2018 Lexus LC500h

The 2018 Lexus LC 500h is a hybrid version of the all-new Lexus LC luxury coupe. The LC 500h showcases Lexus' next generation hybrid powertrain, dubbed the 'Lexus Multi Stage Hybrid System'. Like its LC coupe sibling, the LC 500h is the flagship model for the Japanese upscale brand. The two are built on an front-engine/rear-wheel-drive platform that will be shared with future Lexus products. The Lexus LC will go into production in the spring of 2017 and is expected to cost around $100,000. The hybrid version will carry a more expensive sticker and debut later.

The LC 500h has electric drive motors enhancing the output from its 3.5-liter V-6 engine, giving it 354 total horsepower. Like other Lexus hybrids, the LC500h stores braking energy as electricity.

2017 Audi R8 V10

The 2017 Audi R8 V10 sports a 318 cu in, 5204 cc engine developing 610 hp and 413 lb-ft of torque. Power is delivered to a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic with manual shifting mode. Zero to 60 mph is 3.1 seconds on the way to a top speed around 205 mph.

The DOHC 40-valve V-10 engine has aluminum block and heads, port and direct fuel injection. It's a high-revving masterpiece with selective cylinder deactivation and a 8700-rpm redline. Base Price for the 2017 Audi R8 V10 is estimated at $ 185,000

The French Crown Jewels

The French Crown Jewels comprise the crowns, orb, sceptres, diadems and jewels that symbolized royalty within French aristocracy between 752 and 1825. The set was broken up and most of it sold in 1885 by the Third French Republic. The surviving French Crown Jewels are mainly on display in the Galerie d'Apollon of the Louvre.

Crown of Louis XV, 1722, Louvre.

The Crown of Empress Eugénie

The Crown of Napoleon created in 1804.

Among the most famous diamonds preserved in the collection are the Sancy Diamond, the Hortensia pink diamond cut in 1678 for Louis XIV, and the Regent Diamond. The Royal French Blue was transformed into the Hope Diamond which now resides in the Smithsonian.

One of the mysteries of the French Revolution was the fate of Dauphin, the son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette and heir to the crown. In 2004 it was confirmed through DNA evidence that the young prince had died of tuberculosis in prison. The heart of the young man claimed by the royalists to be the young Louis XVII had been secretly removed by a doctor just after his death. By comparing the DNA from the heart with DNA taken from strands of hair of Marie Antoinette that had been kept as a memento by royalists, it was possible to establish that the boy who died in prison was indeed the last heir to the French Crown Jewels.

2017 Mercedes-AMG SL63 - SL65

The 2017 Mercedes-AMG SL63 couples a seven-speed automated manual transmission with a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter V-8 engine making 577 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. This puts the SL63's zero-to-60 mph time at 4 seconds. The SL65 gets a 621-hp 6.0-liter twin-turbo V-12 with a seven-speed; it can hit 60 mph in 3.7 seconds.

Highlights include AMG high performance composite braking system; AMG performance steering wheel in nappa leather; AMG Sports Exhaust System; AMG sports suspension; ‘V8 BITURBO’ lettering on the front wings, and ‘V12 BITURBO’ for the SL 65. Base Price: $150,625 - $218,475

"Sunset" Rubies - Game of Stones

Sunset Ruby is a name given to a sapphire that is too orange to be ruby and lacking the pinks to make it a Padparadscha. Breathlessly marketed ... "The Cambodian 'sunset' ruby is 50 times more rare than a diamond and is a tribute to the beauty of a Cambodian sunset" the stone was featured on the TV series "Game of Stones"

The "sunset ruby" is marketing rubbish ... it is corundum that is diffusion treated with trace elements (likely beryllium). Beryllium treatment is routinely detected with spectrometers.