George Dvorsky, Author at Gizmodo

Unprecedented Image Shows a Dolphin’s Echolocated Impression of a Submerged Human

In a world’s first, researchers from the US and UK have created an impression of a submerged human as recorded by a dolphin’s echolocation. To do it, a team led by Jack Kassewitz of SpeakDolphin.com used an imaging system known as a Cymascope. The system, developed by John Stuart Reid (who also assisted with the…

Tech News George Dvorsky

NASA Maps Show Just How Crazy The Storm Season Was in the Pacific

It was an uncharacteristically quiet hurricane season in the Atlantic, but the same cannot be said for the eastern Pacific and central Pacific basins, which got absolutely hammered this year. New maps by NASA and Unisys Weather show the extent of this year’s storm season. The hurricane season in the Atlantic and the eastern and…

Tech News George Dvorsky

A Sunken Spanish Galleon Worth Billions Has Been Discovered Off the Coast of Colombia

A Spanish galleon sunk in the Caribbean 300 years ago with an exceptionally valuable cargo has been discovered near the port city of Cartagena, Colombia. Called the San Jose, the ship is rumored to contain gold, silver, and jewellery worth an estimated $4 to $17 billion. President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia made the announcement…

Tech News George Dvorsky

Here’s Why We’ll Eventually Have to Accept Designer Babies

Last week’s historic summit on human gene-editing has come to a close, and its organizing committee has given the go-ahead for scientists in the US to experiment on human genes — only if it doesn’t result in a pregnancy. It’s a surprisingly progressive stance. But make no mistake, human trait selection is coming. Here’s why…

Tech News George Dvorsky

This Distant Galaxy Appeared Just 400 Million Years After the Big Bang

NASA scientists have captured a remarkable glimpse of a primordial compact galaxy that came into existence at a time when the Universe was exceptionally young, using the Hubble Space Telescope. Scientists at NASA spotted the ancient galaxy while analyzing a Hubble image of a massive cluster of galaxies. Located at the mind-boggling distance of 4…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

3D Printers Can Now Churn Out “Living” Blood Vessels

In a breakthrough that could lead to printable organs and an enhanced understanding of human physiology, researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Labs have 3D-printed functional blood vessels that look and function like the real thing. 3D bioprinters are similar to conventional 3D printers, but instead of using inert materials, they use “bio-ink:” basic structural building…

Tech News George Dvorsky

A Rare Glimpse of a US Seaplane Lost In the First Minutes of the Pearl Harbor Attack

For the past 20 years, divers have unsuccessfully tried to explore and photograph a PBY-5 Catalina seaplane shot down during Japan’s opening salvo of the Pearl Harbor attack. Now, some 74 years after that fateful day, archaeologists have finally accomplished the task. Here’s what they saw at the bottom of Kāne‛ohe Bay’s murky waters. Just…

Tech News George Dvorsky

A Glorious New Cassini Image Shows Enceladus Floating Above Saturn’s Rings

NASA has released a stunning new photo of Enceladus, as the Cassini spacecraft peered up at the icy moon from just below the plane of Saturn’s rings. Wow. The image was taken in visible light by Cassini on July 29, 2015, from a distance of 630,000 miles (or one million kilometers). The spacecraft was just…

Tech News George Dvorsky

Our Sun Could Release Superflares As Powerful As a Billion Megaton Bombs

By studying a nearby sun-like star, astronomers have concluded that the Sun is capable of releasing solar flares a thousand times greater than anything previously recorded. Scientists say the chances of this are quite slim, but warn that such an event would threaten life on Earth. Astronomers have documented superflares before, but never in our…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

WWI and Climate Change Show How Bad We Are At Confronting Catastrophe

The onset of World War I and the current climate change crisis have a lot more in common than you might think. Here’s why the two historical events are eerily similar—and why it’s so damn hard for us to prevent a self-inflicted disaster that everyone knows is coming. Shortly before he died in 1898, Germany’s…

Climate Change George Dvorsky

Here’s What That Choking Blanket of Smog Over China Looks Like From Space

A thick and dangerous blanket of smog is currently enveloping Beijing and parts of Eastern China, forcing authorities to issue an “orange” alert—the second highest level of a four-tiered pollution scale. Here’s what it looks like from space. The timing couldn’t be worse for China, as the COP21 Climate Change conference starts this week. The…

Tech News George Dvorsky

Paris Is Covered In Fake Ads That Mock the Climate Talks’ Corporate Sponsors

UK-based activist group Brandalism has peppered the streets of Paris with 600 fake outdoor ads meant to expose the hypocrisy of COP21 Climate Conference corporate sponsors. The fake, unauthorized outdoor ads were strategically placed around Paris this past weekend, and were made to look nearly identical to the originals. The ads were prepared by an…

Climate Change George Dvorsky

New 3D Shape Model Shows the Rosetta Comet in Unprecedented Detail

The ESA has released a new 3D shape model of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. This model integrates the latest images taken by the Rosetta spacecraft, and includes previously unknown features. It can be used for 3D printing or graphical representations. Even though Comet 67P/C-G has passed its perihelion point and is currently travelling away from the Sun,…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

These Science Photos Are So Beautiful They’re Basically Art

The winners of the 2015 FASEB BioArt Image and Video Competition have been announced, and they’re amazing. Chosen from a diverse cross-section of biology, they feature everything from the proteins that make up the Ebola virus through to roundworms feasting on bacteria. Here’s the best, most beautful science photos the year had to offer. This…

Tech News George Dvorsky

Here’s the Drone Footage of That Smokestack Demolition Gone Horribly Wrong

After two unsuccessful attempts to topple a 115-year-old chimney stack with explosives, construction worker Tim Phifer from Pell City, Alabama, decided to bring it down with an excavator. Bad idea. The 2.6 million pound, 158-foot tall smokestack did not come down as planned, falling right on top of the excavator. Incredibly, Phifer walked away with…

Tech News George Dvorsky

Is This $1,000 Sweater a Rip-Off of a Sacred Inuit Design? Totally

A family from the northern Canadian territory of Nunavut is accusing high-end European clothing designer Kokon To Zai of using a sacred inuit design without permission. As reported by the CBC radio show As it Happens, the pattern on the sweater appears to be an exact copy of a sweater designed by the great-grandfather of…

Tech News George Dvorsky

That Supposed Alien Megastructure May Actually Be a Swarm of Cometary Fragments

An oddly dimming star located 1,500 light-years from Earth is causing all sorts of commotion in the scientific community, leading some to speculate that it may be some sort of alien megastructure. A new analysis of infrared data suggests a more natural explanation. To quickly recap, star KIC 8462852, also known as “Tabby’s Star,” is…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky

Our Planet’s Magnetic Poles Aren’t Reversing Any Time Soon

Over the past couple of hundred years, the strength of the Earth’s geomagnetic field has been waning, leading scientists to wonder if our planet’s polarity is on the verge of flipping. A new study suggests this won’t happen in the near future—and that the intensity of today’s field is uncharacteristically strong. Predicting a geomagnetic flip…

Physics & Chemistry George Dvorsky

Your Doctor Does Not Give a Crap About Your Fitness Tracker Data

Patients are increasingly bringing their fitness-tracker data to their checkups. Not only are doctors ill-equipped to deal with this information—they’re skeptical that it’s even useful. As Andrew Rosenblum points out in his latest MIT Technology Review article, doctors are profoundly unimpressed with wearables manufactured by the likes of Fitbit, Apple, and Pebble. As patients disclose…

Health George Dvorsky

What the Hell Caused This California Road to Suddenly Rise Up and Crumble?

A stretch of Vasquez Canyon Road in Santa Clarita has inexplicably lifted upwards over the course of just a few hours. Geologists are stumped. As CBS Los Angeles reports, it all started last Thursday, November 19, when motorists starting calling the California Highway Patrol about the road lifting and warping. Over the course of the…

Tech News George Dvorsky

George Dvorsky

Unprecedented Image Shows a Dolphin’s Echolocated Impression of a Submerged Human

NASA Maps Show Just How Crazy The Storm Season Was in the Pacific

A Sunken Spanish Galleon Worth Billions Has Been Discovered Off the Coast of Colombia

Here’s Why We’ll Eventually Have to Accept Designer Babies

This Distant Galaxy Appeared Just 400 Million Years After the Big Bang

3D Printers Can Now Churn Out “Living” Blood Vessels

A Rare Glimpse of a US Seaplane Lost In the First Minutes of the Pearl Harbor Attack

A Glorious New Cassini Image Shows Enceladus Floating Above Saturn’s Rings

Our Sun Could Release Superflares As Powerful As a Billion Megaton Bombs

WWI and Climate Change Show How Bad We Are At Confronting Catastrophe

Here’s What That Choking Blanket of Smog Over China Looks Like From Space

Paris Is Covered In Fake Ads That Mock the Climate Talks’ Corporate Sponsors

New 3D Shape Model Shows the Rosetta Comet in Unprecedented Detail

These Science Photos Are So Beautiful They’re Basically Art

Here’s the Drone Footage of That Smokestack Demolition Gone Horribly Wrong

Is This $1,000 Sweater a Rip-Off of a Sacred Inuit Design? Totally

That Supposed Alien Megastructure May Actually Be a Swarm of Cometary Fragments

Our Planet’s Magnetic Poles Aren’t Reversing Any Time Soon

Your Doctor Does Not Give a Crap About Your Fitness Tracker Data

What the Hell Caused This California Road to Suddenly Rise Up and Crumble?

Could There Be a ‘Project Hail Mary’ Sequel?

Meta Has More Smart Glasses Coming Whether You Want Them or Not

Apple Requires Device-Level Age Verification in the UK Now. Could the US Be Next?

Astronomers Say Recent Rash of Meteor Sightings ‘Warrants Serious Investigation’

Did AMD Just Make the Best CPU for Gamers and Creators?

AI Just One-Shotted Another CEO

6 Magic School Anime and Manga to Discover Instead of Thinking About ‘Harry Potter’ Ever Again

Unprecedented Images Show Sperm Whales Acting as Midwives to Help a Mom Give Birth

‘Butt Birth’-ing Rhinoceros from Ace Ventura Sequel Sold at Auction for a Whopping $60,000

The Ryan Gosling Sci-Fi Streak Will Continue Until Morale Improves

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?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

Apple Studio Display XDR Review: It Looks So Good, I Wish It Were an iMac

RayNeo Air 4 Pro Review: My Eyes Love These Video Glasses, but My Nose Disagrees