io9 | Page 3956 of 5931 | We Come From the Future

Great Children’s Books That Look Death in the Eye

Children’s stories have been dealing with death since the days of fairy tales where the Princess doesn’t wake up. And some of the most soulful depictions of death aimed at kids come from the science fiction and fantasy genres. Except, in the ever-optimistic tone of children’s books, death is a mirror for how wonderful life…

Books & Comics Michael Ann Dobbs

Watching this scientist sample lava from an active volcano will make your heart race

When I read that the video featured here was intense, I was skeptical. One of my biggest gripes about “reality” television programs (and, to a lesser extent, documentaries) is how they often use music and stylized camerawork to imbue relatively innocuous situations with a sense of urgency, tension or danger (see: every episode of Ghost…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez

Snow White and the Huntsman gets a completely unnecessary sequel

Snow White and the Huntsman was a movie that should have been a lot better than it was. But because people were tricked into thinking this movie was actually about a badass queen doing badass things, it made money. Now a sequel is being fast-tracked, because money. And actor Nick Frost thinks the dwarves will…

Movies Meredith Woerner

Game of Thrones meets Beauty and the Beast: My Vision of Sansa and the Hound

io9 has already featured ‘making of’ posts for my Eddard Stark and Bran Stark artworks for the 2012 George R. R. Martin / A Song of Ice and Fire Calendar. This week, I’m sharing how I created my artwork for Sansa Stark and the Hound. One of the many great things about this job was…

Television John Picacio

Six decades of U.S. tornadoes visualized in one stunning map

Using almost sixty years’ worth of data from NOAA, designer John Nelson has produced a mesmerizing visualization of tornado activity in the United States. Ever wondered where “Tornado Alley” got its name? Wonder no more. Writes Nelson: Got this data from NOAA via the spectacular Data.gov. It tracks 56 years of tornado paths along with…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez

New chemical circuits make becoming a cyborg even cooler

For those would-be cyborgs who are squeamish about implanting awkward computer chips into their bodies, a doctoral student at Sweden’s Linköping University may have stumbled upon a rather elegant solution. Klas Tybrandt has developed the world’s first integrated chemical circuit — a control system that channels neurotransmitters, instead of electric voltages. Tybrandt, who is studying…

io9 George Dvorsky

The 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar

On Twitter, Pixar storyboard artist Emma Coats has compiled nuggets of narrative wisdom she’s received working for the animation studio over the years. It’s some sage stuff, although there’s nothing here about defending yourself from your childhood toys when they inevitably come to life with murder in their hearts. A truly glaring omission.[jump] #1: You…

Movies Cyriaque Lamar

The Goofiest Old Timey Spirit Portraits Ever Photographed

We recently looked at the hilarious lengths 19th century photographers went through to keep infants from jumping out of portraits. Incidentally, the long exposure times that would’ve ruined those baby pictures allowed camera fiends of the 1800s to stage supernatural snapshots. Behold a sampling of some sillier spirit photographs, such as Mary Todd Lincoln (above…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Finally! The villain of Pixar’s Brave is revealed!

While we’ve seen some gorgeous clips of Pixar’s Scottish fairy tale Brave (showcasing the main character Merida’s gorgeous red mane) but we’ve yet to see the movie’s evil nemesis. We’re guessing this was all done to keep most of the story secret, as Pixar likes to do. But now a few stills and a brand…

Movies Meredith Woerner

The 55 States of America: 5 places that could become U.S. States in your lifetime

Alaska and Hawaii became the last additions to the United States in 1959. Why has the United States failed to add another state in over five decades? In Watchmen, Vietnam becomes the 51st State, while former Presidential candidate Newt Gingrinch called for the Moon to be the 51st state. What are some realistic candidates for…

io9 Keith Veronese

Plans for the third and final Star Trek movie are already underway!

The makers of the new Star Trek movies are feeling so pumped about their series, they’re already talking about a third installment while the second is still in post-production. In an interview with TrekMovie, Star Trek producer and screenwriter Damon Lindelof explained that they’ve already got ideas for Star Trek 3: We certainly don’t feel…

Movies Meredith Woerner

Would the word association test we saw in the Skyfall trailer actually work?

In the trailer for Skyfall, the new James Bond movie, 007 sits in an interrogation room blurting out answers to a word-association test, while his superiors gravely watch. What psychological insights do these people hope to gain from this — other than finding the limits of Bond’s patience? Find out the rationale behind these word…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

Scientists make “frankensquitos” to test vampire jumping spiders

Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between a science experiment and a scene in a splatter movie. To conduct some ghoulish tests on spiders, scientists constructed forests of “frankensquitos” — made from parts hacked off their mosquito compatriots. “What did you do today, dear?” These are the words that you never want to ask a scientist.…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

Ethical questions emerge after baby’s genome sequenced while still in the womb

Scientists have successfully sequenced a baby’s entire genome while it was still in the womb — and without interfering with its protective sac. This non-invasive breakthrough could have profound implications for prenatal screening practices, and the potential elimination of genetic disorders. Scientists working at the University of Washington took maternal blood samples 18 weeks into…

io9 George Dvorsky

Safety Not Guaranteed: You owe it to yourself to see this movie

Safety Not Guaranteed sounds incredibly gimmicky at first — a whole movie based on an internet meme. Someone placed an ad (in real life) in a magazine in 1997, saying “Wanted: Someone to Go Back in Time With Me.” And now, it’s a movie. You could easily imagine this turning into something annoyingly quirky and…

Movies Charlie Jane Anders

Stephen King’s It gets a two-part movie deal

We don’t know how to feel about this news. Tim Curry’s Pennywise in the 1990 It miniseries was pure and simple nightmare fuel. But it’s a damn shame Pennywise and his penchant for pulling children’s arms off through a sewer drain haven’t been immortalized on the big screen. Now Warner Bros. is looking to give…

Movies Meredith Woerner

This could be our best view yet of the earliest objects in the Universe

NASA researchers have detected the faint glow of what they believe to be the first stars and galaxies to form in the aftermath of the Big Bang — and it’s positively stunning. If the team’s findings are correct, they could offer valuable insight into the nature of the Universe’s very first objects. The observations were…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez

Could the “Touch of Death” work in real life?

You’ve seen Kill Bill’s five-finger death punch, and watched Spock perform the Vulcan nerve grip a million times. Are these techniques merely fiction — or could someone mysteriously subdue an attacker with a single skilled blow? One martial arts technique has earned the name “Touch of Death” — but is such a maneuver really possible?…

io9 Keith Veronese

More People Pirate Game of Thrones Than Watch Game of Thrones on HBO

According to TorrentFreak, Game of Thrones averages around 3.9 million pirated downloads per episode. According to the great Internet resource known as Wikipedia, only 3.8 million people watch Game of Thrones on HBO. That means more people pirate the show than actually watch the show on TV. To no one’s surprise, Game of Thrones is…

Television Casey Chan

This deathbed robot is like having GLaDOS for a nurse

We live in an era in which androids are being considered for hospice care, so artist Dan Chen has created a machine that eases the dying into the great beyond — with the brutal efficiency of an ATM. This is the “End of Life Care Machine,” an automated companion who ushers you into the void…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Great Children’s Books That Look Death in the Eye

Watching this scientist sample lava from an active volcano will make your heart race

Snow White and the Huntsman gets a completely unnecessary sequel

Game of Thrones meets Beauty and the Beast: My Vision of Sansa and the Hound

Six decades of U.S. tornadoes visualized in one stunning map

New chemical circuits make becoming a cyborg even cooler

The 22 rules of storytelling, according to Pixar

The Goofiest Old Timey Spirit Portraits Ever Photographed

Finally! The villain of Pixar’s Brave is revealed!

The 55 States of America: 5 places that could become U.S. States in your lifetime

Plans for the third and final Star Trek movie are already underway!

Would the word association test we saw in the Skyfall trailer actually work?

Scientists make “frankensquitos” to test vampire jumping spiders

Ethical questions emerge after baby’s genome sequenced while still in the womb

Safety Not Guaranteed: You owe it to yourself to see this movie

Stephen King’s It gets a two-part movie deal

This could be our best view yet of the earliest objects in the Universe

Could the “Touch of Death” work in real life?

More People Pirate Game of Thrones Than Watch Game of Thrones on HBO

This deathbed robot is like having GLaDOS for a nurse

Tesla Goes Ahead and Admits Its Robotaxis Are Sometimes Fully Human-Controlled

School Forced to Replace Toilets After Kids Flush Vapes

‘Scream 7’ Just Won’t Stop Making Money as ‘Scream 8’ Gets Started

The Curtain Has Closed on Meta’s Movie Rating-Inspired Content Filters

Good News! You Can Finally Change That Ridiculous Gmail Address

ExpressVPN Just Launched ExpressAI: Your Prompts Are Now Invisible

VR Just Took Another Massive Body Blow

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

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

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