Why "flying cars" are closer to reality than you think  November 12, 2025

 

What's up, everybody? Thanks for joining us. I'm Ryan Young, filling in for Coy Wire. Happy to be back with you on another edition of CNN 10.

 

Today is your Word Wednesday, so listen up and see if your vocabulary word that you submitted made it in today's show. All right, let's get to your headlines for Wednesday, November 12th.

 

We begin in Washington, D.C., where the longest government shutdown in U.S. history is one step closer to ending.

 

Eight senators in the Democratic caucus joined Republicans in approving a bill to fund the government.

 

caucus [ˋkɔkəs] n.（政党等的）核心小组；政党地方委员会

 

But Democrats did not get their key demand, an extension of the government assistance for people who get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

 

Instead, Republican senators promised a vote on health care reform sometime next month.

 

The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, where a vote is expected as soon as today. President Donald Trump has indicated he supports the bill and wants the government to reopen.

 

Nobody, and I mean nobody, likes being stuck in traffic.

 

But what if you could trade the gridlock for gliding and commute to and from school or work in a flying car? Well, it may be closer than you think. One innovative company is now making personal flying vehicles a reality. One could even be yours for the right price.

 

gridlock [ˋgrɪd͵lɑk] n. 极端严重的交通壅塞（无车能动）

 

Our Nick Watt got the chance to catch up with the team that's trying to change the future of aviation.

 

You don't need a pilot's license. You don't even need a runway.

 

There. Can you see it? It's just there.

 

If you've ever played a video game, you can fly this thing. It's one joystick, seriously. And there's a lever to release a parachute if it all goes horribly wrong.

 

joystick [ˋdʒɔɪ͵stɪk] n.【俚】（飞机的）操纵杆，驾驶杆；【计算机】游戏杆，控制杆

lever [ˋlɛvɚ] n. 控制杆

 

It looks awesome from down here. What's the feeling?

 

It's such a great feeling. It's the best view ever. In normal aviation, you don't get to fly this low to the ground that often. So getting to do it in this point of view is spectacular.

 

I'm going to stop talking to you because I don't want you to crash. Appreciate that.

 

Kitty Hawk gave birth to the age of aviation. And all this might be another massive milestone in the history of flight.

 

It looks wrong. You know, my brain can't quite get a handle on the movement. I'm used to seeing how cars, motorbikes, airplanes move. This just moves differently.

 

It's disconcerting. It's weird. I mean, it's awesome. It's weird.

 

disconcerting [ˌdɪskənˈsɜtɪŋ] adj. 令人难堪的

 

What are we calling this? We call it like an aircraft. We call it a flying car. I mean, what is it?

 

So technically, it's an eVTOL, which stands for electric vertical takeoff and landing.

 

There is a catch. You aren't allowed to fly over so-called congested areas with lots of people and buildings.

 

congested [kənˋdʒɛstɪd] adj. 拥塞的

 

A couple of other downsides, starting price, $190,000. And for now, the battery life is only around 20 minutes. The range only about 20 miles.

 

downside [ˋdaʊnˋsaɪd] n. 不利的一面，不利因素

 

Pivotal says that will improve. Another issue, they won't let me fly for real because I haven't practiced long enough in the VR simulator. Let go the trigger. Ignore my histrionics. This is very easy. I mean this feels very cool and I'm just pretending

 

simulator [ˋsɪmjə͵letɚ] n. 仿真训练装置

histrionics [͵hɪstrɪˋɑnɪks] n.（用作单数）戏剧表演；舞台艺术；（常复数）装模做样

 

You have to pass a test in the simulator before you can buy a pivotal personal aircraft. It isn't a legal requirement.

 

They say they're just being responsible and also looking into uses helpful to humanity, maybe for getting a smokejumper into a wildfire or getting a doctor to a hard-to-reach patient. And of course, there's the military.

 

smokejumper [ˋsmok͵dʒʌmpɚ] n. 空降森林消防队员

 

You've given them to the US Air Force already.

 

That's correct. For non-developmental testing. And now we're working with other agencies within the DoD.

 

That said, there's, I think, an amazing opportunity in recreation.

 

And one pilot told me flying a Cessna is like driving a sedate sedan. Flying this is like riding a motorcycle.

 

Time for a 10-second trivia.

 

Which of these is the largest active volcano in the world?

 

Mount Etna, Mauna Loa, Krakatoa, Mount St. Helens?

 

If you said Mauna Loa,I lava how you feel you know your stuff. Mauna Loa, Hawaiian for Long Mountain, is the largest active volcano by both mass and volume.

 

It covers more than half of the state's Big Island. It's not just a tornado. It's a volnado.

 

volnado 火山龙卷风现象 (volcano +‎ tornado)

 

Our next story takes us to Hawaii's Kilauea Volcano, where video shows lava blasting more than a thousand feet into the air. The clash between the scorching air near the lava and the cooler air around it created a tornado-like swirl. Scientists called it, yep, a volnado.

 

It's kind of like a nature's crossover episode. Kilauea was gripped up dust devils like this during the past eruptions too. One in September even expelled about 12.5 million cubic yards of lava.

 

dust devil【气】小旋风；尘卷风；小尘暴

 

That's enough to bury a football field a mile deep. And that's some serious barometric brouhaha.

 

barometric [͵bærəˋmɛtrɪk] adj. 气压的；气压计的

brouhaha [bruˋhɑhɑ] n. 吵闹；骚动；纷扰

 

If you've ever been to the hospital for an MRI scan, the loud noises and tight spaces can make for a daunting experience.

 

But Lego is trying to change that courtesy of a custom set that helps walk patients through the process.

 

courtesy of 蒙...好主意; 蒙...提供

custom [ˋkʌstəm] adj. 订做的，订制的

 

Playing with Legos can be much more than just fun. The Danish toy company says it's specialized play set that looks like an MRI procedure room is helping hospitals around the world explain the daunting scan to children.

 

When children go through MRI scans, they meet our equipment. It's very huge. It made loud noises and the children have to lie still throughout the examination.

 

That can make them a bit nervous and some have anxiety.

 

A hospital in Denmark is one of the facilities using Lego's mini mock-up of an MRI, which includes a scanner and figurines of a patient and medical staff so children can learn about the procedure in a way that's less intimidating to them.

 

mock-up [ˋmɑk͵ʌp] n.（实验或教学用的）实物大模型

figurine [͵fɪgjəˋrin] n. 小雕像

 

We play through the examination at the preparation and the children get familiar with what's going to happen.

 

And that empowers them throughout the examination so they can do this MRI scan without any use of anesthesia.

 

anesthesia [͵ænəsˋθiʒə] n.【医】麻醉

 

A new report from Lego says healthcare professionals have reported that using the play sets nearly cuts in half the need for sedation or anesthesia in children undergoing MRIs. And that's a relief for many worried parents.

 

relief [rɪˋlif] n. 宽心，慰藉

 

I could see that she was calm and she knew what was going to happen and that made me at ease as well. I also think it was really good for her to have something familiar from home, the Lego toys. That was really beneficial to see that used in a more serious setting.

 

Lego says it has donated more than 10,000 of its kits to medical facilities right around the world since 2023. Legos that won't turn into pirate ships or fantasy worlds, but that could help kids boost their confidence in uncertain settings. Paula Newton, CNN.

 

Today's story, getting a 10 out of 10,a high school football team coming together for a pair of big wins on the field and in the pizza kitchen.

 

The Moorhead Spuds were preparing to chow down on their victory meal following an upset win over their top ranked rivals. But that's when their coach learned the dozens of pizzas they had pre-ordered for the long bus ride home hadn't even been made yet.

 

bus ride home: traveling home by bus

 

The guy was like, hey, I just got here at 9:30. It's just me. There's no chance I'm going to be able to deliver these pizzas.

 

So the starving squad called an audible and headed into the kitchen to make their own pizzas at the local Papa John's. And even though the team had already had some pizza making veterans on hand, everyone got in on the action.

 

audible [ˋɔdəb!] n.【美】【橄】（在对阵争球在线透过暗语进行的）改变打法

get in on the action 参与了活动

 

I turned over to Jameson because, you know, we both work at Domino's and we both just started, you know, getting ready, like in that mindset to go make the pizza.

 

Never made a pizza in my life. Just that's the crazy story. Never made a pizza in my life.

 

Never worked at a pizza place.

 

In total, the Spuds cranked out 30 pies in just 40 minutes, tossing, baking, slicing and boxing like pizza pros. The display of teamwork had their coaches saying, mama mia.

 

crank out 草草生产; to produce, especially mechanically and rapidly

 

All these guys just self-organized. I mean, they got it all done. They did the assembly line like they've been doing this for years.

 

And I tell you what, amazing story. We joked it was kind of adapt and overcome, right? It was a phenomenal ride home.

 

phenomenal [fəˋnɑmən!] adj. 非凡的；傑出的

 

I guess when life gives you lemons, you make pizza.

 

All right, superstars, let's get your shout outs in. But first, thanks to Miss Moore's 8th grade class at Belmont Middle School in Belmont, North Carolina for submitting today's word of the day. Brouhaha.

 

It's a noun meaning a noisy and excited response to something. And this first shout out goes to the third period class at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale. Go Raiders.

 

And for our Instagram page, Miss Moon's class at Warmer Springs Middle School in Marietta, California. I see you. I see how much you love our Instagram page.

 

I'm guilty of the same thing. All right. That's all we have for today.

 

guilty of 因…而感到内疚

 

We'll see you right back here tomorrow. It's always a pleasure hanging out. I'm filling in for Coy.

 

Don't forget, CNN 10.