Andrew Tarantola, Author at Gizmodo

How the Post Office Sniffs Out Anthrax Before It Hits Your Mailbox

The Amerithrax case of 2001, in which letters harboring Anthrax spores were delivered to media outlets and a pair of US Senators’ offices, killed five people and sickened another 17. In the wake of these attacks, the US Postal Service (USPS) installed a system of electronic noses in mail processing facilities around the country designed…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 18 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: 18F44

Whoa, who would have thought that mutating hexagons could be so beautiful. It’s like watching a sheet of sentient paper origami itself into form. As Raven Kwok, the programmer behind this haunting animation—which was generated in real time in Processing—describes, 18F44 is a further study based on EDF0, the recursive structure was first extended to…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 18 '13

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis: Can’t Hold Us

Hollywood’s streets are paved with the album inserts and broken dreams of one-hit wonders. But this ambitious music video from Macklemore and Ryan Lewis shows the Seattle-based pair has no intention of going anywhere but up. The red-hot hip-hop duo has just released the “Can’t Hold Us” single—the first since their breakout hit “Thrift Shop”—and…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 17 '13

NASA’s Next Rocket Engine Could Be A Blast From the Past

Jeff Bezos isn’t the only person interested in vintage NASA technology. Public and private entities alike are actively taking a second look at the Rocketdyne F-1 engines that helped notch Saturn V rockets as the tallest, heaviest, and most powerful rocket ever operated—even today, forty years after the demise of the Apollo program. https://gizmodo.com/jeff-bezos-has-rescued-the-apollo-11-rockets-from-the-o-5991543 All…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola Apr 17 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: SATUR 09

So this is what living inside our most recognizable planet would look like—a gently bobbing yellow haze, with occasional downpours of ring rain. Quite peaceful really, ignoring the fact that its atmosphere is almost entirely hydrogen and helium. This short by Brazillian multimedia designer, Nagash, mixes macro video with snippets of “Saturnine” and “How to…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 17 '13

Toh Kay: With Any Sort Of Certainty

This is, as animator Scott Benson puts it, “A story about not being OK, and trying to be.” But who’s to say what constitutes OK? Is it akin to childhood innocence—that which, once stripped, can never be revived? Or is it a more transient state of being, countering the gnawing pain of regret and self-doubt?…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 16 '13

The Future of Rechargeable Batteries Could Smell Like Rotten Eggs

Every 19 gallons of petroleum we refine leaves behind a half pound of sulfur byproduct—far more than we can even pretend to have use for. Luckily, some ingenious researchers at the University of Arizona, may have devised a solution that transforms the rancid yellow element into a new breed of battery. Lithium-ion batteries are the…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 16 '13

How to Catch an Asteroid

That Pet Rock of yours lose a bit of its luster over the years? Not to worry, NASA plans to put one big enough for the whole world to share in orbit around the moon by the start of the next decade. Here’s how. You Should Do This If: You’ve ever wanted to study a…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola Apr 16 '13

Search and Disarm: The Cop Bot That Takes Down Bombs

Explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) is one of the deadliest jobs in the military and it’s no less dangerous here at home. But since Lieutenant-Colonel ‘Peter’ Miller designed the Wheelbarrow in 1972 against IRA IEDs in Northern Ireland, remote EOD robots have played an enormous part in explosive disarmarment. So when police find a suspicious package,…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 16 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Spacebound

This heart-wrenching short by Kyle Moy and Ellen Su, follows a young astronaut and his space dog as they desperately try to avoid a horrific and painful death. It serves as a gorgeously animated gut-check that while we can’t choose when we go out, we can choose how we do so. https://gizmodo.com/what-really-happens-when-you-get-blown-out-of-an-airloc-5924522

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 16 '13

How to Awaken Your Lawn from Its Winter Slumber

Whether your lawn is the emerald crown jewel of the neighborhood or has more brown spots than a cheetah, now is the time to give your yard a spring cleaning. If you’re just trying to get rid of the dead spots or starting over from scratch, here’s what you’ll need to do to ensure your…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 15 '13

This Natural Gas Plant Is Turbo-Charged by the Sun

With the decreasing popularity of coal and increasing volatility of petroleum prices, natural gas is emerging as a major energy resource in the the United States. And while we have plenty of reserves, an estimated 318 Trillion cubic feet (Tcf), it’s still a non-renewable resource that must be used sparingly whenever possible—like this new natural…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 15 '13

Give Your Laptop and Smartphone a Spring Cleaning

It’s officially spring, so why is your computer still moving like it’s half frozen? After all those long winter nights surfing shady sites, it’s no wonder. Here’s how to give your most important devices a spring cleaning fit for a May Queen. Clean It Out The first thing you’ll want to do is clear out…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 13 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Tom N Jerry

And you thought the Warner Bros. cat and mouse duo had outlandish chase sequences? Psh. This CGI reboot by Brian Jin combine Tom and Jerry’s slapstick humor with an anime motiff and Michael Bay-caliber explosions as the duo wreaks havoc on an airport’s security installment (and takes down a terrorist for good measure).

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 13 '13

15 Human Weapons Made from Animal Weapons

Lacking claws, armor, or stabbing teeth, humans are easy targets for predation. But thanks to our big, beautiful brains, we figured out early on how to co-opt the killing tools of nature’s top hunters for our own defense—and offense. Here are some of the best examples of technology mimicking nature. Or just straight up stealing…

Biology Andrew Tarantola Apr 12 '13

These Apartments Grow Their Own A/C

A newly completed 15-unit apartment building in Hamburg Germany is already turning heads. Though, with a facade covered in sun-tracking algae tanks, it’s hard not to stare. Dubbed the Bio Intelligent Quotient (BIQ) House, the approximately €5 million building was designed by Splitterwerk Architects and funded by the Internationale Bauausstellung (IBA), a long-running exhibition series…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 12 '13

If Earth 2 Exists, TESS Will Find It

The Kepler telescope that launched in 2009 is is no slouch when it comes to hunting for exoplanets. The system is charged with investigating the more than 145,000 stars within its view in the hopes of finding habitable planets but those stars constitute just 0.28 percent of the sky. Luckily, there’s a new orbital telescope…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola Apr 12 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: This Is J03

Like a modern-day Dante traversing the pits of Hell before ascending into Paradise, J03 is a man far out of his depth and just looking for the road home. Well, not so much a man as an 8-bit robot trapped in the digital revolution. Check out this cool live action/3D animated short by Once Were…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 12 '13

Iran’s New Uranium Production Facility: Because the Rest of the World Wasn’t Pissed Off Enough Yet

Taking a page from the North Korean Handbook for Successful International Diplomacy, Iran has recently announced that it is inaugurating a new addition to its Ardakan Yellowcake Production Plant. The facility will handle the processing of the 60 some-odd tons of uranium excavated from the nearby Saghand uranium mine after the latest international round of…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 11 '13

Philips Hue Lightning Review: Your Lamp’s Not Worthy (Updated)

Used to be, the most customization you could squeeze out of your lighting was how warm or cool you wanted it to be. Not anymore. With the Philips Hue home lighting system, you can control every light in your house down to its color, saturation, and brightness—right from your phone. What Is It? Philips’ app-controlled…

Reviews Andrew Tarantola Apr 11 '13

Andrew Tarantola

How the Post Office Sniffs Out Anthrax Before It Hits Your Mailbox

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: 18F44

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis: Can’t Hold Us

NASA’s Next Rocket Engine Could Be A Blast From the Past

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: SATUR 09

Toh Kay: With Any Sort Of Certainty

The Future of Rechargeable Batteries Could Smell Like Rotten Eggs

How to Catch an Asteroid

Search and Disarm: The Cop Bot That Takes Down Bombs

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Spacebound

How to Awaken Your Lawn from Its Winter Slumber

This Natural Gas Plant Is Turbo-Charged by the Sun

Give Your Laptop and Smartphone a Spring Cleaning

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Tom N Jerry

15 Human Weapons Made from Animal Weapons

These Apartments Grow Their Own A/C

If Earth 2 Exists, TESS Will Find It

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: This Is J03

Iran’s New Uranium Production Facility: Because the Rest of the World Wasn’t Pissed Off Enough Yet

Philips Hue Lightning Review: Your Lamp’s Not Worthy (Updated)

The Best Toys of April 2026

Dreame L60 Ultra Robot Vacuum and Mop With 35,000Pa Suction Is Now Over $400 Off as a Launch Exclusive Deal

Under-Oath Elon Musk Seems to Run a Different Company Than Public-Figure Elon Musk

Ambitious Experiment Aims to Test Tiny Nuclear Reactors for AI Data Centers

Here’s the Very Normal Reason the ‘Lanterns’ Trailer Disappeared

California Cops Can Finally Give Robotaxis Tickets

Andy Serkis Says Viggo Mortensen Was ‘Thrilled’ by Jamie Dornan Being Cast as Aragorn

Elon Musk Will Earn a Company Bonus if He Drops a Million Colonists on Mars

OpenAI’s New Image Generator Is Trying to Take Your 6-Year-Old’s Job

The Best Gadgets of April 2026

Steam Controller Review: Trackpads Change Everything for PC Gaming

Soundcore Space 2 Review: A Shockingly Stellar Value for Budget ANC Wireless Headphones

Anker’s UV Printer Can Handle Almost Anything… If You Know What You’re Doing

HP’s EliteBoard Keyboard-Computer Proves We Can Stick a PC in Anything

Sleep-Tracking Earbuds Didn’t Fix Me, but They Did Open My Eyes

I’ve Tested a Lot of Bad Smart Glasses and These Are the Worst Yet

Roborock’s Qrevo Curv 2 Flow Is the Ultimate Robot Mop—If You Don’t Have Corners or Walls

Alienware’s $350 QD-OLED Gaming Monitor Nixes Everything for a Pretty Screen

Sony Inzone H6 Air Review: A Perfect Case for Open-Back Gaming Headsets

Anker’s EufyMake E1 Finally Brings Printers Out of the Dark Ages