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A Satellite Mishap Is Letting Physicists Test Einstein’s Theory of Relativity

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade, right? That, at least, is the motto the European Space Agency seems to have embraced with respect to two wayward satellites, which are being repurposed to provide the most accurate assessment yet of how gravity affects the passage of time. Last year, a Russian Soyuz rocket accidentally placed…

This Cosplay Music Video Highlights BlizzCon’s Extraordinary Cosplayers

If you missed BlizzCon last weekend, Sneaky Zebra has put together one of their fantastic cosplay music videos, highlighting some of the really awesome costumes that they spotted throughout the weekend.

11 Great Apps That Are Even Greater on the iPad Pro

So you’ve got a brand spanking new iPad Pro. You’re probably going to want to take advantage of the 12.9-inch display, the four speakers, and the souped up A9x processor. We’ve made a list of the coolest, most beautiful apps you can get, whether you’re a designer or just someone who appreciates big screens. Art…

As dystopias have proliferated throughout science fiction, more optimistic authors such as Kim Stanley Robinson have tackled a brighter future for humanity. The New Republic has a fascinating article on the subject that’s well worth reading.

YouTube Music Is Breathtakingly Pointless

The new YouTube Music app is a failure. YouTube is quietly one of the most powerful forces in digital music, and this—THIS!—is the app that’s supposed to change everything. It changes nothing. Announced last month, YouTube Music is a cornerstone of YouTube’s strategy for getting people to sign up for its new YouTube Red subscription…

A New Study Challenges Assumptions About the Origins of Earth’s Water

Water, water everywhere, but how on Earth did it get here? Many scientists believe that Baby Earth formed dry and was later soaked by an onslaught of extraterrestrial impacts. But a new study challenges that view, arguing that our planet has had water from the start. In fact, we have have inherited it from the…

War Stories From The Future Is A Fantastic Military Science Fiction Anthology From The Atlantic Council

We’ve highlighted the Atlantic Council’s Art of Future Warfare project a several times this year, and we’re big fans of their work. Now, they’ve got a new project that they’ve just released: an anthology titled War Stories From The Future. Best of all? It’s a free book! War Stories from the Future is a new…

Google is making international Hangout calls to France free in the wake of yesterday’s deadly attacks. If you’re trying to reach a loved one in Paris, you can do via the Google Hangouts Android app, iOS app, and the web. Stay safe out there.

9 Free Apps to Get Fit Using Only Your Smartphone

You don’t necessarily need the help of a wearable or a smartwatch to help track your steps and monitor your activity—most modern-day smartphones have all the sensors and hardware you need to keep an eye on how much (or little) exercise you’re getting. Here are 9 apps up to the task of improving your fitness,…

Ridley Scott’s Prometheus Sequel Gets Another Name Change

First it was Prometheus 2, and then Alien: Paradise Lost. Now, Ridley Scott’s followup to Prometheus apparently has a new name: Alien: Covenant. Cinema Blend speculates a bit on what the name change means for the story of the film: Prometheus is, of course, a reference to the legend of how a man “stole” fire…

Orbit Books Will Publish An Astonishing 90 Books A Year Starting In 2016

Who says that science fiction publishing is dead? Not Orbit Books. The Hachette company announced yesterday that they were expanding their SF/F line by 50% next year to publish a whopping 90 books starting in 2016. Tim Holman, Orbit Publisher and Hachette Book Group SVP, said: “There is a huge and diverse audience for SF…

A Flock of Hawaiian Shirts Invaded the Space Station

April 26, 2001: It’s casual Friday on the International Space Station, and none of us are invited. It’s a bit unnerving that the entire crew of both Expedition Two and STS-100 managed to pack a Hawaiian shirt into orbit, but it makes for a surreally awesome photo in the Raffaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module. Starting at…

Start Your Weekend Right By Checking Out This Tiny Book of Awesome

Sometimes, the smallest things can brighten up a miserable day. No, I mean literally. One glance at this teensy, tiny, hand-illustrated book was a poignant reminder that everything in the Universe is not actually terrible. You know what’s not terrible? Sleeping in. Bubbles! Perfectly separating an Oreo (and then ditching the pointless creamless half). And…

No Mystery is More Intriguing than Morland Holmes on Elementary

In this week’s Elementary, Joan is the protective big sister Sherlock never had, the FBI are disruptively controlling, and the looming presence of Sherlock’s father Morland Holmes dominates everything. Bail out now before the spoilers take control! Need to catch up first? Here’s our recap of last week’s season premiere. Surely this time they’ll convince…

There’s a Hidden Connection Between Pi and Quantum Mechanics 

Physicists have uncovered a hidden connection between a famous 350-year-old mathematical formula for pi, everyone’s favorite irrational number, and quantum mechanics. At least one mathematician has pronounced the discovery “a cunning piece of magic.” The English mathematician John Wallis published his formula for calculating pi as the product of an infinite series of ratios in…

Reports of Robots Stealing 50% of Jobs in the US and UK Are Totally Alarmist

It’s being reported that a Bank of England official forecasts that in the next 10 to 20 years, smart robots will steal 80 million jobs from Americans and 15 million jobs from Britons—over half the workforce of each nation. I smell BS. In a speech delivered yesterday by Bank economist Andy Haldane at the Trades…

In an Upside Down City, Bat-Winged Ships Fly

It’s a world folded in on itself, where skyscrapers climb likes stalagmites and dangle like stalactites. This is “Reverse II” by Jean-François Liesenborghs. See more at deviantArt. Contact the author at [email protected].

Facebook’s “Safety Check” Lets You Locate Loved Ones in Paris

A Facebook feature implemented to help track people after natural disasters has been launched tonight to help people connect with their friends and family after the Paris attacks. If you’re looking for the status of friends who might be in Paris, head to the Safety Check page on your Facebook account. The page will list…

Peace Never Hides for Long

In this gorgeous concept art, Karl Ellis gives us a peek at a world that is almost like Earth, but not quite. At the base of that gravity-defying rock column, you can see the glowing cave mouths where someone is settling in for a peaceful evening. Ellis is a freelance concept artist in the UK.…

The Uncomfortable Story of How a Tweet About Lipstick Became a Media Freakout

Parker Molloy likes to take pictures of weird things in her off-hours. Sometimes she posts them on Twitter with short quips. And then one day, one of her least popular tweets turned into a shitstorm. As Molloy explains in a hilarious and depressing article today on Medium, her tale is a perfect example of how…