George Dvorsky

NASA Spots Wreckage Of Cold-War Era B-29 On Greenland Icesheet

During a secret Cold War spying mission in 1947, a B-29 Superfortress made an emergency landing in northwest Greenland. It lay there undisturbed until 1994 when a botched mission to repair and return it failed. NASA recently caught a glimpse of its charred remains. The plane, named the Kee Bird, was en route to the…

Watch An Out-Of-Control Elevator Climb 31 Floors In 15 Seconds

This is horrifying: A Chilean man was seriously injured when the elevator he was riding malfunctioned and shot up 31 floors in just 15 seconds, smashing right through the ceiling. The man, José Vergara Acevedo, was seriously injured by the incident. He reportedly suffered head and leg injuries. It’s not known what caused the malfunction,…

Rising Pacific Sea Levels Unearth Remains Of WW2 Soliders

The bodies of at least 26 Japanese soldiers from the Second World War have been washed from their graves by rising sea levels in the Pacific. This is not the first time that climate change has been implicated in the re-emergence of buried soldiers. Earlier this year, melting ice exposed the frozen remains of World…

Did Male Faces Evolve To Take A Punch?

A controversial new theory claims that many features of the human face are the result of evolved defensive measures against fist fights. This is not the first time that fist-fighting has been implicated in the development of our physiologies. Back in 2012, scientists made the claim that fists changed the course of human evolution, arguing…

Why The Turing Test Is Bullshit

As many reported yesterday, a chatbot has passed the Turing Test, though under some very convenient conditions. The announcement has led some to declare that the age of AI is finally here, but that’s nonsense. Here’s why the Turing Test is a very poor way of measuring machine intelligence. A quick recap of yesterday’s announcement:…

What Europe Will Look Like In 2035 If Russian Tabloids Have Their Way

Two years ago, the Russian tabloid Express Gazeta published a series of maps depicting its vision of Europe 23 years hence. Given the recent tensions in Ukraine and elsewhere, the maps are proving disturbingly prescient a mere two years later — which hasn’t gone unnoticed by Russian nationalists. According to Express Gazeta, the maps were…

NASA has approved funding for 12 futuristic projects, including a submarine to explore the methane lakes of Titan, an aerial drone for Mars, and a probe to analyze the surface of Europa. You can learn about each individual project here. Image: Ron Miller, who wants to call this “Lake Bonestell” after famous Titan artist Chesley…

No, Eating Breakfast Will Not Help You Lose Weight

There’s a popular conception out there that skipping breakfast leads to weight gain. A new study now shows this is pretty much bullshit. Observational studies have correlated low body weight with eating breakfast, leading nutritionists to recommend that breakfast be eaten by people trying to lose weight, particularly those who are obese. But when this…

Plastic Rocks Are Starting To Appear On Hawaiian Shores

Scientists say a bizarre new type of geological structure is starting to form on the beaches of Hawaii — one that can only be described as a kind of “plastic rock.” We can now add this to the ever-growing list of strange things happening to our plastic waste, including the rise of the life-friendly plastisphere,…

Rare Color Film And Photos Cast D-Day In A Completely New Light

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the largest amphibious landing in all of military history. Most of the photos and film captured on that pivotal day were in black and white — but a precious few were shot in color. Here’s D-Day as you’ve never seen it before. Above: Allied ships, boats and barrage balloons…

Massive Fossilized Pterosaur Colony ‘Most Important Ever Found’

Well-preserved fossils of pterosaurs are extremely hard to come by, which makes this recent find of 40 male and female individuals all the more incredible. Along with the discovery of a spectacular new crested species, paleontologists have also found the first 3-dimensional fossilized pterosaur eggs. Say hello to Hamipterus tianshanensis, a newly documented species of…

No, that’s not the Eye of Sauron — it’s a planetary system being born. It’s one of the first images captured by SPHERE, a new planet-finder installed in Chile last month. The image shows the protoplanetary disc surrounding star HR4796A — just one of many astounding discoveries SPHERE is sure to make. (Image: ESO/J.-L. Beuzit…

Should You Eat An Artificial Sweetener That’s Also An Insecticide?

A new study has found that the popular artificial sweetener, Truvia, is toxic to flies. But we’ve been told not to worry — the active ingredient of this substance, which Coca-Cola uses as a sugar substitute, is apparently safe for human consumption. Indeed, it feels weird to be told that we can eat something that…

Is It Time to Give Up on the Singularity?

Some futurists and science fiction writers predict that we’re on the cusp of a world-changing “Technological Singularity.” Skeptics say there will be no such thing. Today, I’ll be debating author Ramez Naam about which side is right. A recent article by Erik Sofge in Popular Science really got my hackles up. Sofge argued that the…

Why A “Sex Chip” Could Be Considerably More Trouble Than It’s Worth

The ability to trigger feelings of extreme pleasure on-demand is a prospect that’s fascinated both scifi writers and scientists for decades. Indeed, the day is coming when we’ll be able induce orgasmic-like sensations at the flick of a switch — a prospect with obvious appeal, but with some serious downsides. Back in 2008, neuroscientists Morten…

A Replica Of The World’s Most Famous Ear Is Now On Display

A German museum is exhibiting a 3D-printed copy of Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh’s ear grown from the genetic material of a distant relative. Vincent Van Gogh famously cut off his own left ear during a psychotic episode in 1888. Now, the Centre for Art and Media in Karlsruhe is displaying a replica of this…

Earn $10,000 By Ratting On Friends Who Point Lasers At Aircraft

After a successful trial project in several major US cities, the FBI has announced that it will reward upwards of $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of anyone who intentionally aims a laser at an aircraft. Last year, 3,960 laser strikes were reported — a nasty practice with potentially catastrophic consequences. According to the…

42% Of Americans Believe God Created Humans 10,000 Years Ago

A new Gallup poll shows that 73% of Americans subscribe to creationism in one form or another, including 42% who take a literal interpretation of Genesis. This is a result that’s changed very little over the past three decades. The poll, conducted between May 8 to 11, asked respondents to identify which of the following…

The Closest Known Potentially Habitable Planet Is 13 Light-Years Away

Astronomers have discovered two new super-Earths orbiting an ancient 11.5 billion year-old star a “mere” 13 light-years from here. One planet is in the habitable zone, prompting a researcher to wonder what kind of life could have evolved over such a long period. For comparison, these exoplanets are 2.5 times older than Earth and only…

Researchers May Have “Heard” Flight MH370 Crash Into The Indian Ocean

Australian scientists say they’re examining a low-frequency underwater acoustic signal that could have resulted from Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 crashing into the Indian Ocean. The signal was picked up by underwater sound recorders near Rottnest Island just after 1:30 AM (UTC) on March 8th, which is consistent with the mysterious disappearance of the plane. Alec…