A new drug called SRT1720 can give you more endurance and make you lose weight. According to researchers, mice who took it could run twice as long, plus they didn’t gain weight on a high-fat diet. The drug works by tricking your body into thinking that it’s starving, so it goes into fat-burning mode. [via…

Flash If You Love Wookiees And The New Fanboys Trailer

The adorable Jay Baruchel, Kristen Bell and the rest of their stereotypical nerd-boy crew embark on the dangerous mission of breaking into George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch, in the new trailer for Kyle Newman’s Fanboys. It looks like your standard haphazard road trip comedy — but with a killer list of cameos that caters to fan-dorks…

A Scientific Reason Why You Can’t Stop Yourself from Saying “Oh Shit!”

When you make an error in speech, saying “personal breast” instead of “personal best,” there’s an instant feeling of “oh shit” in your brain. And when you make a mistake like tripping, you often can’t stop yourself from saying “oh shit!” out loud — even if you’re in front of your nice grandmother. Now a…

Mutant Monkeys Get Busy

Over at Fashionably Geek, Sean Fallon points out that Loiter has a great new shirt that teaches both safety and giant gorilla love. If you’re going to get with a big guy like Kong, that’s no excuse to neglect the rubber, kids. And there’s more. It’s the scifi monkey barbershop quartet, featuring Harry, Teenwolf, Cornelius…

Captain Fantastic Is Our New Hero!

A 19-year-old Brit has changed his name, legally, to Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine Hulk And The Flash Combined. The former George Garratt says he “wanted to be unique,” but sadly his grandmother is no longer talking to him. He’s believed to have the longest name in the world, longer than Rhoshandiatellyneshiaunneveshenk…

George Romero and Zombies Go Together Like Chocolate and Brains

Here’s a shot from Romero’s next untitled zombie project which I think he should call Sorry About The Whole Zombie Diary Thing, I’m Back. Click to enlarge. [USA Today]

This Week’s Comics Offer Destruction, High Quality Escapism

No matter which candidate wins or loses, new comics will still hit stores tomorrow (Or, you know, Thursday if you live outside of the US). It gives you that much-needed sense of perspective, doesn’t it? And in case you need to drown your electoral sorrows, this week’s releases are full of quality escapism for anyone.…

Walmart Clearing Out CDs/DVDs to Make Room for Electronics, Games and Blu-ray?

It’s good or bad news, depending how you look at it. But according to analyst Richard Greenfield, Walmart is “increasing its exposure to consumer electronics, video games and Blu-ray, and reducing floor space devoted to CDs and standard DVDs.” This quarter, Walmart has seen a 23% decline in CD sales, so bowing to MP3 momentum…

Science Fiction That Caused Political Change

Ronald Reagan, Winston Churchill, and Eugene Debs all had one thing in common: they were fans of science fiction. More than that, they all used scifi at one point or another to shape their political actions and views. From presidents and prime ministers to ordinary citizens looking for change, many people have turned to science…

Absentee Ballots — In Space!

Think you’re facing long lines at your local polling place? At least you aren’t casting your vote from over 200 miles above the Earth’s surface. Astronauts E. Michael Fincke and Gregory Chamitoff will be voting from the International Space Station today, and their right to do it is the result of a relatively new law.Astronauts…

“Monsters Versus Aliens” Trailer Makes Us Blobby With Joy

B-Movie monsters activate! Three cheers for Aliens vs. Monsters, a good, old-fashioned Dreamworks flick about a group of goofy American monsters sent to defeat invading aliens. Many of my favorite actors are in it (Stephen Colbert plays the President to the United States and Will Arnett voices The Missing Link). Plus it’s got all the…

Transhumanist Tech Is A Boner Pill That Sets Up a Firewall Against Billy Joel

Futurist, prankster, and one-time presidential candidate R.U. Sirius just launched his latest magazine, H+, which is devoted to a transhumanist vision of the future. Though a lot of futurism these days could easily be called dystopianism, the future that Sirius shows us in H+ is hopeful, full of cool futuristic gadgets and genetic cures for…

The Crazy Face Transplant That Made Benjamin Button Possible

Ever take a closer look at all the tiny old man baby stills from David Fincher’s new backwards aging tale The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button? Did you find yourself remarking at how the little old man resembled the younger (looking) bigger and taller version that Brad Pitt plays? That’s because new special effects technology…

Vote Lando For Leader Of The Galaxy

Okay, I know; you’re probably sick of the election by now. But we have two pieces of information that may swing your vote at the last minute. First, Billy Dee Williams taking on the mantle of Lando Calrissian for the first time in 25 years. Secondly, Admiral Ackbar. Click through for the last election ads…

The Next Wave Of Otherworldly Presidents

“The function of a black president in film and TV has largely been used to signify some sort of alternate reality. It often shows up in various forms of science-fiction or fantasy, whether we’re talking about The Fifth Element or O Presidente Negro. Now, if Obama wins, I’m guessing that we’ll have to see science…

Locke’s Nasty Run-In, And A Shocking Death On Heroes

Let spoilers enrich your information diet. Today, we’ve got a cryptic title of a Transformers 2 tie-in book, plus some new deets about Repo! The Genetic Opera. There are also a ton of spoilers for Heroes, including rumors of the most shocking death yet. (Which may even be permanent.) Learn about a new batch of…

The Greatest Characters Come From The Weirdest Worlds, Says Eileen Gunn

Click to viewBelievable characters go hand-in-hand with surreal futuristic worlds, says Eileen Gunn, author of Stable Strategies And Others and founder of the speculative webzine Infinite Matrix. Writing about a realistic future world or alien planet can seem like an insurmountable challenge, and so can putting believable characters into that setting — but you can…

Imagine an America Where Socialism is No Longer a Dirty Word

When I was a kid in mega-conservative Orange County, calling somebody a commie was like calling them evil: It was a term nobody understood, and therefore it meant everything amorphously bad. People didn’t use words like “socialist” or “unionist” — it was just commie, or maybe (in my town) commie faggot. That’s why these days…

Seth Green Spills All About His Directorial Debut, “The Freshmen”

From his role as the as the unflappable werewolf Oz on Buffy the Vampire Slayer to his part in co-creating TV’s lo-fi nerd-satire Robot Chicken, Seth Green has almost effortlessly amassed an adoring fanbase. The actor hopes to expand on that niche appeal with his first directorial effort for the big screen, an upcoming adaptation…

True Blood Gives Us A Vampire-Killing Tutorial

This week on True Blood, even more hell broke loose and we learned what happens to our vampy friends when they get staked. It’s a brilliant mix of vomit and blood that only True Blood knows how to deliver. Also we had a heart to heart with friendly old gay vamp Eddie, played by Stephen…