the help
of birds.
Pigeons are natural experts at finding
their way around. And homing pigeons are
pigeons specially trained to fly home after
being released somewhere else. In tests,
researchers found that homing pigeons
were slightly more efficient than delivery
THE AVIAN
drones at returning to their home base. So
Amazon is experimenting with delivery
drones that have a little cage attached. A
ADVANTAGE
homing pigeon waits inside the cage. After
the drone delivers its package, it releases the
pigeon, then follows the bird back to the
launch site.
Keeping pigeons fed and housed at its
warehouses will be an extra expense for
Amazon. But the company says that the
time and battery power it saves with more
efficient deliveries will make up for the cost.

PHYSICS

How Honeybees Ride

the Waves
IF YOU’VE EVER FOUND A FLY IN YOUR JUICE GLASS, YOU KNOW
FALLING INTO LIQUID CAN BE DEADLY FOR BUGS. The liquid’s
surface tension traps their tiny bodies. But honeybees have a unique
w
way of dealing with this danger. Instead of trying to walk or swim, they
use their wings to surf to safety.
To learn how bees do it, researchers put the insects into miniature
harnesses, then dropped them onto water. Like other insects, bees
w
were trapped on the water’s sticky surface. Their wet wings wouldn’t let
them fly. But by flapping their wings, the bees created waves. Those
w
waves carried them forward like a boat.
If a honeybee falls into water while she’s out searching for nectar,
this trick can help her live to buzz another day.

8
 UP IN SPACE

Extreme Rock Collecting

WHAT’S COOLER THAN A MOON ROCK? How about a Mars rock?
NASA is working together with the European Space Agency on an
That’s the news!
ambitious plan to bring samples from Mars back to Earth.
Go to page 46 to
First, a rover launching in 2020 will land on Mars. As it drives see if you spotted
around, the rover will collect rocks and dirt in small tubes. Later, a the false story.
lander will arrive on the red planet and send a second rover to collect
the sample tubes. A container carrying the samples will blast back into
space—the first ever rocket launch from another planet. Finally, an
h.
orbiter will catch the sample container in space and carry it back to Earth.
Easy, right?

9
by Ashley O’Brien
O’Br
Brie
ien
 University
students
compete with
cutting-edge
cars in the
AutoDrive
Challenge.

t was Memorial Day 2019, just

days before the big AutoDrive
by Ashley O’Brien Challenge. Kettering University’s
team was testing its car before
shipping it to the competition.
Suddenly the smell of smoke
filled the air. The tester slammed
the emergency stop button. That
button shut everything off, ensuring
everyone’s safety. But their computer,
the heart and soul of their project car,
was done for.
The team didn’t panic. More
teammates came in on the holiday.
They stayed till 4:00 a.m. to fix
what they could. They left for the
competition with their Chevy Bolt,
a compact electric car, and a fried
computer. A sponsor sent a computer
to them, but the team would have to
put it together when they got there.

What the Challenge

Is All About
In the AutoDrive Challenge, college
students from across North America
are working to turn full-size electric
cars into self-driving cars. It is a
three-year process where teams take
on progressively harder challenges.
This new competition is sponsored by
the Society of Automotive Engineers
(SAE) and carmaker General Motors.
In 2018, eight colleges and universities
were invited to participate. Kettering
University in Flint, Michigan, was one
of them.

11
 Year 1 (2018) focused on concept
selection. Teams completed a
concept-design paper as well
as simple missions on-site in
Arizona.
Year 2 (2019) focused on urban
driving scenarios. Teams brought
their vehicles to Mcity, a Michigan
test facility that mimics a broad
range of challenges that vehicles
encounter in urban and suburban
driving situations.
Year 3 (2020) focuses on a
ğFWLRQDOULGHVKDULQJGULYLQJ
scenario, with a longer
continuous autonomous The team from Kettering
drive. Teams can show off University has overcome
design innovations and social obstacles to compete in
responsibility statements. the AutoDrive Challenge.

Kathryn Cesiel, 22, is a mechanical

and electrical engineering student
and a member of Kettering’s Auto-
Drive team. She works as a safety
team leader.
“We have to answer the question
‘what is an autonomous car?’ in our
reports,” she says. She defines it as
a “car with a human brain but no called a proving ground. Kettering’s laboratory, with 70 intersections
human error.” proving ground is called the GM that have been upgraded to include
“It’s a robot chauffeur,” says Diane Mobility Research Center. The 21-acre connected technologies. That means
Peters, a professor of mechanical facility features a wide oval course, that smart cars can “talk” to the
engineering at Kettering. Self-driving straightaways, curves, and elevation intersections.
cars are very complicated. They need and surface changes. The Mcity Test Facility sits on 32
sensors, GPS (global positioning Proving grounds are essential for acres. It simulates a small city with
systems), cameras, and a computer, autonomous vehicles. 16 acres of roads and obstacles like
explains Jennifer Bastiaan. She also Kettering team member Manuj those found in urban and suburban
teaches mechanical engineering at Dindgur, 26, studies automotive environments.
Kettering and, with Peters, advises systems as a graduate student. He Greg McGuire is the associate
the AutoDrive team. explains that these cars can’t go out director for Mcity. The research
Sensors include radar and lidar, on a regular city street. center is used to “test new technologies
which is like radar that uses light. “The proving ground has been great in a safe, controlled environment,”
Those are “like the eyes and ears of for us. We write some code for the he says. Those tests are necessary
the car,” Bastiaan explains. “It’s not car, we simulate it on the computer before autonomous cars can drive
good enough to have eyes and ears if possible, and then we come out to on public streets.
to drive. You have to have a brain to the test track to see if it works. We can “SAE was one of the first
make decisions, and that’s where the never be sure the car will behave how [groups] to use Mcity,” McGuire
computer and controls come in.” the computer says it will until we get says. Developers for Mcity even
Each team received an electric car, it out into an actual car.” used details from the competition
a very sophisticated computer, lidar in its development. For example,
and radar sensors, and a GPS unit. The More Tests at Mcity the AutoDrive testers wanted to
Kettering team also bought cameras. Mcity was the perfect place to host the control if the lights were red or
Then they got to work. AutoDrive Challenge for its year-two green at a particular moment
competition. It’s an advanced mobility in the competition, McGuire
Proving Grounds research center on the North Campus adds. That let them check whether
Kettering has a test track right on of the University of Michigan in Ann teams’ cars could react correctly
campus. In the car industry, it’s Arbor. Ann Arbor itself is a living to stoplights.

12
 Kettering Competes at
the Year Two Event
Kettering’s AutoDrive team arrived at
the competition at MCity and got to
work putting their car back together.
The team got the computer working
but lost its practice time.
During the test drive, Kettering’s
computer operator worked from the
Engineering student front seat. The team’s trained safety
driver sat behind the wheel, ready to
and team member take over if something went wrong.
Kathryn Cesiel An AutoDrive judge rode in the back.
defines an autono- The computer operator sent the car a
set of instructions. Off it went through
mous car as a the obstacle course.

“car with a “Because our computer blew up,

we didn’t do as well on the dynamic

human brain challenges, but we did well enough

because we read the rules,” Gates

but no human says. He explains that teams could

try a challenge twice in a row. But the

error.” second time would count for only half

as many points. “One of the events
was to go through a tunnel, stop at
a sign, and stay in the lane lines. We
McGuire says the AutoDrive Training the Car knew we had one shot at this.” There
competition is “right at the edge of “When training a car to recognize first run was good, and they decided
capabilities.” Students are building people in the middle of the road, to stick with those results.
something that’s not yet available for you have to have a diverse data The Kettering team brought home
consumers to buy. “Companies like set,” Peters notes. There are many several awards from the year-two
Waymo and others are spending types of people in terms of height, competition including a first prize
billions of dollars to do the same thing.” size, shape, gender, and race. The for concept design, second in safety,
car’s computer has to be taught to and others.
Dynamic Challenges account for all of those.
Cars performs harder tasks every year Charlie Gates is a mechanical Superb Sportsmanship
of the competition. In the first year, engineering grad student and “Everyone shows really good
cars had to drive in a straight line Kettering team co-captain. “If sportsmanship across the whole
and recognize stop signs and other the computer has never seen it, it competition,” says Peters. “When we
obstacles. Then in the second year, doesn’t know what to do with it. had our computer problem, all the other
cars had to go around corners, react It doesn’t have intuition that it’s teams were rooting for us to get our
to stoplights, and watch for moving human, so it might not properly computer and be able to compete. Yeah,
obstacles. For the third year, they respond.” Gates says. “If we don’t everyone wanted to win just like we did,
will simulate a ride-sharing vehicle. develop for everyone, people but they didn’t want to win because our
Cars will go to multiple locations, as aren’t going to be included. car was broken. We’re all trying to do
if picking up passengers, and then People aren’t going to buy it, but something immensely difficult. We’re
return to the original spot. it’s also not going to be safe.” all rooting for each other.”
For another challenge, students If cars are trained to recognize Cesiel says, “If we go to competition,
text © 2020 by Ashley O’Brien

had to build their own GPS software just one type of person, it might and we fail, it’s not the end of the
from scratch. Building GPS software not recognize someone from a world. In our eyes, we are succeeding
is a difficult engineering challenge; culture with different-looking because we saw our design being
these college students designed and clothes, or a person with an implemented. We saw what it did.”
developed something that already ability aid like a wheelchair. These
exists so they will have the skills are among the ethical issues the Ashley O’Brien teaches math and English
they need to develop something teams have to consider as part of to middle schoolers and is a lover of all
completely new. the competition. things learning.

13
Science@Work

by Ashley O’Brien

OLIVIA WANLESS
AUTODRIVE TEAM CAPTAIN
Olivia Wanless is a senior at Kettering University in Flint,
Michigan. She studies electrical engineering with a business
minor. Kettering University is a co-op-based school. That means
every three months, Olivia alternates between working at a
company and going to classes. She works at an automotive
supply company called Nexteer. There she fixes and maintains
machinery on the factory floor.
Wanless also mentors young people interested in
engineering, especially girls. She’s a team captain for the
AutoDrive Challenge, a tutor, and a former president of the
Society of Women Engineers.

14
WHAT EXPERIENCE WHAT IS IT LIKE WORKING AS A STUDENT?
INSPIRED YOU TO GO At first, kind of intimidating. I started working before I started
INTO ENGINEERING? school. I was a little scared, but in the end, that’s what sold me
When I started high school, I on engineering. I knew I liked the job. I get to learn all kinds of
figured out that I really liked things that really put me ahead at school.
math, which I had hated in ________________
elementary and middle school.
My teacher suggested that I WHAT CHALLENGES DO YOU FACE?
try engineering. It hadn’t even My biggest challenge is trying to apply the theoretical things
been on my radar. I learned in school to my job. I took a computer networking
I joined the LITES program class last semester. I learned a lot, but getting to work, I had to
at Kettering. (That’s Lives make connections between the things I know and the physical
Improve Through Engineering things that I’m looking at. I have to figure out how those things
& Science, a program for girls play together.
entering their senior year in ________________
high school.) There I took
an optics class, and it was WHAT ABOUT YOUR FIELD EXCITES
absolutely inspirational. YOU THE MOST?
________________ I’m very interested in ethics. In addition to working on
machines, I get to think about important problems. How do
WHAT ABOUT I make sure that whoever is using this machine is going to be
ELECTRICAL safe? At school and in the AutoDrive challenge, I’m learning
ENGINEERING the same things. For AutoDrive, we have to make sure the
INTERESTS YOU? autonomous technology is safe for people, that the technology
We all have individual is going to make good decisions. I get to help make choices that
problems on the are going to change society for the better.
manufacturing floor, so each ________________
day I get to inspect something
different. There are all sorts of WHAT IS IT LIKE WORKING ON THE
interesting problems, and I am AUTODRIVE CHALLENGE?
always learning. I started working on the AutoDrive challenge 2017. Then in
________________ 2018 I became leader of the Social Responsibility Event. We
think about the effects of self-driving cars. We have to be
CAN YOU DESCRIBE socially responsible and safe. Autonomous cars are so new. As
YOUR CO-OP JOB? a little kid you grow up seeing movies, cars driving themselves.
My second semester in I thought, that’s so cool, my dad won’t have to drive me
the co-op, I went into somewhere. So getting to take part in something that you’ve
manufacturing engineering, seen is really exciting.
which really clicked for me. ________________
The most important thing I
do is fix things on the floor. WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO BE IN THE SOCIETY OF
Whenever things are not WOMEN ENGINEERS?
working properly, it’s my job I think it’s important for both men and women. Diversity
to go out there and find out makes companies function much better. When I was in high
why. The other half of my job school, I didn’t think it was important. No one ever discouraged
text © 2020 by Ashley O’Brien

is continuous improvement. me. I didn’t understand why there weren’t many women in
I take time not just to fix the engineering. Then I took a class in electronics my senior year. I
little things that break every was the only girl. I love Society for Women Engineers because it
day, but to improve things builds a community. I know so many women at my school that I
for the long term. I want to might never have met without it.
make things easier from now
on instead of just the day-to- Ashley O’Brien is a teacher in Michigan, where she lives with her
day operations. engineer husband and three dogs.

15
Hands-On

Nick D’Alto Tim Oliphant

A Lot to Cover
DRIVERLESS ED Onboard computers have to learn the rules of
the road, plus all the skill and judgement human
motorists use when driving. That includes
TEACHING CARS TO DRIVE THEMSELVES IS A everything from accelerating and changing lanes
LOT LIKE TEACHING PEOPLE. to parking and sharing the road with bikes. Sure,
computers are “smarter” than people in many
ways. But this won’t be easy. If you had to write
FOR MANY TEENS, driver’s education class is a rite of passage. It’s the it all down, even simple driving tasks would
ğUVWVWHSWRZDUGSDVVLQJDWHVWVFRULQJDOLFHQVHDQGIHHOLQJWUXO\ require long, detailed instructions. Yet that’s
independent behind the wheel. If driverless vehicles catch on, will cars exactly what programming a driverless car
have to take driver’s ed too? will require.
That’s a joke with some truth to it. Because to succeed, a driverless How can we do it? Think science. Most of
vehicle (or more precisely, that vehicle’s onboard computer) will need to the actions that we call “driving” are based on
learn all skills that, until now, only human drivers have known. SK\VLFVDQGRWKHUVFLHQWLğFGLVFLSOLQHV6RLQD
way, driver’s ed is really a special kind of science
class—where practicing driving is the lab! And
Engineer Nick D’Alto wonders if driverless cars will get their own gas and oil at we can use what we know about science to teach
the drive-thru. (“Two gallons, please.”) vehicles to drive themselves. Let’s test how that
could work, using a classic driving situation.

16
Brake Time
You’re driving along, and the car ahead of you comes to
a sudden stop. Now you need to stop your car at a safe
distance behind the other vehicle to avoid an accident. How
does a human driver accomplish this? Let’s examine the two
most important factors.

Step 1: Reaction Distance

7KHGULYHUPXVWğUVWSHUFHLYHWKHGDQJHU7KLVPHDQVVHHLQJ
the slowing car ahead and realizing that something must be
done. Next, the driver must react by applying the brakes. How
long will all this take? Physiologists can measure the actual
time required for nerve impulses to travel from your eyes to
your brain. Then the processing time in your brain to make
a decision and then send signals to different parts of your
body. (In this case, signals cause your foot to work the brake
pedal.) Remember, while all this is happening in your body,
the car is still moving!

+RZIDUGRHVLWWUDYHO":HFDQğQGRXWZLWKWKLVIRUPXOD
R=sxr
where
R = Reaction Distance, s = speed (how fast you’re going),
r = reaction time (how fast you can apply the brakes)

Reaction times vary. For a driver who is healthy and alert, one
estimate is 1.5 seconds. But any impairment (from being tired
or texting, for example) can make this time, and the distance
the car travels, much longer. Notice that the distance also
increases the faster we go. That’s one reason speeding is
GDQJHURXVHYHQIRUDğWGULYHU

Step 2: Braking Distance

Once the brakes are engaged, stopping the car becomes a
real-life physics problem. A moving car has kinetic energy;
energy that builds up in the wheels as the car moves. It’s
the same energy that keeps bike tires rolling even after you
stop pedaling. To stop the moving car, we must convert that
energy into another form. One way is heat. Modern car brakes
press special pads against spinning disks that turn with the
wheels. As the pads heat up (often reaching more than 393º
F, or 200º C!), the car slows down. Some bicycle hand brakes
work this way too. But how far does the car move in the time
it takes for all its kinetic energy to be used up by the brakes?

2QHIRUPXOD\RXFDQXVHWRğQGRXWLVWKLVRQH
B = s² / (2 x g x f)
where
B = Braking Distance, s = speed, g = gravity,
f = function (how effective the brakes are)

For a well-maintained car on a smooth, dry road, f is about

0.7. But a very slippery surface makes the braking distance
much longer. So during an ice storm, f falls to a lower number.

17
 Ready to Program
Using the diagram below, calculate
the distance it will take to stop
the car at each speed. Human
drivers learn distances like these
in driver’s ed. Of course, a real self-
Hands-On

driving car might react and brake

differently than a human. But it
would still need similar information
programmed in. Because the
underlying science is always
the same.
To stop successfully, human
motorists use other skills too.
Checking the car’s mirrors helps
prevent collisions from behind.
Steering more carefully as the car
slows improves control. A driverless
car would need to learn these skills
as well. One day, sensors may allow
onboard computers to imitate
what human drivers feel and see.
Because in the end, science drives
the rules of the road.

Calculate the Distance

Stopping Distance = Reaction Distance (R) + Braking Distance (B)
R=sxr
s = speed
r = reaction time = 1.5 (seconds, but you can leave
units out of your equation)
B = s² / (2 x f x g)
f = function of brakes = 0.7
g = gravity = 32 (feet per second squared,
but you can leave units out)

At this speed, keep this distance away

from objects ahead of you.
30 ft/sec (20 mph) ____________________________________ ft

45 ft/sec (30 mph) ____________________________________ ft

60 ft/sec (40 mph) ____________________________________ ft

75 ft/sec (50 mph) _____________________________________ ft

18
1. Use caution when driving down hills. 2. Reduce speed in rain or snow.

Science in the Driver’s Seat

Can you match each driving skill with the science
behind it? Place a letter in each of the four boxes.
Answers are on page 46.

The Science
A. Turning objects feel a pull toward the
center called “centripetal acceleration.”
The inward pull increases the faster you go,
PDNLQJVWHHULQJPRUHGLIğFXOW

B. Objects in motion tend to stay in motion.

So just stopping the car won’t stop the people
inside it! They need seat belts to hold them to
the car. This is the single most important rule
of driving or riding in a vehicle.

C. Ice and water reduce the friction of

the wheels against the road, so stopping
takes longer.

D. When going down, potential energy

(stored energy related to a position in space)
becomes kinetic energy (energy of motion). So
the car speeds up.

text © 2020 by Nick D’Alto

3. Steer carefully while rounding a curve. 4. ALWAYS wear a seatbelt.

19
20
by Monette Bebow-Reinhard

ARE HYBRIDS OR ELECTRIC

VEHICLES THE WHEELS OF
THE FUTURE?

21
 H
ave you ever EVs v. Hybrids
heard someone EVs are cars or trucks that run only on
electricity. They’re also known as plug-
comparing
ins, as they plug into charging stations
MPGs or wishing to power up on electricity. A powerful
for better battery stores the energy. On average,
“mileage?” Miles per gallon an EV has a range of over 100 miles
(161 km) before the battery needs to
(MPG) is the distance a vehicle be recharged; this process could be
can travel on one gallon of as short as dinner at a restaurant or
gasoline. Gas gets many of longer than a full night’s sleep. Unless
us where we need to go, but you live within a half-day’s drive of the
Grand Canyon, an EV can’t take you
fumes from this fossil fuel there on a single charge.
pollute the air. Humans have Right now, electric vehicles face
burned an unprecedented two big challenges. They have limited
range and cost a lot—more, on
amount of gas since the car
average, than a gas-powered luxury
was mass-marketed in the car. The Tesla Model 3 (a well-known
early 1900s. Fossil fuel air electric sedan) has a range of over 300
pollution is one major reason miles (483 km) and costs more than
$47,000. A number of other car makers
for climate change. have EV models too.
Hybrid vehicles use gas and
electricity, in two motors that work
How do we use less gas—while together. The car’s movement charges
still getting to school, work, and the electric motor. When a hybrid
everywhere else? Well, some say car goes up a hill, it uses both the gas
electric vehicles (EVs) are the future. and electric engines to push the car
Others believe hybrids are the way upward, and when it goes down, the
forward. electric engine takes over. As the car

Electric automobile Hybrid automobile

fuel tank
large battery pack
supplies all power small array of batteries
power inverter changes power electric motor
the car battery’s
current, so devices
like phones can use it
electric-heat heat-reducing glass
pump cools electric-power
and heats air controller
inside car small, fuel-
HğFLHQWHQJLQH
alternating-
current motor low-drag aero- integrated electric motor
dynamic body supplements engine power
as needed, using stored
antilock battery power
braking
system high pressure, low rolling
(ABS) resistance tires
covered openings
electric power steering
extensive use of lightweight materials
inductive paddle
recharges batteries regenerative braking converts kinetic hybrid automobile
safely energy into electricity to recharge batteries refuels at ordinary
gasoline pump

22
 SOLAR SPEED
Could the sun power the car of the future? Created by Australian
engineers and named after a super villain, the rare Immortus Solar
Car can travel 340 miles at 50 mph on a sunny day. Drop the speed to
37 mph and it can go on forever. It also has a plug-in power train.

Hybrids Over Time go 32 miles on just the battery before

In 1898, Ferdinand Porsche invented the gas engine kicks in, so your soccer
the first hybrid vehicle, combining team can get to practice without using
both gas and electric into one engine. a drop of gas.
But the gas engine vehicle cost less
to make and quickly took over the The Clean Vehicle Outlook
market. Gas-powered vehicles ruled Some Americans consider the plug-in
the roads for more than a hundred hybrid ideal for today’s driving. After
years. In 1997, Toyota offered its Prius charging up at night in the garage, it
in Japan with hybrid technology. The can drive on electric power around
car ran on battery power until the town until it needs to be recharged. By
driver needed to go faster. Then the then, it’s likely to be home. If not, the
engine automatically switched to gas gas engine kicks in.
power. The 1999 Honda Insight, a two- But is the era of gas engines almost
seater, was the first hybrid available over? By 2030, some nations may
in North America. The Toyota Prius ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles
followed close behind. The Honda because of climate change. And EV
Insight achieved up to 70 MPG, which tech is likely to improve. Wouldn’t it
meant it could travel as far as 70 miles be convenient to jet-charge your EV
on one gallon of gas. Today’s sedan in just ten minutes instead of an hour
hybrids typically get between 45 and or more?
52 MPG, with careful driving. Maybe you’ve already seen some
Hybrids can teach gas-saving charging stations around town. But to
driving techniques. Hybrids have make EVs hugely popular, the US will
text © 2020 by Monette Bebow-Reinhard

meters displaying their MPG. When need a network of charging stations

goes downhill, its spinning wheels drivers coast—taking their foot off around the country—so they become
recharge the battery, saving up energy the gas—they’ll see the MPG improve as common as gas stations are now.
for a burst of power for the next time on the meter. If a traffic light ahead is That way we won’t have to worry
the car drives uphill. While the gas red, taking a foot off the gas allows the about where to recharge on the way to
motor powers the car for long, flat car to slow naturally. the Grand Canyon.
stretches of road, the electric motor Today Toyota makes four hybrids,
also gives drivers better gas mileage plus a plug-in vehicle option. A Monette Bebow-Reinhard has owned
by allowing the car to run for short Chrysler minivan is the country’s hybrids since 2003. With conservative driving,
spurts on just the battery charge. largest plug-in hybrid; it has a her 2006 Insight got better MPG than anyone
(Some hybrids feature a plug-in 16.5-gallon gas tank for a combined expected. She holds a master’s in history and
battery like an EV too.) (battery plus gas) 32 MPG. But it can has two granddaughters, Eleanor and Rose.

23
ART SPACE NIC McDOUGAL

LIFE IS BUTTER
WITH WAFFLES
A MAZE
FEED THE FUZZIES!
First, choose your favorite mode
of transport. Next, cut out your
selection. Use the bike path, road
or sidewalk to deliver a delicious
ZDIĠHEUHDNIDVW)DLUZDUQLQJ
Not all modes of transport lead
WRWKHğQLVK

alk,
idew
n the s ar launch H
o Q
Whil the circul \RXUGUR
e
k for WRĠ\ H V
WKHP RWWHGOLQ
loo
8VH
SDGV ORQJWKHG
D
 art © 2020 by Nic McDougal

25
 Drone Home
UAVs MAY CHANGE THE WAY PACKAGES ARE DELIVERED.
by Peg Lopata

I
companies driving this transportation
t’s official! There’s a new kind of revolution. As of publication, Wing’s
drones are delivering packages in a
airline. It has no pilots on board, limited area in Virginia, as well as
locations in Australia and Finland.
and the passengers won’t be people. Like most drones, Wing’s craft fly an
average of 150 feet (45 m) above the
The aircraft of this airline are ground and can hover like helicopters.
Unfortunately, they cannot fly in all
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), kinds of weather, such as snow or
hailstorms.
or drones. They will carry small packages,
One Sweet Delivery
such as medicine or boxes of candy. How does drone delivery work? Let’s
say you want to buy Mom a box of
chocolates. You look for just the right
kind for the right price at an online
shop that offers drone deliveries. It
can’t be an enormous box. Wing’s
What Exactly Is a Drone? very far, but specialized long-range drones, for example, can carry a
A drone is a robotic aircraft controlled models can travel several miles in a package only up to 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg).
by sensors, computers, and cameras. flight and can zoom up to 80 miles Say you place your order using Wing’s
A pilot on the ground monitors the (128 km) per hour. mobile app. The shop packs up your
craft. Drones run on rechargeable Wing, a drone maker based in order in a specialized package and
batteries. Most small drones can’t fly Palo Alto, California, is one of many requests a drone. Wing sends a drone

26
 Did yo
u
that W know
i
the sa ng has
me
compa parent
ny
Goog as
le?

to pick up the package

ke
e s t h at ma at the shop. A computer
Do like,
them, ? Search mapping system
s calculates the best
sibling me. route from the shop to
your location and then
uploads the flightpath
to the drone’s computer.
As it hovers above the
shop’s pick-up area,
someone from the shop
connects the package to Pros and Cons
a tether hanging below All sounds good, right? Well, people
the drone. Once attached, do have concerns about drones. Some
the package gets reeled say these flying robots are disturbingly
up like a fish on a hook noisy. Others worry that drones are not
where it’s secured under safe because a few pilots will ignore
the drone. Now it flies off the rules or that UAVs will make the
to you. skies too crowded. After incidents at
Meanwhile back at several busy international airports, it’s
your place, your phone apparent that “drones can cause major
pings. Chocolates on their delays and havoc,” writes Christine
way! You track the UAV Fisher of tech news site Engadget.
traveling toward you. Wing’s spokesperson says
Soon, you’ll hear it. the company’s engineers have
As it approaches, the programmed drone computers to
drone slows down, hovers, find clear routes for delivery avoiding
and then descends to obstacles like trees, buildings, and
about 23 feet (7 m) above power lines. If a problem arises during
the ground. It lowers your a flight, multiple systems—motors,
package on the tether. batteries, and navigation—back up
When the package lands the power and guidance systems. A
on the ground, the tether drone can monitor itself to make sure
releases the package and it’s working properly, and trained
reels itself back into the pilots on the ground can oversee
drone. The drone buzzes everything to make sure all goes well.
back up to cruising After all, getting those chocolates
height and returns to the to Mom in good shape, on time and
text © 2020 by Peg Lopata

company’s site, called safely—that’s important. And think

the Nest. It lands on a of what else drones might one day
charging pad, preparing deliver.
for the next delivery.
You give the Peg Lopata looks forward to drone
chocolates to your mom. deliveries so her dog, Pip, will stop dragging
Smiles all around! her after delivery trucks expecting a treat.

27
Science@Work

by Peg Lopata

SANJEEV SHARMA
TECHNOLOGY PIONEER
High-speed railroad cars, rockets, and now drones—what
will mechanical engineer Sanjeev Sharma
arma do next? Sharma is
currently head of vehicle engineering g at Matternet, a drone
company in Mountain View, California. a. Whatever lies ahead,
he’ll probably be at the forefront of new technologies that
serve others.

28
 SOUNDS LIKE ADVANCED TRANSPORTATION IS YOUR
SPECIALTY. HOW DID ROCKET ENGINEERING LEAD
YOU INTO DRONES?
During my work at SpaceX, I learned a lot about aerodynamics and
the design of reliable, fully autonomous flying vehicles—drones.
Drones, like self-driving cars, will open up a new world. I grew
intrigued by this possibility and was excited to join Matternet in
2018, as they are pioneers in this emerging technology.
________________

WHAT ARE DOING NOW AT MATTERNET?

We make drones—small airplanes that fly themselves—that can
take your stuff around without getting stuck on busy roads. I’m
working on an automated drone delivery system, which has an
intelligent drone aircraft capable of flying itself to a destination
miles away in a city.
________________

FLY ITSELF? NO PILOT? HOW DOES IT KNOW

“The common thread WHERE TO GO?
through all my career has Think of a carrier pigeon replaced by a machine capable of
been focused on technologies carrying heavier things than just messages. Operating drones
that help improve lives for autonomously—with no human control—over long ranges, in
a wide swath of people. I busy cities over people, buildings, freeways, metros, aircrafts, and
believe that is ultimately so on, requires an extremely high level of safety and reliability. In
the wider purpose of this type of aircraft, when a command is passed on to the drone
engineering,” says Sharm
Sharma. to go to a destination, it plans the route and keeps itself on track
So it’s not surprising tha
that using onboard sensors to see the world and navigate without
Sharma is involved in the
th crashing into anything.
emerging technology of a
new transportation mode:
mod
autonomous flying robots
robo or
drones. He also likes being
bei
a technology pioneer. “I
like to work on things th
that
haven’t existed before. FFull
autonomous drones in o our
urban airspaces are just the
kind of change I’d like to work
for,” says Sharma.
________________

YOU’VE WORKED
ON MANY NEW
TECHNOLOGIES.
TELL US ABOUT
SOME OF THEM.
Before joining Matternet
Matternet, I
worked with Elon Musk at
his company called Spac
SpaceX,
working on the reusable
rocket. Before that I worked
wor The Matternet Station
in design of high-speed automated drone deliveries
railroad cars for Indian Rail
R of packages, including
medical supplies.
in India, where I’m from.
from

29
Science@Work

ALL BY
THEMSELVES
Drones can deliver
packages with very few
people involved in the
ĠLJKW8VLQJQRERG\at
allLVWKHQH[WVWHS7R
DFFRPSOLVKWKLVWKH\łOO
QHHGWREHHTXLSSHG
ZLWKDUWLğFLDOLQWHOOLJHQFH
$, 5DLQWXUQVWRKDLO"$,
LQLWLDWHVDUHWXUQWRODXQFK
VLWH6DQMHHY6KDUPDKHDG
RIYHKLFOHHQJLQHHULQJDW
California drone company
WOW! THIS TECHNOLOGY SOUNDS ADVANCED. 0DWWHUQHWLVFRQğGHQW
WHAT’S BEEN YOUR GREATEST RECENT that AI will make drone
ACCOMPLISHMENT? GHOLYHULHVŃFRQYHQLHQW
As a result of a year-long effort at making drones more capable IDVWHUFKHDSHUDQGPRUH
and reliable, we now have permission from the US government UHOLDEOHń
to operate like an airline. In the US, you need permission to fly :KDWLV$,"3HRSOH
over people and cities. The government agency that gives this GHVFULEHPDFKLQHVWKDW
permission, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), gave PDNHWKHLURZQGHFLVLRQV
United Parcel Service (UPS), with us as their drone operator, DVDUWLğFLDOO\LQWHOOLJHQW,I
this permission. This is a first in aviation history for commercial DW\SLFDOGURQHHQFRXQWHUV
drones. It was a huge win for our entire team and gave me great DVLWXDWLRQIRUZKLFKLW
KDVQRLQVWUXFWLRQVLW
satisfaction.
ZRQłWNQRZZKDWWRGR
________________ +RZHYHUDQ$,PDFKLQH
ZLOOJREH\RQGIROORZLQJ
THIS BUSINESS OF USING DRONES FOR DELIVERIES DVHWRILQVWUXFWLRQV,W
MUST BE GROWING AND GROWING. WHAT WOULD FROOHFWVH[SHULHQFHVDVZH
YOU ADVISE A YOUNG PERSON INTERESTED IN GRDQGWKHQOHDUQVEDVHG
GETTING INTO YOUR FIELD AS A DRONE ENGINEER? RQWKRVHH[SHULHQFHV
This is a great field to be in. You need to learn engineering and :LWKPDFKLQHOHDUQLQJ$,
computers. Robotics requires specialization in various fields like ŃEUDLQVńZRUNPRUHOLNH
mechanical, electrical, software, or computers. You could choose KXPDQEUDLQV
from a wide array from what appeals to you the most. ,I\RXDUHIDVFLQDWHG
ZLWK$,\RXZHUHERUQDW
________________
WKHULJKWWLPHŃ2XUIXWXUH
LVJRLQJWREHGRPLQDWHG
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES, SUCH AS DRONES, ARE E\LQWHOOLJHQWPDFKLQHV
EXCITING, BUT SOMETIMES CHALLENGING. HAVE WKDWWDNHRYHUPRVWRIWKH
YOU HAD DISAPPOINTMENTS? PXQGDQHWDVNVIUHHLQJ
Though it may seem frustrating sometimes, it’s never KXPDQVWREHPRUH
text © 2020 by Peg Lopata

disappointing. There is a huge difference in making prototypes FUHDWLYH$\RXQJSHUVRQ

perform and a proven industrial product. Bridging this gap in WRGD\LVMXVWDWWKHULJKW
drones has been a humbling experience, and yes, at times, a SRLQWLQWKLVUHYROXWLRQDU\
challenge. But the chase is exciting. As they say, “If you don’t fail in FKDQJHWRJHWLQDQGPDNH
something new, you are not trying hard enough.” DKXJHGLIIHUHQFHWRWKH
UHVWRIKXPDQLW\ńVD\V
6KDUPD
Peg Lopata is a writer in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In nearby Boston,
SHRSOHFDQĠ\GURQHVIRUIXQLQFLW\SDUNV DVORQJDVWKH\IROORZ
VDIHW\UXOHV 

30
Q&A BY LIZZIE WADE

Q: into it. That point is called a

singularity, and it is both the
beginning and the end of a
Still, the laws of physics
tell scientists like Blecha
what would happen if you
W
What is at the black hole. crossed the event horizon,
e of a black
end A black hole’s power even though they can’t see it
extends beyond that in action. For one, the black
hole? single point, however. The hole’s gravity would rip you
—Ashley S. singularity’s enormous mass apart even before you crossed
means that it generates really, the point of no return. But
really strong gravity. That once inside the event horizon,
gravity creates a boundary all your atoms would continue
When you hear the around the black hole, called traveling until they met the
words “black hole,” an event horizon. Once gas, singularity and glommed onto
A : you probably imagine
a deep well that
a star, or even a planet crosses
the event horizon, there is no
it. You don’t really fall into a
black hole. You become part
traps everything that way out. Inside this boundary, of it.
falls into it. But that’s not really the black hole’s gravitational —Lizzie
what black holes are, says Laura pull is so strong that even light
Blecha, an astrophysicist at the is trapped. That means “there’s Have any questions?
Send them to Muse Q&A,
University of Maryland who no way for information [ from 70 E. Lake St., Suite 800,
studies them. In fact, a black hole inside the event horizon] to Chicago, IL 60601,
isn’t a hole at all. It’s really a point be transmitted to us,” Blecha or email them to
with a whole lot of mass squished explains. [email protected].

31
32
A System
in Sync
by Fiona Young-Brown
Smart cars
need smart
roads.

33
 i
t is time to go to
school. You go to the
bus stop and at exactly
the correct time, the
bus arrives. There is
no driver. The bus can
drive itself. You get on,
sit down, and the bus
continues its journey. In
the lane next to you, you
see several cars, but no one is
driving them either. Instead,
people are chatting or even
reading a book. The bus stops
at an intersection because it
has communicated with the
WUDIğFOLJKWVDQGNQRZVWKDW
pedestrians are crossing the
road. It is just pulling away
when it stops again. It has
detected a child running into
the street. A few minutes later,
you arrive at school, safe and
ready to start your day.

Thinking about a possible future

with self-driving cars is exciting. It
could mean fewer accidents and
fewer traffic jams. But creating
self-driving cars (also known as an
autonomous vehicle or AV) is not as
simple as you might think. They need
smart roads and smart infrastructure
where computers work together
and communicate to make sure
that everything works safely and
efficiently.
But what would smart roads look
like? And why do we need them? Look, no hands! A software engineer
demonstrates a self-driving car at a
Canadian test track.
How Humans Drive
First let’s look at the AV and see what
makes it different from a vehicle with cars, the siren on a fire truck, people, means it needs a very complicated set
a human driver. When we drive a car, bicyclists) tell us what to look out of programming.
we use our eyes and ears constantly for. We make decisions about how
to determine what is going on around to react. In fact, drivers’ brains are Sensors Instead?
us. Will that car ahead make a turn constantly making decisions, based on Steve Rowe is a senior design engineer
or slow down? Is that person going to everything we see and hear around us. with Michigan-based company
cross the road? Is that red light about A self-driving car would need Cybernet Systems. He works with
to change color? Signals all around us to be able to make the same kind robots and artificial intelligence,
(the traffic light, the lights on other of decisions that people do, which helping to design vehicles that can

34
 ”
ory
t r a ject that
ht “ ctory ing
oug a
I th be a f ic-look t’s
i g h t r a g ss i r
m
k es t t I gue o
m a u rd f
o y s. B ong wo
t a l th.”
just “pa

That would alert the car that it’s at a cars with traffic lights so that they
stoplight. But Rowe asks, what if the work together. Signals might tell cars
sun is shining in a way that makes the about a red light and help ensure a
light hard to see? What if it’s raining safe stop. Glenn Beach, president of
heavily or there is thick fog? Suddenly Cybernet Systems, foresees a possible
the camera can’t perceive the red light network of control towers, rather
any better than a human driver could. like that found in airports. However,
Then there are other problems. Is the these would be fully automated and
red light in your lane or another lane? look like a radio transmitter. Signals
Is it a stoplight or a store sign? How far from cars and roadways would all
away is it? Obviously, we don’t want a come to and from these towers,
self-driving car that stops immediately allowing communication among the
every time it detects red; that could be entire network. Rowe agrees: “Each
run on their own—autonomously. He very dangerous. So knowing not just intersection would act like an air-
explains that a vehicle needs lots of how to react but when to react is vital. traffic control tower, communicating
sensors to do the job that our eyes and with each other and able to route
ears would usually do. These sensors Can a Car Talk traffic along alternate routes to
include cameras, radar, and lidar. with a Road? alleviate traffic congestion.” That’s
Each one works in a different way to Self-driving cars don’t just need to right, smart roads could mean fewer
sense objects that might get in the be able to drive. They also need to traffic jams!
path of the car. Making the sensors be able to communicate with other
work so that they do “see” things in vehicles on the road, with the road What about
their way is fairly easy. But then using itself, and with traffic signals, lights, Pedestrians?
the sensors to interpret what they and more. Engineers and scientists Where will pedestrians and
see is much more complicated . . . have imagined lots of different ways bicyclists fit into the road system of
even when it’s something that sounds that a smart car might be able to tomorrow? If vehicles and streets
simple. Rowe gives one example of a communicate with a smart road. For are communicating by radio signals
sensor recognizing that a light is red. example, radio signals might link and sensors, does that make things

35
The small inset image is
from a video captured by a
self-driving car. The larger road could light glow-in-
image shows the same the-dark lanes, providing
street, with data visualized better navigation for drivers
by the car’s computer.
at night. The Netherlands
experiment was so successful
that in 2019, tests started on
two other roads with heavier
traffic (i.e. cars and trucks).
China is testing a similar
system in the hope that solar
roads could eventually melt
snow and light signals to help
warn traffic of hazards. Many
experts believe that China
has the resources to win the
race in having truly smart
roads, although this is still
several years from becoming
a reality.
In the meantime, we can
expect to find self-driving
safer or more complicated for those vehicles and roadways would need vehicles in smaller areas.
traveling by foot? One possibility is to use the same system. Otherwise, For example, some factories and
that roads continue to have sidewalks chaos could follow. Then there is the warehouses now have automated
and bicycle lanes, as they do now. In problem of cost. The various sensors carts that use sensors and guided
this case, we would still need familiar in self-driving cars built for smart routes to move materials from one
lights and signals. Crosswalks could roads can exceed $100,000 per vehicle. spot to another. Tram and similar
be equipped with sensors so that they That price means very few people public-transportation systems could
light up green or red, depending on could afford one. In addition, roads also work in city centers within a
whether it is safe to cross. And this would require massive renovations. few years.
could be taken one step further. What This would be very expensive to both
if the road detects that someone has states and the federal highway system. Exciting
stepped onto its surface and sends Another hurdle? Even if people Discoveries Ahead
a signal to stop any oncoming cars? build all of this infrastructure, there Fully autonomous cars and smart
However, this could cause problems will not be an overnight switch from roads may seem a long way off.
too. People might be tempted to step human to robot. Rather, it will take But there are many reasons to
into the road as they like, without care many years, as people move on from feel inspired. Beach calls this an
for traffic, and fast-moving cars would one car to another. Beach estimates exciting time, much like the space
not have enough time to stop. Another the transition period could take 20 race in the 1960s. Many items that
possibility is that we design two years or longer. Even then, there may we take for granted now developed
separate systems: roads for motorized still be some people who prefer to from technologies designed for
and automated vehicles and pathways drive themselves and don’t want to use in space. GPS systems, camera
for pedestrians and cyclists. change to automation. Therefore, the phones, and memory-foam
system will need to work with both mattresses all have their roots in
Hurdles to Leap automated and human operators. space exploration. Beach says that
text © 2020 by Fiona Young-Brown

While this all sounds very futuristic, engineers are likely to come up with
there are a number of obstacles Smarter Roads lots of new products as they work
to overcome before we see fully in the Making? on building smarter cars. What new
automated vehicles and roads. For Some countries have already been inventions can you think of that
starters, the technology is complex, experimenting with different types of might be with us soon?
especially when each part needs to smarter roads. A solar-powered cycle
interact with everything else. Rowe path opened in the Netherlands in Fiona Young-Brown is the author of more
notes that there is no agreement at 2014. Solar panels in the path make than a dozen books. She lives in Lexington,
the moment as to what information electricity that powers public lighting Kentucky, and enjoys going on long drives.
needs to be sharied—and how that and traffic signals. Some experts say She would like a self-driving car that lets
communication will happen. All that in the future, solar panels in the her enjoy the scenery more as she travels.

36
 BY IVARS PETERSON

Hans Holbein the Younger painted

The Ambassadors, complete with an
anamorphic detail, in 1533.
Do the Math

like a cylinder or a cone. The

mirror takes the distortion out
of the image.
About 200 years ago,
anamorphic paintings for
cylindrical or conical mirrors
were popular toys in both
Europe and Asia. You can

MORPHING Artists have long used the same

still find examples in some
museums. Nowadays, you
idea to create visual puzzles. A viewer may find anamorphic jigsaw
ART sees an object in a picture correctly
only if he or she finds the right angle
puzzles, which you could
assemble and view with a
at which to look at it. Such distorted special mirror to reveal a
It’s more than meets the eye. pictures are called anamorphic images. hidden image. And artists have
One of the most famous examples created amazing pictures that
is a painting called The Ambassadors must be reflected by shiny
by the German artist Hans Holbein the spheres, mirrored pyramids, or
When you’re riding along on your Younger. It shows two men standing in other mirrored shapes to show
bike or in a car, you sometimes see front of tables overflowing with books, their true identity.
the word “ONLY” painted on the instruments, and globes. At their feet, It’s a neat game of hide-and-
roadway just before an intersection. the artist painted a weird shape that seek for the eye.
The white letters look normal from turns out to be a grinning skull when
where you’re sitting. But if you were you hold the picture at a slant. Ivars Peterson likes looking for
standing beside the “ONLY” instead Some artists have tried more math in surprising places. When
of riding toward it, the letters would elaborate schemes. It’s possible, for he goes to an art gallery, he can’t
look stretched out. It’s only when you example, to draw or paint a picture help noticing mathematical
look at them at the proper angle that you can understand only if you look shapes and ideas in the work of
they don’t look distorted. at its reflection in a mirror shaped many artists.

37
 Moral
Machines
by Fiona Young-Brown

TOUGH QUESTIONS ABOUT

SELF-DRIVING CARS

H
ave you ever heard
of the trolley
problem? It is a
set of imaginary
scenarios used by ethicists—
people who ask questions
about right and wrong.

38
39
 Quizzing Drivers
More than 40 million people took an online quiz that asked ethical questions
Here’s one scenario. Say you are about driving. But, for most people, these questions are purely what-ifs, not
driving a car down a curvy mountain the stuff of real life.
road when you suddenly meet a flock
of sheep. You don’t have time to stop.
You could swerve into the mountain
(and probably die). You could swerve
in the other direction, off the side of
the mountain (and definitely die). Or
you could plow into the sheep (which
will probably kill some sheep and
damage your car, but you will likely
be OK). Yikes. What do you do?
What if it is not a flock of sheep
but a pair of bicyclists? Would your
answer be different now?
Now imagine you are in heavy
traffic and your car’s brakes start to
fail. If you keep going straight, you
will go into the back of a semi-truck
and probably die. But if you swerve
to avoid the truck, you risk hitting an
elderly woman or a group of children.
What do you do?
These are extreme choices. But
every day, drivers around the world
have to make split-second decisions
to avoid accidents. Often, they react
without even having time to think.
But what would a driverless car do?
Self-driving cars are programmed
to deal with all sorts of situations,
from understanding traffic rules to
planning the easiest route that avoids two pedestrians in front of you or So who should decide? Some people
construction. These programming swerve to hit a concrete wall? Does it say that the carmaker should program
decisions are straightforward. Ethics, depend on how many people are in the car. Others say that perhaps
on the other hand, is not. How do you the car? On whether the pedestrians each car owner should choose a set
program a car to decide what to do are male or female? Young or old? of programs when they buy the car.
in an accident? How do you choose In total, more than 40 million Others say governments should decide.
which life is more valuable? And people around the world have
who gets to choose? Should it be the answered the 13 questions in the Problems with the
car owner? The manufacturer? The quiz. The results are interesting. Trolley Problem
government? This is a problem that The scientists found that there is The trouble with the trolley problem and
ethicists, lawyers, and car makers are no one “correct” set of answers. the Moral Machine test is that they are
all wondering about. Everyone’s answers are typically not really very accurate for the type of
based on their own age, gender, situations we will face in the real world.
The Moral Machine Test culture, religion, and more. It might A car’s sensors might be able to detect
In 2016, a group of professors at be possible to make a car that can an object, as well as its size and whether
the Massachusetts Institute for drive by itself. But since everyone it is moving. But they cannot currently
Technology (MIT) created the Moral has different ideas about right and interpret that information to understand
Machine. This is an online quiz that wrong, who should decide how a if the object is a dog or a child, an old
anyone can take. It measures people’s self-driving car behaves? The results man or a young woman, or even if the
responses to ethical problems. One of of the Moral Machine test show person is or isn’t wearing a safety helmet.
the quizzes focuses on driving. Sample that what might be considered the So all of those detailed choices about
questions include equivalents of the correct choice in one place would whether it is better to hit the sheep or the
trolley problem. Should you hit the be wrong in another. bicyclist are not very realistic.

40
 Casey is a fellow at the Center
for Automotive Research. He
teaches at Stanford Law School.
Casey says that what a self-
driving car does in a crash is not
an ethical issue at all. Instead,
it is a legal issue. If a driver has
a collision now, the law decides
if he was driving dangerously or
if it was truly an accident. If the
driver was dangerously careless,
he faces penalties, often a fine or
jail. If a malfunction caused the
crash, the manufacturer might
be at fault. Either way, laws exist
to determine what is wrong, and
who is responsible. Casey says
that will not change with the
arrival of self-driving cars.
He does not believe that
self-driving cars are capable of
thinking and making decisions
for themselves. So who will
decide what cars should do?
According to Casey, laws will
guide carmakers’ choices.
We expect self-driving cars to
be very safe, safer than human
drivers because computers can
react more quickly. And indeed,
a well-designed autonomous
vehicle should be able to make
The Ethicist Opinion surrounding self-driving cars. They dozens of calculations at a time,
Patrick Lin teaches robotics and published a lengthy report, and in slowing down or speeding up
ethics at California Polytechnic State one chapter, Lin discusses the ethical in relation to its surroundings.
University. He says that it might seem problems. He wrote that any type Nevertheless, accidents can
easy to say that self-driving cars must of decision-making based on age, always happen. This means that
follow certain rules, such as to minimize gender, or any similar factor would drivers, manufacturers, and
harm, but he says, “even that quickly be discrimination and therefore lawmakers will need to deal with
leads to morally murky decisions.” He against professional codes of ethics. new problems as they arise.
gives an example: on one side of you He explained that even the safest car Driving laws have changed
is a motorcyclist wearing a helmet; on runs the risk of having accidents, and over time to reflect updates in
the other is a motorcyclist not wearing that the responsibility for program- technology. And they will keep
a helmet. If the car’s computer tells it ming will lie with the manufacturer. changing. Remember the trolley
to minimize harm during a necessary Whether that decision is to protect problem? What would you have
text © 2020 by Fiona Young-Brown

swerve, that might mean hitting the passengers at all costs, or to avoid the done in each situation? And even
person with the helmet. After all, they most damage, or something else en- more important—how would you
are better protected and so less likely to tirely, Lin says it is a no-win situation. decide what is right or wrong for
be hurt. But, Lin asks, aren’t you being Just as with human drivers, there will a car without a driver?
unfair to the responsible motorist? always be accidents where someone
On the other hand, hitting the person gets hurt. Fiona Young-Brown is a writer from
without a helmet could be described England who now lives in Kentucky.
as “street justice.” The Legal Opinion 6KHLVDIDQRIVFLHQFHğFWLRQPRYLHV
In 2015, German carmaker Daimler- But some experts say we don’t need especially those with cars that can
Benz started to look at some of the issues to worry about this problem. Bryan drive themselves!

41
Hands-On

Funny sentences
Cate.

But couldn’t you have

read at least some
of the words we just Oh right.
suggested?

Kathryn Hulick

+(5(727+(5( These are

AND EVERYWHERE tomorrow’

fill in the
blanks.
PREDICT THE ________ FUTURE OF TRANSPORTATION.
TION.
ADJECTIVE

WANT TO KNOW HOW YOU’LL GET AROUND IN THE FUTURE? We do d

too. So let’s play a game. Before you read the story below, ask a friend
n
\EH
H
IRUZRUGVWRğOOLQWKHEODQNV 7HOOWKHPWKHUHłVQRSHHNLQJ 0D\EH
you’ll come up with some clever new tech. Or maybe you’ll just laugh
augh
ghh
XQWLO\RXVQRUW$ORQJWKHZD\ğQGRXWZKDWUHDOWHFKQRORJLHVLQVSLUHG
QVSLLUH
UHG
HG
the silly story.

In Kathryn Hulick’s future, she’ll ride in a purple penguin-powered personal

erson
o al
on
scooter. Until then, she keeps busy writing books for kids about sciencee and
n
nd
technology. Strange But True: The Future comes out in Fall 2020.

42
 <RXUDODUPBBBBBBBBBEODVWVBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB<RXBBBBBBBBDQG
NOUN A POPULAR SONG VERB
SXOO\RXUEODQNHWRYHU\RXUBBBBBBBBBB<RXZHUHKDYLQJVXFKDJUHDW
BODY PART
GUHDPDERXWBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB7KHQ\RXUHPHPEHU<RXłUH
ADJECTIVE PLURAL NOUN
VXSSRVHGWRPHHWBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBWKLVPRUQLQJDWBBBBBBBBBBB
NAME OF A PERSON PLACE
,WłVWKHFKDPSLRQVKLSBBBBBBBBBBBBBJDPHWRGD\+RZDUH\RXJRLQJ
SPORT
WRJHWWKHUH"7KDWłVHDV\<RXWDSDQDSSRQ\RXUBBBBBBBBBBVFUHHQ
NOUN
to call a ride.

City dwellers already call for rides from their phones all
the time. In the future, it’s likely that few people will own
cars. They will use ride services or public transportation
instead.

2QWKHZD\RXWWKHGRRU\RXORQJLQJO\VWDUHDWWKHBBBBBBBBBBBB
ADJECTIVE
MHWSDFNKDQJLQJRQWKHZDOORIWKHBBBBBBBBBB,WEODVWVDSHUVRQ
ROOM
WKURXJKWKHDLUDWBBBBBBBBBBBBBPLOHVSHUKRXU,WKDVZLQJVVKDSHG
LARGE NUMBER
OLNHBBBBBBBBBBDQGJX]]OHVBBBBBBBBBIXHOEXW\RXKDYHWREHDW
NOUN LIQUID
OHDVWBBBBBBB\HDUVROGWRXVHLW
NUMBER

’s

6FLHQFHğFWLRQZULWHUVKDYHLPDJLQHGDOOVRUWVRIRXWODQGLVKZD\V
IRUSHRSOHWRJHWDURXQGLQWKHIXWXUH:KRZRXOGQłWORYHWREODVW
RIIWKHJURXQGDQG]LSWKURXJKWKHDLUZLWKDMHWSDFN"5HDOMHWSDFNV
exist, but they can keep a person in the air for only a few seconds
RUPLQXWHVDWDWLPHEHIRUHEXUQLQJWKURXJKDOOWKHLUIXHO :DWHU
SRZHUHGMHWSDFNVFDQUXQIRUXSWRWZRKRXUVEXWRQO\LI\RXĠ\ORZ
RYHUZDWHUXVLQJDKRVHWRGUDZXSPRUHZDWHUWRNHHS\RXJRLQJ 
$OVRLWWDNHVDKLJKOHYHORIVNLOOWRVDIHO\RSHUDWHDQH[SORVLYH
HQJLQHVWUDSSHGWR\RXUEDFN$Ġ\LQJPRWRUF\FOHOLNHYHKLFOHWKDW
carries one person would be safer and more practical. The company
-HW3DFN$YLDWLRQLVEXLOGLQJRQHWKDWVKRXOGEHDEOHWRĠ\IRU
minutes at a time.

43
 While you’re waiting on the front steps, you decide to order
Hands-On

a new ________. Twenty minutes later, you hear a

NOUN
_______________ from above. You look up and see a ___________,
TYPE OF SOUND ADJECTIVE
________-sized drone carrying a box. It ________s, then drops the
NOUN VERB
box, bonking you on the ___________. “_____________!” you shout
BODY PART SILLY WORD
after the drone.

You or someone you know may already own a drone. These small aircraft are
fun to play with, but they could also revolutionize how stuff moves around the
JOREH,QUHPRWHSDUWVRIWKHZRUOGVHOIĠ\LQJGURQHVDUHDOUHDG\KHOSLQJWR
deliver life-saving drugs, blood products, and other important supplies. In the
future, drones could deliver toothpaste, oranges, toilet paper, or anything else
you need. Google’s drone delivery service, Wing, launched in Australia in 2019.
And Amazon plans to launch Prime Air. The idea is that when a customer places
an order, a drone takes off from the nearest warehouse with the goods and
ĠLHVLWVHOIWRWKHSHUVRQłVKRPHDOOZLWKLQPLQXWHV:K\GRQłWZHKDYHWKLV
VHUYLFH\HW"*HWWLQJSHUPLVVLRQWRĠ\SDFNDJHVDOORYHUWKHSODFHKDVQłWEHHQ
easy. Drones have to meet strict safety standards to make sure they don’t
crash into anything.

Your ride is here! It’s not a car. It’s a __________ ________-powered

wered
ADJECTIVE NOUN
personal scooter that navigates by itself. It can also _______ and
VERB
deliver take-out ____________. When no one’s using it, the vehicle
FOOD ITEM
________s at a charging station.
VERB

Self-driving cars could make the roads much safer. Their computer systems wouldn’t fall
asleep or get distracted by a text message or feel road rage. However, self-driving cars
aren’t safe enough yet. They may not notice or understand how to handle certain obstacles
LQWKHURDGOLNHWKHĠDVKLQJOLJKWVDQGEODULQJVLUHQVRIHPHUJHQF\YHKLFOHV$KXPDQGULYHU
must still be prepared to take over. Smaller, self-driving bikes or scooters would move more
slowly than cars and could drive in bike lanes or pedestrian areas. So they may be ready to
go sooner. MIT engineers Kent Larson and Michael Lin designed and tested the Persuasive
Electric Vehicle (PEV). They hope that it will someday deliver packages or bring people to
work in cities. Riders can let the bike drive itself or pedal and steer. The car-sharing company
Uber is also looking into self-driving electric bikes and scooters.

44
 When you arrive, your friend looks ___________. The championship
EMOTION
was cancelled due to _________________. You decide to go to
NATURAL DISASTER
__________ instead. Time for another ride. This time, you call a car
PLACE
so you can talk about ____________ together on the way. You’ve
PLURAL NOUN
only been traveling ________ minutes when something goes
NUMBER
wrong. The car’s high-tech _________ system starts
NOUN
___________________. You ask the car to drive _________ to the
VERB ENDING IN -ING ADVERB
closest fuel station. Most cars these days run on fuel made from

__________ or ________________.
LIQUID CHEMICAL ELEMENT

Burning gasoline and other fossil fuels for transportation releases greenhouse gases that worsen climate
change. In the US, cars, trucks, aircraft, and other vehicles add more of these dangerous gases to the atmo-
sphere than any other industry. What could power vehicles instead? Electric engines are one option. These
run on batteries. They don’t worsen climate change—as long as the energy to make and charge the batteries
comes from a renewable source like wind farms or solar panels. Another option is a hydrogen fuel cell. This
ZRUNVDORWOLNHDEDWWHU\%XWLQVWHDGRIFKDUJLQJLWDWDQRXWOHW\RXğOOWKHFHOOZLWKK\GURJHQJDV+\GURJHQ
(the most abundant element in the universe) is cheap and easy to produce. The process requires electricity,
which hopefully comes from a renewable source. In the fuel cell, the hydrogen gets converted back into elec-
WULFLW\WRUXQDQHQJLQHOHWWLQJRIIKDUPOHVVVWHDP)XHOFHOOVFDQEHUHğOOHGLQDIHZPLQXWHVZKLOHDEDWWHU\
may take hours to fully charge. Some people already drive electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell cars. As these
vehicles get less expensive and charging stations or hydrogen fueling stations become more common, more
people will likely switch to the new technology.

After a ________ hour wait at the station, you’re both ready

NUMBER
to _______. This day has been a complete disaster. Then a
VERB
QRWLğFDWLRQSRSVXSRQ\RXUBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBGHYLFH7KH
text © 2020 by Kathryn Hulick

ARTICLE OF CLOTHING
championship is back on! This time, you walk a few blocks to

_________ to watch the game on a __________ screen. Even with

PLACE NOUN
all the advanced transportation technology available, your own

two feet can still get you from here to there.

45
 CONTEST

NEW CONTEST

—JOSEPH D. / age 15 / Minnesota

—
This
T submarine is a probe designed to
e
explore Jupiter’s moon Europa, which has
a ocean of liquid water underneath its
an
i surface. The vehicle’s drill-shaped case
icy
a
allows it to burrow through the moon’s 14
m
miles of ice, after which the case opens
a the submarine inside, complete
and
Start to Finish w lights, cameras, robotic arms, and
with
Did you deliver the waffles in the a antenna to relay information back
an
maze on pages 24 and 25? Sweet! t Earth, deploys to search for possible
to
a
alien life.
Now it’s your turn to design a maze.
Make it silly, make it complicated—
anything goes, as long as it’s
possible to complete. What
materials will you choose? Maybe
you’ll sketch a puzzle with pencil on ANNOUNCING
paper, or with chalk on pavement. CONTEST WINNERS!
Maybe you’ll make a maze in three In January, we asked you
dimensions with dominoes, to send thrillingly 3D
cardboard, or Legos. Share an image models of new undersea
of your most a-MAZE-ing work! vehicles, ready to take
the plunge. The ocean’s
CONTEST RULES
1. Your contest entry must be your
mysteries are sure to be
very own original work. Ideas and revealed with these subs
words should not be copied. going deep!
2. Be sure to include your name,
age, and full address on your entry.
3. Only one entry per person, —HOLDEN
M. / age 12 / North C
please. Carollina
4. If you want your work returned,
enclose a self-addressed, stamped
envelope.
a
5. All entries must be signed by a 10 / Florid
Y H. / age
parent or legal guardian, saying —DAGN
e
that this is your own work and HOV: Hop r
Name of d discove
no help was given and granting ean the ocean an
cl
permission to publish. For detailed Mission: To
es
information about our compliance new speci
with the Children’s Online Privacy
Protection Act, visit the policy page
at cricketmedia.com/privacy.
6. Your entry must be received
RUNNERS-UP
by June 30, 2020. We will publish
winning entries in the November/ Honorable Mention
December 2020 issue of Muse. Allison D., age 11, Ohio; Audrey M., age 10, 12, Kentucky; Josephine S., age 10, New
7. Send entries to Muse Contest, New York; Cody D., age 13; Cordelia P., age York; Lev A.P., age 10, Colorado;
70 E. Lake St., Suite 800, Chicago, IL 8, New Mexico; Elise H., age 10, Missouri; and Solomon L.
60601 or via email to Elsa M., age 12, California, Ember S., age 9,
[email protected]. New Jersey; Isabella G., age 10, Wisconsin;
If entering a digital photo
Isadora H., age 9, Vermont; Joanna Y., age
or scan, please send at 300 dpi.

ANSWERS

PAGES 6–9
Muse News False Story “Pigeons Train Better Drones”
PAGES 16–19
Calculate the Distance (rounding to nearest whole number): 65 ft, 113 ft, 170 ft, 238 ft
Science in the Driver’s Seat: 1D, 2C, 3A, 4B
46
Your Tech BY KATHRYN HULICK

DO YOU REALLY WANT over the place, it would affect

how things look. . . . It would be
A FLYING CAR? noisier and there would be a
greater probability of something
IT’S THE YEAR 2020. So where are all the flying cars? falling on your head. Those are
The vast majority of people still get to work and school in not good things.” And aircraft
boring, ground-bound cars. Not to mention buses, trains, crashes tend to be deadlier than
and bikes. Yet some still dream of a day when we can soar car crashes.
above the traffic on the ground. In Singapore in 2019, the Musk thinks building lots
company Volocopter demonstrated a flying taxi, also known of tunnels underground is a
as an eVTOL. That’s short for electric vertical take-off and safer, quieter option for future
Oh, my
landing, because an electric engine powers the craft, and it ride’s here. transportation. He even has
doesn’t need a runway. A pilot flew the test model. But in the a company working on this
near future, these helicopter-like vehicles will be able to fly idea: The Boring Company.
themselves while carrying two or more passengers and their (The name is a play on words.
things. Other companies, including Uber and Airbus, are “Boring” means “drilling a hole”
working on their own self-flying taxis. and “uninteresting.”) What do
If some people traveled in flying taxis, there would be fewer you think? Are flying cars or
cars on the roads, reducing traffic there. In the 3D space of the taxis a good idea? Or should
air, vehicles can move around each other without bridges or we find other ways to solve
tunnels or extra lanes. The taxis could also take off and land the world’s transportation
on rooftops, freeing up parking lot space on the ground. Plus, problems?
flying is fun. Wouldn’t it be cool to zoom through the sky every
day on the way to school? Kathryn Hulick‘s book, Strange
However, there are quite a few good reasons why we don’t But True: The Future, comes out in
already have flying cars. The famous inventor Elon Musk runs Fall 2020. She does not predict a
the rocket company SpaceX and electric car company Tesla IXWXUHğOOHGZLWKĠ\LQJFDUVEXWVKH
Motors. So he seems like the perfect person to make flying GRHVWKLQNĠ\LQJURERWVZLOOGHOLYHU
cars a reality. But he said, “If the sky was full of cars flying all \RXUSDFNDJHV

47
 BY NANCY KANGAS GRETA SONGE

RETHINKING
PIZZA
Last Slice

DELIVERY
Sure, new technology is changing the way we
move ourselves—and our stuff—from one place
to another. But pizza? Let’s not mess around! We
suggest: robotic llamas and ropes and pulleys.
You’re welcome.

CONCERN: You need to get the

pizza from the
neighborhood “hub rope” to
your house—FAST! How?
RESOLUTION: Attach a rope
from the neighborhood hub
rope to your house. Install a
really sweet pulley. Boom.

CONCERN: The ropes might

start sagging
with the weight of all the pizz
as.
RESOLUTION: More poles.

text © 2020 by Nancy Kangas, art © 2020 by Greta Songe

d lots of batteries.
CONCERN: Robotic llamas nee
RAN OU T OF BAT TERIES BEFORE THEY
WHAT IF THEY
GOT TO MY HOUSE?
robotic llamas! Their
RESOLUTION: Solar-powered
hats are actually solar pan els!
48
 Growing Up? We grow with you!

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Our future is
going to be dominated
by intelligent machines
that take over most
of the mundane tasks,
freeing humans to be
more creative.