Ultrathin, Rubbery Circuits Bring Us One Step Closer to Google Brain Implants

A new kind of computer circuit printed on ultrathin rubber would make the perfect “brain wrapper,” says its inventor. Usually computer circuits are etched on rigid, plastic boards, but University of Illinois researcher John Rogers has successfully placed circuits on a rubbery material that can bend and stretch. Many groups have been working on developing…

Transdimensional Murder Mystery, Coming Soon

A gritty detective show that spans three different alternate universes is finally coming to the Sci Fi Channel in the U.S. Charlie Jade starts with a murder whose victim has no identity whatsoever, which is unthinkable in the dystopian, corporate-dominated world where Charlie Jade lives. And then in the course of the murder investigation, Charlie…

When (Microscopic) Blood Vessels Explode

The Wellcome Trust, a medical research charity, has just announced the winners of its 2008 imaging contest. Above is my favorite, a picture of a microscopic blood vessel that has ruptured. You can see single red blood cells slowly leaking out. This was taken by Anne Weston, with a scanning electron micrograph. She says the…

Yet Another Former Who Wants Back

Proof that Tom Baker knows a bandwagon when he sees one, the former Doctor Who (and Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) remake) star has announced that he, too, would be willing to appear in the next season of the BBC’s time-travelling series, if anyone’s asking. Baker, who’s definitely “my” Doctor (Even now, I find myself wondering…

Far Out SciFi Worlds of Sid and Marty Krofft

Brothers Sid and Marty Krofft first came to fame with their touring puppet show “Les Poupées de Paris” in the 1970s which featured topless puppets, and puppet-on-puppet sex long before Avenue Q or Team America. They later made the move to television with the trippy H.R. Pufnstuf in 1969, which they swear was not drug…

Postapocalyptic Images Made Out of Food

Photoimagist Carl Warner depicts what the apocalypse and beyond might look like in a captivating series of food shots staged to look like scenery. In this piece, a black olive-and-watermelon ship sails through a sea of cabbage seeking revenge on vegetarians who have virtually annihilated the entire fruit and vegetable population. More vegetable landscapes below.…

Make your voice heard, in possibly the most democratic set of science fiction awards of all. The Locus Awards are accepting your votes — including write-in votes for things not on the ballot — until April 15. You don’t have to pay anything, attend a convention, or even subscribe to Locus Magazine to vote. As…

Battlestar Finale Rewritten, Depressing

Click to viewThe best thing about the recent WGA strike? It gave Battlestar Galactica writers the chance to rethink and rewrite the entire second half of their final season, according to showrunner Ron Moore, saving us from episodes with titles called “Oh Jesus, Can I Have Five More Minutes? No? Okay, Then, This Time Around…

Sexually Transmitted Zombie Parasites From Space (NSFW)

Last year’s zero-budget movie Days of Darkness is a vital addition to the canon of zombie penis movies, as you’ll see from our collection of the grossest parts. The last survivors of a zombie outbreak, holed up in a bunker, discover that the zombies aren’t really classic old-school zombies, but rather victims of a sexually…

A Spaceship On Fire Off The Shoulder Of Orion

Actually, we aren’t sure if this is Orion, but we just couldn’t pass up a nice Blade Runner reference. This spaceship or space station looks like it’s been attacked and is about to fall victim to the gravity of the planet below, and it couldn’t be more beautiful. John Berkey is one of those old-school…

The Mountain Goats Explain Why Ozzy Osbourne Is A Scifi Visionary

We were excited to interview folk/rock singer John Darnielle, from The Mountain Goats, because his songs had always seemed like the perfect alternative science fiction soundtrack to us. Maybe it’s the way they wrap otherworldly tropes, including alien invasions, in with their alienated ballads. Their latest album includes a song about H.P. Lovecraft, and Darnielle’s…

What Novels Span The Most Aeons?

Forget about story, or character development. When it comes to selecting your science fiction reading material, you want a story that spans millions of years, if not billions. Or why not trillions, while you’re at it? A truly grand space saga needs a lot of elbow room across history to unveil its cosmic events. So…

Navy Initiates a Five-Year Plan to Build Laser Blasters

Long range laser weapons that do more than make little red dots show up on distant objects have long been a dream of science fiction creators and the military alike. Now it looks like a true, long-range laser blasting weapon may be ready for action within the next five years. The Navy is ponying up…

The Only Presidential Candidate We’re Pretty Sure Isn’t A Cylon

Who do you want to take that three A.M. phone call saying the Cylons have attacked and it’s time to rush down to the C.I.C.? Forget Clinton, Obama or McCain. (Or even Roslin/Airlock.) The only presidential candidate we can really trust is Admiral Adama from Battlestar Galactica, according to a grass-roots write-in campaign. We ran…

Heavy Geek Music from Goblin Cock to Filk

I am totally in love with this band Goblin Cock, whose entire goal in life is to sing about geeky topics in a register that can only be described as Spinal Tappian. This video from their song “Stumped” contains every possible great thing: druids, comic book stores, women’s softball, robots, and street fights. I guess…

Furore, a Fur Substitute, is Next-Gen Polyester

Rayon and polyester better step aside. There’s a new synthetic fabric in town, and it’s softer, lighter, and more flexible than any of its predecessors. Designers Yvonne Laurysen and Erik Mantel collaborated to create furore, a porous material reminiscent of expanded metal. It comes long and bushy or short and smooth, and can be dyed…

Secret Invasion Becoming Less So

Who do you trust? Well, that decision has been made a little easier for you with the start of Marvel’s Secret Invasion publicity blitz, which includes a “you have to sign up for a $9.99 membership to read it” preview comic and the first ten pages of the first issue going online at Entertainment Weekly’s…

Dollhouse Filled With New Dolls, Old (Battle)Stars

Fans of Battlestar Galactica’s Tahmoh Penikett – the overly-sensitive toaster-lover Helo – shouldn’t worry about him disappearing from their scifi screens when that show’s final episodes air. He’s one of a number of actors who’ve just been announced for Joss Whedon’s new Dollhouse series, set to premiere in the fall on Fox. Penikett will play…

A Vector Map of the Unnamed Methane Sea on Titan

Peter Minton is a California teacher who loves to make vector maps in his spare time. His favorite places to map are islands and coastlines, and so when the Cassini-Huygens probe sent back images from Saturn’s moon Titan he was happy to discover the geographical features he loves most. There, on the pole of Titan,…

Find Out What Scares Scully In X-Files 2

Here’s a new trailer for X-Files 2, which was shown at Paley Fest yesterday. It includes way more of Mulder and Scully than the version shown at Wondercon. Sadly, though, it’s another migraine-inducing cameraphone copy. Incredibly minor spoilers below. Once again we see the footage of Billy Connolly leading a small army of FBI agents…