Matt Novak, Author at Gizmodo

Did This 1980s Kids’ Book Predict NSA Snooping?

Back in 2011, I wrote about a 1982 kids’ book that predicted what kind of impact computers might have on the political process. The book warned that many people were concerned about privacy in the digital age, but ultimately concluded that computers could be used for good. After a full summer of leaks that paints…

Tech News Matt Novak

This Week in Time Capsules: Retired Shuttles and Moldy Baseball Cards

This week we have a school in England that filled its new capsule with the latest in tech, a casket from the Reagan administration that for some reason includes biscuits and gravy, and a public ceremony in Florida which will show off a capsule for the retired space shuttle Atlantis. And a town that hates…

Tech News Matt Novak

The Rise And Fall of the ARPANET (1969-1989) in One GIF

The ARPANET made its first host-to-host connection on October 29, 1969 and from there slowly grew into a behemoth, laying the groundwork for our modern internet. The good folks over at Smithsonian magazine recently GIF’d the growth of the ARPANET from 1969 to 1977. But why stop there? Inspired by their wonderful GIFferings we made…

Tech News Matt Novak

Time After Time: 70 Years of Broken Smartwatch Dreams

Welcome to the future! a Samsung rep proclaimed during the company’s new product presentation in Berlin yesterday. Yes, something out of sci-fi! he beamed. The rep was wearing the new Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch, proudly showing it off for the journalists in the room and the tech geeks watching along at home. The future has…

Gadgets Matt Novak

The 1931 Plan To Turn The Pyramids Into an Amusement Park

Do you ever look at the ancient pyramids in Egypt and think, “Why isn’t there a gigantic carnival ride on top of those?” Well, you wouldn’t be alone. Because somebody asked that very question in 1931. In a series of illustrations under the bold headline, “Mammoth Flying Swing to Give Bird’s Eye Pyramid View,” we…

Tech News Matt Novak

WWI’s Amateur Hour Death Bot Brigade

John Ptak recently posted an interesting 1916 cover from Illustrated World magazine showing the futuristic “Electric Titan” robot fighter. Though rarely in humanoid robot form, the multi-soldier death machine of tomorrow was a surprisingly common idea during World War I. Why so outlandish? Because the military predictions of the time were rarely made by the…

Tech News Matt Novak

RIP Sci-Fi Author Frederik Pohl: His 1987 Predictions for 2012

Science fiction author Frederik Pohl passed away yesterday at the age of 93. In the 1960s, Pohl was the editor of Galaxy and If magazines and won numerous awards for his fiction over the years. He was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 1998. I didn’t know Pohl personally but I had…

Tech News Matt Novak

This Video Explains the History of Color Film Technology in 21 Minutes

From the early experiments using 2-color processes to the color movies we know today, this fascinating 21-minute video from FilmmakerIQ breaks down the history and technology behind color motion pictures. https://gizmodo.com/an-enlightening-look-at-the-history-and-science-of-colo-1227167778

Tech News Matt Novak

This Week in Time Capsules: Search For Hope After Sandy Hook Massacre

Sadly, this week’s round-up of the latest time capsule news is rather somber. We have people in Newtown looking for a time capsule at the site of last year’s brutal massacre, some prohibition-era workmen longing for the day when they can drink legally, and a 1965 church time capsule unsealed with a photo of nine…

Tech News Matt Novak

The 1960s Phone Button Layouts That Never Were

Certain aspects of the technologies that we use here in the 21st century have been around for so long that we take them for granted. One great example is the way that the buttons on a push-button phone are positioned. In the early-’60s switch from rotary to push-button phones, there was nothing obvious about how…

Tech News Matt Novak

Asimov’s 2014 Predictions Were Shockingly Conservative For 1964

In 1964, sci-fi legend Isaac Asimov penned a piece for the New York Times with his predictions for the world of 2014. Looking at the World’s Fair of 50 years hence, Asimov imagined 3D TV, underground cities, and colonies on the moon. Many people online have hailed this as an incredible example of prescient thinking,…

Tech News Matt Novak

A Brief History of the Videophone That Almost Was

The videophone is one of those technologies that more or less snuck up on us. Promises that one day you’d not only be able to hear but see a person through your telephone are nearly as old as the telephone itself. The videophone spent nearly a century as every bit as much a “technology of…

Tech News Matt Novak

A Peek Into the Jetsons Archive at Warner Brothers Animation

Earlier this week I had the rare opportunity to meet with archivists from Warner Brothers and got a peek at their archive of Jetsons material. As you can imagine, I was in paleofuture nerd heaven. I shot a segment here in L.A. with “CBS Sunday Morning” (airing this Sunday April 28th) about the impact of…

Tech News Matt Novak

The “World 3D Film Expo” Starts Next Week in Hollywood

There’s nothing quite like seeing a vintage 3D movie on the big screen. Sure, we have plenty of movies released in 3D here in the 21st century. But back in the 1950s (and even much earlier) the 3D movie was a taste of the future. Which is why I’m pretty excited for a little festival…

Tech News Matt Novak

Speedos, Computers, and Robot Butlers: Rural Living in the Future

Nothing sells the push-button leisure society of tomorrow better than a farmer with ample time to lounge. Or in this case, a rancher in a speedo, getting served a refreshing drink by a robot. Sure things may be difficult now, but when even farmers have plenty of leisure time and the majority of their work…

Tech News Matt Novak

Hello Frisco! A 1924 Map of The First Coast-to-Coast Radio Broadcast

America got a little bit smaller on the night of February 8, 1924. Or at least it felt that way. From a banquet hall at the Congress Hotel in Chicago one man could be heard simultaneously in New York, Jacksonville, Denver, San Francisco, and even Havana, Cuba (which was no longer technically controlled by the…

Tech News Matt Novak

What’s This Weird “Tool” Just Unearthed in a Time Capsule From 1927?

As promised, that church in Jonesboro, Arkansas opened their mysterious 1920s time capsule this past Sunday. There were some of the usual suspects inside: some coins, some old newspapers… and some weird doublefork thing that has no explanation. https://gizmodo.com/this-week-in-time-capsules-they-lost-a-capsule-but-fo-1154605403 Seriously, what the hell is that thing? I wouldn’t be so interested in it if the…

Tech News Matt Novak

What Did “Automatic” Mean To The Futurists of Yesterday?

Of all the buzzwords of the retrofuture, nothing tickled the imagination of midcentury Americans quite like “automatic.” Sure, the word pops up here and there in 1930s advertisements for things like the house of the future. And the word was incredibly popular during the rise of the push button at the turn of the 20th…

Tech News Matt Novak

Remember the Year 2000, When We All Wore Radio Antenna Hats? 1939 Does

Mental Floss recently wrote a short post about a cool British Pathe video showing off what fashion designers of the year 1939 imagined we’d be wearing in the year 2000. And though the film largely focuses on designs for women, it didn’t leave out the men! Though the film doesn’t mention it, the short movie…

Tech News Matt Novak

McMoon’s: The Former McDonald’s Where NASA Digitizes Old Moon Photos

Bloomberg Businessweek has a neat little video about the moon photo digitization efforts over at NASA’s Ames Research Center. Oddly enough, this project is currently taking place in an abandoned McDonald’s. McMoon’s, if you will. The current mission of the McMoon’s team is to digitize photographs taken by the two lunar orbiters sent in 1966…

Tech News Matt Novak

Matt Novak

Did This 1980s Kids’ Book Predict NSA Snooping?

This Week in Time Capsules: Retired Shuttles and Moldy Baseball Cards

The Rise And Fall of the ARPANET (1969-1989) in One GIF

Time After Time: 70 Years of Broken Smartwatch Dreams

The 1931 Plan To Turn The Pyramids Into an Amusement Park

WWI’s Amateur Hour Death Bot Brigade

RIP Sci-Fi Author Frederik Pohl: His 1987 Predictions for 2012

This Video Explains the History of Color Film Technology in 21 Minutes

This Week in Time Capsules: Search For Hope After Sandy Hook Massacre

The 1960s Phone Button Layouts That Never Were

Asimov’s 2014 Predictions Were Shockingly Conservative For 1964

A Brief History of the Videophone That Almost Was

A Peek Into the Jetsons Archive at Warner Brothers Animation

The “World 3D Film Expo” Starts Next Week in Hollywood

Speedos, Computers, and Robot Butlers: Rural Living in the Future

Hello Frisco! A 1924 Map of The First Coast-to-Coast Radio Broadcast

What’s This Weird “Tool” Just Unearthed in a Time Capsule From 1927?

What Did “Automatic” Mean To The Futurists of Yesterday?

Remember the Year 2000, When We All Wore Radio Antenna Hats? 1939 Does

McMoon’s: The Former McDonald’s Where NASA Digitizes Old Moon Photos

Tesla Goes Ahead and Admits Its Robotaxis Are Sometimes Fully Human-Controlled

School Forced to Replace Toilets After Kids Flush Vapes

‘Scream 7’ Just Won’t Stop Making Money as ‘Scream 8’ Gets Started

The Curtain Has Closed on Meta’s Movie Rating-Inspired Content Filters

Good News! You Can Finally Change That Ridiculous Gmail Address

ExpressVPN Just Launched ExpressAI: Your Prompts Are Now Invisible

VR Just Took Another Massive Body Blow

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

‘Supergirl’ Will Feature David Corenswet’s Superman in a Sort of Big Brother Role

Report: FDA Set to Unban RFK Jr.’s Favorite Peptides

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

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