Eric Rydin

UnHung Hero: A Film of, Well, Moderately Small Proportions

It’s man’s most-pondered question: Does size matter? While there are social and scientific explanations of the varying size of male genitalia, I feel as though none of them truly answer the question for the individual. They seem rather to quell the ongoing question only temporarily, but without an answer you can take into the bedroom.…

Evolve Your Music Tastes With This Charles Darwin-Themed Opera

Sure, opera isn’t exactly mainstream and is often times pretty atonal and cacophonous, but when written by Swedish pop duo The Knife, it can wield a more alluring sound. Tomorrow In A Year, their full length album that was released in early 2010, is a collaboration between The Knife, Mt. Sims, and Planningtorock. It livens…

This Tiny, Inexpensive Microchip Can Diagnose Diabetes Instantaneously

Stanford researchers recently published work on a small microchip they’ve developed that scans for diabetes in a fraction of the time of current tests. Additionally, their test is reusable for upwards of 15 patients, can be performed on site, and is more accurate in differentiating the biomarkers that distinguish type 1 and type 2 diabetes.…

Microsoft’s AI Is On Its Way to Identifying the Whole World

This morning at the annual Research Faculty Summit, Microsoft showed off a pretty impressive advancement in its AI tech. An app, entitled Project Adam, is poised to identify all of its surroundings just like a Fire Phone without the merch hooks. The app is still in development but shows promising results. Microsoft says Adam has…

The Self-Checkout Security Checkpoint Passed Its First Big Test

Tiresome TSA security lines may be a thing of the past as a new, self-managed security device successfully passed its real world debut at an Australia-Spain World Cup match in Curitiba, Brazil last month. The only folks not excited about the new security measure are die hard fans of the Socceroos. While the machine successfully…

Our Favorite Android, iOS, and Windows Phone Apps of the Week

It’s not just another Friday here in America—it’s the Fourth of July, where we celebrate our independence by blowing up small bits of the land we threw tea in an ocean for. And what better way to let freedom ring than by downloading Gizmodo’s favorite apps of the week? Multi-Platform Updates Vine Vine just got…

Why Vampires Are Sooo Six Seasons Ago

True Blood’s long awaited final season has arrived. Two episodes in and I’m very underwhelmed. I stuck with it through the witches, werewolves, and other supernatural beings, but for some reason, I’m relatively unexcited for its impending vampire apocalypse. However, I’m going to watch each episode regardless—for the blood and the boobs. As should you.…

This App Hides a Panic Button in Your Calculator

Amnesty International has developed a secret ‘Panic Button’ app that will send emergency alerts to pre-selected contacts. The app was created specifically for journalists and human rights activists who constantly find themselves in precarious situations and may need to communicate quickly and silently for help. The app works by running a hidden interface that is…

The Miracle Stick That Makes Wine Taste Better in Seconds

The tricky thing about wine—especially the fancy stuff—is that since it gets better with age, what you buy off the shelf isn’t necessarily always at its peak. A few seconds with the Clef du Vin, though, will age it to perfection. And, if you’re not careful, all the way around to bad again. The Clef…

The Story Behind the Foam That World Cup Refs Use To Stop Cheating

If you’ve been enjoying any of the World Cup matches over the last several days, you’ve likely seen a new addition to the referee’s arsenal: a spray-on foam. And if you’re not a soccer expert, you’ve probably wondered where it came from. So what is this stuff and how do I get it off my…

Google Drive is reportedly down with frequent error messages and long load times. We’re looking into it — have you experienced any issues? (Update: it’s back!)

This Vacuum Brewer Infuses Your Tea (or Booze) With Almost Anything

With mixology and DIY designer beverages on the rise, it’s no wonder that users want more control. Enter BKON’s new Craft Brewer, an impressive piece of machinery that infuses liquids in a perfect vacuum. Gizmodo recently got a hands-on demo at the iconic Counter Culture in Soho—and this thing can brew. The Craft Brewer allows…

This Pop-Up Chair Would Make Long Layovers So Much More Tolerable

With the blazing speed of the internet mitigating our every expectation—especially wait times—it’s no wonder we get impatient so easily. Delays at the airport are particularly maddening, because there never seem to be enough seats to accommodate the many fuming passengers who all need to get their destinations more urgently than you. RESMO, a dynamic…

As part of the inaugural Global Space Balloon Challenge, a group of Stanford students took this photo from just above the Earth using two high altitude balloons. With one of them perched slightly above the other, you can see the balloon braving the flight as the other captures this breathtaking view over California. [cnet]

Abu Dhabi’s New Park Will Hide a 30-Acre Oasis Below the Desert

The United Arab Emirates has been overrun with a surge of costly and extravagant developments over the past decade including the Palm Islands and Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Now, a 125,000 square-meter park in Abu Dhabi will join them—but this isn’t your average mega-development. The beautiful design is credited to Thomas Heatherwick, an imaginative and…

This Twisting Mirror Bridge Reflects Every Detail of a Shanghai Street

UNStudio has created a beautifully constructed archway that brightens up the retail sphere of Xintiandi Mall in China. Because it’s lined with mirrors, you can track your movements from beginning to end and watch your surroundings skip playfully across the different planes of the mall’s entrance. It’s like walking down the inside of a wormhole—except…

Facebook’s Paper has finally added events notifications as well as the ability to insert photos into comments. Hey—it’s almost like real Facebook. Almost.

Dissecting the Tech Behind March Madness

Sports and technology are usually thought of as estranged dance partners just a half measure out of sync, but there’s an elegant waltz between the two that’s been going on for years behind the scenes. And maybe nowhere more so than in the lead-up to March Madness. Basketball is teeming with state-of-the-art technology, but much…

8 Buildings Designed to Incorporate the Trees Around Them

Architecture has a rich history of unapologetically demanding massive amounts of land to create man’s vision over nature’s. However, a more conscientious and natural approach to architecture has emerged to quell our territorial imperialism over mother nature. It’s about time. By being inclusive of the natural environment around them, some architects are pursing a more…

Bored Cats Find Sense of Purpose in Personalized Cat Playgrounds

High-end, customizable architecture and design has been on the rise for several years, but it’s starting to grow stale. The new trend lies in foregoing personal comfort altogether and extending that luxury to your cat. Goldtatze, a German company specializing in the “symbiosis of timeless elegance and true naturality,” creates pieces of cat furniture that…