io9 | Page 3473 of 5930 | We Come From the Future

The Vampire Diaries and the Pitfalls of the Season-Ending Twist

We’re familiar with the phenomenon where a show is in the final moments of its season finale, and all of a sudden there’s a wacky twist that the writers thought would make people freak out over the summer. Often, viewers are left wondering more “What were they thinking?” than “What’s next?” As in the case…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

RIP Frank Kendig, original editor of Omni Magazine

Omni Magazine was a huge inspiration to all of us at io9. And its original editor, Frank Kendig, just passed away yesterday. Here’s a great tribute to his legacy, including helping to form the unique mix of stories that Omni boasted. UPDATE: Terribly sorry about this. Apparently, he actually died on May 16, 2008, and…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

Red Waves Are Breaking Across the Land

There is nothing that embodies the idea of “terrible beauty” more than an approaching sandstorm. Here is what these awe-inspiring forces of nature look like, right before they consume the ocean or landscape in blinding clouds. Onslow storm, Western Australia, 9 January 2013 Pictured above. (via The Roosevelts, Levi Cooper and Brett Martin/PerthWeatherLive.com) Phoenix, Arizona,…

io9 Vincze Miklós

An experiment shows how people deliberately sabotage themselves

If you got a great score on a test, you’d like to continue your winning streak, wouldn’t you? One experiment proves you wouldn’t. You’d self-sabotage. Not unintentionally and not subconsciously. You’d knowingly and deliberately screw up. We sometimes engage in behaviors that scuttle our chances of getting what we want. This is a baffling behavior…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

When forests glow green in the night

There are certain times when the woods begin to glow. Sometimes they glow so much that people call the Park Service and ask them to send a hazmat team. What they’re actually seeing is foxfire. And although we know how it happens, we don’t know exactly why. The picture above is a lovely example of…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

The Shining Girls is one of the best serial killer tales ever written

Lauren Beukes won critical acclaim for her first two novels, Zoo City and Moxyland, both of which were urban fantasies set in her native South Africa. Now she’s set her imagination loose on a different continent, to explore the inner life of a serial killer in Chicago who figures out how to travel through time.…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz

Malaria Makes Mosquitoes Meaner

Without mosquitoes, malaria wouldn’t be able to infect humans. But in addition to hitching a ride, it now appears that the parasite also alters insect behavior — making infected mosquitoes thirstier for human blood. Like, a lot thirstier. According to a new study led by James Logan, mosquitoes (Anopheles gambiae) carrying the malaria parasite (Plasmodium…

io9 George Dvorsky

What’s your favorite massive object in space?

The “Big Dumb Object,” as christened by Roz Kaveney, has been a staple of science fiction for decades. But what’s your favorite massive freakin space object? Share your most beloved Dyson Sphere, ringworld or mega-space station below! And always, please share some pictures so we can ogle the lovely massiveness…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

UFO sightings in Canada rose alarmingly in 2012

Have aliens finally discovered the joys of poutine and the Arrogant Worms? UFO sightings in Canada doubled in 2012, which raises troubling questions about whether the U.S. is falling behind as a favored destination for extraterrestrials. According to the CBC: In 2012, there were 1,981 sightings, nearly doubling the previous annual record of 1,004 sightings…

io9 Annalee Newitz

What will really happen when the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts?

Lurking beneath Yellowstone National Park is a massive underground reservoir of magma, capped by the park’s famous caldera. 640,000 years ago, a super eruption rocked the region. What would happen if another such event blasted the park today? We asked USGS geologist Jake Lowenstern, scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. Photo by Nina B via…

io9 Annalee Newitz

Andre Norton has a spiffy new website

The official Andre Norton website, staffed by volunteers, has been around since 2004 — but it’s just gotten a major facelift. The new version is way easier to navigate and more searchable. And packed with videos of interviews as well as her appearances on convention panels. Definitely worth checking out!

Books & Comics Charlie Jane Anders

Wizard Cops: They cast spells first, and ask questions later

If the stars of an ’80s cop show started playing D&D, I imagine the result would be a lot like “Wizard Cops,” this wonderful short from Light Forge Studios. Loose-wand McDunna is a tough cop who doesn’t play by the rules. But can he stop an evil Warlock’s magic bean-running operation before he’s kicked off…

io9 Rob Bricken

Astounding Concept Art of Cities Being Demolished

We love watching cities being crushed, blown up and swept away — it happens in a lot of this summer’s biggest movies. There’s just something so viscerally thriling about structures coming down in flames. Here’s some of our favorite concept art of cites getting totally smashed. Top image: Crysis 2 artwork by Dennis Chan Washington…

Movies Charlie Jane Anders

Game of Thrones will end with season 7, according to producer

We’ve all been wondering how the Game of Thrones TV show will end. Will George R.R. Martin finish the book series in time? Will HBO try to pad it out? Will it be canceled? Now we have an answer — assuming all goes well. the show will last seven seasons, according to producer Frank Doelger.…

Television Rob Bricken

Unglamorous Space Catastrophes That You’ll Never See in a Movie

We were all impressed with the dramatic trailer for Gravity, with George Clooney weathering an explosion on an orbiting space station and Sandra Bullock spinning off into the void of space. Things like that make good cinema. There are other space crises, though, that will never get their own movies. Here are some space disasters…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

Your First Real Look at the Space Movie Everybody’s Raving About

Here it is at last — the first full-length trailer for Europa Report, the tense thriller about a mission to Jupiter’s moon that goes horribly wrong. It’s filled with stunning visuals and neat character moments. Plus laudatory quotes, including a couple from io9. You can read our early review of Europa Report here, but suffice…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

12 Great Science Fiction Actors Who Don’t Get Enough Props

Science fiction is an actor’s dream. The genre has created some breakout stars, like Harrison Ford, but it’s also turned scores of working actors into beloved fan-favorites, who work the convention circuit. But here are 12 great science fiction actors who swing for the fences, and just don’t get the appreciation they deserve. Here they…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

The Zombieland TV show is your zombie kill of the week

Amazon has decided not pick up the Zombieland TV series, whose pilot premiered last month. Writer/producer Rhett Reese was especially bitter, tweeting that “die-hard Zombieland [movie] fans” had “hated it out of existence.” I guess the fact that the pilot was just a lackluster imitation of the movie was just a coincidence, then. https://gizmodo.com/the-zombieland-tv-series-is-a-cheap-bootleg-of-zombiela-477258349 [Via…

Television Rob Bricken

This 1897 bicycle highway was supposed to be the future of transit

At the close of the 19th century — just before cars made their appearance — a wealthy American businessman began construction on a private, for-profit bicycle superhighway that would stretch from Pasadena to Los Angeles. It almost got built. This story comes to us from Brian Merchant at the always interesting Motherboard. The entrepreneur in…

io9 George Dvorsky

Revisiting Kepler’s Most Mind-Blowing Discoveries

NASA’s Kepler space telescope is busted and it may never work normally again. But during its four years of exemplary service, the planet-hunting telescope provided astronomers with an unprecedented glimpse into the Milky Way. Here are the most incredible discoveries made by Kepler. Top image: Ron Miller. As we reported yesterday, controllers on the ground…

io9 George Dvorsky

The Vampire Diaries and the Pitfalls of the Season-Ending Twist

RIP Frank Kendig, original editor of Omni Magazine

Red Waves Are Breaking Across the Land

An experiment shows how people deliberately sabotage themselves

When forests glow green in the night

The Shining Girls is one of the best serial killer tales ever written

Malaria Makes Mosquitoes Meaner

What’s your favorite massive object in space?

UFO sightings in Canada rose alarmingly in 2012

What will really happen when the Yellowstone supervolcano erupts?

Andre Norton has a spiffy new website

Wizard Cops: They cast spells first, and ask questions later

Astounding Concept Art of Cities Being Demolished

Game of Thrones will end with season 7, according to producer

Unglamorous Space Catastrophes That You’ll Never See in a Movie

Your First Real Look at the Space Movie Everybody’s Raving About

12 Great Science Fiction Actors Who Don’t Get Enough Props

The Zombieland TV show is your zombie kill of the week

This 1897 bicycle highway was supposed to be the future of transit

Revisiting Kepler’s Most Mind-Blowing Discoveries

Ahead of the SpaceX IPO, xAI Has Now Shed All 11 of Its Non-Elon Musk Founders

Do ‘Disclosure Day’ Prep With a Spielberg Sci-Fi Marathon

How to Watch the F1 Japanese GP 2026 on a Free Channel

Ranking 2016’s Superhero Debuts, 10 Years Later

Fourth Most Populous Country in the World Bans Most Social Media for Kids

How to watch UFC Fight Night Adesanya vs Pyfer live this Saturday

‘Steel Ball Run’ Will Return This Year…Eventually

‘The Mummy 4’ Is Getting the Family Back Together

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

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

Let us help find what you are looking for...