Latest

Obama’s Running Wild Through Alaska With a Selfie Stick

President Obama’s trip to Alaska this week intended to shine a spotlight on climate change. But he’s also there for a social media spree, including using a selfie stick. Presidents, they’re just like us! Obama pops in to sign an official White House tweet every now and again but it’s only recently that he got…

Climate Change Alissa Walker

Nobody Listened to Legendary Physicist Michael Faraday’s Ideas on Mine Safety

Michael Faraday is best remembered as a scientist. But during his time, he was also a scientific investigator—looking into the origins of explosions and accidents. After one great tragedy he filed a safety report that’s still remembered today, but made no impression at the time. On September 28th, 1844 work began at the coal mine…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

California’s New Website Shows Numbers of People Killed by Police, and Their Race

Today the California Department of Justice launched a new website that publishes data about police interactions with the public, including the number of people who die at the hands of police. Called Open Justice, the initiative is being billed as the first of its kind to provide detailed data to the public on a variety…

Tech News Matt Novak

This is the only mushroom in the world that tastes sweet like honey

In Hungary there is a sweet Hungarian truffle that supposedly tastes like honey. I can’t even begin to imagine how fantastic that is because truffles are already “the diamonds of the kitchen” and honey very well might be nature’s greatest creation, so combining both in one is practically unfair. The truffle is used in dessert…

Sploid Casey Chan

Watch Drunk History Slur Its Way Through An Explanation of the Big Bang Theory

Comedy Central’s hilarious Drunk History—a show in which comedians get sloppy-drunk and share historical tales, which then are acted out by sober actors who earnestly lip-sync every slurred line of dialogue—kicked off its third season last night with a little special something for science geeks. The show’s theme was “New Jersey,” and one of the…

io9 Cheryl Eddy

Physicists Discover “Hidden Chaos” Lurking Everywhere

It appears that the standard tools used to identify chaotic signatures might be missing lots of hidden chaos — especially in systems that seem like they’re not chaotic at all. Chaos theory is famously associated with so-called “strange attractors,” marked by a telltale butterfly-wing shape (see above). But according to a new paper by two…

Physics & Chemistry Jennifer Ouellette

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Books You Can’t Afford to Miss in September!

The summer beach reads are finished—but the book party is just getting started! This month’s science fiction and fantasy must-reads include Terry Pratchett’s final Discworld novel, plus new books from Stephen Baxter, Seanan McGuire, Salman Rushdie and Margaret Atwood. And Star Wars and Star Trek! Xeelee: Endurance by Stephen Baxter Baxter has been busy with…

Books & Comics Charlie Jane Anders

How On Earth Can Pixar Make a Worthy Sequel to The Incredibles?

Ever since Disney and Pixar announced they’d be making The Incredibles 2, I’ve been obsessed with it. Partially that’s because I’m such a huge fan of Brad Bird’s original, pitch perfect superhero team/family film. But also it’s because I can’t figure out how the hell they’re going to make it work. For the first time…

Movies Germain Lussier

Humans Have Eliminated Half the World’s Trees

Human beings are having an overwhelming impact on Earth’s ecosystems, whether we’re pouring plastic into the ocean or filling the skies with carbon. But it’s not just modern society that’s to blame — our environmental legacy stretches way back into history. Since dawn of civilization, we’ve caused nearly half of the world’s trees to disappear.…

Tech News Maddie Stone

Moto 360 (2015) Hands On: Design First, Tech Second

The Moto 360 was one of the first wearables that got us thinking, “Yeah, this whole smartwatch thing just might work.” It had some flaws, sure, but it was a functioning computer on your wrist and it wasn’t completely terrible. Now, Motorola is taking another stab at with the new Moto 360—cleaning up the design…

Tech News Darren Orf

The Moto X’s Camera Is Truly Stunning, But Still Afraid of the Dark

Every time a new shiny phone is released, the typical claims of how great its camera is are barfed from the mouths of marketing professionals. It’s no different with the new Moto X, whose previous incarnation took disappointing shots. But the new 2015 edition might just deserve a seat alongside other smartphone heavy-hitters. Our comparison…

Reviews Michael Hession

Moto X Pure Edition Review: This Phone Does Android Better Than Google

When it comes to experiencing Android the way Google intended, you have surprisingly few options. Two, really. Google’s own Nexus smartphone—made by a parade of different hardware partners—and Motorola. The new Moto X Pure Edition is the new unspoiled Android champion. It can do Android even better than Google. What Is It? The Moto X…

Reviews Darren Orf

Two Mining Robots Prove the Importance of Teamwork

In Wire Cutters by Jack Anderson, two mining robots with very different capabilities meet, team up, and fall out over their work’s quantitative way of measuring success. Shouldn’t efficiency count for something? I’m not going to lie, as cute as it is, I was kind of devastated about the way these two ended up: [via…

io9 Katharine Trendacosta

This Is What An Office Run By Vampires Would Look Like

Even if you haven’t worked in an office environment, you probably have an idea what it’s like. Monotonous, quiet, bland—at times, it’s almost like everyone is possessed. Which is pretty much the set up of the new vampire movie Bloodsucking Bastards. Check out three exclusive clips! The film, which hits limited theaters and on demand…

Movies Germain Lussier

Are These The Ugliest City Flags on Earth?

Yesterday, New Zealand announced four finalists for its flag redesign contest, which got us thinking about which other places need new flags immediately. The answer was all cities, which tend to have really bad flags. So we asked you, our fair readers, to share the worst city flags to ever ascend a pole. As usual,…

Tech News Alissa Walker

We Thought These Microscopic Invertebrates Never Had Sex. Maybe We Were Wrong.

Chances are, you’ve never heard of bdelloid rotifers, strange microscopic creatures that typically live in freshwater ponds and streams. In the grand scheme of things, they’re related to arthropods, a group which includes insects, spiders, and crustaceans. But honestly, they’re in a unique class all their own. And they don’t have sex. I don’t read…

Biology Diane Kelly

When Book Research Means 250 MPH Winds, A Crash Helmet and Goggles

You know that moment where you feel like a good breeze could lift your feet from the ground? You lean into it a little. You might even unbutton your coat to let the wind fill the cloth. Sometimes you see a bird circling the drafts (it’s usually a buzzard, or a hawk) and if you’re…

Books & Comics Fran Wilde

A Cop Comes Back to Life, Younger, Stronger, and Better in Lookinglass

A 75-year-old former sheriff — forced to resign for corruption 15 years ago and “a drinker, womanizer and a father” — is killed. But then he’s brought back to life and has to a) solve his own murder and b) work with a son suddenly older than him. Look! Tim DeKay! He’s always great. Wish…

Trailers Katharine Trendacosta

Technics Will Release a New Turntable In 2016 and We Can’t Wait

Vinyl is on the rise these days, and so Technics is gettingback into the the turntable game. The venerable brand showed off an aluminum prototype of a new model set to be released in 2016. Here’s what I know: I’m really excited. Technics, which is owned by Panasonic, discontinued its legendary SL-1200 turntable back in…

Tech News Mario Aguilar

15 Common English Words That You Probably Didn’t Know Were Still Trademarked

The English language is a voracious eater, consuming words and digesting them into whole new things. Sometimes words that used to be trademarked by companies pass into generic use—like escalator, thermos, and aspirin. And sometimes words live in limbo: still trademarked, but used all the time as generic terms. Here are 15 of those words.…

io9 Katharine Trendacosta

Obama’s Running Wild Through Alaska With a Selfie Stick

Nobody Listened to Legendary Physicist Michael Faraday’s Ideas on Mine Safety

California’s New Website Shows Numbers of People Killed by Police, and Their Race

This is the only mushroom in the world that tastes sweet like honey

Watch Drunk History Slur Its Way Through An Explanation of the Big Bang Theory

Physicists Discover “Hidden Chaos” Lurking Everywhere

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Books You Can’t Afford to Miss in September!

How On Earth Can Pixar Make a Worthy Sequel to The Incredibles?

Humans Have Eliminated Half the World’s Trees

Moto 360 (2015) Hands On: Design First, Tech Second

The Moto X’s Camera Is Truly Stunning, But Still Afraid of the Dark

Moto X Pure Edition Review: This Phone Does Android Better Than Google

Two Mining Robots Prove the Importance of Teamwork

This Is What An Office Run By Vampires Would Look Like

Are These The Ugliest City Flags on Earth?

We Thought These Microscopic Invertebrates Never Had Sex. Maybe We Were Wrong.

When Book Research Means 250 MPH Winds, A Crash Helmet and Goggles

A Cop Comes Back to Life, Younger, Stronger, and Better in Lookinglass

Technics Will Release a New Turntable In 2016 and We Can’t Wait

15 Common English Words That You Probably Didn’t Know Were Still Trademarked

Latest news

School Forced to Replace Toilets After Kids Flush Vapes

‘Scream 7’ Just Won’t Stop Making Money as ‘Scream 8’ Gets Started

The Curtain Has Closed on Meta’s Movie Rating-Inspired Content Filters

Good News! You Can Finally Change That Ridiculous Gmail Address

ExpressVPN Just Launched ExpressAI: Your Prompts Are Now Invisible

VR Just Took Another Massive Body Blow

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

‘Supergirl’ Will Feature David Corenswet’s Superman in a Sort of Big Brother Role

Latest Reviews

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

MSI Prestige 14 Flip AI+ Review: A Solid 2-in-1 Laptop With Some Glaring Flaws

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Let us help find what you are looking for...