Matt Novak, Author at Gizmodo

Astrologers Were Wrong About the 2016 Election, Casting Serious Doubt on Their Predictive Abilities

Astrology is bullshit. But for some reason, many Americans still believe that astrologists have the ability to predict the future. The Los Angeles Times even ran a story back in October that reported earnestly about the predictions that some astrologists had for the 2016 presidential election. You can probably guess how that turned out. Less…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 28 '16

Korean Air Loosens Up Its Taser Policy For ‘More Active Use’ Because Why Not

Korean Air gives its flight attendants Tasers for extreme situations, like when the lives of passengers or crew are threatened. But after a midair disturbance last week, the airline has decided to loosen up rules for when Tasers can be used. Specifically, flight attendants are now permitted “more active use” of stun guns when it’s…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 27 '16

101 People Who Think Their Uber Drivers Are High as Hell

The cool thing about Uber is that it lets virtually anybody become a taxi driver. The downside? Sometimes, without any safeguards in place, those amateur drivers do things that are against the law. Like driving passengers while they’re high as hell. Below we’ve compiled a list of just a few people who think that their…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 27 '16

America Sold $40 Billion Worth of Weapons to Other Countries Last Year

The United States loves selling weapons to foreign governments. We really, really love it. Like, $40 billion in love. A new government report based on unclassified data has helped elaborate on that love. The report, produced by the Congressional Research Service, explains that America is by far the largest arms dealer in the world. The…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 27 '16

Santa Claus Proves He’s Not a Terrorist In Bizarre US Government Video

In the 1950s, NORAD started “tracking Santa” to ensure that he could pass safely into the US without fear of being mistaken for a Soviet bomber. But here in 2016, it seems like getting approval from the military isn’t enough to prove that Father Christmas isn’t a terrorist. Santa has to go through Customs now.…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 25 '16

Trump Just Called for a New Nuclear Arms Race and We’re All Going to Die

Remember the nuclear arms race of the 1980s? The United States and the Soviet Union both scrambled to acquire more weapons, increasing the likelihood that the entire world would be blown to bits. Well, Donald Trump thinks another one of those would be great. “Let it be an arms race, we will outmatch them at…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 23 '16

Roomba: I Fought the Paw and the Paw Won

The electric vacuum cleaner has been terrorizing dogs for nearly a century. But one dog in Texas has stood up to the latest edition of this horrifying menace. Or, more appropriately, lied down to it. The heroic dog, known as Gauge, was minding his own business when the Roomba decided to attack. Unfazed, Gauge stood…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 23 '16

US Government Alleges Edward Snowden Is Talking With Russian Spy Agencies

The US House Intelligence Committee released a report today detailing the government’s version of what Edward Snowden did in the lead up to 2013. And while it contains a bunch of interesting allegations, the most serious claim is that Snowden is actively talking with Russian intelligence agencies. The newly declassified report is 33-pages long and…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 22 '16

This Prohibition-Era Alarm Was For Catching No-Good Soda Pop Thieves

Are you a soda fountain owner? Did you just time travel from the year 1919? Then have I got an invention for you! Electrical Experimenter magazine was all the rage for tech nerds of the 1910s. And after the end of World War I, during which the magazine focused heavily on the war, the magazine…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 22 '16

Mark Zuckerberg Played the ‘What Would You Do If You Were Rich’ Game in Real Life and Got Morgan Freeman to Narrate It

Do you ever play that game where you fantasize that you’re rich? That one where you ask your friends at the bar what they’d do if they had a billion dollars? Well, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg plays that game. But he’s actually a billionaire. So he got Morgan Freeman to narrate his robot butler. Yes,…

Social Media Matt Novak Dec 20 '16

This Deep Sea Fisherman Posts His Discoveries on Twitter and OH MY GOD KILL IT WITH FIRE

Roman Fedortsov is a deep sea fisherman in Russia. And he’s been taking photos of OH MY GOD WHAT IS THAT? Seriously, I just took a quick three-minute scroll through Fedortsov’s Twitter page, and he has photos of ocean creatures that look like they’re from the most twisted Jim Henson movie ever produced. (If Jim…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 20 '16

Larry Kudlow, Trump’s Likely Pick For Economics Advisor, Is Really Bad at Predictions

Larry Kudlow is best known as that talking head on financial TV who wants to cut taxes for rich people. He’s been saying the same thing for a long, long time. But now he’s in the running to become Donald Trump’s choice for the chairman of his Council of Economic Advisers. And if Kudlow’s predictions…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 20 '16

TLDR: All the Paleofuture Stories From 2016 You Swore You’d Read Later

Here at Gizmodo’s Paleofuture blog, we churned out tens of thousands of words in 2016. But who’s got time to read all that? Not you, I know. But was there a story that looked interesting, and you swore you’d read it later? You never did read it, did you? Well, here’s your second chance. From…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 20 '16

Proposed Law Would Block Porn in South Carolina, Unless You Pay a $20 Fee

A new bill in South Carolina would make it illegal for anyone in the state to sell a computer, tablet, or smartphone without a porn filter. But the bill’s sponsors aren’t entirely unreasonable men. You can petition to buy a computer without a porn filter—but it’ll cost you $20. The anti-porn bill, called the Human…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 19 '16

Uber Driver Shoots and Kills Alleged Robber While Passenger Looks On

Shooting and killing someone is against Uber’s terms of use. But that didn’t stop an Uber driver in Aventura, Florida who shot and killed a man on Sunday morning during an alleged robbery attempt. Both the Uber driver and his passenger were uninjured. According to the driver, who has yet to be named by police,…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 19 '16

Trump Tower Has Tiffany’s-Branded Security Barricades Because We Live In a Scifi Dystopia Now

If you lived in a dystopian science fiction movie, what would be your first clue? The rise of an authoritarian leader? Battles in the streets over scarce resources? Personally, I think the very first clue might be when brands are buying ad space from the police. And if I’m right, I’ve got some bad news…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 19 '16

China Just Seized an Unmanned US Navy Sub

China just seized an unmanned underwater vehicle operated by the US Navy, according to reports from Reuters. The seizure occurred in the South China Sea yesterday, and the US has since demanded that the vehicle be returned. Reuters is reporting that the vehicle was seized just northwest of the Subic Bay, shortly before the USNS…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 16 '16

69 Viral Images From 2016 That Were Totally Fake

The year 2016 will probably go down in history as the year of the fakes. There were plenty of fake news articles, and even plenty of debate about the definition of the word “fake.” Here at Gizmodo did our best in 2016 to keep you informed of the latest images on social media that were…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 16 '16

TSA Agents Confiscate Huge Teddy Bear, Give Him Detailed Backstory About How He’s Homeless and Hungry Now in Order to Remind Us That Everything Is Bad

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents in Los Angeles just confiscated a gigantic teddy bear and posted a photo of the poor guy on Instagram. And if that wasn’t enough, they gave him a depressing backstory. The TSA’s social media accounts really are a fantastic way to keep up to date on how the agency is…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 15 '16

That Story About a Boy Dying In Santa’s Arms Is Totally Fake

Did you see that story about a 5-year-old boy and his dying wish to see Santa Claus? Of course you did. The heartbreaking tale has been seen and heard by millions of people around the world. It went viral earlier this week when it was retold by virtually every major news outlet. The only problem?…

Tech News Matt Novak Dec 14 '16

Matt Novak

Astrologers Were Wrong About the 2016 Election, Casting Serious Doubt on Their Predictive Abilities

Korean Air Loosens Up Its Taser Policy For ‘More Active Use’ Because Why Not

101 People Who Think Their Uber Drivers Are High as Hell

America Sold $40 Billion Worth of Weapons to Other Countries Last Year

Santa Claus Proves He’s Not a Terrorist In Bizarre US Government Video

Trump Just Called for a New Nuclear Arms Race and We’re All Going to Die

Roomba: I Fought the Paw and the Paw Won

US Government Alleges Edward Snowden Is Talking With Russian Spy Agencies

This Prohibition-Era Alarm Was For Catching No-Good Soda Pop Thieves

Mark Zuckerberg Played the ‘What Would You Do If You Were Rich’ Game in Real Life and Got Morgan Freeman to Narrate It

This Deep Sea Fisherman Posts His Discoveries on Twitter and OH MY GOD KILL IT WITH FIRE

Larry Kudlow, Trump’s Likely Pick For Economics Advisor, Is Really Bad at Predictions

TLDR: All the Paleofuture Stories From 2016 You Swore You’d Read Later

Proposed Law Would Block Porn in South Carolina, Unless You Pay a $20 Fee

Uber Driver Shoots and Kills Alleged Robber While Passenger Looks On

Trump Tower Has Tiffany’s-Branded Security Barricades Because We Live In a Scifi Dystopia Now

China Just Seized an Unmanned US Navy Sub

69 Viral Images From 2016 That Were Totally Fake

TSA Agents Confiscate Huge Teddy Bear, Give Him Detailed Backstory About How He’s Homeless and Hungry Now in Order to Remind Us That Everything Is Bad

That Story About a Boy Dying In Santa’s Arms Is Totally Fake

‘A Paradigm Shift’: Supermassive Black Hole Without a Galaxy Changes What We Thought Came First

Researchers Put AI Models in Charge of a Simulated Society. Grok Oversaw a Crime Spree

I Dream of the Day Anime Anthologies Make a Major Comeback

Anthropic Debuts Claude Opus 4.8, Teases Upcoming Launch of ‘Mythos-Class Models’

There’s a Hidden Signal in the Sun, Study Suggests

Why Would Someone Publicly Burn $8 Million Worth of Bitcoin? Theories Are Flying

You Won’t Have to Wait Long to Visit Universal’s Latest Theme Park

Airstrikes on Iran’s Oil Facilities Spewed as Much Toxic Sulfur as an Erupting Volcano

Mistral CEO Says the Pope’s Comments Are a Big Problem for Europe’s War on American Tech

Tom Holland Had a Hilarious Title Idea for ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’

Alienware Fixed the One Problem With the Area-51, and Now I’m Afraid I Love It

Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro Max Review: Wireless Earbuds With Enough Features to Make Your Head Spin

Anker Solix E10 Review: No Power? No Problem

Bose Lifestyle Ultra Speaker Review: Sonos Can Start Sweating Now

Bose Lifestyle Ultra Soundbar Review: A Boisterous Stab at Dominating Home Theater

Dell’s XPS 16 (2026) Is Almost Everything I Could Have Asked for… Almost

Smart Glasses With Subscriptions Are As Bad as They Sound

iBuyPower’s Trace X Gaming PC Is the Fishbowl You Want to Swim In

Govee Ceiling Light Ultra Review: AI Art Ain’t It

JBL Live 780NC Review: Solid Wireless Headphones You Can Live Without