George Dvorsky, Author at Gizmodo

What strange geological processes created Titan’s oddly smooth surface?

Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, has a surface that doesn’t make much sense. Images sent back by the cloud-piercing Cassini-Huygens spacecraft in 2004 showed a smooth surface that was barely touched by its extensive system of liquid methane rivers. And Titan has a strangely small number of impact craters from meteorites. Put simply, Titan’s surface doesn’t…

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This video shows why you don’t want to be anywhere near a glacier when it collapses

A small group of tourists recently got more than they bargained for, while glacier-watching in Greenland. Jens Møller, along with his uncle and an Australian sightseer, got a little too close to a melting glacier when this happened. And if you think that was cool, you must check out this harrowing video of a glacier…

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Why Bats Evolved to Hear Flies Having Sex

A new study published in Current Biology is giving new meaning to “caught in the act.” Researchers have observed that bats can use their sonar to home in on flies who are in the midst of copulation. Turns out noisy sex can have worse consequences than just embarrassment. Scientists have suspected that copulation can put…

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These detailed engravings reveal how Europeans saw Chinese life in the 1670s

Paul “Peacay” of the BibliOdyssey blog has uncovered some remarkable engravings that were left behind by Amsterdam clergyman Olfert Dapper. He created these depictions of Chinese life in the late 17th century and the result is not just an invaluable record of an historical era, but also a work of art. There are many more…

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Breakthrough: The First Complete Computer Model of a Living Organism

Scientists always say you can’t understand something until you can create a model of it. This rule is the driving force behind the rise of computational biology, the effort to replicate the inner workings of a biological organism in software. Efforts to do this have been pretty limited and basic — until now. A new…

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Human urine causes high levels of caffeine in Pacific coastal waters

If there was ever a clearer sign that we sure do love our coffee, it’s got to be this: A new study from Portland State University has found elevated levels of caffeine at several sites in Pacific waters, off the coast of Oregon. The researchers speculate that, while wastewater treatment plants are effective at removing…

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The Universe Could Tear Itself Apart Sooner Than Anyone Believed

Many physicists now believe the universe will end by tearing itself apart — and now it appears that this could happen sooner than anyone expected. Originally, scientists hypothesized that the Big Rip would happen in 20 to 22 billion years based on a reasonable set of parameters — but now it sounds as though we…

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Heat map of the Sun looks like something Monet would be proud of

NASA’s Nicholeen Viall has developed a new visualization technique for studying the Sun’s temperature fluctuations — and the eye-catching results are startlingly beautiful. Each color-coded area in Viall’s composition represents the star’s temperature shifts over the course of a 12-hour span. The new method could help scientists better understand the mechanisms required to drive the…

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New evidence shows that Neanderthals understood the medicinal value of certain foods

Our ideas about Neanderthals are steadily changing. We’ve learned that they had the capacity for language, looked after their sick, buried their dead, and decorated their bodies. But we still don’t know much about their eating habits. Anthropologists have suspected that they predominately ate meat — but a recent analysis reveals that their diet was…

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Astronomers confirm there are two potentially habitable planets orbiting Gliese 581

Remember Gliese 581g? The potentially habitable “second Earth” 20 light years away, also known as Zarmina? It’s been looking dicey for a while, as many astronomers questioned its very existence. https://gizmodo.com/astronomers-have-discovered-a-habitable-planet-20-light-5651589 https://gizmodo.com/the-astrophysicist-who-discovered-zarmina-describes-lif-5653433 But now, Gliese 581g has been re-added to the top five list of exoplanets considered prime candidates for harboring of life. New data…

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Imagining the Super-Enhanced Athlete of the Future

As the London 2012 Olympics get set to start next week, experts and fans alike are anticipating a showcase of seemingly greater-than-human performances. But with the strict prohibition against performance-enhancing drugs and gear, some sports pundits are predicting that few records will be broken — and that realization has prompted some people to wonder what…

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10 Structures That Could Help Us Build Civilizations on the Ocean

Many visions of the future involve people living in the middle of the ocean. This makes all kinds of sense, since oceans make up two-thirds of the planet’s surface. Plus you can live independently, free from corrupt governments and the like. The biggest question, though, is how can you go about doing this? And the…

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Intense magnetic fields around white dwarfs may instigate an entirely new class of molecular bonding

Scientists at the University of Oslo have discovered a completely new way for atoms to bond together — but these researchers won’t be replicating the effect in the lab any time soon. The previously unknown bonding mechanism can only happen in the vicinity of white dwarfs where their intense density and spin creates the intense…

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Astronomers discover nearby exoplanet covered in magma

Scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory have announced the discovery of a nearby explanet called UCF-1.01 — a planet so blazingly hot, it’s likely covered in hot magma. And at 33 light years away, this is the closest planet we’ve discovered that is smaller than Earth. The discovery is another example of our enhanced ability…

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New ‘Superhuman’ exhibit chronicles the history of human enhancement — from toes to dildos

Humans have tried to augment their capacities since the beginning of time. In many respects, the desire to overcome biological limitations is an indelible part of our species. Now, in an effort to chronicle these efforts, a new gallery has opened up in London which tracks human enhancement throughout the ages, from ancient Egyptian artificial…

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McDonald’s staff say they never touched the cyborg professor despite a new photo that clearly shows they did

Earlier this week we reported on the alleged physical assault of wearables pioneer Steve Mann at a McDonald’s in Paris. Writing in his blog, Mann claimed that restaurant employees damaged his Digital Eye Glass device and physically removed him from the restaurant — an apparent case of cyber-discrimination. But the McDonald’s staff are now claiming…

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This creepy-as-hell kissing device will let you send a smooch over wireless

Cutting-edge devices that allow you to be ‘telepresent’ are slowly starting to make an appearance in our lives, but a new kissing device that looks like the cross between Mr. Potato Head and and an ostrich egg may make us wish they will never catch on. Called Kissenger, the device will allow couples to send…

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How scientists will win the war against malarial mosquitoes

Mosquitoes have killed more than half of all humans who have ever lived — even more than war, plague, famine, and heart disease. By transmitting malaria, mosquitoes cause anywhere from one to 2.7 million deaths each year. And experts say that if nothing is done about it, the annual death toll could double in the…

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Tokyo’s new Robot Girls Restaurant will bring out your inner cyber-fetishist

Business owners in Tokyo’s racey Shinjuku Kabukicho district are constantly having to push the limits in order to stay ahead of the competition. And now, a new neon-lit “robot restaurant” that combines fembots with real flesh-and-blood cabaret girls promises to do exactly that. Built at the impossible-to-believe cost of 10 billion yen (about $130 million),…

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China’s Worst Self-Inflicted Environmental Disaster: The Campaign to Wipe Out the Common Sparrow

Back in the 1950s, China was going through its Great Leap Forward, an effort to transform China from a largely agrarian nation to a thriving industrial Marxist powerhouse. These sweeping (and often brutal) reforms, touched virtually every facet of Chinese life — and as one particular episode in China’s history points out, the animal kingdom…

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George Dvorsky

What strange geological processes created Titan’s oddly smooth surface?

This video shows why you don’t want to be anywhere near a glacier when it collapses

Why Bats Evolved to Hear Flies Having Sex

These detailed engravings reveal how Europeans saw Chinese life in the 1670s

Breakthrough: The First Complete Computer Model of a Living Organism

Human urine causes high levels of caffeine in Pacific coastal waters

The Universe Could Tear Itself Apart Sooner Than Anyone Believed

Heat map of the Sun looks like something Monet would be proud of

New evidence shows that Neanderthals understood the medicinal value of certain foods

Astronomers confirm there are two potentially habitable planets orbiting Gliese 581

Imagining the Super-Enhanced Athlete of the Future

10 Structures That Could Help Us Build Civilizations on the Ocean

Intense magnetic fields around white dwarfs may instigate an entirely new class of molecular bonding

Astronomers discover nearby exoplanet covered in magma

New ‘Superhuman’ exhibit chronicles the history of human enhancement — from toes to dildos

McDonald’s staff say they never touched the cyborg professor despite a new photo that clearly shows they did

This creepy-as-hell kissing device will let you send a smooch over wireless

How scientists will win the war against malarial mosquitoes

Tokyo’s new Robot Girls Restaurant will bring out your inner cyber-fetishist

China’s Worst Self-Inflicted Environmental Disaster: The Campaign to Wipe Out the Common Sparrow

Pixel Buds Pro 2 Hit Record Low as Google Continues Its Clearance-Like Price Cuts Following Smartphone Deals

DJI Now Has a Cheaper 360 Drone Than Insta360, but the U.S. Won’t Get It

Amazon Clears Out Apple Watch Series 9 With Silver Stainless Steel Case at 48% Off During Spring Sale

What Do You Mean Fox McCloud Is in the ‘Super Mario Galaxy’ Movie

Apple iPad With A16 Chip Is Now as Cheap as It Gets, With Stock Moving Quickly in Amazon’s Tablet Deals

Amazon Echo Spot Is Running at Its All-Time Low, Likely the Last Chance Before Prime Day Arrives in a Few Months

Diablo Cody Has Big Plans for the ‘Jennifer’s Body’ Sequel

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

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

Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 Joins Amazon’s Spring Sale at Its Lowest Price of the Year, Now One of the Best-Selling Bone Conduction Headphones

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

M5 MacBook Air Review: A Laptop With Real Middle Child Energy

MacBook Neo Review: No Other Budget Laptop Can Compete