Annalee Newitz, Author at Gizmodo

Plant Pornographer Goes Mainstream With Travel Movie For Plants

Artist Jonathon Keats used to make porn movies for plants, but with new project Strange Skies he’s gone legit. It’s a travel documentary, and he’s screening it in New York City this month – to a theater packed with plants. One of Keats’ previous projects was a porn movie for plants showing bees pollinating flowers,…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 2

Celebrate 20 Years of Futuristic Freedom With Mecha Armor

After fighting for civil liberties in the futuristic world of high tech for twenty years, the Electronic Frontier Foundation is throwing a mega-party. And their anniversary poster is an homage to science fiction. Created by EFF staff designer Hugh D’Andrade, this design is also available as a poster. And if you’re in San Francisco next…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 2

Pneumatic Tubes Make A Comeback

A century ago, futurists predicted that pneumatic tubes would be the transportation systems of tomorrow. That idea never came to fruition – until recently. Stanford University’s medical center uses a 4-mile-long pneumatic tube delivery system. And it saves lives. Before the tubes were installed in the mid-1990s, Stanford had a team of 20 people who…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 2

SciFi Burlesque Show Proves Clothing Is Irrelevant [NSFW]

Last weekend, a group of lovely scifi fans were dressing up and stripping down at AM Preacher’s Sci-Fi Burlesque show at Hellgate Social in Astoria. Seven and Six were there, as were Leeloo, Tank Girl, and Starbuck. See the gallery! Starring Arden Leigh as Catwoman and Caprica Six, Hazel Honeysuckle as Leeloo Dallas and Seven…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 2

Heroes Is Like Beating Your Head Against A Brick Wall For Ten Years

It’s hard to argue with a Heroes episode that’s about Peter and Sylar beating a giant brick wall for years on end. That’s how we all feel, watching this show! I’ve drunk some scotch and I’m ready for recappage. I’m also fortifying myself with Cadbury chocolate digestives during this episode, called “The Wall,” and I…

Television Annalee Newitz Feb 2

They’ve Defrosted Jean-Claude Van Damme For “Universal Soldier: Regeneration”

Everybody loves a supersoldier, especially when he’s played by kickboxing master Van Damme. Now he’s returning to his iconic role, to fight another supersoldier – in the ruins of Chernobyl! With Dolph Lundgren! The straight-to-DVD flick picks up years after the early-1990s Universal Soldier. Here’s the synopsis: With stolen top-secret technology, terrorists have created a…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 1

It’s Time To Get Serious About Colonizing Space

Today the Obama Administration unveiled its new budget for NASA, which included a shocker: Plans to return to the Moon have been scrapped. So why are we optimistic? Because Obama’s budget rewards science, and lays groundwork for human space colonies. The big news from the budget, which has not yet been approved by Congress, is…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 1

The City Poses Many Dangers For Giant Robots

How often do you find yourself rounding a corner to discover a giant robot is collapsing in the street? This is one of those giant robot tragedies that happens more often than you realize, especially in cities. This image, along with the other great robot illustrations we have here, is by concept artist extraordinaire Greg…

io9 Annalee Newitz Feb 1

Caprica Takes Us Inside The Tragedy Of Robot Consciousness

Friday night’s first episode of Caprica, “Rebirth,” was fast-paced and thoughtful – a combination that’s difficult to pull off. The best part was glimpsing the psychology of a freshly-born cylon, followed closely by watching gangster Sam Adama in action. A lot happened in this episode, so I’ll fill you in quickly and then get to…

Television Annalee Newitz Feb 1

Little Robot Boy Challenges The Mighty Sky Cephalobot

In a sky the color of the sea, a young robot undergoes his rite of passage. He must leap from a tiny flying vehicle onto the back of the massive mechanical squid who rules this volume of atmosphere. These amazing skyscapes and robots are the work of Canadian concept artist Robert Kim, whose fluid lines…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 31

One Reveal Too Many On Fringe

I love Fringe to pieces, but last night’s episode “The Bishop Revival” was surprisingly meh. Immortal Nazi scientists are always fun, but not when it turns into yet another reveal about the Bishop family of mad scientists. Again, don’t get me wrong. I like all the weird family revelations about the Bishops, with transdimensional kidnapping/adoption…

Television Annalee Newitz Jan 29

Body-Switching And Satanic Nerds On Supernatural

In last night’s Supernatural, called “Swap Meat,” Sam and Dean arrive in a small Massachusetts town to fight a poltergeist – but wind up tangling with something much more dangerous. An MIT-bound nerd who loves Latin. Like many of the best Supernatural episodes, this one started goofy, and wound up taking us to a really…

Television Annalee Newitz Jan 29

Giant Explosions Are The Cheapest Way To Halt Climate Change, Say Scientists

A recent report from a group of environmental scientists, published in Nature, argues that cutting greenhouse emissions is much more expensive than another option we have to halt global warming: Setting of a mega-volcano that would coat atmosphere in nice, sun-blocking ash. According to an article on the report in the Telegraph: They called for…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 29

Watch The First Four Minutes of “Lost” Season Six

Buckle your seatbelts, because the first four minutes of the new season of Lost, from the episode “LA X,” deliver some shocks. Spoilers! [via Slashfilm]

Television Annalee Newitz Jan 29

Ancient Feathery Beast Solidifies Evidence That Birds Evolved From Dinosaurs

A new dinosaur species has been identified, and it’s a birdlike creature (pictured) that’s 15 million years older than the first bird. Haplocheirus sollers is another dinosaur whose proto-bird characteristics make it a possible precursor to birds. There’s so little evidence from the fossil record during the time that birds evolved that scientists have debated…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 29

Why The iPad Is Crap Futurism

The real question about Apple’s new multitouch pseudo-computer, dubbed the iPad, is not whether it sucks or rocks. What all of us really want to know is whether it will change the future. The answer? Yes, but badly. The iPad And The World Of Tomorrow For those who spent yesterday glued to the State of…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 28

Hilobrow Announces SF Micro Fiction Contest

Always wanted to write a science fiction story about a troubled superhero that was 250 words or less? Now the Hilobrow scifi micro fiction contest challenges you to do it! io9 contributor Joshua Glenn is also the editor of Hilobrow, a magazine that’s packed with cool essays about culture and ideas, with a pretty big…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz Jan 28

Return Of The UFO That Mined Uranium In Argentina During The 1970s?

An Argentinian newspaper reports that people have witnessed the return of UFOs that once mined uranium in the Frías area. In fact, this image is a cell phone snap of a recent UFO visit to the region. According to El Liberal: [The community of] Santiago del Estero was graced yet again by a new sighting…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 28

Three Lost T-Shirts Help You Rock Out And Mutate

UK designers WakeUpTimeToDie have made three new Lost-themed tees available in their online shop. You can get a Dharma Initiative tee anywhere – what about a Drive Shaft tee? Or Mittelos Bioscience? Classic. You can pick these tees up at WakeUpTimeToDie – £18.00 each. Special 10% discount for io9 readers! Enter this code at checkout:…

Television Annalee Newitz Jan 28

How Neuroscience Became A Major Scientific Discipline In Just One Decade

Using new mathematical tools, a group of researchers created a fascinating chart that shows how neuroscience went from a hodgepodge of unconnected scientific disciplines, to a unified science that’s one of the most important today. In just under 10 years. Neuroscience is the study of how neurons – nerve cells – form networks in the…

io9 Annalee Newitz Jan 28

Annalee Newitz

Plant Pornographer Goes Mainstream With Travel Movie For Plants

Celebrate 20 Years of Futuristic Freedom With Mecha Armor

Pneumatic Tubes Make A Comeback

SciFi Burlesque Show Proves Clothing Is Irrelevant [NSFW]

Heroes Is Like Beating Your Head Against A Brick Wall For Ten Years

They’ve Defrosted Jean-Claude Van Damme For “Universal Soldier: Regeneration”

It’s Time To Get Serious About Colonizing Space

The City Poses Many Dangers For Giant Robots

Caprica Takes Us Inside The Tragedy Of Robot Consciousness

Little Robot Boy Challenges The Mighty Sky Cephalobot

One Reveal Too Many On Fringe

Body-Switching And Satanic Nerds On Supernatural

Giant Explosions Are The Cheapest Way To Halt Climate Change, Say Scientists

Watch The First Four Minutes of “Lost” Season Six

Ancient Feathery Beast Solidifies Evidence That Birds Evolved From Dinosaurs

Why The iPad Is Crap Futurism

Hilobrow Announces SF Micro Fiction Contest

Return Of The UFO That Mined Uranium In Argentina During The 1970s?

Three Lost T-Shirts Help You Rock Out And Mutate

How Neuroscience Became A Major Scientific Discipline In Just One Decade

Laptops Are About to Get Very Exciting Again… Thanks to Nvidia

Bose SoundLink Flex Bluetooth Speaker (2nd Gen) Matches Black Friday Discount, With Even Limited Edition Colors at Record Low

Go Titan Hunting in a Clip From This Week’s ‘Monarch: Legacy of Monsters’ (Exclusive)

In Medical First, a Single Therapy Knocked Out 3 Autoimmune Diseases at Once

Gen Z’s Use of AI Is Plateauing as Youth Feel Less Hopeful About the Tech

If You Have an iPad, Apple Pencil Pro Is Now Cheaper on Amazon Than Buying Direct From Apple

Finally, a First Look at Brad Bird’s New Animated Sci-Fi Detective Movie

Two LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon Sets Land at All-Time Lows, Including the Dark Version

Shokz OpenRun Pro Bone Conduction Headphones Are Briefly Back at Their Lowest Price on Amazon

‘Man of Tomorrow’ Is On the Hunt For Maxima

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: Start Considering Snapdragon on PC, for Real

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws