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Inspire Aspiring Artists With Boogie Board’s New Infinite Tracing Tool

They say good artists copy, while great artists steal. But aspiring artists? They trace, and the new transparent Boogie Board, which we first covered back at CES, is finally hitting the market with an accompanying tablet app and activity packs letting kids practice their penmanship, or just doodle. Arriving just in time to pop up…

Video Explainer: The Math Inside the Shape of DNA

Everyone knows what the iconic right-handed helix of DNA looks like, with its inter-linking string of molecules forming a pleasing, gentle twist. But there’s more to the shape than meets the eye, and this video explains some of the mathematical secrets lurking within DNA. Professor Mariel Vazquez from UC Davis describes the math behind the…

Popcorntime.io Has Been Shut Down

Bad news for illegal streamers: one of the most popular versions of Popcorn Time has been shut down, likely for good. Over the weekend, the Popcorntime.io website — the internet shop front for the most popular of a series of Torrent-streaming apps — has been shut down, reports Torrent Freak, after a torturous week for…

A Huge Earthquake Has Just Hit Northern Afghanistan

A major earthquake has hit northern Afghanistan this morning. It was also felt in Pakistan and northern India. According to the US Geological survey, the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.7 and was centered in a mountainous region 158 miles north-east of the Afghan capital of Kabul at a depth of 133 miles. It occurred…

Scientists Have Produced the Blackest Material Ever

A team of scientists has created what they claim is the blackest material ever produced by human hands, which absorbs virtually all of the light that hits its surface. The new material, developed by researchers from Saudi Arabia’s King Abdulla University of Science and Technology, is built up using carbon nanotubes to help absorb the…

Is Your Doctor Choosing the Right IV?

Research on IV devices is underdeveloped, underfunded and understudied. That means doctors don’t always have the information they need to choose the best one for their patients. When we doctors sit down with patients in the hospital, discussions regarding diagnosis and prognosis are routine. For patients who need treatments such as antibiotics or chemotherapy beyond…

In Case Of Nuclear War, Cut Internet Cables

In Ye Olden Days, the concern about a Russian-American conflict would be the end of the world as we know it. In the 21st century however, an international crisis requires cutting undersea internet cables. According to a New York Times headline, ‘Russian Ships Near Data Cables Are Too Close For U.S. Comfort’. The point is…

On Canadian Construction Sites, You Build the Roof First

Conventional construction logic says that you have to build foundations first, roofs last. Montreal, Canada, home to poutine and twisted logic, disagrees. A Montreal construction company is building a 10-story condo building in the heart of downtown. That itself is not surprising in a city undergoing rapid gentrification; what is unusual is the construction method.…

Thanks to Wi-Fi Assist, Apple’s In a $5 Million Lawsuit

The Wi-Fi Assist feature in iOS 9 was meant to save consumers from shitty Wi-Fi by switching to cell data. Instead, it’s eating through data caps, and now apparently causing lawsuits. https://gizmodo.com/ios-9s-wi-fi-assist-is-eating-my-cell-data-1733513159 A California couple is suing Apple for $5 million in damages relating to Wi-Fi Assist. The suit alleges that after upgrading to iOS…

The Avengers Aren’t Fans Of Drake’s New Song

Nope. They’re not a fan at all. Especially the Hulk. [EW]

Kickstart This: Spanish Women Of Wonder Anthology

Here’s a really cool-sounding anthology: Spanish Women of Wonder, which came together last year with ten short stories by Spanish women. Now, editors Cristina Jurado and Leticia Lara want to translate the project into English. Translated SF is getting bigger: more and more foreign (to the US) stories are being brought over and translated into…

So You Want To Join The Empire: Connecting All The Dots

We’ve talked a lot about gluing and piecing together armor throughout the course of this thread. Now, it’s time to start getting it assembled to wear. Some parts of the armor are just worn because they’re closed together: forearms, legs, and so forth. Other parts require some slightly different connective tissue: strapping. In my older…

The Controversy over Homo Naledi Is Actually A Good Thing

Homo naledi, the newly discovered species of early hominin announced last month, is drawing a lot of fire from paleoanthropologists. For one thing, there’s still debate over whether Homo naledi is actually a new species at all. Some anthropologists, like Jeffrey Schwarz, say the specimens look more like an early human ancestor from a whole…

Sunday Cinema: The Space Children (1958)

Here’s an old film to close out your weekend: Children of Space. In this 1958 film, aliens watch as humanity builds weapons of war and telepathically contact the children of the scientists to waylay their plans.

Here Are The Winners Of The 2015 British Fantasy Awards

The British Fantasy Awards were handed out earlier today at FantasyCon 2015, celebrating excellence in fantasy literature. The awards have been handed out since 1972 (first known as the The August Derleth Fantasy Awards, then the British Fantasy Award after 1976) by the British Fantasy Society. Here’s the official list of winners: Best anthology: Lightspeed:…

This Is the Battle Over Policing the Deep Web

Welcome to this week’s Reading List, our weekly collection of great science and technology articles from around the internet. This week, we’ll do a shift at an Amazon warehouse, delve into the Deep Web, and confront online bullying. The so-called Darknet is only a tiny fraction of what’s on the Deep Web, the part of…

Thousands of films have been made that haven’t been seen in years: they remain locked away in studio vaults. With the advent of streaming and on-demand services, they’re starting to figure out ways to release more and more of these films to the public.

Therapy Dogs Really Do Help Cancer Patients

Therapy dogs may actually make a difference in the health of the patients they visit by reducing anxiety and leading to more stable blood pressure. Dogs usually aren’t allowed in hospitals, but therapy dogs are there for a purpose. The idea is that the simple act of petting a friendly dog can reduce stress and…

You Can’t Possibly Exterminate This Timelord: Wally The Corgi As Each Doctor

Your moment of cute today: Wally the Welsh Corgi cosplays as each doctor from Doctor Who, and is adorable at it. [Mashable]

This Force Awakens-Style Trailer With Original Trilogy Footage Gives Us Chills

The trailer for The Force Awakens seems to have reignited some enthusiasm for the franchise, prompting Medley Weaver to recut the trailer with footage and dialogue from the Original Trilogy. It makes for the perfect trailer for George Lucas’s original films. The music really works here, and man, this compilation really works to showcase the…