Turn Your Mobile Into a Scientific Tricorder with These Real-Life Apps

In Star Trek, tricorders are multifunctional devices that do everything from mass spectrometry and genetic analysis to communications. Now there are a host of mobile apps you can turn your phone into a scientific tool not entirely unlike what Data uses to analyze new planets. In the Star Trek universe, tricorders have three default scanning…

Science fiction show begins with a plane crash: what an original idea!

It worked for Lost, Fringe and a bunch of other shows. So now AMC is going with the tried-and-true “plane crashes in the first episode” model of science fiction storytelling with its first science fiction show, Line of Sight. Top image: Rupert Taylor-Price/Flickr. Line of Sight is the creation of Blake Masters (Brotherhood, Rubicon, 2…

Eli Roth teaches us how to direct a bloody massacre for Hemlock Grove

Check out a bad-ass behind-the-scenes clip of Eli Roth explaining the “Anatomy of a Kill Scene” on his new werewolf series Hemlock Grove. Roth’s behind-the-scenes videos are sometimes the best part of his pictures. The director is completely honest, and has no problem sharing what he’s learned with his audience (seriously, check out the DVD…

Everything Wrong With Iron Man 2

Hot on the heels of pointing out everything wrong with the original Iron Man film, the folks at CinemaSins have passed their fine toothed combs over the sequel, finding a mountain of errors that even a robotic supersuit can’t fix. https://gizmodo.com/everything-wrong-with-iron-man-5995281 Now some would say that just making a sequel to the delightful Iron Man…

10 Heroes Who Got More Interesting After Being Gender-Swapped

Science fiction and fantasy are full of epic characters who go into uncharted realms. And some of the most memorable characters started out as the opposite gender, before getting changed in production or in a remake. Here are 10 famous characters who got more interesting after they had their genders flipped. 1) Ripley in the…

Mad nuclear scientist Anthony Hopkins joins new Red 2 trailer

We thought Red 2, the movie based on Warren Ellis’ original spy comic, was already over-stuffed with stars, but isn’t there always room for Anthony Hopkins playing a mad scientist who assembled a secret nuclear bomb underneath Moscow was imprisoned for 30+ years? We say yes, and this new Red 2 trailer backs us up.…

If Kairos doesn’t win you over in this 2-minute trailer, nothing will

The trailer for the French comic Kairos, by artist Ulysse Malassagne, has hooked us completely. Seriously, stop what you’re doing and watch it right now. Hand drawn by the French animation company Studio La Cachette, Kairos is a story about the brave Nills, who is sucked into a long journey in another world after his…

This cosplay of BioShock: Infinite‘s Rosalind Lutece is uncanny

No, this isn’t a screenshot from the latest incarnation of BioShock —it’s DeviantArt user LaynesLionRedCat cosplaying as quantum physicist Rosalind Lutece. Wow. Images via LaynesLionRedCat. From the actual gameplay: And the cosplay versions: More BioShock cosplay via Kotaku. https://kotaku.com/bioshock-takes-cosplay-to-infinity-and-beyond-467496929 H/t Geeks Are Sexy.

Dedicated Bat-fan builds himself a $150,000 Batcave

Meet Chris Weir. He likes Batman. A lot. You might have seen the concept art of his Batman-themed home theater last year, but now you can take a tour of the real thing, and it’s pretty tremendous. https://gizmodo.com/batcave-inspired-home-theater-would-fit-right-in-at-way-5931832 Highlights include the 120-inch TV, the Batman ’66 Shakespeare bust button that reveals the entrance, a framed…

Holy crap, this ant’s jaws are like a freaking bear trap

Everyone, these are trap-jaw ants. The two featured here are fighting. Watch them closely – even in slow motion, the the spring-loaded snap of a trap-jaw’s maw is powerful enough to send both ants twirling in opposite directions in the blink of an eye. The video was created by ant guy Adrian Smith, and came…

How Skynet Might Emerge From Simple Physics

A provocative new paper is proposing that complex intelligent behavior may emerge from a fundamentally simple physical process. The theory offers novel prescriptions for how to build an AI — but it also explains how a world-dominating superintelligence might come about. We spoke to the lead author to learn more. In the paper, which now…

Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer is returning to science fiction and fantasy at last, with an untitled Sony film, written by Eric Pearson, whose work has hit the Black List of best unproduced scripts a couple times.

Star Trek: DS9 played the most dangerously idiotic game in the galaxy

Star Trek: Deep Space 9 is beloved among Trek fans, and rightly so. That still doesn’t mean its didn’t have a few piles of crap amongst its many good episode, and there’s not a bigger crap-pile than the reviled first season episode “Move Along Home.” Roll the dice and discover the worst game in the…

Batman villains captured in 1940s mugshots are fantastically dapper

These digitally painted Batman villain mugshots are oddly mesmerizing. We just can’t stop dreaming up a Gangster Squad batman. Inspired by the dapper men in the 1920s Australian mugshots, artist Jason Mark re-created these scenes with famous Batman villains. Between this and the Rockabilly Batman series, a very solid case is being made for a…

This smart foam chair self-assembles by sproinging into shape

Finally, flat-pack furniture that builds its own damn self. The armchair up top was created Belgian designer Carl de Smet. The furniture is made of a smart polymer that “remembers” its shape, even after being compressed down into a tiny little box. The trick to the polymer’s shape-memory is heat, which de Smet demonstrates in…

Korte’s law governs both your brain and flashing neon signs

If you think that the psychology of flashing electric neon signs that say, “Live Nude Girls! ——->” is purely prurient, you are wrong. These signs are designed to take advantage of the way your brain perceives movement, and they do it using Korte’s Law. You’ve probably noticed, roaming at night through a city, that there…

Earth’s inner core is as hot as the surface of the sun

A new X-ray analysis of molten iron has revealed that the Earth’s inner core is 1,000 degrees hotter than previously thought. The new measurements, which were made by Agnes Dewaele from the French research agency CEA, along with members of the French National Center for Scientific Research CNRS and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility ESRF…

So this is a robot that can steal things out of vending machines

Using it is a little like playing one of those claw games, only way more satisfying. Also, it’s illegal. Unlawfulness aside, you’ve really gotta hand it to YouTuber Ioduremetallique for his sheer mechanical ingenuity. This is one cleverly designed little robot, a fact this video demonstration makes perfectly clear (even if it’s narrated in French).…

Can Zack Snyder make Superman cool? Can SHIELD stand on its own?

Zack Snyder talks Man of Steel, while Joss Whedon previews S.H.I.E.L.D. Hayley Atwell says Peggy Carter has plenty to do in Captain America 2. Shane Black answers fans’ questions about Iron Man 3. There are new details about Neil Gaiman’s new Doctor Who episode. Plus spoilers for R.I.P.D., Transformers 4 and True Blood! Top image…

Just dropping in to scare the living crap out of you

The sloth robot was named for its claws, not for its speed. So don’t get any funny ideas. This amazingly awesome sloth bot was designed by concept artist Vitaly Bulgarov. You can see more of his work on his website. (Spotted on Nuthin But Mech!)