Welcome to Shop Talk with Vertical Motion Inc. This month we're recapping the biggest business, technology, community, and space headlines, events, and stories from August.
Warp Speed Ahead with August Quick Reads
General Motors (GM) has announced its plans to expand its hands-free Super Cruise system across 643,000 kilometres (400,000 miles) of Canadian and U.S. roads.
In 2023, U.S. fighter pilots will don helmets with augmented reality visors that place replica enemy fighter jets in their field of vision to practice maneuvering against highly advanced aircraft.
A recent peer-reviewed study on courier transportation found that greenhouse -gas emissions per package were 84% lower for drones than for diesel trucks. Drones were also found to consume up to 94% less energy than their diesel counterparts.
American aerospace manufacturer Redwire announces plans to launch the first commercial space greenhouse in 2023 to boost crop production research outside of Earth and support exploration missions.
Tinder Founder Dr. Dustin Freckleton and his latest business Happy Health, have recently released the Happy Ring which is designed to measure and understand the emotional state of users to improve mental health.
Between Friends Charity Golf Tournament
Between Friends Charity Golf Tournament. Credit: Vertical Motion Inc.
Between Friends is a Calgary, Alberta pan-disability organization providing quality social, recreation and development opportunities to more than 80 different disability groups throughout Calgary and the surrounding region. For close to 40 years Between Friends has endeavoured to increase the community’s awareness, positive attitudes, and sensitivity towards their fellow citizens with disabilities.
On August 18th Between Friends hosted their annual charity golf tournament at the 7,200-yard Les Furber-designed Silvertip Golf Course in Canmore, Alberta. In support of Between Friends’ continued efforts in the community, Vertical Motion Inc. proudly sponsored hole #14, a beautiful 598-yard par 5 intermixed among Alberta’s mountain scenery. Our team members Bill Copeland and Ty Mikitka spent the day connecting with golfers, discussing Vertical Motion’s work in software and mobile app development, and giving away a Green Mountain Grills Trek Prime WiFi Portable Grill to one lucky participant.
On behalf of everyone at Vertical Motion, we’d like to thank Between Friends, Silvertip Golf Course, and all of you who visited with us at the event. We hope to see you all again next year!
To learn more about Between Friends, please visit:
Samsung Launches New Self-Repair Partnership
Samsung launches a new self-repair program in partnership with iFixIt. Credit: Samsung
Samsung users now have the ability to complete self-repairs on their Galaxy S20, S21, and Galaxy Tab S7+ devices thanks to Samsungs recent partnership with device repair website IFixIt. Customers can now replace the charging port, phone screen, and back glass of the above devices with plans to expand this at an unspecified future date. This partnership was announced back in March following growing consumer pressure behind the “right to repair” movement, which seeks to reduce e-waste by allowing users to repair tech devices rather than replacing them. Apple announced a similar program late last year for the US market, while Google has reached a similar joint agreement with IFixIt. Though some remain skeptical of these new initiatives, individuals with steady hands and broken devices are eager to try their luck with self repair.
James Webb Space Telescope Captures Incredible Views of Jupiter
The JWST captures unprecedented views of Jupiter, its northern and southern lights, and swirling polar haze. Credit: NASA
On Monday, August 22nd, NASA released images captured by the James Webb Space Telescope in July of this year, revealing never before seen high resolution images of our solar system’s biggest planet Jupiter. The image shown above captures distinct planetary markers of Jupiter including its northern and southern auroras, orbiting moons, rings, and storms. NASA explains that data gathered by the James Webb Space Telescope will help scientists study and learn more about the dynamic chemistry of Jupiter, its rings, and its satellite system.
Time Travelling with Vertical Motion | August Historical Events
A look back at the major events in August history. Credit: Vertical Motion Inc.
August 6, 1997 — Steve Jobs reveals that Microsoft invested $150 million in Apple in exchange for non-voting shares. Furthermore, the investment included a guarantee that Microsoft would support Office for the Mac for at least five years, and Apple would introduce Microsoft’s Internet Explorer for Mac.
August 10, 1990 – NASA’s Magellan space probe arrives in Venus orbit and would go on to image the entire surface of the planet, returning 1,200 GB of data.
August 12, 1981 – IBM releases its first PC known as IBM Model 5150, featuring 64 KB RAM, 5 internal I/O ports, and a monochrome display.
August 16, 1995 – Microsoft releases the Internet Explorer 1.0 web browser for Windows 95 users. Microsoft would continue to develop and launch subsequent versions of the web browser until replacing it with Microsoft Edge in 2015.
August 18, 1947 – William Hewlett and David Packard incorporate Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP) nine years after selling their first oscillators from a garage in Pal Alto, California, USA.
Vertical Motion Inc. is a trusted Canadian software development and entrepreneur assistance company that has supported the global efforts of startups, non-profits, B2B, and B2C businesses since 2006. With headquarters in Calgary and Kelowna, and team members coast to coast, Vertical Motion Inc. is recognized as an award-winning leader in the technology industry. Our team of executive advisors, project managers, software developers, business analysts, marketing specialists, and graphic designers have extensive experience in several industries including — Energy, Finance, Blockchain, Real Estate, Health Care, Clean Technology, Clothing & Apparel, Sports & Recreation, Software as a Service (SaaS), and Augmented & Virtual Reality (AR/VR).
Come chat with us and let us take you “From Idea to Execution and Beyond!” 🚀
Communications officer on the bridge at Vertical Motion Inc.