Your Technology Oct. 19, 1998

NOT YOUR FATHER’S HARLEY

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s Suzuki’s Hayabusa (Japanese for falcon), said to be the fastest “street-legal” sport bike ever made. Its 1,300-cc engine and aerodynamic design enable the bike to reach 186 m.p.h., leaving the current champ, the Honda Blackbird, in the dust. What good is having a vehicle that can go three times the speed limit? Ask any guy with a Ferrari.

KINDER, GENTLER SPORTS

Starfire soccer is a welcome change from the usual testosterone-charged kicking, punching, punting video sports games. Not surprisingly, it’s from Purple Moon, purveyor of CD-ROMS designed for 8-to-12-year-old girls. Starfire players spend a lot of time grappling with such emotionally charged issues as how to deal with ball hogs and feuding friends. Players eventually get to practice heading and dribbling. The one thing they don’t do is play much soccer.

PARISIANS ON THE FAST TRACK

Though 50 m.p.h may not sound very impressive, it’s a swift clip for a subway train in Paris–or anywhere else. That’s how fast the new Meteor Metro will travel when it begins operation this week. Don’t look for a driver. These trains are robots, controlled from a command post under the City of Light.

–By M.M. Buechner