Daily Tech Snippet: Tuesday, May 31

• The military’s stealth motorcycles are as quiet as an electric toothbrush: The military is funding stealth motorcycles, which would allow riders to quickly sneak up on unsuspecting enemies. The motorcycles operate at 55 decibels — about the level of an electric toothbrush or typical conversation — yet still can reach 80 mph in speed. The extreme quiet is due to the use of electric motors. The motorcycles also feature two-wheel drive to improve traction on gravel, sand or any challenging terrain. The narrow dimensions of the motorcycles allow them to be driven in forests or other places some military vehicles can’t go.The electric motors have limited range — the SilentHawk lasts two hours and the other bike, NightMare, has 60 miles of power. So the motorcycles are modified with hybrid engines that can burn almost any type of fuel, such as gasoline, jet fuel, kerosene or diesel. The thinking is these hybrid engines, which are about as loud as a vacuum cleaner, can be used on the part of a mission where being quiet isn’t essential. Using the back-up engine increases the SilentHawk’s range to 170 miles.

• VR Experience From McDonald's Lets You Watch Life-Size Angry Birds Take Over a Restaurant: McDonald's ald's has partnered with Sony and Rovio, the creator of Angry Birds, to create a 360-degree video promoting the upcoming feature film The Angry Birds Movie. The 60-second spot puts the viewer in the center of a McDonald's restaurant, as the film's feathered flying stars zip in the air from table to table, dance in the aisles and take selfies with dining families. The film was created in partnership with DDB Chicago and has racked up more than 4.5 million views in less than a week. According to John Maxham, chief creative officer at DDB Chicago, it's the first 360-degree video for McDonald's (unless you count the VR Happy Meal painting activation during SXSW). Maxham said it's also the first time a 360-degree film has been shot for any quick service restaurant. To combine animation with reality, DDB Chicago worked with Rovio for the animations using pre-existing bird assets and with Optimist to stitch everything together. According to Shelby Georgis, DDB's creative director, the trick was choreographing animations ahead of time so that the actors were set to work on a specific cadence that makes it look like they're interacting with the animals.