Why do we nitpick superhero movies so damn much?

It’s San Diego Comic Con week here in the post-apocalyptic future, too! Comic Con has changed a bit now that civilization has collapsed, in that there are no movies, TV shows, or even comics to promote. Weirdly, you still can’t get into Hall H without waiting in line for eight hours. Nitpick Picnic Joseph C.:…

What Do You Call an Alien From Uranus?

My first thought is a “Urinal,” but that’s probably wrong. What to call the inhabitants of the different planets and moons has always been a minor stumbling block for scifi authors. Here’s how to do it right. With one exception, the names of the planets are taken from those of Roman gods and goddesses. There…

Faran Tahir was the best Starfleet captain ever — what’s next?

Forget Kirk vs. Picard. Faran Tahir is hands down the Best Starfleet Captain Ever for his role as Captain Robau in 2009’s Star Trek. This year, Mr. Tahir returns to the big screen with two science fiction extravaganzae, Elysium and Escape Plan. We caught up with Tahir and asked him a few questions. io9: According…

How far would you go to get the perfect shot?

Amateur photographer Kawika Singson routinely ventures out to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to snap some pics. But this time around, after setting up his equipment on a lava flow, his shoes and tripod caught fire. The photo has since gone viral — but is it real? Yes and no. Yes, the fire you see in…

Major Hints for Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers 2 and District 10!

The cast of Interstellar adds some big names. Saoirse Ronan isn’t in Avengers 2 after all. Details leak from the Guardians of the Galaxy set. Check out some art from Riddick and Godzilla and get a look at the Catching Fire victors in wetsuits. Plus gets hints about the upcoming seasons of Arrow and Supernatural.…

The Fifth Estate Trailer: Benedict Cumberbatch Is Just Like Julian Assange

DreamWorks has been working on its WikiLeaks film, The Fifth Estate, for a while now—and this trailer reveals that Benedict Cumberbatch plays a hugely convincing Julian Assange. After reading a script for the film, Assange declared it a “mass propaganda attack against WikiLeaks the organization, and the character of my staff”. Not a huge fan,…

San Diego Gets Ready, Because Comic-Con Is Coming!

The calm before the dark. The Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego sleeps, ready for the fans to descend upon the city tomorrow for the first day of Comic-Con madness. Here’s a collection of photos of the city getting ready — so many ads! Top image: Game of Thrones banners, via DarkStitch‘s Twitter Image from Hilton…

If you’re a science fiction writer in South Africa,you can get your story judged by Lauren Beuekes and maybe win a cash prize along with publication.

Worst crossover ever: Hitler joins the JLA and the Avengers

Thai art students decided to create a mural with some epic superheroes… plus Adolf Hitler. Officials at Chulalongkorn University have apologized, but said the students didn’t realize including Hitler would offend anybody. But what I really want to know is, what is that cool duckling saying? According to the Associated Press: The billboard was up…

Is spirituality really the opposite of science?

Love is just a hormonal fluctuation coursing through neurological circuits in the brain. Art can be reduced to its atomic structures. Should we really be using science to explain culture and beauty? Some critics say we shouldn’t — and that science is destroying the sense of wonder we get from stories. Image by Frank Kunert…

Heroes is getting a fifth, vastly unnecessary “season” via comics

Dynamite Entertainment announced they have snagged the coveted comics license to NBC’s one-time-hit TV series Heroes, a show that stopped being good halfway through the season one finale. The comics will be a direct continuation from season 4, and follow the characters that you loved… unless you saw seasons 2-4, naturally, in which case you…

“Brutalist” Buildings That Should Be Dystopian Movie Sets

The Brutalist architectural style was popular in the mid-twentieth century. Any time you see a giant, cement building with a thick, angular silhouette — you can thank Brutalism. You may not find the style beautiful, but you have to admit these examples of it would make great scifi environments. Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban, the house of…

RIP Elaine Morgan, popularizer of the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis

Elaine Morgan, author of the highly influential The Descent of Woman, has died at the age of 92 from a stroke. She will be remembered for challenging male-centric theories of human evolution, and for promoting the idea that early humans, for a short time, began adapting to aquatic life. Back in the early 1970s, after…

For the first time in years, this rare corpse flower is about to open!

It’s not as cute as a snow-leopard, but this corpse flower has a webcam! Here’s your chance to watch one bloom in real-time. So-named for the putrid scent that they emit when unfurled, corpse flowers (aka Amorphophallus titanum) do not follow an annual blooming cycle, and have been known to go decades between blooms. Now,…

Behold Syfy’s next masterpiece: Ghost Shark!

The internet went wild for Sharknado, but will it love Ghost Shark? Sharknado, the movie that everyone tweeted about (but nobody watched)has a shark-related successor, Ghost Shark. It’s about a shark, that’s also a ghost. Can it possibly top Sharknado? We’re not sure. But we’d be down for a cross-over: Ghost Sharknado! Ghost Shark will…

Bang! Pow! Zoom! Batman ’66 is the retro-king of This Week’s Comics!

As bad newspapers like to remind us every few years, comics aren’t just for kids any more. That’s true, but DC’s fantastic Batman ’66 #1 is for kids, and adults, and probably pets, too. It’s awesome, and it leads off a great week of comics including ninjas, dinosaurs, and so! many! vampires! New Issues Dark…

What’s the greatest knock-down, drag-out fight scene of all time?

The greatest science fiction and fantasy movies inspire us to believe that we are destined for greatness, in our starships and our castles. But sometimes, you run into a problem that can only be solved with a smackdown. What’s your favorite fight scene from science fiction or fantasy? Please include a picture or clip of…

What is this Cyberman orchestra conductor saying?

Doctor Who took over Heathrow Airport for its 50th anniversary, and there are some lovely photos of a Cyberman wandering the airport like a lost traveler. Terrorizing children, attacking author Jenny Colgan… and conducting the philharmonic orchestra (which is playing the Who theme, I’m guessing.) What’s he saying here? Check out more lovely photos of…

No, we didn’t just create an AI that’s as smart as a 4-year old

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago recently IQ-tested an AI system to see how intelligent it really is. Results showed that it’s about as smart as the average 4-year-old —with some important caveats. Indeed, some very, very important caveats. You can imagine my surprise — and subsequent eye-rolling — when a press release…

Update Your Cosplay for Comic Con 2013: What to Wear, What to Burn

Comic-Con is just days away, but it’s not too late to come up with a new costume. Whatever you do, don’t get caught on the floor in last year’s cosplay. Here’s our guide to the best cosplay ideas to look out for this year. Go In A Group! Everything is better in a group, especially…