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Senator Franken Continues Taking Names in Carrier IQ Inquest—Ass Kicking to Begin Shortly

As head of the Senate’s privacy panel, Senator Al Franken has spearheaded the investigation into Carrier IQ’s potential violations of multiple federal statutes. Now, he’s requested AT&T, Sprint, HTC, and Samsung explain themselves as to what data, exactly, they’ve gathered using the program. They’ve until December 14th to respond. [Electronista]

Gadgets Andrew Tarantola

FBI Agent Playset—For Teaching Kids That the Most Important Part of Law Enforcement Involves Beatings and Restraints

It’s funny, when I was a kid there was a huge move away from realistic toy guns—and playing “guns” in general. Now apparently the pendulum has swung back: you can buy your kid a 15-plus-inch toy baton and handcuffs for playing “FBI.” Granted, in addition to the baton and cuffs, the playset also includes a…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

FDA Approves Silver Bullet for Hangovers

It’s 1pm. You’re still in bed, having already muttered some lame excuse to your boss as to why you aren’t in to work today, chugged a liter of water, half a bottle of aspirin, AND TWO GALLONS OF COFFEE but no dice. When all else fails, this new FDA-approved cure might help. The new wunderpill…

Health Andrew Tarantola

How to Legally Rob a Bank

Sneakers, the film about a team of hackers and social engineers who break into banks to test their security, isn’t just a film. People really do get to do that for a living—people like Moran Cerf. Here’s how he held up a bank without breaking a law. Side note: Sneakers. Fantabulous film. Robert Redford, Sidney…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

This May Be the Most Surreal Building Ever Created

Why is this forest floating 1000 feet above Taiwan’s skyline, apparently sitting on a blue glow of anti-gravity beams? It’s the Taiwan Tower, a giant steel superstructure that may become the most surreal piece of engineering I’ve ever seen. The renderings give you an idea of how weird and wonderful this thing will be. It…

Tech News Jesus Diaz

The Next Time You’re Drowning, You’d Better Hope One of These Is Nearby

Dragging a body any distance is tough enough on land, much less while swimming. And the faster you land that person, the more likely you are to resuscitate him. Unfortunately, most conventional life-saving equipment is either slow moving, like kick-boards, or slow launching, like wave-runners. Hence, the Asap Water Rescue Craft. The AWRC is based…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

Tout—The New Obnoxious Way to Tell if People Are Reading Your Emails

Anybody who’s worked in a cubicle is familiar the Outlook Request Read Receipt—that horrid popup that demands you confirm you have indeed read (and summarily deleted) the TPS report Ted from accounting had sent out. Now, Tout, a new email tracking app, does the same. Huzzah? Tout is pretty straight forward. Compose and send a…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola

‘Inhuman Microphone’ App Circumvents Occupy Wall Street’s Megaphone Ban

One of the most recognizable hallmarks of the Occupy Wall Street movement has been its “human microphone,” a technique through which protesters make speeches louder without the use of megaphones, which are banned from the protests. (Amplifying sound outdoors requires a permit in New York.) The concept behind the human microphone is simple: The crowd…

Tech News Eliot Van Buskirk - Evolver.fm

Google’s Nerdiest Move Ever: Now It’s a Graphing Calculator!

If you’re neck-deep in math work, or just nostalgic for the high school days of your TI-83+, fire up the big G: it’ll now serve you as a graphing calculator. Time to make sine waves! It’s pretty simple—plug in your formula of choice—say, x/3, (x/2)^2, ln(x), cos(pi*x/200)—and explore your graph a la Google Maps. Zoom…

Tech News Sam Biddle

What Was the First Typeface On the Moon?

First, there was Neil. Then it was Buzz. And then there was Futura, which, unlike Neil and Buzz, stayed behind in Mare Tranquillitatis as part of a plaque commemorating humanity’s first landing on the Moon: Here men from the planet Earth first set foot upon the Moon. July 1969, A.D. We came in peace for…

Space & Spaceflight Jesus Diaz

My Sh*t Got Stolen. Or Why You Need Renter’s Insurance

I was sitting at my desk when my phone rang. It was my wife, “We’ve been robbed.” Someone had broken into our garage and taken our bikes. We’re not avid bikers. We didn’t have bikes that cost more than my first car. Still, the combined loss was about $800. The police were about as helpful…

Tech News Roberto Baldwin

The Most Perfectest Hamburger in the World Makes My Mouth Orgasm

Seeing Chef Maxime Bilet talk about how the Modernist Cuisine created the most ultimate hamburger in this entire world makes me cry happy meat tears. Everything was scientifically considered, from the fluffy bun and lab made cheese to the sous-viding and cryofrying process. I’ll go vegetarian for you, baby. Hamburgers are my favorite food in…

Tech News Casey Chan

Six Tools to Help Terrorize Children During Krampusnacht

Oh man, do you know what tonight is? IT’S KRAMPUSNACHT!!! Wait, you mean you’ve never heard of Krampusnacht? It’s only the most amazing day of the holiday season. First things first, you should read this and this. Yes, Krampusnacht is the night in which Krampus, a cloven-hoofed demon gets piss-drunk and terrorizes children who have…

Tech News Adrian Covert

Home Warming Gifts for People Who Just Moved In

If someone you know just recently moved into an apartment or house or cardboard box, well, they’re going to have a lot of empty space to fill. And as a friend, it’s your duty to warm that house up with stuff. Why? So when you crash there, you’ll feel less guilty. I BOUGHT YOU THAT…

Tech News Casey Chan

Watch Eclectic Method Perform at Gizmodo Gallery LIVE at 8:30PM

Show’s over! Tonight night we’re celebrating the launch of Gizmodo Gallery with an opening party, and we’ve invited A/V remix maestros the Eclectic Method to shower us with their electronic weirdness-and you can watch the performance at 8:30pm LIVE from the Gizmodo Gallery Santa Claw feed. Eclectic Method and Gizmodo Gallery are a match made…

Tech News Mario Aguilar

Kodak Is a Walking Corpse of a Company and That Makes Us Sad

Oh, Kodak, once the acme of all things camera, now a stark lesson in Darwinism in technology. You adapt and evolve, or you die. It was revealed today that Kodak is shedding more than $70 million a month. Let’s hold hands. Kodak insists there is no impending bankrupcy, and that they have $862 million in…

Tech News Brent Rose

Carrier IQ Software May Not Record Messages But It’s a Privacy Risk

According to security consultant Dan Rosenberg, the Carrier IQ spyware in his Samsung Epic 4G is not recording his text keystrokes. Rosenberg also claims that Carrier IQ cannot record SMS text bodies, emails or web page contents: CarrierIQ cannot record SMS text bodies, web page contents, or email content even if carriers and handset manufacturers…

Tech News Jesus Diaz

Streaming Movie of the Night: Fireplace For Your Home (AKA The Reason to Reactivate That Netflix Account!)

I know your relationship with Netflix is a bit tempestuous, but it’s time to put all that behind you. Just in time for the holiday season, there’s now a Yule Log—sitting in a fireplace, soaked in flames—streaming in HIGH DEFINITION. Who’s in it? Technically nobody. But if you’re one for anthropomorphism, then Fireplace For Your…

Movies Adrian Covert

Driver Drowsiness Checker Watches Your Facial Muscles Instead of Your Eyes

Improving on existing systems that only watch a driver’s eyes for signs of fatigue, Denso has created a drowsiness level checker that tracks subtle muscle movements over their entire face. Alerting them that they’re too tired before they fall asleep. A camera installed on the steering column is pointed at the driver’s face, while the…

Tech News Andrew Liszewski

Picture of the Day: December 5, 2011

SPACEPORT FEVER | Detail of Sparth’s beautiful cover for The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year, Volume 6. See the whole thing here. Want to read today’s io9 stories a different way? Check out our blog view. Or visit Observation Deck, our general discussion forum.

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

Senator Franken Continues Taking Names in Carrier IQ Inquest—Ass Kicking to Begin Shortly

FBI Agent Playset—For Teaching Kids That the Most Important Part of Law Enforcement Involves Beatings and Restraints

FDA Approves Silver Bullet for Hangovers

How to Legally Rob a Bank

This May Be the Most Surreal Building Ever Created

The Next Time You’re Drowning, You’d Better Hope One of These Is Nearby

Tout—The New Obnoxious Way to Tell if People Are Reading Your Emails

‘Inhuman Microphone’ App Circumvents Occupy Wall Street’s Megaphone Ban

Google’s Nerdiest Move Ever: Now It’s a Graphing Calculator!

What Was the First Typeface On the Moon?

My Sh*t Got Stolen. Or Why You Need Renter’s Insurance

The Most Perfectest Hamburger in the World Makes My Mouth Orgasm

Six Tools to Help Terrorize Children During Krampusnacht

Home Warming Gifts for People Who Just Moved In

Watch Eclectic Method Perform at Gizmodo Gallery LIVE at 8:30PM

Kodak Is a Walking Corpse of a Company and That Makes Us Sad

Carrier IQ Software May Not Record Messages But It’s a Privacy Risk

Streaming Movie of the Night: Fireplace For Your Home (AKA The Reason to Reactivate That Netflix Account!)

Driver Drowsiness Checker Watches Your Facial Muscles Instead of Your Eyes

Picture of the Day: December 5, 2011

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