Why You Can’t Always Trust Your Brain

You’re probably familiar with the rabbit-duck illusion. Like other “ambiguous images,” this illusion can tell psychologists a lot about how we perceive our surroundings. The implications are as clear as they are unsettling: When confronted with ambiguity, we often see what our brains want us to see. How our brains deal with ambiguity is one…

Unprecedented New Image Shows A Planet-Forming Disc Around A Young Star

Now this is extraordinary. It’s the sharpest picture ever made of a protoplanetary disc surrounding a young star. The image, which bears a striking resemblance to prior artistic impressions, is set to revolutionize our understanding of how planets form. The new image was made possible by ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. And as the…

Into The Woods Trailer Delivers So Much Wonderful Singing

Now this is more like it! Here is the first Disney Into the Woods trailer that’s finally for fans. Get an eyeful of cast sing-a-longs and a few scenes that all die-hard Stephen Sondheim fans should recognize. Behold, Meryl Streep in early ugly witch form, and sexy later witch. Her hair looks amazing. Also this…

Marvel Accidentally Gave Us The First Look At Avengers 2‘s Vision

If you watched Marvel’s 75th anniversary special this past Tuesday, you saw the first real look at the android hero the Vision‚ you just didn’t know it. In one of the behind-the-scene shots of Avengers: Age of Ultron, a caped, red-and-green-headed gent is tucked behind a camera. Check it out! I mean, I guess the…

What Is The Hardest Scientific Concept To Wrap Your Mind Around?

Some scientific concepts are brilliant in their simplicity, but others require a little mental gymnastics to really understand. Today we want to know about the scientific tenets that you find trickiest to grasp. Whether it’s an idea from theoretical physics or just a question of a seemingly impossibly large scale, tell us about your pick…

Physics students have calculated that the physical impact of being rescued by the Flash is, in fact, more damaging than being hit by a car. Based upon footage from the new TV show, they say that increasing the area over which the superhero makes contact with a person would lower the pressure and likelihood of…

Common Animals Morphed Into Terrifying New Species

What would happen if we mixed a baboon with a sparrow, or a shark with a spider? We may never find out in the real world, but here is where Photoshop can help. Check out these absolutely horrifying hybrid species as envisioned by artist Sarah DeRemer. Californian Sarah DeRemer, 25, began making hybrid animals as…

Which Lord Of The Rings Star Won’t Be Showing Up In The Final Hobbit?

Find out where Prometheus 2 could be headed. Plus a fan theory makes a good guess at where American Horror Story’s fifth season might be set. Guillermo del Toro updates us on Crimson Peak and the Pacific Rim sequels. And another classic Disney character is coming to Once Upon a Time. Spoilers now! Top image:…

The Technical Tricks That Made Birdman Look So Perfect

There are many reasons why Birdman is so good. But one the ones that’s harder to explain is the way the movie is shot and edited to look like a single long take. Variety talked to the film’s digital colorist, Steve Scott, about how they achieve this effect. [via Sci Fi Now]

In the Future, Radiation Adds a Layer of Difficulty to Animal Dissection

As if dealing with beached whale carcasses wasn’t hard enough, now it has to be done in full hazmat gear with extra radiation proctections. Well, it’ll make for an even more impressive episode of Inside Nature’s Irradiated Giants. This is “Radiation” by Ivan Khomenko, a freelance concept a You can find more of his art…

These Posters Will Make You Long For the Sequels We Never Got

Entertainment Weekly has preview images from the upcoming art show Sequel, which asks artists to imagine posters for sequels that never happened, but maybe should have. If you’re in Los Angeles between November 13 and November 23, you can stop by iam8bitand see the work in person. The images below — the Barbarella one by…

Is Alexander Payne Finally Making His Science Fiction Satire?

Matt Damon is supposedly set to star in Alexander Payne’s next film, Downsizing. And with that announcement, the long-delayed film is finally getting made. Thank god, because what we know about the project sounds kind of amazingly bonkers. Photo credit: AP Images According to Deadline, Damon’s bowing out of Zhang Yimou’s The Great Wall to…

Smartest Ever Eagle Steals Dinner Right Off a Fisherman’s Line

This bald eagle has figured out how to game the system. Instead of expending all the energy necessary to hunt for himself, he just snatches a fish that’s already been snared by a fisherman. You go, bald eagle. On the list of things that are awesome in the video: the sound of the reel rapidly…

That Time Doctor Who Used Real Science For Its Stories

While frequently called a science fantasy show for its loose approach to scientific plausibility, Doctor Who can be surprisingly grounded in real science. Along with changing to accommodate shifting understanding of cosmology over the decades, the show has explored a whole range of science.

The Trailer For This Drug-Dystopia Movie Really Will Get You Hooked

With just one trailer, the futuristic thriller Narcopolis has gone from being off the radar to being one of next year’s most anticipated films. With a cast that includes Brazil’s Jonathan Pryce, this movie looks both slick and thought-provoking. Let’s hope the whole thing is as good as this first hit. This movie is the…

Documentary Takes You Deep Inside H.R. Giger’s Studio Of Nightmares

Check out the trailer for Dark Star: H.R. Giger’s World, a documentary that gives you an inside look at the creative process of the man who gave us Alien’s Xenomorph and so much more. What’s amazing about this documentary is how tactile it is — even without being able to touch all of the strange…

All Of William Shatner’s Tek War Books Will Be Available As E-Books!

Good news! You can now use your e-reader tech to read about William Shatner’s Tek — that fictional cyber-drug that people will kill for in the Tek War series. The final four Tek War books, co-written with Ron Goulart, are coming out from Open Road Media, making the series complete. For those of you who…

Researchers from Genetech have developed a new way to deliver drugs across the blood-brain barrier. The new technique — not to be confused with another recent method — uses a double-sided antibody that targets enzymes of a harmful degenerative protein in monkeys. Delivering molecules in this way could assist in the treatment of brain disorders…

Game Of Thrones Season 5 Definitely Won’t Have Bran, And Here’s Why

We’ve heard the rumors from Hodor himself that Bran Stark, having finally reached the Three-Eyed Raven last year, would be absent in the next season of Game of Thrones. But now showrunner David Benioff has not only confirmed we’re going Hodor-less, but explains why. Here’s what Benioff told Entertainment Weekly: “The fact is, even though…

More Britons Believe In Aliens And Ghosts Than God

God’s polling numbers are down in the UK, where a recent survey found adults were more than twice as likely to believe in extraterrestrials than the creator and ruler of the universe. Above: Creationism for Geeks, via Wiki Fiction Via The Independent: The survey of 1,500 adults and 500 children, carried out online for Ripley’s…