Jamie Condliffe

Two-Thirds of Cancer Cases Are Simply Down to Bad Luck

A new study suggests that two-thirds of cancer cases can be put down to the bad luck of random DNA mutations rather than unhealthy lifestyles or inherited genes. The new research, published in Science, finds that DNA mutations which accumulate throughout the body during cell division are the main reason for the development of cancer.…

Report: Mt. Gox Bitcoin Loss Was an Inside Job

It’s almost a year since the Bitcoin locker Mt. Gox went offline and took its digital currency with it. Now, a report in Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper claims that 99 percent of the bitcoins that went missing from Mt. Gox falls were a result of “internal system manipulation.” The newspaper reports that only 7,000 of…

Twitter appears to be testing a new While You Were Away feature, that will update you with top tweets since you last logged in.

There’s Been a Credit Card Breach at Chick-Fil-A

Chick-Fil-A has admitted that it’s “received reports of potential unusual activity involving payment cards used at a few of our restaurants.” Further reports suggest that the fast food chain is the common link in the loss of 9,000 sets of card details. Chick-Fil-A learnted on December 19th that suspicious payment activities were happening at some…

Montblanc’s New e-Strap Makes Luxury Watches (a Little) Smarter

Smartwatches may be increasingly popular, but they lack still lack the gravitas of high-end time pieces. Which is why Montblanc is trying to inject a little smart into its own luxury watches. A Blog to Watch reports that the watchmaker has unveiled a new e-Strap that will feature on its Timewalker Urban Speed Collection. It’s…

This was Italian astronaut Sam Cristoforetti‘s view from the International Space Station late yesterday. The textures on that spiral of clouds makes you want to reach right out and touch it, doesn’t it? [Sam Cristoforetti]

This Lamp’s Very Structure Is Its Light Source, Too

Are you looking at the outline of lamp or just the glow of a bulb? Or maybe it’s both? This lamp, you see, is made entirely from the fluorescent tube which is used to emit its light. Lamp neo-N is the brainchild of Atelier dsgn. As minimalist as you can get, its form doubles as…

This Incredible Technical Drawing Is Actually an Oil Painting

While this may look like something spat straight out of AutoCAD, you’re actually looking at a mind-bogglingly sophisticated oil painting. Created by Japanese artist Atsushi Koyama, this is one of a series of pieces that explore the interaction of man and machine. All of them are painted using oils on canvas. You can see more…

A Laser-Powered Nanosensor Could Spot Extra-Terrestrial Life

This may look look like an incredibly simple little device—because, well, it is—but don’t be fooled. This laser-powered nanosensor can spot the movement of the tiniest of objects, and it could help us identify extra-terrestrial life. In fact, it’s a simple cantilever which contains a laser motion sensor. As bacteria pass through it, they cause…

Sticky Sensors Could Monitor the Health of Your Organs

Keeping track of your insides is difficult without large-scale imaging devices or relatively invasive sensors. These sticky, flexible sensors, however, could soon be applied to organs and left there—measuring what’s happening whilst also conforming to your body’s internal structure. Developed by a team of Japanese researchers, these patches are made of stretchy, sticky flexible material…

A Mesmerizing Pixel-Littered Performance Blends Technology and Dance

Imagine layering a world of interactive digital pixels over the athletic, poised movements of dancers—and, actually, you get this. Put together by French dance company Adrien M / Claire B, this performance uses light projection technology to create an interactive world that doesn’t get in the way of dancers yet enhances their performance. Called Pixel,…

Live in Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco or Seattle? Then it may pay to ditch Uber in favor of its rival Flywheel for New Year’s Eve: rides between 8PM and 3AM that night, which would usually cost up to $50, will be charged at a flat rate of $10 in the four cities.

AirAsia Debris Identified Off the Coast of Borneo

The ongoing search attempt to discover AirAsia Flight 8501 is edging closer to a discovery. Indonesian officials have announced that they’ve discovered airplane debris in waters near the island of Borneo—and officials are “95% certain” it’s from the missing plane. Update: Indonesian authorities have now confirmed that the debris is from AirAsia Flight 8501. Reports…

The Bank of England Will Monitor Social Networks to Set Interest Rates

The world’s eighth oldest bank is joining the modern age. From 2015, it will monitor social networks and mine them for information and early signs of economic ups and downs. The Bank is setting up a new taskforce that will investigate how it can use all kinds of new data—because it believes it will be…

This Is What Happens When Drops of Different Liquid Land on Each Other

It might be rare that droplets of different fluid land on top of each other, but what happens when they do? This image shows exactly that happening. These images, captured by the Splash Lab, show what happens when liquids of different densities land on top of each other. In the images, the red liquid is…

The XKCD Phone 2: Every Feature You Never Needed

Randal Munroe’s first phone design was good, but your second hand no doubt feels… empty. Fortunately, there’s now a another design for you to imagine using. The XKCD Phone 2 is feature-packed. And it’s even washable (though, only once). [XKCD]

Gmail Has Been Blocked in China

Gmail has been blocked in China, following months of disruption. Reports suggest that China’s Great Firewall is to blame, with large numbers of users being cut off from their email since last Friday. Reuters reports that “large numbers of Gmail Web addresses were cut off in China on Friday,” and users are reporting that the…

AirAsia Rescue Chief: The Plane Is Likely at the Bottom of the Sea

The Indonesian official in charge of the rescue of AirAsia flight QZ8501 says that aircraft is likely “at the bottom of the sea.” That’s a bleak outlook as rescue attempts start afresh this morning in an attempt to find survivors. https://gizmodo.com/airasia-plane-goes-missing-over-indonesia-with-162-peop-1675724248 Speaking to the media on Monday morning, Bambang Soelistyo, Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue…

The Interview Chalked Up $15 Million in Online Sales Over Christmas

The Interview may be over-hyped and not really worth the drama. It may have been torrented by the world and his hacker. But it also managed to take in an impressive $15 million over the Christmas period just in online sales. That beats by a significant margin the estimated $2.8 million the film earned in…

Every River in the U.S., Colored According to the Way It Flows

There are over 250,000 rivers in the U.S., some subtly serene, others tremendously tumultuous. But in this visualization you can see them all—and the color shows which way their waters flow. Created by Andrew Hill from Vizzuality, it uses data from the US Geological Survey and the CartoDB software platform. Zoomed out, the thing admittedly…