Esther Inglis-Arkell, Author at Gizmodo

Did The Giant Sloth Die Out Less Than 150 Years Ago?

The giant sloth, or mylodon, was once thought to to have gone extinct long before humans arrived in South America. Some people now think that it may have been alive in the 1800s. You decide. It started with archaeological evidence of a giant sloth that died from being roasted alive in a pit — either…

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When Getting Angry Is the Most Rational Thing to Do

Anger gets a bad rap. Sure, when there’s too much of it or when it’s improperly applied it can cause damage, but you could say that for nearly any other emotion. Learn how anger can make you smarter, more competent, and more realistic. Anger is a Great Substitute for Fear or Despair As nasty as…

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Fredkin’s Paradox Explains Why You Waste Time On Meaningless Decisions

Ever notice that you spend a full 15 minutes agonizing about whether to have apple-cinnamon pancakes or banana-walnut pancakes in the morning? Ever had that decision affect your day in any way? Fredkin’s Paradox explains why you agonize anyway. Edward Fredkin is a professor of digital physics, which means that he has made great contributions…

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Make People Mute By Forcing Them To Listen to Themselves

You can’t talk and listen at the same time. Scientists proved this conclusively when they came up with speech shadowing experiments that rendered people mute by forcing them to listen to the drivel coming out of their mouths. In the 1950s Ludmilla Andreevna Chistovich, a psychologist in the USSR, had probably had just about enough…

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10 Words You Didn’t Know Used to Be Dirty

We chortle today at the number of “ejaculations” in Sherlock Holmes stories, and laugh at how old newspaper stories describe the “erection” of skyscrapers. But previous generations would snicker just as hard at us. A look at archaic slang shows that we say a lot of very suggestive things without knowing it. Here are ten…

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How Music Proves We Live In Three Dimensions

String theory has dimensions popping up all over the place. We are currently at over 10 dimensions. But how would living in that many dimensions affect us? The first thing to do would be to throw out all your albums, because they won’t sound right anymore. Three dimensions are convenient for sound waves. They begin…

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Eggcorn: The Invented Word That Describes Invented Words

Generally, we only invent new words when we have new objects, or concepts, to describe. Eggcorn is a new word, but it describes a concepts as old as language. Learn about eggcorns, and share your favorite stories of them. We praise language for its practicality and fluidity, but it’s surprising how long it takes for…

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The Fourteenth Goldfish Is A Children’s Book You Can Argue About

The Fourteenth Goldfish is a rare children’s book. It presents a message that plenty of people will disagree with – and argues that they should be free to disagree with it. Get ready to argue with your kids about what they’re reading. Today’s books, although rich in high-tech gadgets and youthful rebellion, have begun reminding…

Books & Comics Esther Inglis-Arkell

What Makes Grow Lights Different From The Lamps In Your House?

How do lamps make, shall we say, pretty flowers grow? And what’s the difference between these lamps and the ones that light your house? The sun beats down on the earth, directly or indirectly supporting the vast majority of life on the planet. Why don’t light bulbs, without the aid of the sun, do the…

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The Scientist Who Tried To Pass Off A Monkey’s Butt As A New Animal

No one can say that Charles Waterton was not a talented and interesting man. Instead, they said he was eccentric, which, when translated from 19th-century-aristocratic-British-scientist-speak, meant “so crazy we’re pretty sure that he removed his own brain and jammed it in again backwards.” The guy traveled all over the world, perfected the art of taxidermy,…

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The Personality Test That’s All About Hand Gestures

Here’s a personality test that is based on how we interpret vague hand gestures. Take a look at what people can tell from what is essentially a drawing exercise, and decide if you want to contribute a hand gesture of your own. In the 1960s, psychologists were falling out of love with the Rorschach test.…

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You Can Use A Vibrator To Give Yourself Powerful Body Illusions

How can I put this delicately? Do you have a vibrating toothbrush? A personal body massager? If you do, you can perform some amazing sensory illusions, like making your nose seem huge or your waist small. Finally, an excuse to give the TSA agents when they search your bags! Look online for simple sensory illusions…

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Your Morning Cup Of Coffee Is Also Your Morning Cup Of Pesticide

The thing that gets most of us up in the morning is a nice big dose of poison. Fortunately, it’s not poison for us. It is, however, something that’s left a trail of dead snails in labs, and that we crave every morning. There’s decidedly mixed data on whether caffeine is good for people or…

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A Historic Experiment Shows Why We Might Not Want to Debate Fanatics

In 1870 a man proved that the Earth was round. He wasn’t the first to prove it, and he wasn’t even proving anything out of the mainstream. But that didn’t keep a fanatic from spending the next 20 years ruining his life. The Bedford Level Experiment Alfred Russel Wallace spent much of the first half…

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This Strange Phenomenon Allows Scientists To Control People’s Daydreams

Ever heard of the Perky Effect? It sounds cutesy-poo, but it’s an effect that has led to a decades-long investigation that reveals a startling truth. Even if you don’t consciously control your dreams, you probably think you control your daydreams. But that might not actually be true. C.W. Perky and the Color Yellow C.W. Perky…

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Why Radio Should Never Have Worked (Even Though It Does)

When Marconi first popularized the radio, no one expected it to go far – literally. Radio waves ought to be stopped in their tracks by the curve of the Earth. Marconi proved they weren’t, but no one knew why. Radio technology offered people a whole new way to experience the world. They could, communally, hear…

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This Personality Test Is Creative Writing In Disguise

The Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank can tell you what you’re like in 40 sentences, most of which will be written by you. The responses to very short prompts are scored according to how positive or negative they are. (I wish they had some scoring guidelines for how sarcastic they are, though.) Complete the following sentences:…

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How Much Innuendo Do Kids Understand?

Almost all of us have, as adults, gone back to the stuff we watched as a kid and realized it contained some “dirty” stuff that went over our heads. Innuendo in kids comedies is pretty common. But how much innuendo do kids understand? Above is an infamous scene from Animaniacs, a popular kids show in…

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This Classic Science-Denying Scandal Shows Why Too Much Testing Is Bad

Ever heard of AD-X2? There’s no reason you should. It was useless. But that didn’t stop people for calling for tests on it for over a decade, and kicking up a scandal that (unjustly but temporarily) claimed the job of the director of the National Bureau of Standards. It was 1947, and World War II…

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The “Lady Macbeth Effect” Explains Why Bad People Wash Too Much

Can you cleanse yourself of your sins by literally washing your body? It’s debatable. But washing your body can cleanse you of the guilt you feel over those sins. The problem is that might not be a good thing. The need for ritual cleansing is so common that it has a name: The Lady Macbeth…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

Esther Inglis-Arkell

Did The Giant Sloth Die Out Less Than 150 Years Ago?

When Getting Angry Is the Most Rational Thing to Do

Fredkin’s Paradox Explains Why You Waste Time On Meaningless Decisions

Make People Mute By Forcing Them To Listen to Themselves

10 Words You Didn’t Know Used to Be Dirty

How ​Music Proves We Live In Three Dimensions

Eggcorn: The Invented Word That Describes Invented Words

The Fourteenth Goldfish Is A Children’s Book You Can Argue About

What Makes Grow Lights Different From The Lamps In Your House?

The Scientist Who Tried To Pass Off A Monkey’s Butt As A New Animal

The Personality Test That’s All About Hand Gestures

You Can Use A Vibrator To Give Yourself Powerful Body Illusions

Your Morning Cup Of Coffee Is Also Your Morning Cup Of Pesticide

A Historic Experiment Shows Why We Might Not Want to Debate Fanatics

This Strange Phenomenon Allows Scientists To Control People’s Daydreams

Why Radio Should Never Have Worked (Even Though It Does)

This Personality Test Is Creative Writing In Disguise

How Much Innuendo Do Kids Understand?

This Classic Science-Denying Scandal Shows Why Too Much Testing Is Bad

The “Lady Macbeth Effect” Explains Why Bad People Wash Too Much

Sonos Ace ANC Headphones Quietly Drop Again to a New Low Right After the AirPods Max 2 Launch

Could Dave Filoni’s ‘Star Wars’ Cameo Have an Important Role in ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’?

Amazon’s 50-Inch Smart Fire TV Is Still 40% Off After the Spring Sale, Price Could Jump Back Anytime

Ray-Ban and Oakley Meta Glasses Now on GlassesUSA With 50% Off Lens Upgrades, Get Vision AI Glasses for Less

This Windows 11 Pro Mini PC Shows Up at a Record Low on Amazon After the Spring Sale, No Need for a Tower Desktop

The ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Moment Designed for You to Gawk at Hugh Jackman’s Chiseled Body Is Now an Action Figure

Marshall Emberton III Bluetooth Speaker Isn’t Supposed to Be This Cheap, Even the New Midnight Blue at an All-Time Low

2026 MacBook Pro (M5 Pro) Breaks Into Its First Sale on Amazon, While Apple Store Still Has None on the New Laptop

Don’t Hold Your Breath for a ‘Super Smash Bros.’ Movie

What’s Actually the Best Way to Get a Good Night’s Sleep? We Asked Scientists

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

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

How Music Proves We Live In Three Dimensions