Travel

Three Things I Loved About Raleigh

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

At the end of May my boyfriend and I packed up my little Honda and took a road trip down to Raleigh, North Carolina for an extended weekend. Here are three fantastic things I loved most about this small city with a big urban vibe.

The Food

bu-ku

There are plenty of great food options in downtown Raleigh, and I wished I had more time and money and room in my stomach to try more restaurants than we did. Though Raleigh is small, it packs a big city punch, and with the warm, breezy weather, most restaurants had outdoor seating. There were all kinds of cuisines, too: Mexican, Italian, Thai, Chinese, and more, all within walking distance. My boyfriend, Tim, and I stopped at an absolutely delicious restaurant, bu•ku, smack-dab in the middle of downtown Raleigh. This place served global street food, which pretty much consisted of a dish from every different nation in the world. The waitstaff was cheery and attentive, and we had an excellent time, from appetizers to dessert (and the drinks in between!). Read More

Las Vegas Highlights

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

Vegas Night Life

Las Vegas. Disney World for adults. Sin City. An addict’s dream land. I was fortunate enough to spend a few days in this flashy place, right on the Strip up in Caesars Palace. My purpose there was to attend the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on behalf of the magazine and website I work for, electronicproducts.com. I enjoyed CES, which was at the Las Vegas Convention Center and scattered about the Strip. I spent the majority of my mornings and afternoons at the show, mingling, snapping pictures, riding the monorail, and pretending I knew where I was going (somehow, I kind of did!). But when the sun went down and the moon came out, after my articles were written and I spammed my Twitter followers with pictures of dancing robots, huge TVs, and self-driving cars, I joined the buzzing crowds outside to explore my new surroundings.

Bellagio Water Show

I was very excited to see the Bellagio water show, which was fantabulous. Absolutely beautifully done. I was amazed how the shooting and swaying water was so in sync with the music. Read More

San Francisco Highlights

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

The Golden Gate Bridge.

San Francisco: the city of the diverse. Somewhere I belong. One of my dream spots. Last September when I was itching for an adventure and needed some change, I piled up enough dough to plop myself on a plane headed to the west coast. Sick of the fast-paced, I’m-better-than-you ways of the east coast (at least in New York), one of my brothers moved out there and landed himself quite the fantastical job (in San Fran, you’ll need that). So I figured, “Hey, I have a place to stay, now’s a great time to visit!” I stuffed some clothes in a bag, grabbed my boyfriend, flew through the air, and in a matter of hours, we were on the other side of the country. Our first vacation together.

Matanzas_Creek_Winery

We drenched ourselves in rosé, Pinot noir, chardonnay and the like in Sonoma in the mountains while playing Bocce, surrounded by breath-taking scenery; we went to a San Francisco Giants game (where a sea gull pooped on my head during the seventh inning); we took a ferry out to Angel Island and Alcatraz Read More

Image(s) of the Day: What commercial aircraft will look like in 2050

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

By 2050 the aircraft industry will be much different than it is today. The predicted seven-fold increase in air traffic will bring a four-fold increase in greenhouse gas emissions, unless significant changes are made. But how drastic will these changes need to be in order to prevent this issue and how will they affect today’s aircraft that cruise through the skies every day?

2050_Aircraft

The airliner is about to be re-invented. Shown above is an aircraft with a blended wing body. Image via space.com.

The next big step towards ensuring a greener aircraft industry is the full electrification of commercial aircraft. That means zero CO2 and NOx emissions, with energy sourced from power stations that are sustainably fueled. In this case, the main technological barrier is to overcome the energy density of batteries, a measure of how much power can be generated from a battery of a certain weight. Read More