While carbon fiber is perhaps best known for its applications in the automotive and aerospace industries, new uses for the exceptionally sturdy but lightweight material have increased in recent years. The English audio manufacturer Wilson Benesch has been experimenting with the material, employing it in the new Endeavour stand-mounted loudspeakers (about $43,000 per pair), which push the limits of speaker design. In order to reduce the cabinet resonance caused by the drivers, the internal structure and shape o…

$3.63 Million 1968 Porsche 907 Longtail
In keeping with its reputation as the champion of more endurance races than any other marque, Porsche dominated Gooding & Co.’s auction at the 19th annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in March with first-andsecond-place sale figures, beating its closest competitor, a 1955 Ferrari 250 Europa GT, by more than $1 million. The results are no surprise with the current uptick in the Porsche market. Leading the auction was the 1968 Porsche 907 Longtail, chassis no. 90…

In the late 1990s, the process of isolating genes from the chromosomes in which they reside was considered sufficiently complex to merit patent protection. That’s when a company called Myriad Genetics won patents for its research on two human genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, mutations of which have strong correlations to breast and ovarian cancer. Myriad has held a monopoly on diagnostic testing related to these genes, charging more than $3,000 per test. In 2009, the American Civil Liberties Union and other opponents s…

Maui welcomes the Montage Kapalua Bay to its premier luxury development.
Why Go:The 22,000-acre Kapalua development in the northwest corner of Maui encompasses two golf courses, three beaches, a Ritz-Carlton resort, and several residential communities. The 20-acre complex Residences at Kapalua Bay opened with the area’s largest condo residences in 2009, just in time for the Great Recession. In 2013 the underperforming property’s latest owners hired the renowned Montage Hotels and Resorts to manage it. Since r…

In February—following the reveal of the world’s first fully electric sport motorcycle late last year from the San Francisco manufacturer Mission Motorcycles—Lito Green Motion, a 5-year-old company out of Quebec that designs and engineers electric technology, began producing the Sora, the first fully electric cruiser motorcycle. Lito spent the last 2.5 years testing prototypes of the $49,900 motorcycle, which features an electronically adjustable seat that converts the cruiser to a sportier café racer. The bike…

The Turkish yacht builder Numarine has unveiled its latest model, the 70-foot Numarine 70 HT. The vessel shares many design cues with its older sibling, the Numarine 78 HT, but has sleeker and more aggressive exterior lines. True to the yacht’s high-performance aesthetic, its twin 1,000 hp engines are capable of propelling it to 34 knots; it has a range of 490 miles at 28 knots.
Depending upon its configuration, the 70 HT can accommodate six or eight guests in either three or four cabins, respectively. When i…

Cessna Aircraft has been busy so far this year working on a number of upgrades and adding new models in its jet fleet. The Wichita, Kan.–based manufacturer has also been working to integrate the Beechcraft Corporation, a former competitor producing the Hawker and Beechcraft model lines, which was purchased in March by Cessna’s parent company, Textron.
In March, Cessna introduced the Citation CJ3+, a new version of its CJ3 single-pilot jet, with upgraded Garmin G3000 touchscreen avionics and improved turbulenc…

The audio engineers at the venerable McIntosh Laboratory have ventured into new territory for the company: headphone amplification. As a dedicated headphone amplifier, the McIntosh MHA100 ($4,500) marks a first foray into personal listening for the Binghamton, N.Y.,audio manufacturer, whose 65-year history has resulted in some of the most iconic audiophile components of all time—most of which are designed for use in large home stereo and home theater systems. Announced in tandem with the MXA70 integrated audio…

The 2014 Chevrolet Corvette comes with the Stingray nameplate, a sleek new design, and a healthy 460 hp V-8 engine. For some, however, this all-American sports car leaves something to be desired in the performance department: The outgoing 2013 Corvette ZR1 still holds the title of “most powerful Corvette ever produced,” with its 638 hp V-8 engine. For those looking to outdo last year’s ZR1, Callaway Cars and Hennessey Performance each have an answer. 
Callaway Cars (not to be mistaken for the golf brand …

The Carneros Inn, located in the heart of Northern California’s Napa Valley wine region, recently announced its Ultimate Napa Valley Experience. The package entails a one-night stay in one of the hotel’s Harvest Cottage accommodations and insider access to one of three local wineries—PlumpJack, Cade, or the newly opened Odette Estate—as well as a special tasting menu at the hotel’s Farm restaurant. (The Carneros Inn and the three wineries are all owned by Gavin Newsom’s PlumpJack Group.)
For this package, gue…