How the Jojoba Plant Saved the Sperm Whale

The jojoba plant is a desert-growing shrub. The sperm whale is an ocean-living mammal. On first glance, it would not seem that they would have much in common. But they do—and that commonality may be the reasons sperm whales didn’t go extinct. For over a hundred years, much of the world ran on sperm whale…

The Absolute Coolest Things We Saw on the Floor at Comic-Con 2015

Can’t join the hundreds of thousands of men, women and children dressed up as their favorite characters at San Diego Comic-Con? We’ve got the next best thing. It’s a video of the best of the floor from preview night 2015. Above, you can check out coolest stuff on the convention floor of Comic-Con. We’re talking…

Promising Study Shows the Power of Gene Therapy to Treat Deafness

An international team of researchers has used a virus to correct genetic defects and partially restore hearing in deaf mice. It’s an important proof-of-concept that could eventually lead to therapies in humans. Above: Those upside-down V’s are sensory hair bundles in the ear, each containing 50 to 100 microvilli tipped with TMC proteins. The new…

15 Toys And Action Figures That Have Consistently Gone Down In Value

This weekend, toy collectors will swarm to the Convention Center in San Diego, in search of rare and limited edition toys. Because we all know toys are a fantastic investment! Right? Not always. Here are 15 toys and action figures that have gotten more and more worthless. First, a disclaimer: Toy valuations are completely subjective.…

Way More Plot Details for Those New Star Wars Novels

Hey, remember those 20 Star Wars books that Del Rey is going to publish in the lead-up to The Force Awakens? Well, we’ve just gotten detailed synopses for a bunch of them. Take a look at the past, present and future of the Star Wars universe, including the in-between movie adventures of Han, Luke and…

Controversial RPG Blue Rose Returns With More Intrigue, Psychic Powers

When the first edition of Blue Rose was published 10 years ago, it found a core audience of gamers that loved its unique take on romantic fantasy—and a few who pushed back against the game’s progressive push for inclusiveness. Now Blue Rose is back, and it’s found a better system and a wider audience. In…

A Shiny Space Suitcase Will Tell Us If There’s Water on Asteroid Bennu

It may look like a cross between a mylar balloon, a suitcase, and an old-school gas mask, but it’s actually a highly sophisticated sensing instrument. And it’s going to tell us whether there’s water on an asteroid or not. This is NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Visible and Infrared Spectrometer (OVIRS) and it’s going to be part of…

Fly Over Stormwind City in the Warcraft Movie’s Awesome VR App

For nearly 11 years, World of Warcraft gamers have soared over the Alliance Capital of Stormwind on their flying steeds, but now you can get a sneak peek of a similar scenario for Duncan Jones’ Warcraft movie for yourself, as well as a fantastic first look at the location re-imagined for the big screen. Unveiled…

Which Fall TV Show Will Rock Your World? Our Spoiler-Free Impressions!

Last night at Comic-Con, we saw four of this fall’s most hotly awaited new TV shows. Which one will be your new obsession, and which will be the next epic disaster? Out of four new shows, one was pretty much as good as we expected, two were blah… and one was a nice surprise. Here’s…

That Famous “School Bus Yellow” Color Used to Be Very, Very Toxic

You can recognize the bus in this picture, even though it is distorted, because of that iconic color. It was chosen in 1939 and used all over America. Later, people found out that while the shade was great, the chemistry left something to be desired. Here’s how school buses got covered in poison. Dr. Frank…

How Supergirl Will Handle The Existence Of Superman

Ryan Reynolds is done playing superheroes for good after Deadpool. Star Wars: Rogue One may have added a cadre of infamous Bounty Hunters to its cast. Plus, teasers for Fear The Walking Dead and Heroes Reborn, new footage from Ant-Man, and a new prequel for The Strain. To Me, My Spoilers! Deadpool Ryan Reynolds says…

If 3D Movies Make You Feel Sick, It’s Likely All in Your Mind

The realism of today’s 3D blockbusters can blow audiences away. By using 3D glasses to present different images to the two eyes, stereoscopic 3D technology fools the brain into believing it is viewing a real scene rather than a flat image on a screen. Now 3D televisions enable viewers to experience the effect at home…

This Statue is Our Best Look Yet at Batman v Superman’s Armored Batman

Comic-Con has begun, and that means one thing: Oodles and oodles of new toys and merchandise to look at. First up is a new range of DC statues based on Batman v Superman—inadvertently giving us our best look yet at the heavily suited-and-booted version of Batman from the movie. Revealed by Yahoo today, the line…

Duncan Jones Wants To Make Two Warcraft Sequels 

Speaking at the Legendary booth during San Diego Comic-Con this evening, director Duncan Jones revealed Warcraft is about 10 VFX shots from being complete, he’s confident it’s good, and would love to come back to direct a sequel. Maybe even two. Jones also unveiled WETA-designed sculptures of several main characters in the Warcraft film, as…

Get Creeped Out By These Crimson Peak Mondo Posters

Who isn’t excited for Guillermo Del Toro’s return to horror Crimson Peak? The team at Mondo is and they just revealed three brand new posters that’ll be available at San Diego Comic-Con. Two are by artist Daniel Danger and the other is by Guy Davis. They’ll exclusively be available at the Mondo booth, #835, at…

Hulk Meets Hulkbuster in Awesome LEGO Display

You saw the Tweet earlier, now see these big fellas in action! Sorta. This giant LEGO Avengers sculpture is attracting quite a lot of onlookers on the San Diego Comic-Con floor.

It’s Comic-Con Time! Here’s How to Follow Us the Whole Weekend.

Comic-Con … I can’t believe I’m still at Comic-Con. This year’s show starts tonight with a preview of all the goodies on the floor, and goes through Sunday. We’ll be here, bringing you news, reviews and videos of all the sights and sounds from this nuclear explosion of pop culture geekery. Here’s how to find…

Behold Martin Freeman’s Glorious Sherlock Moustache

Shown: Martin Freeman and his awe-inspiring moustache, who will combine to reprise the role of Dr. Watson in the upcoming Sherlock Christmas special, which will be at least partially set in the London of the late 1800s. Also pictured: An unidentified gentleman, presumably of no importance. [Via Metro] Contact the author at [email protected].

Contact the author at [email protected].

Best Look Yet at the Heroes of BvS and Batman’s Anti-Superman Armor  

The suits for the heroes of Batman V. Superman are on display at the San Diego Comic-Con, and this time, WB has brought the power armor Batman will use to take on Superman along with them. Check ‘em out! I gotta say, seeing the power armor in the light like this, I really dig it.…