Esther Inglis-Arkell, Author at Gizmodo

Scientists crack the 70-year-old mystery of why fish freak out

Schreckstoff literally translates as “scary stuff.” It is both an example of German linguistic ingenuity and the mysterious chemical that has puzzled the scientific community for seventy years. It is the signal that wounded fish give off to scare the rest of the school away, but no one knew what this substance was…until now. Wounded…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 23

Something strange happens when you expose ice to an electrical field

A weird thing happens when ice freezes under the influence of an electric field. It turns out that electricity can make water strangely attractive. Yes, that was a pun. Proceed with caution. One of the fun things about science is the many times you scoff at something being impossible, like say, lasers being able to…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 23

How an 1870s marine expedition changed oceanography and drove eight sailors insane

When was the first voyage of the Challenger? No, not the Space Shuttle — the original Challenger, a sea ship that sailed in 1872. The HMS Challenger traversed the world’s oceans for four years, drove some of its sailors completely insane, caused about a quarter of the crew to jump ship, and forever changed the…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 23

When NASA shot a rocket into the Northern Lights to study mysterious waves

This is a fisheye view of a NASA-funded rocket being shot into the Aurora Borealis in Alaska. In a move applauded nationwide, NASA has declared war on the sky. Obviously there’s a lot of (metaphorical) ground to cover, but NASA, as well as scientists from a number of universities, started with the mysterious Alfven Wave.…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 22

This is the worst reproductive strategy in the animal kingdom

Think pandas are inept when it comes to carrying on the species? Think again. The giant panda is a champion reproducer compared to a chubby, land-bound parrot called the kakapo. Between navigational problems, botanical problems, and the occasions when horny male parrots try to have sex with animals that can kill them, this is the…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 21

Babies in incubators were once an attraction at Coney Island

Incubators, while standard in any hospital nowadays, were once untested technology. Their developers needed a way to prove their worth and get the word out. And that is how premature babies were put on display at Coney Island. When it comes to medicine, people can’t always afford dignity. Certainly they couldn’t in the first few…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 20

From Apron Hunters to Matricide: Idioms from Around the World

Anyone who grew up speaking English knows the phrase, “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence,” isn’t about botany. Although idioms are particular to each language, most languages have them. Find out about strange idioms from all around the world, and what they say about the cultures that create them.…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 18

The Physics of Magnetic Nail Polish

Being of the Hack ’em Off or Chew ’em Up school of nail design, I was unaware that there was such a thing as magnetic nail polish. Now that I’ve learned about it, let’s take a look at the physics of a nail polish that forms fascinating patterns when exposed to a magnet! We all…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 17

The Beautiful, Deadly Vortex That Tears Huge Buildings Apart

The Karman Vortex Street isn’t someplace you’d want to take up residence — it’s literally the path of destruction, where buildings collapse and destruction reigns. Unfortunately, under the right conditions, a Karman Vortex can follow you. Find out how this beautiful phenomenon can take down anything in its path. Theodore von Karman, a Hungarian physicist,…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 17

The Lost Art of Detecting Incoming Aircraft Using Your Ears

We didn’t always have radar to detect incoming aircraft. During the First and Second World Wars, there were multiple attempts, and multiple apparatuses, used to detect incoming planes based on the sounds they made. Check out how people spotted enemy planes, using tubas — and modern art. Radar seems like a natural way to locate…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 17

Fruit flies can cure themselves of intestinal parasites, with the power of alcohol

Fruit flies, the simple little things that buzz around the fruit you swore you’d eat and the jack-o-lantern you swore you’d throw out, can diagnose themselves with intestinal parasites — and drink alcohol until they’re all better again. Fruit flies really seem to have a bad time of it. They get constantly experimented on in…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 16

Turn water into 4 different deadly weapons, using just pencils and a battery

A simple childhood experiment, involving basic stuff that anyone could find around the house, provides you with a simple means to make both a chemical and physical weapon. Find out how to split ordinary water into two different dangerous gases, and cause two different explosions. Top image: Water and Fire, by Serg64/Shutterstock.com Would you believe…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 16

How to Build the Perfect Human

What if you could improve the human race by splicing in some animal parts? Would we be better off with cats’ eyes? What if you added the lungs of a goose, the muscles of a chimp, and the circulatory system of a penguin? Let’s discover which animal parts could enhance our feeble human bodies. Top…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 15

Why Helium was the Dark Matter of its Day

We know it’s out there. It makes up a sizable chunk of the universe. We see evidence of it in stellar objects through modern scientific tests. And yet we can’t find it anywhere. What is this mysterious substance? It’s helium, circa the mid-nineteenth century. Find out how the riddle of helium consumed scientists 150 years…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 14

How do we know the universe isn’t already ruled by giant space brains?

We’ve all heard of an infinite number of monkeys typing out Shakespeare, but could coincidence be even stronger than that? Could the universe become populated by giant space brains? And more importantly, has it been already? Some time ago, scientists noticed that the universe was flying apart. It was flying apart, they noticed, faster and…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 13

The bouncy science of toy superballs

We all annoyed our parents with these and broke vases with these and chased these down the street into traffic and, on rainy days when we were bored, melted these in the microwave. But what actually makes superballs work? Some portion of your childhood was spent seeing exactly how much damage could be done with…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 11

Cancer drug shown to reduce Alzheimer’s symptoms in mice by seventy-five percent

It’s rare to get any good news associated with reports of Alzheimer’s disease, but neuroscientists have just released word that one drug is dramatically reducing symptoms. It seems to do this by dissolving a protein that builds up in the brain — and it manages to create major improvements within days. Alzheimer’s, a progressive disease…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 10

A US government program secretly injected people with plutonium

The horrors of the nuclear age, in terms of exploding reactors and nuclear bombs, are well known. Behind the well-publicized threat of mass death lies a secret history of nuclear projects being used to destroy individuals. In the late 1940s, United States citizens were injected with plutonium without their knowledge. Top image: AXL/Shutterstock.com In early…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 10

10 Science Fictional Bars We’d Like to Visit

In science fiction, everybody’s always running and flying and questing, and time is always running out. So that makes those occasions when our space heroes and future warriors take the time to kick back and relax in a bar that much more alluring. There’s nothing like a tall cold one when you’re fighting the Dark…

Books & Comics Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 10

Scientists blast iron with lasers, and it disappears from X-rays

Scientists have found a way to turn iron nuclei transparent to X-rays, using lasers. And besides the coolness of making things disappear using lasers, this could have huge applications in optical computing. One of the fun things about science is every now and then something pops up that is extremely cool and that you were…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell Feb 9

Esther Inglis-Arkell

Scientists crack the 70-year-old mystery of why fish freak out

Something strange happens when you expose ice to an electrical field

How an 1870s marine expedition changed oceanography and drove eight sailors insane

When NASA shot a rocket into the Northern Lights to study mysterious waves

This is the worst reproductive strategy in the animal kingdom

Babies in incubators were once an attraction at Coney Island

From Apron Hunters to Matricide: Idioms from Around the World

The Physics of Magnetic Nail Polish

The Beautiful, Deadly Vortex That Tears Huge Buildings Apart

The Lost Art of Detecting Incoming Aircraft Using Your Ears

Fruit flies can cure themselves of intestinal parasites, with the power of alcohol

Turn water into 4 different deadly weapons, using just pencils and a battery

How to Build the Perfect Human

Why Helium was the Dark Matter of its Day

How do we know the universe isn’t already ruled by giant space brains?

The bouncy science of toy superballs

Cancer drug shown to reduce Alzheimer’s symptoms in mice by seventy-five percent

A US government program secretly injected people with plutonium

10 Science Fictional Bars We’d Like to Visit

Scientists blast iron with lasers, and it disappears from X-rays

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?

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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