Adam Clark Estes

Dreaming of a Tor Button for Firefox

It’s no secret that everybody’s thinking about privacy and cyber security more since the world was pummeled with the unsettling, spy-novel truths of the Snowden revelations. Now, companies are starting to seize onto the zeitgeist by building more secure tools for the internet. And it sounds like Tor will be at the front of that…

Apple’s HealthKit Now Sends Medical Data Right to Your Health Record

iHealth was the first company to sell a medical device through Apple, so it’s only natural it’s also the first to fully integrate its products with Apple’s HealthKit. That means all the data iHealth’s connected monitors and trackers collect not only gets sent straight to the app, it’s also automagically logged in your electronic health…

Doom looks perfectly pixelated in Lego form

We’ve seen everything from an ATM to a printer run Doom, but Ochre Jelly recently took a much more analog approach. The brickmaster built several scenes from the game out of Lego bricks. The medium does a great job of simulating those early-’90s graphics, we love so much. Ochre Jelly, also known as Iain Heath,…

Thailand Built an Electronic Tongue to Police Thai Food Worldwide

The government of Thailand does not approve of your town’s crappy Thai restaurant. In fact, it’s so upset about the global scourge of tasteless Tom Yum soup and dank drunken noodles that’s spending $1 million to combat it. A large portion of that money has gone into the development of an electronic tongue. Electronic tongues…

This Robotic Barnacle Scans Ships’ Hulls Looking for Contraband

Big ports have always struggled to keep an eye on every single ship that passes through their waters—especially the part of the boat that’s underwater. Now, there’s a new sort of robotic barnacle that can stealthily slide along the hulls of incoming ships and scan for hidden compartments where smugglers hide their loot. And it’s…

New LEDs Promise to Make Your Smartphone Screen 400 Percent Clearer

The most advanced LED screens look amazing compared to what was on the market even a couple of years ago. But a Princeton engineer found a cheap new way of making LEDs not only brighter and more efficient, but also five times as clear. It even makes them last longer. Professor Stephen Chou is renowned…

The Amazon Fresh same-day grocery delivery service is finally reportedly coming to New York City—perhaps as early as October. To handle logistics, Re/Code’s sources say that Amazon’s been prepping a warehouse in New Jersey that could also serve the Philadelphia market. We saw this one comingbut it’s still exciting for New Yorkers!

FAA’s New $5 Billion Air Traffic Control System Forgot About Drones

Designers of the Federal Aviation Administration’s futuristic, new air traffic control system did a whoops. Despite explicit instructions from Congress to take drones into account, they failed to include them in the plans for the $5 billion NextGen system. And it’s definitely too late to start over. This isn’t good. It’s become increasingly clear in…

FBI Director Says Apple Marketing Encryption Snubs the Law

Today in cops getting angry about the new encryption on smartphones features FBI Director James Comey who is “very concerned” about the matter. He’s so concerned that the FBI’s had conversations with Apple and Google about how they’re marketing the devices. And Comey wants America to know that he’s upset. “I am a huge believer…

FAA Will Let Hollywood Use Commercial Drones to Shoot Movies

The Federal Aviation Administration just granted its approval for six film and TV production companies to use drones on set. This is just the second time the agency’s approved the use of commercial UAVs, it’s no surprise Hollywood was first in line. “These companies are blazing a trail that others are already following, offering the…

The Many Ways We’re Using Mutant Mosquitos to Eradicate Disease

Mosquitos suck. It’s not just because of those itchy red bites we all get in the summer, either. Mosquitos suck because they’re the deadliest animals on the planet, and none of our classic strategies from combatting the threat seem to be working. That’s why we’re turning the mosquitos against themselves. In recent years, scientists have…

Winnie the Pooh was based on a real bear that participated in WWI

Everybody loves Winnie the Pooh and his adorable addiction to honey. It’s often believed that the children’s book character is based on a teddy bear that the author, A.A. Milne, gave to his son Christopher Robin Milne. But this is only partially true. In fact, Christopher Robin named his stuffed bear after a real bear…

Study Shows Most Serious Cyberattacks Are Coming From Inside the US

When we think about where hackers come from, China is probably the first country that comes to mind—for good reason, too. Russia’s maybe next in line. But a controlled experiment by cyber security researchers shows that the vast majority of attacks actually come from a very familiar place: the United States. Bloomberg News reporter Jordan…

The Cop That Blasted Apple’s New Encryption Got His Facts Backwards

On Tuesday morning, The Washington Post published an opinion piece by Ronald T. Hosko, a former assistant director at the FBI, about how Apple’s new encryption techniques would’ve lead to the death of a victim in a case he oversaw. Turns out he was totally wrong. The newspaper just issued a correction. The paragraph in…

3 Fun Facts About the Unforgettable OD Scene in Pulp Fiction

Exactly 20 years ago today, Pulp Fiction hit theaters for the first time. No one had quite seen anything like the Quentin Tarantino masterpiece and its multiple layers of amazing. And who could ever forget the insane overdose scene that ends with John Travolta stabbing an adrenaline shot into Uma Thurman’s heart? Before getting into…

Cops Have No Right to Be Angry About the iPhone’s New Encryption

Security professionals and joe-schmoes alike cheered Apple’s recent announcement that it would no longer be able to turn iPhone data over to cops. Finally, a guarantee that authorities couldn’t snoop around your text messages! But you know who didn’t cheer? Cops, of course. Ronald T. Hosko, former Assistant Director of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division,…

The Evacuator Makes Jumping Out a Window a Sane Way to Escape a Fire

If a fire starts on a high floor in a skyscraper, there’s a good chance it could cut off the means of escape for everybody on the floors above. But a Dutch company wants to solve this problem with technology that’s not dissimilar to what stuntmen use to stay safe. It’s called the Evacuator. Installed…

Steven Soderbergh made Raiders of the Lost Ark into a rad silent film

It’s hard to say what my favorite thing about Steven Soderbergh’s new remix of Raiders of Ark is. Is it the total lack of dialogue? Or maybe it’s the vivid black-and-white rendering that makes you forget the film’s supposed to be in color. Actually, honestly, it’s the sick 8-bit soundtrack. That’s it. Soderbergh didn’t transform…

You Can Buy This Window From the Manhattan Project for a Small Fortune

Bonhams auction house is gearing up for a big “History of Science” sale on October 22. Among the many intriguing lots is a slab of unique glass used during one of the darkest scientific pursuits we’ve ever embarked upon: The Manhattan Project. But don’t worry. It’s not radioactive. In fact, the Manhattan Project viewing window…

Wink’s New Touchscreen Smart Home Panel Belongs in the Jetsons’ Foyer

When it introduced its ultra affordable hub a few months ago, Wink signaled that it wanted to win the smart home wars. Now, with the release of a touchscreen display and control pad called Relay, it’s clear that the Quirky off-shoot is in a hurry, too. It’s not like the home of the future is…