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Disney Releases a Lovely Tribute to Late Descendants Star Cameron Boyce

Recently, Cameron Boyce, a young actor known for his role in Disney Channel work like the series Jessie and the Descendants movies, passed away due to complications from epilepsy. Now, alongside the release of the third Descendants film, Boyce’s last acting role, Disney has released a heartfelt tribute video celebrating the actor and his work.…

io9 Julie Muncy Aug 3 '19

Amazon Adds Option to Keep Contractors From Eavesdropping on Your Alexa Requests

Alexa users who don’t want their recordings reviewed by third-party contractors finally have an option to opt-out thanks to a new Amazon policy implemented amid mounting criticism against the company and its voice assistant competitors, Apple and Google. This policy took effect Friday, Bloomberg reported, adding a new disclaimer in the Alexa app’s settings menu…

Commerce Alyse Stanley Aug 3 '19

It’s Time to Fix, Er, Time With a New Back to the Future Board Game [Updated]

“Great Scott!” would be the cliche thing to say here, and I don’t want to give in to cliche. But how can I not throw down a Great Scott at a time like this? From Ravensburger, the people who have also made board games based on Jurassic Park and Jaws comes a new board game—not…

Games Julie Muncy Aug 3 '19

With the Help of Legos, This Video Explores a Series of Silly Star Wars What-Ifs

What if Anakin forgot to eat breakfast the day of the podrace? What if he became Darth Vader way, way earlier? A delightful new video explores the silliest Star Wars what-ifs, from the mouth of babes and the art of Lego. The video, courtesy of Star Wars Kids, is narrated by a series of kids…

Movies Julie Muncy Aug 3 '19

Facebook Will Attach Its Name to Instagram and WhatsApp, for Some Reason

Incredible. Despite a seemingly endless wave of ongoing public relations crises for Facebook, the social media giant appears prepared to foist its baggage onto two of its considerably less troubled subsidiaries—WhatsApp and Instagram—by attaching its name to their companies. Citing sources familiar with the matter, the Information reported Thursday that Facebook is looking to rebrand…

Social Media Catie Keck Aug 3 '19

eBay Is Suing Amazon Over Claims It Engaged in Illegal ‘Conspiracy’ to Poach Sellers

Online marketplace eBay is again taking legal action against Amazon, claiming that managers at the e-commerce behemoth directed employees to actively and illegally pursue sellers on eBay’s platform to lure them to Amazon’s own. The suit, filed this week in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, is the latest development…

Commerce Catie Keck Aug 2 '19

The Weirdest Detective Pikachu Meme Now Has a Plush, and More Peculiar Toys of the Week

Welcome back to Toy Aisle, io9’s regular round up of the cool toys that have an eye on reducing the amount of pennies in our piggy banks. This week: Japan’s weirdest Pikachu meme in a while gets its own plush, Figuarts takes on old Han and old Luke, NECA gets video game-y with the Ninja…

Toys & Collectibles Andrew Liszewski Aug 2 '19

Guillermo del Toro Is Assembling an Impressive Cast for His Follow-Up to The Shape of Water

Fans of Guillermo del Toro’s unique brand of atmosphere and tone get excited whenever he releases a new project. But that excitement now extends well beyond just his diehard fans, considering he’s coming off Oscars for Best Director and Best Picture. So all eyes are on del Toro’s next film, Nightmare Alley, which had some…

Movies Germain Lussier Aug 2 '19

Twitter Under Fire Again for Failing to Ban White Supremacists as Charlottesville Anniversary Nears

With the anniversary of the deadly 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, approaching, Twitter is facing increased pressure from a nationwide coalition of civil rights organizations to once and for all take a stand against the white supremacists that operate freely on its platform. Facebook and YouTube have taken (with mixed results) at…

Tech Policy Dell Cameron Aug 2 '19

Why Doesn’t Trump Tell Us About the Aliens?

It may be the most important and least talked about question of our era. In the last few years, we’ve seen the U.S. government be more open about encounters that members of its services have had with unidentified flying objects and its efforts to fully investigate such incidents, leading to all kinds of speculation about…

Politics Rhett Jones Aug 2 '19

Juul Heist Thwarted by Lyft Driver, Cops Also

Many things stand in the way of successfully pulling off an Ocean’s 11-style caper, among which picking an appropriate target and having an exit strategy are paramount. Climbing info a Lyft after stealing a $43 vape kit in broad daylight from a store clerk that can identify you on sight probably puts you in the…

Tech News Avery Ellis Aug 2 '19

Wisconsin Health Officials Urge People to Stop Vaping After a Sudden and Mysterious Rise in Lung Disease

More people hospitalized with serious lung problems linked to vaping have been found, Wisconsin health officials reported Friday. Last week, health officials reported eight cases of this strange cluster, all involving teens. The cases now involve teens and young adults. According to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, 11 cases have been identified (including the…

Health Ed Cara Aug 2 '19

Legendary’s Sure Hoping to Make Pacific Rim Theme Park Rides a Thing

Galaxy’s Edge fever has seemingly inspired every movie studio to fast-track whatever franchise they can into an immersive theme park experience. Just this week Universal announced its vague intent for a new, presumably licensee-packed “Epic” land. Marvel’s making its way over to Disneyland. And now…Pacific Rim is heading to Indonesia? Entertainment Weekly has word of a…

Movies James Whitbrook Aug 2 '19

Scientists Discover New Bug Species Because of Its Weird Dick

A nearly 500-acre cemetery cuts through west Brooklyn, featuring rolling hills that produce some of the city’s most spectacular vistas and a surprising variety of plant and animal diversity. Here, scientists have recently discovered an entirely new species of beetle based on its weird-shaped dick. Though perhaps most famous for its rats, New York is…

Biology Ryan F. Mandelbaum Aug 2 '19

Should Artificial Intelligence Be Credited as an Inventor?

A collaborative research team claims their artificially intelligent system should be recognized as the rightful inventor of two innovative designs, in a potentially disruptive development in patent law. Patent law is complicated even at the best of times, but a new project led by researchers from the University of Surrey could make it more convoluted…

Artificial Intelligence George Dvorsky Aug 2 '19

Can I Get This ATM Testing Robot to Touch the Filthy Machines For Me?

You’ve probably seen robots testing products like furniture and car parts before, performing endless repetitive tasks to ensure whatever’s being tested won’t quickly break once in the hand of consumers. But according to this video from ABB, there are even robots designed to torture test fully assembled ATMs. Just watching it in action makes me…

Gadgets Andrew Liszewski Aug 2 '19

This Satellite Image Shows Everything Wrong With Greenland Right Now

If you could sum up climate change’s impact on the Arctic in one image, you’d be hard pressed to find something better than this satellite view, which shows the meltdown of one of the largest stores of ice on Earth while a wildfire rages in the distance. Here it is, below, courtesy of satellite image…

Climate Change Brian Kahn Aug 2 '19

Jim Carrey Shares Concerns About the ‘Collective Consciousness’ That Led to Sonic Redesign

Sonic has gotta go fast, but did the decision to redesign the hedgehog maybe happen too fast? Jim Carrey, who plays the evil Dr. Robotnik in the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog movie, said the fandom response that resulted in director Jeff Fowler delaying the release to rework the character is the sort of thing that…

Movies Beth Elderkin Aug 2 '19

The Halo TV Show Just Cast Two—Actually, Three—Very Interesting Characters

We’ve known for a bit that the Halo adaptation coming to Showtime would not be an exactly faithful recreation of the beloved sci-fi shooter series. But it’s just cast two characters that will perk up the ears of both Halo-lore casuals and diehard fans alike. EW reports that Natascha McElhone, Bokeem Woodbine, Shabana Azmi, Bentley…

io9 James Whitbrook Aug 2 '19

Cobra’s Expensive New Dashcam Let Me Avoid Speed Traps

In a world of hidden speed cameras, insurance scams, and daily dents and dings, putting some protection on your dashboard is a prudent move. But plugging in a radar detector and then also adding a video camera with its sundry of dangling wires and suction attachments creates a mess—and more blind spots than is, well,…

Other Gadgets John R. Quain Aug 2 '19

Disney Releases a Lovely Tribute to Late Descendants Star Cameron Boyce

Amazon Adds Option to Keep Contractors From Eavesdropping on Your Alexa Requests

It’s Time to Fix, Er, Time With a New Back to the Future Board Game [Updated]

With the Help of Legos, This Video Explores a Series of Silly Star Wars What-Ifs

Facebook Will Attach Its Name to Instagram and WhatsApp, for Some Reason

eBay Is Suing Amazon Over Claims It Engaged in Illegal ‘Conspiracy’ to Poach Sellers

The Weirdest Detective Pikachu Meme Now Has a Plush, and More Peculiar Toys of the Week

Guillermo del Toro Is Assembling an Impressive Cast for His Follow-Up to The Shape of Water

Twitter Under Fire Again for Failing to Ban White Supremacists as Charlottesville Anniversary Nears

Why Doesn’t Trump Tell Us About the Aliens?

Juul Heist Thwarted by Lyft Driver, Cops Also

Wisconsin Health Officials Urge People to Stop Vaping After a Sudden and Mysterious Rise in Lung Disease

Legendary’s Sure Hoping to Make Pacific Rim Theme Park Rides a Thing

Scientists Discover New Bug Species Because of Its Weird Dick

Should Artificial Intelligence Be Credited as an Inventor?

Can I Get This ATM Testing Robot to Touch the Filthy Machines For Me?

This Satellite Image Shows Everything Wrong With Greenland Right Now

Jim Carrey Shares Concerns About the ‘Collective Consciousness’ That Led to Sonic Redesign

The Halo TV Show Just Cast Two—Actually, Three—Very Interesting Characters

Cobra’s Expensive New Dashcam Let Me Avoid Speed Traps

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