Esther Inglis-Arkell, Author at Gizmodo

Amazing new laser is a million times weaker than a laser pointer. Yes, weaker.

There’s a new laser in town. It’s produced in a completely different way from other lasers, using ‘phased arrays’ which can make it 1,000 times as stable as other lasers and a million times weaker than other lasers. At last, a laser that you can settle down with. So far conventional lasers have created their…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Apr 5

Do science fiction and fantasy cause recurring dreams?

When we dream, the body is out for the count, but the mind is still a stew of thoughts and interpretations. But in this seemingly random stew, some dreams bubble up to the top again and again. And science fiction and fantasy might be the reason why. When I was a very young child I…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Apr 4

The Horrific Practice of “Food Spherification”

You thought lab-grown meat was the best horror that science could toss at you? You’re wrong. Molecular gastronomy has found a way to pitch gelid balls of liquid-filled goo food at you. Find out how to put a ‘skin’ on apple juice, and what that has to do with a bizarre process called ‘food spherification.’…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Apr 3

Penguin poop can be seen from space

A combination of background coloring and penguin gastrointestinal prowess allows the Emperor penguin to be tracked by satellites orbiting the Earth. And ecologists love it. As anyone knows, there are some serious downsides to white carpeting, namely stains. All it takes is a single errant glass of juice, and the furniture has to be rearranged.…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Apr 2

Scientists have proven that, up close, your brain is plaid

We thought that the brain was a complicated snarl of interconnected wires, out of which bubble out complex thoughts and feelings. Turns out we’re locked into a rigid communications grid from the beginning. A rigid, tacky grid. Take a look at the wiring schematic of your brain. Take a look at the image below. Does…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 31

Where we’ll build our space mines when Earth’s resources run low

One day, maybe in your lifetime, Earth will run out of helium. We could also have a huge shortage of clean water. And what happens if we run out of usable iron? How do we replace these vital resources? Don’t panic — there’s plenty more out there in space, much of it in our own…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 30

What if Cake Was More Rational?

Sick of looking at an iced cake and wondering what could be inside? I-cakes, one of the innovative products designed by artist Marti Guixé, are for you. The inside is delicious cake. The outside is a pie chart indicating what ingredients are inside. Isn’t food terribly inefficient? What’s inside a cake, pie, or covered pastry?…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 30

10 Deadly Enemies that Humans Turned Into Servants

We hear a lot, in science fiction, about things that now serve us but will soon kill us. Like robots. But what about the reverse — things that used to kill us in droves, but now serve us? Predatory animals, microbes, and the elements themselves — they all held dominion over us. Once. Celebrate the…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 30

A Motor That Can Get to the Moon on a Few Drops of Fuel

One of the biggest challenges of space travel is the immense fuel cost of traveling even to our own planet’s satellite, let alone one of our neighboring planets. But what if you could build a lightweight space craft that could get around the solar system on barely any fuel? A special motor, and a special…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 29

Make your own potato cannon with a pipe, hairspray, and knowledge!

With a trip to the drug store, the grocery store, and the hardware store, you can make a cannon that shoots potatoes over a hundred yards. All you need to do is know a little about gas laws. And promise you won’t use this for evil. Top image: RodimusPower on Flickr. Here’s a simple way…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 29

Supercomputer Tells Us of Earth’s Many Mini Moons

We may only have one capital-M Moon, which affects our tides and causes our hearts to swell with love on summer nights, but we have a lot of rocks orbiting us. Find out about the many moons we pay no attention to. The Earth almost never has only one cold space rock orbiting it. According…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 29

When Opium Was For Newborns And Bayer Sold Heroin

There was a time when mothers gave their babies opium, people bought hallucinogens at the local bar, and anxious patriots sent hypodermic needles and cocaine to soldiers as a present. It was called The Great Binge, and it’s probably wrong to feel sad that it’s over. Today we have Bayer Aspirin. It relieves headaches. In…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 28

Watch an avalanche inside a superconductor

The famous “superconductor monorail” was a wonderful visual demonstration of what superconductors do to magnets. At first, magnets are repelled by the superconductor. As the temperature drops, a superconducting material unceremoniously kicks magnetic fields out of its territory. If a magnet is forced close to a superconductor, though, it gets ‘stuck’ there, and so can…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 27

How do you buy organs on the black market?

Organ donors are scarce. Waiting lists are long. And life is short — especially if you really need a new heart or liver. So it makes sense that there’s a black market for organs out there. But how would you go about scoring an illicit pancreas if you desperately needed one? Follow the threads people…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 26

Communicating by Optical Telegraph: What’s the top speed of semaphore?

Well into the age of email, we’re used to lightning quick communication. Waving around old flags looks pretty silly now. But this method of signaling was once built into a revolutionary communication network, and you wouldn’t believe how fast it could go. There was once a time when the fastest way to get news, of…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 24

Why do cicadas know prime numbers?

Cicadas incubate underground for long years. They emerge every 13 or 17 years to mate and make annoying noises when people are trying to sleep. Both 13 and 17 are prime numbers. What is it that makes cicadas come out during these years? Cicadas spend so long underground that it hardly seems worth it for…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 23

The electricity demonstration that got someone executed. Again.

Over the years, there have been plenty of inhumane tests and displays of electricity. People have electrocuted monks, and tortured street urchins, but only one electricity display has resulted in an execution. Find out about the dastardly dance of Giovanni Aldini. Electricity has been seen as a magic phenomenon for centuries. Although its properties and…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 23

The 10 Best Retorts in Science Fiction and Fantasy

A properly-delivered snappy line can be so good that it’s worth whatever hardship prompted it in the first place. Usually it’s the line you think of two weeks after being insulted. In science fiction and fantasy, with the benefit of a script, it’s delivered right on time, and in every imaginable situation. Take a look…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 23

The Princess Bride‘s bizarrely NSFW cover from the 1970s

Chances are you’re familiar with The Princess Bride movie, but way fewer people have read author William Goldman’s book. Let me just say that it takes a strikingly different tone than the movie. Instead of a kindly grandfather narrating the story to his sick grandson, the book is framed by a writer editing and rewriting…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 23

How cooking turned humans into an invasive species

How did humans become the swarming, world-spanning species that we are today? A lot of reasons, sure, but one of them may very well have been the invention of cooking. This everyday scientific discipline changed the world – and may change it still more. Food innovation is considered many things: a basic necessity, an art,…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Mar 22

Esther Inglis-Arkell

Amazing new laser is a million times weaker than a laser pointer. Yes, weaker.

Do science fiction and fantasy cause recurring dreams?

The Horrific Practice of “Food Spherification”

Penguin poop can be seen from space

Scientists have proven that, up close, your brain is plaid

Where we’ll build our space mines when Earth’s resources run low

What if Cake Was More Rational?

10 Deadly Enemies that Humans Turned Into Servants

A Motor That Can Get to the Moon on a Few Drops of Fuel

Make your own potato cannon with a pipe, hairspray, and knowledge!

Supercomputer Tells Us of Earth’s Many Mini Moons

When Opium Was For Newborns And Bayer Sold Heroin

Watch an avalanche inside a superconductor

How do you buy organs on the black market?

Communicating by Optical Telegraph: What’s the top speed of semaphore?

Why do cicadas know prime numbers?

The electricity demonstration that got someone executed. Again.

The 10 Best Retorts in Science Fiction and Fantasy

The Princess Bride‘s bizarrely NSFW cover from the 1970s

How cooking turned humans into an invasive species

Wearables Are Getting Very Messy

Trump Wants to Start Privatizing TSA in Latest Budget Proposal

Lost Warship From Battle of Copenhagen Found After 225 Years

These One-of-a-Kind Objects Are in the Wrong Museums

Two Songs We Really Wish Were the Anime Outros for ‘Steel Ball Run’

AI Training Data Giant Mercor Is Reportedly Looking to Buy the Work You Did at Your Old Job

Utah Is Giving Dr. AI the Power to Renew Drug Prescriptions

Here’s the Perfect Excuse to See ‘Project Hail Mary’ Again

US Airlines Are Hiking Bag Fees Amid Iran War Oil Crisis

This Ridiculously Simple Trick Might Stop Gulls From Nabbing Your Lunch

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

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life