MIT startup to build 9-passenger electric aircraft with gas-powered generator for regional travel in Ohio and in Finland

Good news! The Wright Brothers were from Ohio.

I am not sure why the company refers to its electric aircraft as "hybrid-electric aircraft"? Did not hybrid-electric cars conjure inferiority and expensive?

"Electra, a startup from MIT, plans to build a hybrid-electric aircraft in Springfield, Ohio. The plane uses eight electric wing motors combined with a small, efficient gas-powered generator, and its minimal runway requirement, 1,200-mile range and cruising speed of 200 mph make it a potential alternative to traditional air and ground transit."

"... The hybrid aircraft is being designed for short-runway takeoffs and landings. It is powered by eight electric wing motors and a small, highly efficient gas-powered generator. 

The fixed-wing plane offers a 1,200-mile range and a cruising speed of roughly 200 mph. Its minimal runway requirements allow it to operate from nontraditional locations like soccer fields, parking lots, and barges. ...

Following subscale testing at MIT and the company’s official founding in 2019, Electra validated the concept with its EL2 two-seat demonstrator, which has logged over 200 flight tests since 2023.

And it is now leveraging new investment to scale manufacturing for its nine-passenger commercial aircraft in Springfield and Clark County. ...

Interestingly, the aircraft operates far more quietly than other planes or helicopters because its power is distributed across eight smaller propellers. This quiet operation makes it both more affordable to run and suitable for noise-sensitive urban and suburban areas. ..."

IEEE-USA SmartBrief

MIT startup to build 1,200-mile range hybrid-electric aircraft for regional travel "MIT startup to build 1,200-mile range hybrid-electric aircraft for regional travel"

Electra to Usher in the Next Era of Aviation with Advanced Production Facility in Springfield, Ohio (original news release) "$850 million investment in Springfield and Clark County will move Direct Aviation from concept to reality, creating nearly 2,000 jobs and supporting production of up to 800 EL9 Ultra Short aircraft per year"

Electra, City of Helsinki, and Haaga-Helia University Sign MOU to Explore Direct Aviation Across the Gulf of Finland (original news release) "Collaboration will study how Electra’s Ultra Short aircraft can create faster, quieter, and more direct connections between Helsinki and Tallinn, where 7.5 million people travel each year."

All Donald Ward wants for Christmas is for Vivek Ramaswamy to stop embarrassing the GOP. Really!

Ramaswamy as a candidate for governor in Ohio seems to be turned into controversy! To call him a DEI candidate is deplorable and damaging to the Republican Party.

Why does Vivek Ramaswamy want to enter politics? Why does he not remain a businessman? Or why does he not start his political career by becoming a state legislator? Maybe he is pushing too fast, too hard.

The Indian journalist Palki Sharma also commented yesterday that there was racism going on in the GOP and MAGA movement as far as Ramaswamy is concerned. Indians and the large Indian diaspora will take notice.

That Ramaswamy picked a solid red state like Ohio raises eyebrows, but he was born in Ohio. If he is such a great candidate, why did he not pick another, more contested state and win for the GOP?

Why did the GOP of Ohio go along (the article is mute on this)? It appears his candidacy is putting strains on the GOP of Ohio.

The article below lists a number of dubious things about Ramaswamy. If they are corroborated, then don't make this man look very good.

"Vivek Ramaswamy is a DEI candidate [???] — and an unqualified one. Republicans do not vote for unqualified DEI candidates. Historically, they never have. ..."

"The majority of Ohio Republican leaders have rallied around businessman Vivek Ramaswamy as the next governor, but Attorney General Dave Yost said it’s the wrong choice. ..."

All I want for Christmas is for Vivek Ramaswamy to stop embarrassing the GOP | Blaze Media "From his 2024 tirade against American workers to his contempt for MAGA voters, Ramaswamy has turned a safe Ohio win into a self-inflicted mess."

Ohio GOP endorsed Vivek Ramaswamy in May. AG Dave Yost still says it was the wrong choice.

The late artist known as Michelangelo Lovelace (1960-2021)

Nice, clever publicity move/stunt to change one's first name from "Michael Anthony" to the famous Renaissance artist Michelangelo (or archangel Michael)!

What is in a name? (William Shakespeare)

His last name also became very prominent with the rediscovery of the female mathematician and first computer programmer Ada Lovelace!

Michelangelo Lovelace - Wikipedia

Credits: Michelangelo Lovelace: Art Saved My Life

The late artist and some of his works (Source)

A significant one year decline in opioid overdose deaths in Hamilton county (Cincinnati, Ohio) and the rest of the US

Good news!

One year of data does not make a trend nor is it very instructive!

"Hamilton County, Ohio, has long battled a staggering opioid overdose epidemic. But that is starting to change. 

The county—which includes Cincinnati—saw a sharp drop in overdose deaths, from 393 in 2023 to ~270 in 2024.

Reflecting a national trend: National overdose deaths decreased by 20%+ in 2024, per provisional CDC data.

Behind the drop: Researchers and frontline responders point to a “confluence of factors,” including:

• Broadened access to naloxone and opioid addiction treatment
• More outreach programs
• Crackdowns on Chinese chemical suppliers and Mexican criminal groups manufacturing fentanyl
• And potentially—a diminished population of at-risk people because so many have already succumbed to overdoses

..."

Global Health NOW: U.S. Agencies Brace for More Cuts; Launching a Vaccine Trial During an Ebola Outbreak; and The ‘Wild West’ of Antivenoms in Africa

Black prison inmate (age 27) kills beloved white corrections officer (age 62) on Christmas morning during attack in an Ohio prison

Not exactly a Christmas story! How many years did he have left before retirement?

Barely any news about this case! I bet had the murderer been white and the officer black, this would have been widely reported!

Next, I bet they try to find excuses for the criminal or even that the officer was at fault in an attempt to reverse victim and perpetrator.

Caveat: I am not familiar with the details of this case.

"... Lansing, 62, reportedly died "following an inmate assault." The victim's brother reportedly said Lansing had been severely beaten in the face and head and showed no defensive wounds. ..."

"Correction Officer Andrew Lansing died after being assaulted by an inmate on Christmas morning around 8:00 a.m. at the Ross Correctional Institution, 16197 State Route 104 in Chillicothe. ..."

'Tragedy beyond comprehension': Prison inmate kills beloved corrections officer on Christmas morning, officials say | Blaze Media (Why this article shows a photo of the killer, but not the murdered correction officer is awful!) "The brother of the slain corrections officer said he 'was a great guy who'd do anything for anybody.'"

Correction Officer Andrew Lansing

The only rabbi in Springfield, Ohio, says local Haitian migrants lack 'Western civilized values' and they do not want to assimilate

Western mainstream media try so hard to falsely debunk Trump's claim about Haitians' eating pet cats!

Nevertheless, this claim was a poor choice by Trump!

"... “This is about a culture clash,” Rabbi Cary Kozberg, who leads Temple Sholom ...“We, as the citizens of Springfield, are being disenfranchised.” ...

Springfield’s immigrant population, Kozberg says he believes the new arrivals — most of whom are in the country legally — are changing the city’s character for the worse.

“Haiti is not known for its, shall we say, adherence to Western civilized values,” Kozberg said. ...

“... wanted to assimilate ... “That’s not necessarily the case with these folks, and that’s where a lot of the frustration is.” ..."

The only rabbi in Springfield, Ohio, says local Haitian migrants lack 'Western civilized values' - Jewish Telegraphic Agency "The rabbi’s comments come as Jewish groups decry Donald Trump’s claims about migrants eating pets."

Rabbi Cary Kozberg of Temple Sholom in Springfield, Ohio, in 2016; a mural in Springfield, Sept. 16, 2024.

Ohio GOP governor vetoes bill that bans gender-affirming care, transgender athletes in girls sports

Some Republicans are confused! Very confused! Some are plainly RINOs!

He is one of a very few GOP governor to do something like it.

"DeWine has previously said the issue of trans sports participation should be handled by athletic associations rather than the government." (Source) It is a good point, but why did he not sufficiently influence the Ohio legislature to separate the issues of gender affirming care and transgender athletes in two bills.

Gender affirming care is one those most horrific euphemisms of our times! It stands for e.g. double mastectomy or castration!

When parents, perhaps out of ulterior motives, subject their children for no good reason to gender affirming care it should be called child abuse!

When it happens to girls and women outside of Western countries it is usually quickly and loudly condemned as female genital mutilation!

Gender dysphoria is largely one of those human fads and follies that come and go!

Ohio GOP governor vetoes bill that bans gender-affirming care, transgender athletes in girls sports | Just The News DeWine said he vetoed House Bill 68 after speaking with physicians who provide transgender treatments and impacted families.

Gov. Mike DeWine Vetoes Bill Protecting Kids From ‘Gender-Affirming Care’ Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed a bill to protect minors from experimental transgender medical interventions that are euphemistically referred to as “gender-affirming care.”

Ah those individuals with heavy rimmed spectacles like the controversial President of Harvard University!

Ohio Right to Make Reproductive Decisions Including Abortion Initiative approved as a constitutional amendment

To include the right to kill an unborn human life into a constitution is a low point in the history of human civilization! To call it reproductive decisions is a horrible euphemism.

To pass laws permitting abortion under certain circumstances is sufficient to deal with this contentious issue.

"Election results

Ohio Issue 1

Result                Votes        Percentage

Approved Yes    2,186,962    56.6%

No                    1,675,728    43.4%"

Ohio Issue 1, Right to Make Reproductive Decisions Including Abortion Initiative (2023) - Ballotpedia

Ohio female adult social worker admits to having sex with 13-year old boy she counseled

And another Me Too event! About the darker side of gender equality!

"A 24-year-old Ohio woman who worked for the National Youth Advocate Program has been arrested for allegedly having sex on multiple occasions with a boy she counseled.

Court records indicate a concerned mother contacted police on Sept. 27 after finding text messages on her 13-year-old son's phone between the boy and Payton Shires of Mount Sterling, reported the Columbus Dispatch. ..."

Ohio social worker admits to having sex with boy she counseled: Police - TheBlaze

Federal Judge in Ohio Lets School Policy Allowing Boys to Use Girls’ Bathroom Stand

Presuming that the plaintiff did not make substantial errors in their filing of the lawsuit, then this judge is a moron. It is common sense and safety why teenage boys at their own choosing should not be allowed into teenage girls' bathrooms. This is insane!

"... Judge Michael Newman of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio dismissed the lawsuit, arguing that while parents have the right to choose where their child attends school, they do not have the “constitutional right to revoke a school’s policy on student bathroom usage.” ..."

Judge Lets School Policy Allowing Boys to Use Girls’ Bathroom Stand A federal judge ruled Monday that an Ohio school district’s policy that allows students to use the bathroom on the basis of gender identity rather than biological sex may stand.

Exactly, girls now have to check the bathroom first whether there is no male individual in there. And they have to watch their back all the time! Incredible!

Questions about the killing of Jayland Walker in Akron, Ohio

Start of update 7/16/2022: Newsweek reported on 7/4/2022 that Mr. Walker had no criminal history, but the family lawyer stated "the ... family do not know why he fled police, but ... he had been acting "out of character" after the recent death of his fiancee.".  What else? How about drug use?

End of update.

This is still a developing story! I am not an expert on this incidence.

However, there are already several questions:

1. Why did he opt for a car and foot chase to evade a police stop?
2. Why was he wearing a ski mask when he left the car?
3.  Did he or somebody else shoot at the police officers in pursuit?
   "Police recovered a handgun, a loaded magazine, and an apparent wedding ring on the driver's seat of Walker's car. A bullet casing that police say is consistent with the recovered handgun was found in the area where police say Walker shot at them."
4. Why have we still not learnt anything about the police record of Mr. Walker?
5. Why were there as many as 8 police officers present where the incident occurred? Was it coincidence or was backup requested?

Killing of Jayland Walker - Wikipedia