"The complexity of curves and required thinness could not be duplicated in any other material while still maintaining its ability to support itself completely..."

Usually when I picture carbon fiber, I imagine that monotonous, slate-colored slab that's delicately thin but mostly flat—or I picture the Ossur cheetah legs that are curved but only for industrial utility.

I'd never imagined carbon fiber as a ribbon of light. [Contemporist via cribcandy]

But seriously, earwax additions aside, these extremely limited edition (only 100 are being made) speakers are made from many of the same components as a supercar from Swedish automaker and purported Saab savior Koenigsegg.

Boasting carbon fiber, stainless steel and an unapologetic attitude about their $85,000 asking price, these speakers deliver the "full audio spectrum" all the way down to 37Hz, courtesy a coaxial two-way driver.

There's only 100 out there though, so get buying! [Aesthesis via Luxist via DVICE]

Besides, the cool future-y look, the Hexa Desk seems like it would be as light as a feather without the glass surface. Given that my desk probably weighs a ton, I would welcome something like this. Unfortunately, it is probably well outside of most price ranges. [Nurus via LimitedHype via DVICE]

I'll let Boeing tell you about the latest snafu, with snarky blogger filter uncharacteristically removed:

"In two areas on the fuselage, the structure doesn't have the long-term strength that we want," said Boeing spokeswoman Lori Gunter.

What that means is wrinkles. Microscopic wrinkles. Dangerous, drop-out-of-the-frickin'-sky wrinkles in the fuselage that negatively affect the plane in ways I don't want to think about given I'm already antsy about air travel. Boeing has therefore ordered Italian supplier Alenia Aeronautica to halt production of these faulty fuselage sections immediately so that carbon fiber patches can be applied to make things right.

Carbon fiber patches or not, customers were expecting the first Boeing 787 orders to be filled by first quarter 2010. That's not going to happen. As we've detailed here in the past, the phrase "perpetual delay" has become synonymous with the 787 project, which has cost Boeing billions of dollars. Seventy-two planes have been canceled thus far (although, to be fair, 800 orders are still on the books). [Silicon Valley via Slashdot]

Weighing in at 42 pounds (still way heavy compared to most bikes, let alone peak gear) and charging in 3.5 hours, Sanyo's CY-SPK227 electric bike (the first carbon fiber model in the world) achieves 62 miles of assisted motor range through an integrated lithium ion battery and dynamo-based recharging that kicks in whenever you cruise downhill or brake.

Of course, all of this fancy blacknerness comes at a price: $6,700 when it hits Japan October 1st. For that much, we might prefer to indulge in a full-out electric motorcycle. But if Batman chooses to chase down the Riddler on this thing just so he has a change at shacking up with Poison Ivy and her posse of Greenpeace sidewalk solicitors, so be it. [Sanyo via CrunchGear]

This custom controller's carbon fiber and fiberglass chassis may be eye-catching, but maybe more impressively, the stick is constructed with dual circuitry for maximum compatibility. Filled with both the guts of a MadCatz Xbox 360 controller and a Chtulhu PCB (for PC/PS3), it works on every major platform. Meanwhile, the actual play components are from Seimitsu, though Sanwa buttons will fit as well, fanboys.

Still, even with the blessing of a carbon fiber body, this arcade stick still weighs almost 4lbs. Next time, let's just go with marble and iron. [Shoryuken via CarbonFiberGear]

A composite laminate having an improved cosmetic surface is presented herein. The composite laminate includes a plurality of sheets of preimpregnated material, or prepreg, stacked one over another and a scrim layer provided on an exterior surface of the sheets of prepreg. The scrim layer and the sheets of prepreg form a composite laminate whereby the scrim layer constitutes an outer, exposed surface of the composite laminate. Each sheet of prepreg is made from fibers preimpregnated with resin, and the fibers of the prepreg may be substantially parallel or woven carbon fibers. The scrim layer may be a glass fiber or carbon fiber scrim, or veil, that has absorbed resin from the sheets of prepreg during a molding process. In another embodiment, the composite laminate includes a plurality of sheets of prepreg stacked one over another and first and second scrim layers provided on opposing exterior surfaces of the sheets of prepreg, whereby the sheets of prepreg are sandwiched between the first and second scrim layers. The first and second scrim layers constitute exposed surfaces of the composite laminate.

Since scrim absorbs resin of the composite, scrim takes on the cosmetic properties and color of resin. Also [...] scrim is very thin, and it is translucent, and the underlying fibers of composite are partially visible therethrough [...] The combination of resin and scrim forming scrim layer imparts a depth to surface of composite laminate, thereby providing an improved cosmetic surface of a molded article formed therefrom that is not only consistent in appearance, but is also aesthetically pleasing.

And other yadda yadda yadda and blah blah blah. Summary: They have discovered a new way to shave pounds of your future notebook that won't look like crap. Sounds good to me. [Apple Insider]

Indeed, in a perfect world bike designer Sky Yaeger would be sitting on a huge pile of money today thanks to her slick $65 carbon fiber Splash-N-Go dog bowl. But this is not the case. Instead, she sits atop a pile of unsold luxury dog bowls, which she created after tiring of a 37-year career in bicycle design.

Oh, and for all you cyclists out there, Yaeger's selfish attempt to reinvent herself actually tied up the carbon fiber market when she made the sizable order a few years ago. Bicycle companies, as a result, could not get their products made in a timely fashion. "We couldn't get frames made and you were getting stupid dog bowls made," said Jason Rico in an interview with Wired. Rico was a product manager with a mountain bike manufacturer when the doggie dish order was placed.

Sarcasm aside, it's probably time to get back on the bike path, Yaeger. [Wired]

Her original prostheses never fit perfectly, causing her pain and great difficulty when walking. So, with the financial help of their community, Ellie May's parents took her to Dorset Orthopaedic where doctors designed an extra small pair of carbon fiber legs—the same type of prostheses used by Olympic sprinters—costing about $15,000.

She'll need a new pair of legs every two years as she grows up.

But while doctors were originally worried that she'd have a tough time balancing on her new limbs, Ellie May is moving twice as fast as she did before. And as one specialist put it, "Within seconds of having them on, she was off. It will change her life." [Echo via Neatorama]

Those blue lights actually have nothing to do with the heating system, nor do they serve as UV tanning bed lights. They're just LEDs that futurize the wood decor a bit.

Röger's Leige Wave actually uses a carbon fiber system to produce infrared heat that "penetrates deeply and directly into the body and provides an intensive deep relaxation." In other words, you'll be roasted over cherry wood, the results of which should really be quite yummy. [Aqua Emotion via Born Rich]

The Triumph Speed Triple motorcycle features a 1050cc triple engine to get you going and twin 4-piston, 4-caliper brakes to bring you to a stop. But if that's not enough, a special, limited run of 55 Triumph Speed Triples will get the carbon treatment that includes a flyscreen, cowl, infill panels, heat shield, mud guard, and sprocket covers, all done up in the matte black material.

The carbon fiber privilege will cost you $11,800 over the bike's base price (which is probably pretty high to begin with). In other words, enjoy the pretty picture. [Triumph via Carbon Fiber Gear]

Sadly, there's no stat as to its weight or tensile strength, but at 3 meters long (that's almost 9 feet), I can't imagine you could stand on it, shouting "I have a carbon fiber table, so I rule this house at last!" I mean, you probably could, but it might snap beneath your noble mass, once again returning the control of the house to your stowaway cousin who owns last year's 3mm carbon fiber table. Rats! [StylePark via bbGadgets]

In addition to the hefty $15,000 price tag, this door boasts a biometric sensor that serves as the lock. Oh, and lots of carbon fiber. Did we mention it's made of carbon fiber? There was, sadly, no word on what this door was protecting. An underground secret lair, perhaps?

Anyway, we sincerely hope the wealthy Brazilian businessman who commissioned this piece gets his money's worth, because this sucker would do nicely as the door to the next Gizmodo Gallery, don't you think? [Carbon Fiber Gear]

Toray's carbon fiber produces a platform that's 50 percent lighter than steel but 1.5 times safer in a collision, and the shorter molding process will allow it to make enough parts for roughly 30,000 vehicles a year. Though the ten minutes is still longer than the five or six needed for regular sheet metal and carbon fiber is still ten times more expensive to buy, Toray says the new method will cut manufacturing costs drastically.

So when can you look forward to buying a carbon fiber car that doesn't cost as much as your house? About four to five years, the company estimated. Well, I guess that gives you some time to save up. [Japan Today]

There's actually a bit more to this space watch than mere looks. AK factored in the natural asymmetry of the human arm, and made the crown side of the watch thicker so it would fit snug. The super rubber that makes up the band is also used to seal the watch, and will last for 50 years, guaranteed.And lastly, the Star Trek influence (such as it is):

It looks like something straight out of the Star Trek series, uncannily reminiscent of the starship Enterprise. Located eccentrically towards the right of the dial, a cut-away metal piece reveals the jumping hours and minutes on two superimposed discs. The seconds are displayed at 3 o'clock on a cylinder linked directly to the crown. 9 o'clock forms the tail of the “spaceship”. Made of the same metal, it bears the name of the watch and is punctuated by a totally off-centre dot, where the brand logo is engraved.

[AK Geneve via Wrist Dreams]

The boat is made from 100 percent carbon fiber and has an LCD touch-screen control system, leather trimmings and, most importantly, photovoltaic cells on almost all its horizontal services. Czeers is hoping to produce between 4 and 8 boats per year. Pricing is not yet available, but considering that the last version of the MK1 was last shown at the Millionaire Fair, you can probably bet it's super expensive. [Gizmag]

But maybe we're just grumpy. Does anyone think this actually looks good? [MAKE]