Tag: Saudi Arabia

Impact Lab > Saudi Arabia
City Planning, Engineering, Housing, Science & Technology News

MbS goes Elon Musk on steroids: Seeks flying cars, electric dinosaurs, robot maids, & glowing sand for Barren Saudi desert

 

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In northwest Saudi Arabia, where most people see a barren wasteland, Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has envisioned the future, and according to the Wall Street Journal, it is something straight out of an Elon Musk wet dream, complete with flying taxis, robot maids, robot dinosaurs, robot martial arts, endless booze and glow-in-the-dark sand, among other things.

Perhaps MbS has been following Elon Musk’s Twitter account a little too closely. Or perhaps he has joined him in a microdosing regimen. Regardless, MbS has hatched a $500 billion plan to cover 10,000 square miles of this desert to attract the “world’s greatest minds and best talents” to the world’s best paying jobs in the world’s most livable city.

A true modern day, pardon, future Shangri-La.

Continue reading… “MbS goes Elon Musk on steroids: Seeks flying cars, electric dinosaurs, robot maids, & glowing sand for Barren Saudi desert”

Engineering, new technology, Record Breaker, Science & Technology News, Transportation, Travel

World’s longest hyperloop track in the works for Saudi Arabia

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A 35-km-long (21.- mi) hyperloop test track is planned for Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah Economic City

Virgin Hyperloop One has expanded its relationship with Saudi Arabia, with the two announcing plans to develop a new test track in the country’s west. The facility would become the world’s longest Hyperloop tube, and would be used to test out the technology as the gulf nation eyes a wider rollout of the futuristic transport system.

Continue reading… “World’s longest hyperloop track in the works for Saudi Arabia”

Hyperloop, Science & Technology News, Transportation

Saudi Arabia to host longest hyperloop test track

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Hyperloop would reduce travelling time from Riyadh to Jeddah to 76 minutes – currently over 10 hours

 With speeds three times faster than high-speed rail and an on-demand, direct to destination experience, hyperloop technology can reduce journey times across Saudi Arabia, exponentially increasing connectivity across not only across the country but throughout the GCC.

Saudi Arabia could host the longest test and certification hyperloop track in the world after a partnership deal was struck between Virgin Hyperloop One, the futuristic rapid transit system backed by Dubai-based ports operator DP World, and the kingdom’s Economic City Authority (ECA).

Continue reading… “Saudi Arabia to host longest hyperloop test track”

government, mobile technology, privacy, Science & Technology News, women

The Saudi government is hunting down women who flee the country by tracking the IMEI number on their cellphones

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Soldiers checking the IMEI number of a mobile phone during a regional anti-insurgent operation in Mali. Reuters

  • Saudi Arabia is using military-grade technology to track down the cellphones of women who flee its patriarchal system, several runaways have told INSIDER.
  • Four women, all speaking anonymously for fear of reprisal, said they were made aware of attempts to track their cellphones via their IMEI number.
  • The unique ID number can pinpoint a phone virtually anywhere but is rarely used by civilians. The US military uses IMEIs to direct drone strikes.
  • The technique shows how seriously Saudi Arabia takes the escalating numbers of women fleeing its repressive, male-dominated society.
  • Saudi authorities declined to respond to INSIDER’s requests for comment.

Continue reading… “The Saudi government is hunting down women who flee the country by tracking the IMEI number on their cellphones”

Science & Technology News, Transportation, Uber, women

Uber launched a Saudi Arabia-only feature that lets female drivers avoid taking male passengers

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  • Uber has launched a feature for female drivers in Saudi Arabia which means they can block men from hailing their cab.
  • The feature, which became active in April this year, is called “Women Preferred View,” and selects nearby passengers based on their gender.
  • Drivers can toggle on and off whether male passengers come up on Uber’s Driver App.
  • Uber developed the feature when they found 74% of Saudi female drivers did not want to pick up male passengers.
  • Women gained the right to drive for the first time in June 2018, and since that time 2,000 women have registered to become taxi drivers.

Continue reading… “Uber launched a Saudi Arabia-only feature that lets female drivers avoid taking male passengers”

City Planning, government

Saudi Arabia just announced plans to build a $500 billion mega-city that’s 33 times the size of New York City

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The Saudi Arabian government says it will build a $500 billion mega-city, with the goal of diversifying its economy to focus less on crude oil.

The project, called NEOM, will measure 10,230 square miles.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the government will aim to make NEOM run on 100% renewable energy – a highly ambitious goal.

Continue reading… “Saudi Arabia just announced plans to build a $500 billion mega-city that’s 33 times the size of New York City”

Agriculture, Farming, Farms, Food, Science & Technology News, Solar Energy

South Korea is building a $10 billion agriculture city in Egypt

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Within six months, 311,400 acres of land in Egypt will be transformed into an agriculture city. The $10 billion deal was signed on Tuesday by Egypt and the Korea-Arab Society (KAS). The project will feature 50,000 smart greenhouses in addition to a number of seawater desalination and solar power plants. Continue reading… “South Korea is building a $10 billion agriculture city in Egypt”

Alternative Transportation, Culture, Latest Trend, Science & Technology News

Uber has made a real difference for women in Saudi Arabia

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Women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia. That leaves women reliant on male relatives or paid services to get to stores, school, and (increasingly) work. So when Uber launched in Riyadh in early 2014, its impact went beyond the general convenience of tech-enhanced ride hailing. The company has made a real difference in Saudi women’s mobility.

Continue reading… “Uber has made a real difference for women in Saudi Arabia”

Education, Latest Trend

Students from Saudi Arabia flood U.S. colleges to study English

Saudi students can receive up to a five year visa, with scholarships covering tuition, housing and health benefits.

Meshari Albishi considers the University of Mary Washington his “second home” even though he is not a student there.   He has made “a lot of friends,” and has access to the library, workout rooms and other campus facilities. The University of Mary Washington has offered him admission, on one condition: Before he can enroll, he must complete a non-credit program, called English for Academic Purposes.

 

 

Continue reading… “Students from Saudi Arabia flood U.S. colleges to study English”

Analysis, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Photos, Crazy Stuff, Culture, Globalism, Historical Perspectives, Latest News, New Discoveries, New Viewpoints

Google Earth reveals strange Nazca-Like ruins in Saudi Arabia

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An amazing new find.

Chalk another one up for Google Earth seeing everything we can’t. Australian armchair archaeologist David Kennedy simply fired up the app and managed to rediscover the ancient ruins of structures that rival the Nazca lines in southern Peru.

The lines were originally discovered by British RAF pilot Percy Maitland in 1927, but this is the first time they’ve ever been seen in all their glory. Kennedy used Maitland’s photos with Google Earth to pinpoint their locations. And Google offers really the only high resolution glimpse at them that can be seen by the ordinary viewer…

Continue reading… “Google Earth reveals strange Nazca-Like ruins in Saudi Arabia”

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