Annalee Newitz, Author at Gizmodo

Once I Was Your Slave, But Now I Am Your Leader!

In Avatar, a man from an industrial society joins a low-tech tribal culture and becomes its leader. But the reverse happens too: Somebody from a disadvantaged group becomes a leader of the supposed masters. And here’s how they do it. There are many ways to go from desolate to despotic, but there are a few…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 31

Best Commentary On A UFO Sighting Ever

This video was taken late last year, and shows mysterious orbs, sometimes called “foo fighters,” tailing airplanes. The best part is the stoned, expletive-laced commentary from the guy with the camera. [via RealUFOs]

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 31

Preview The New Predator Comic

The Predator civil war is reaching its bloody climax, and we’ve got a sneak peek at how crazy it’s going to get. Dark Horse has slipped us three exclusive pages from the new Predator #4 comic, coming in January. Dark Horse describes the fourth and final installment of the series: Think that a third-world civil…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz Dec 31

Cities of the Future, Imagined By The Artist Who Created The Death Star

John Berkey is famous for doing concept design for the original Star Wars movie, including a breathtaking poster of the Death Star. When he wasn’t imagining space battles, he designed cities of the future – on Earth and in space. Some of these citiscapes are incredibly rare images from Berkey that are rarely reprinted –…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 31

There’s Nothing Like Sex With Your Armor On [NSFW]

The 1980s flick Excalibur, directed by John Boorman, is quite possibly one of the best fantasy movies of all time, thanks largely to scenes like these – full of Merlin’s perverse humor and graphic depictions of human carnality and violence. This is a great moment from early in the film, when King Arthur’s father Uther…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 30

15 Reasons To Live For The Next 10 Years

The 2000s left us feeling battered, but the 2010s are looking awesome. Thanks to recent scientific research and an explosion of cultural interest in science fiction, there are at least 15 brilliant reasons to stick around for another decade. Image by Dan Lydersen. 15. Lost returns Sure, it may not last for the entire decade,…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 30

This Owl Pincushion Is Preventing Space-Time From Fraying

Over at Significant Objects, Margaret Wertheim has published a terrific flash fiction story about one of the greatest discoveries in the history of physics: An owl pincushion is responsible for holding the fabric of spacetime together. How can this be? In a story that’s as much a fable as science fiction, Wertheim tells a story…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 30

The Thing With A Thousand Young Is Not Amused

Many moviemakers have tried to recreate the weirdness of HP Lovecraft‘s horror stories on film, but few have succeeded. Steve Daniels tried a novel approach in his short Dirt Dauber, using paper cutouts and half-seen imagery. Behold Shub-Niggurath! In this short film, which you can see a preview for above, two men go in search…

Movies Annalee Newitz Dec 30

Don’t Get This Skirt Wet After Midnight

It’s the age of the crotchbomber, and we need to gird our loins against terror. That’s why you’ll want to put on this amazing skirt with Gizmo’s face on it. As long as he doesn’t go gremlin, you’re protected! https://gizmodo.com/the-true-odds-of-airborne-terror-chart-5435954 With a $2100 price tag, you won’t be bringing this pet home any time soon.…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 30

Sherlock Holmes Brings On The Steampunk Tweed Hotness

Packed with Victorian gadgets, awesome fights, Illuminati-style conspiracies, and lots of incredibly sexy tweed outfits, the new Sherlock Holmes flick is James Bond for the steampunk set. But will you like it if you aren’t a tweed fetishist? In a season full of swollen special effects blockbusters and annoying Christmas stories, badboy Brit director Guy…

Movies Annalee Newitz Dec 26

How Weird “Blue Stragglers” Are Born Out Of Interstellar Conflict

Blue straggler stars are an astronomical mystery – they are bigger and age more slowly than stars born at the same time. It turns out these stars are created by two kinds of violent interstellar struggles. Earlier this week, we told you about the vampiric ways of blue stragglers. Now Nature has published two papers…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 25

It Was Easy To Predict The Internet 100 Years Ago

One hundred years ago, the Summit County Journal in Logansport, IN made some predictions about what Christmas would be like this year. Some of their predictions are still wishful thinking, but they did manage to predict both online shopping and YouTube. One of the main predictions that this Indiana paper made was that Christmas this…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 25

The First Three-Dimensional Image of a Mandelbrot Fractal Is Stunning

Behold the “Mandelbulb.” This is a three-dimensional image created using the Mandelbrot set, a mathematical structure whose edges form fractals. The result is something that looks like an alien tree. Which isn’t surprising, since fractals emulate patterns in nature. According to Nature, this is the “first true three-dimensional representations of the Mandelbrot set.” It was…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 25

Read “The New Real,” A Novel Written In Real Time On io9

Earlier this month, the Canadian scifi author MCM wrote an entire novel on io9 over the weekend. And he got you to help him fill in crucial plot details in real time. Now you can read the whole thing. In case you missed it, we’ve got the whole novel for you, in order, just as…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz Dec 25

What If Batman Were A Unicorn?

I’m sure you’ve often wondered what would happen if you combined the powers of a unicorn with those of Batman – or maybe a zombie? These t-shirts from Unicorns Rock turn your horned, horsey pal into everything that’s cool. Tees from Unicorns Rock are $19, with free shipping. Now that’s just rainbow barf magical. (I…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 25

Bringing The Worm Home

The greatest and most valuable beast of planet Arrakis has been conquered. This is just one image from an amazing collection on “Project Sand,” a group blog devoted entirely to recreating the world of Frank Herbert‘s Dune in concept designs. If you need to transport yourself to a world of spice, heat, and massive mining…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz Dec 24

Will The Recession Scar You For Life? Economists Say Yes.

People who grew up during the Great Depression often turned into compulsive penny-pinchers, unable to spend money without anxiety. Will recent recessions leave similar psychological scars on people growing up today? A new study by economists suggests they will. The Boston Globe’s Christopher Shea has a terrific discussion of the study on the Brainiac blog:…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 24

Become A Master In 10 Easy Steps

There are leaders, and then there are masters. You’ve got the archetypal Master in Doctor Who, but masters include anybody in a black cape whose minions say “yesssss, master.” How can you get some master action? Let us show you. 1. Experience a horrific trauma or terrible setback that fills you with power lust and…

Movies Annalee Newitz Dec 24

The Icy Spaceship Wreck Looked Like A Dinosaur Skeleton

Examining the frozen remains wouldn’t be possible in enemy territory, but the crew of the rescue ship hovered close to the oxygen-encrusted hulk for a few seconds. They were afraid they knew what had happened to her. This is a selection of art created by concept designer Koshime, who works with Opus Artz and has…

io9 Annalee Newitz Dec 24

The 2009 Science Fiction Power List

It’s our second annual science fiction power list, featuring the 20 most powerful people and teams in the world of science fiction. Yes, science fiction can wield great power. These are the people who take responsibility for that. This is not a list of io9’s “favorites,” or a compendium of people we think should have…

Movies Annalee Newitz Dec 23

Annalee Newitz

Once I Was Your Slave, But Now I Am Your Leader!

Best Commentary On A UFO Sighting Ever

Preview The New Predator Comic

Cities of the Future, Imagined By The Artist Who Created The Death Star

There’s Nothing Like Sex With Your Armor On [NSFW]

15 Reasons To Live For The Next 10 Years

This Owl Pincushion Is Preventing Space-Time From Fraying

The Thing With A Thousand Young Is Not Amused

Don’t Get This Skirt Wet After Midnight

Sherlock Holmes Brings On The Steampunk Tweed Hotness

How Weird “Blue Stragglers” Are Born Out Of Interstellar Conflict

It Was Easy To Predict The Internet 100 Years Ago

The First Three-Dimensional Image of a Mandelbrot Fractal Is Stunning

Read “The New Real,” A Novel Written In Real Time On io9

What If Batman Were A Unicorn?

Bringing The Worm Home

Will The Recession Scar You For Life? Economists Say Yes.

Become A Master In 10 Easy Steps

The Icy Spaceship Wreck Looked Like A Dinosaur Skeleton

The 2009 Science Fiction Power List

HP Laptop With Microsoft 365 Hits Record Low After Multiple Price Cuts, Now Cheaper Than A16 iPad

Artemis 2 Day 9: Follow the Mission With Our Live Updates 🔴

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‘The ‘American Horror Story’ Reunion Could Be a Sequel to ‘Coven’

One of the Messiest Loose Ends from NFT Mania Has Finally Been Tied Up

The OpenAI Foundation’s New Alzheimer’s Effort Helps Demystify ‘AI Will Cure All Diseases’

The Nazis’ Most Notoriously Complex Cryptographic Machine Is Now Available Online

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