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Human-Caused Earthquakes Are So Common That US Geologists Had to Change Their Maps

For the first time ever, the United States Geological Survey has published earthquake hazard maps that includes both human-induced as well as naturally occurring earthquakes. USGS maps had previously only featured natural earthquake hazards, but thanks to the alarming rise of man-made quakes, the scientific body has now started to track both kinds. Published on…

Arctic Sea Ice Hits Another Terrifying Milestone

Another day, another scientific analysis revealing our unstoppable impact on planet Earth. Arctic sea ice coverage peaked at 5.607 million square miles this year, a wintertime low since our satellites began monitoring sea ice extent in 1979. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. The wintertime Arctic sea ice extent has been shrinking for years—in fact,…

This Week’s TV: The Backstreet Boys-NSYNC Zombie Movie You Always Craved

Select members of The Backstreet Boys, N*Sync, 98 Degrees and O-Town battle zombies in the old West! The Flash crosses over to Supergirl! Wynona Earp premieres on Syfy! Archer returns for another season! All this, and the feature-length season finale of The Walking Dead, all on this week’s TV! Tonight Teen Titans Go! (6PM, CARTOON)…

A Massive Alaskan Volcano Eruption Could Throw the US Into Travel Chaos

A very active volcano erupted in Alaska yesterday afternoon, sending a giant ash cloud up 37,000 feet in the air. Although the eruption is diverting some flights in the area, it will likely only serve as the subject of some beautiful photos—unless a bunch of ash gets sucked into the jet stream. Located at the…

A Stunning Aerial View of Salmon Migration

Here’s a lovely view of a salmon run in Lake Iliamna, Alaska. Just being able to see the rivers filled with salmon from up above is incredible, it’s just packed to the brim with fish. It’s also pretty cool to be able to track all the different areas the salmon are in, from the mouth…

Jonah Hex Knows Exactly How to Get People Watching Legends of Tomorrow

It’s by punching Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill) in the face. Hey, if Jonah Hex (Johnathon Schaech) delivering this justly deserved bit of frontier justice to the rogue Time Master doesn’t get you on board for this show, nothing will. On a sliding scale between dark/gritty and wild/goofy, Legends of Tomorrow definitely leans towards the latter.…

How Effects Artists Make Fake Wounds Look Real

Even the most dedicated of method actors usually aren’t keen on having half their face blown off for a role. So where do they turn to when they need to look battle-worn and bloody? A very talented props department. In this video, YouTubers Freakmo and Powdah team up to make a super gross infected knee…

This weekend, Deadpool earned $746 million to become the highest grossing R-rated film of all-time. But the top-grossing R-rated film in the U.S. is still Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ, which grossed $370.8 million domestically. Comparatively, Deadpool has earned $349.5 million in the U.S. …so far. [Comic Book]

We Could Double the Number of Edible Fish in the Ocean by 2050

Time and again, our appetite for tasty seafood pushes our favorite species to the brink of collapse. We’ve seen it with North Atlantic cod, Pacific bluefin tuna, Peruvian sardines, and more. But it doesn’t have to be this way. A new study finds that the majority of the planet’s fisheries could be sustainable within ten…

See For Yourself Why This Dark Urban Fantasy Book Is Making So Many Waves

This exclusive preview chapter from Borderline by Mishell Baker contains the best line I’ve seen in ages: “Suicide is not a way of ending pain; it’s just a way of redistributing it.” In Borderline, Millicent Roper is disabled in the wake of a failed suicide attempt, and she’s living with BPD and prosthetic legs. And…

New Star Wars Rebels Clip Teases a Major Connection to the Old Expanded Universe

This week’s season finale of Star Wars Rebels promises to pack an emotional punch for fans waiting to see Darth Vader and Ahsoka Tano duke it out, but on top of that, it may show that Disney’s Star Wars canon is accepting elements from a part of the old Expanded Universe many dearly miss: Knights…

This Handy Chrome Extension Makes Binge-Watching Netflix Even Easier

Netflix is built for binge-watching. It’s practically all I use it for. But you know what’s lame? The service bakes in stop gaps, like the occasional “continue watching” prompts and episode countdowns. These remind me of reality, and knock me out of my House of Cards-watching flow. Luckily, a genius built a new extension that…

No One Knows What Happened to Japan’s Lost $273 Million Black Hole Satellite

Last month, Japan launched a satellite it described as “essential” to unlocking the mysteries of the universe. This weekend, that $273 million satellite mysteriously disappeared, leaving behind only an ominous trail of debris and some cryptic messages. Hitomi was launched back on February 17 by Japan’s Space Agency. It was a full-scale X-ray observatory, much…

How Much Longer Will The Walking Dead Be on the Air?

As The Walking Dead wraps up its sixth season, its shows no signs of stopping. The zombie apocalypse drama continues to be one of the most popular shows on television, and there are always new characters and settings to keep the story evolving. Even so, you have to wonder: How much longer can it go?…

Kingsman 2‘s Plot Sounds Delightfully Bonkers

The sequel to Kingsman got a subtitle this weekend, the wonderfully nonsense-sounding The Golden Circle. But we also found out just enough about the plot to be convinced that it’s going to be as out there as the original. Empire Magazine has a feature on the sequel, which will include another barroom fight (required by…

What in God’s Name Is Going On in This Batman v Superman Deleted Scene

Batman v Superman may have only just come out, but Warner Bros is already teasing the release of its R-rated home edition. They just posted this deleted scene to YouTube, and despite almost the entirety of the io9 staff having watched this movie over the weekend, none of us have a clue what’s going on.…

Obama Keeps Inviting Star Wars Stormtroopers to The White House

Today’s Easter Egg Roll at the White House had everything: The Easter Bunny, lots of Easter eggs, and… stormtroopers? For some reason Star Wars stormtroopers keep showing up at Obama events. But the weirdest part might be that Obama hasn’t even seen The Force Awakens yet. Every two-term president has a scandal in their second…

All the Ways Batman v Superman Sets Up a Future DC Universe

There’s a reason Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice went with that slightly wordy title. In addition to featuring a showdown between the two DC heavyweights, Zack Snyder’s film was largely created to help set up a bigger DC Extended Universe. How exactly did it do that? We’ve got you covered. Major spoilers follow. Batman’s…

Heartless!  Kanye Posts Pablo Track to Apple Music After All

Remember that Tidal subscription you got to listen to Kanye’s new album The Life of Pablo? Turns out not all of that Mr. West’s definition of “exclusive” is somewhat looser than most. A track from the album, “Famous,” is now up on Spotify, Apple Music, and Google Play (although it is a slightly altered version…

This Smart Wine Bottle Makes Getting Drunk Way Too Complicated

According to some people (our esteemed editor-in-chief) the biggest problem with wine is that eventually you have to go buy more wine because you killed the bottle. For others (like myself) the biggest problem is that you don’t always kill the $30+ bottle of wine in a night. The wine’s flavor changes over the next…