How Ghostbusters Filmed That Classic Stay Puft Marshmallow Man Scene

The filmmakers behind Ghostbusters had a lot of challenges when it came to filming their climactic scene. For one thing, they had to make a giant marshmallow man dramatic and not simply silly. For another, they had to build and film a giant freaking marshmallow man. So how’d they do it? CineFix takes us behind…

The Sexual Spectrum Is Way More Complicated Than “Male” and “Female”

It is becoming more and more difficult to define sex in binary terms. Photo Credit: Tom Magliery | CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. Scientific investigations performed over the last several decades have repeatedly observed that the process of sex-determination is a complex process that can give rise to a variety of genetic, cellular, and ultimately sexual outcomes.…

The CIA Once Ran Brothels And Dosed Unsuspecting Customers With LSD

For ten years during the Cold War, the CIA conducted mind-control experiments on unsuspecting San Franciscans. Dubbed Operation Midnight Climax, the program was packed with salacious details: a power-mad narcotics agent, a brothel equipped with two-way mirrors, and gallons of LSD. Top image: Surian Soosay/Flickr Operation Midnight Climax was one of a few operations involving…

The Nebula Awards Shortlist Is Full Of New Names

Proof that recognition in science fiction and fantasy is open to newcomers: the latest raft of Nebula nominees includes a ton of new names. And at least one of them, Alaya Dawn Johnson, is on the ballot in a couple of categories. I checked a bunch of the names on this year’s Nebula ballot against…

Mission Impossible 5 Shuts Down Production To Figure Out Ending

Christopher McQuarrie has shut down Mission Impossible 5 because the ending was, get this, impossible. Or something; we’re paraphrasing. But don’t worry, Mission Impossible 5 writers, we have some “thoughts.” THR is reporting that MI5 (which I just now realized RHYMES — or, at least, is assonantal) has shut down production in the middle of…

The Doctor Who Would Give Men Monkey Testicles

Serge Voronoff sold the early 20th century version of male enhancement – monkey testicles. No, we don’t mean the monkey testicles were ground up and put in food, or even swallowed whole. We mean Voronoff stapled them to a person’s body. In the 1920s, a rather open-minded group of men went to Voronoff in hopes…

8 Most Terrifying Tiny Monsters From 1980s Movies

When Gremlins was released in 1984, the horror-comedy and its tiny, cute-gross creatures launched an entire genre of films about tiny terrors. Here are eight other menacing, miniature monsters from the movies that prove size isn’t everything, especially when it comes to murdering you. 1) Ghoulies This cheap, quick rip-off of Gremlins was hastily made…

io9 Newsstand: Best Stories from the Week of February 15 – 21

This week’s stories are elemental—passionate waters and stone cold fires. They’re about the things we do for family — sacrifices and lies. And what it takes to push us into the unknown — under the sea, or on the road. And the Winners Will Be Swept Out to Sea by Maria Dahvana Headley | Lightspeed…

Watch Four Minutes Of The Lazarus Effect Because Dead Is Better

Dammit, we love a good resurrection horror movie, and it’s been so long since we’ve had a zombie-free undead horror story. The Lazarus Effect looks like it’s channeling that classic “we shouldn’t be meddling around in this” feeling. Check out four minutes of the flick here.

Our Best View Of A Stellar Debris Disk Warped By A Massive Exoplanet

Astronomers working with the Hubble Space Telescope have released the most detailed picture ever taken of a circumstellar debris disk viewed edge-on. It’s the only picture we have of a protoplanetary disk with an actual planet orbiting within it. Beta Pictoris is a 20-million-year old system located about 63 light-years from Earth. This star is…

The Water’s Gotten A Lot Fouler In Hot Tub Time Machine 2

Hot Tub Time Machine had a clever spin on the “male midlife crisis” comedy genre, sending four dudes back to the 80s to relive their best weekend. And now there’s a sequel, which doubles down on the time-travel hijinks, but also goes all-in on the gross-out dude-bonding humor. Spoiler-o-rama… The best thing about Hot Tub…

Why Do Moths Want To Drink Our Tears?

We’ve written before about lepidoptera that drink the tears of animals, including humans. The general consensus on them was, “Please, god, no!” Perhaps it will help to know the probable reason for these insects’ quest for delicious, delicious tears. https://gizmodo.com/amazonian-butterflies-and-bees-drink-the-tears-of-turtl-1317269051 Your tears are complicated cocktails. They contain a variety of proteins, as well as some…

This Book Of Countless Cameras Is An Ode to Analog Photo Nerds

If you have that obsession with camera gear that so many of us behold, you’ll want to check out the new book Tokyo Camera Style. It’s based on the website of the same name, which gathers snapshots of everyday folks and their coveted shooter of choice. Published earlier this year by Thames & Hudson, Tokyo…

The Greatest TV Episodes Where Someone Lives A Whole Lifetime In One Day

One of the annoying things about real life is, you can only gain experience by getting older. You can’t just luck into a trove of experience points and level up painlessly. Except on a lot of science fiction TV shows, there’s a loophole. Here are seven episodes where someone lives for years, while no time…

The Natives Are Murderous In The New Wayward Pines Trailer 

It’s been a while since we’ve seen new footage of M. Night Shyamalan’s 10-episode “event series” Wayward Pines, but this trailer adds a bit more outright violence and murder to the mysterioussetting. Could that be enough to save it from its earlier poor reception? I do not expect a shocking twist in this regard. https://gizmodo.com/another-strike-for-m-night-first-impression-of-waywar-1611317873…

The much-anticipatedreport on the new dietary guideline recommendationsis out, and it has some suggestions, like for goodness sake eat some more plants, will you? It also includes a review of the average American diet, a full 15% of which is comprised solely of sandwiches. The guidelines will be out later this year.

Win These RPG Contests By Designing Monsters or Whole New Worlds

Some of the biggest companies in tabletop gaming are holding contests right now, including a monster design challenge, D&D trivia, and one for scifi mini settings. Here’s how you can win fabulous prizes from Monte Cook Games, Wizards of the Coast, and Kobold Press. The Strange Recursion Design Competition The Strange is the second RPG…

This GIF Party Is Headed Right For You!

Batten down the hatches and settle in, folks! There’s a GIF party a-brewing. How’s the weather out where you are today? Are you snowed in and breaking into your winter stockpiles of hot chocolate and Hoth GIFs? Or are you merely watching the whole thing from whatever unseasonably balmy place you managed to escape to?…

Stephen Hawking Captured These Amazing Pics With His Brand New Toy

The world’s most famous astrophysicist now has a vastly improved view of the cosmos. He was recently visited by employees of Celestron, who installed an 11-inch telescope in his home. Hawking has quickly taken to the telescope and he’s already posted some incredible images. Earlier this week, Hawking posted the news and the pics at…

What To Expect From The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones And Agent Carter

Does the Joker have a brand new friend in Suicide Squad? We’ll see a much-anticipated return on Doctor Who sooner than expected. Plus, teases for what’s ahead on Daredevil, Gotham, Bitten, AKA Jessica Jones and 12 Monkeys. Spoilers for all! Top image: Daredevil. Suicide Squad Jay Hernandez has allegedly joined the cast. According to The…