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Four Technologies That Could Let Humans Survive Environmental Disaster

Scientists say we blew it. We bought too many plastic trinkets from Walmart; we drove too many gas-guzzling Broncos. We made babies like rabbits without questioning if the planet could handle so many people. Well, it looks like it couldn’t. Climate change is here to stay, and it’ll probably end up affecting nearly every aspect…

The Victorian Hugos: 1893 Was to Books What 1977 Was to Movies

Science fiction books in 1893 are where science fiction film was in 1977. In both cases, the genre was… perhaps “in the doldrums” is too harsh a judgment. Certainly, enough significant work had appeared before 1893 and 1977 that one could, in those years, speak of the science fiction genre, in both media, as a…

Microsoft just announced that the Xbox One will become a full-featured DVR in 2016. This couples with the console’s latest feature for free over-the-air television. You can record shows while playing games, and content can be shared with any Windows 10 device or downloaded for offline viewing. Best part? It’s free.

Legos Are Surprisingly Effective at Explaining Synthetic Biology

The emerging discipline of synthetic biology is poised to change many aspects of our lives, from the production of medicines and bio-fuels through to genetic engineering and the development of completely new biological systems. It’s a technologically daunting prospect, but this video from Grist uses Legos and skateboards to make it all so perfectly clear.

How Do the Guardians of the Galaxy Understand Each Other? Now We Know

Isn’t it crazy to think Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy is only a year old? Released August 1st last year, the film became such a cultural phenomenon that Rocket and Groot are now almost as recognizable as Captain America and Iron Man. The movie has become so popular in fact, it feels like every single…

Large Sinkhole (Hell Gate?) Opens in Brooklyn 

A large sinkhole has swallowed up an intersection in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park neighborhood, on 5th Ave. and 64th St. No injuries have been reported. The Reckoning approaches. The concrete shroud partitioning the dank gurgle of the Underworld has been pierced; the Devil has come to claim Brooklyn. It’s not clear yetif water lines are impacted,…

The Hobbit Wants To Kill Your Butt With Extended Edition Cinema Showings

I’m not sure there’s anyone out there who was eagerly anticipating even longer versions of the Hobbit trilogy, even the people who actually liked them. But you can relive the magic of being stuck in a theatre seat for what feels like eons this October, with new showings of the extended Hobbit trilogy. The showings,…

Here’s the First 3D-Printed Drug to Get FDA Approval

A new pill used to control epileptic seizures has just been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, the first to be pumped out by a 3D printer. The drug, Spritam, is made with “ZipDose” 3D printing technology from pharmaceuticals company Aprecia. Why print the stuff? “Being able to 3D print a tablet offers…

All the Evidence Against Lizzie Borden—And Why She Was Acquitted

On August 4, 1892, Andrew Borden and his wife, Abby, were found hacked to death in their Fall River, Mass. home. The top suspect: Andrew’s daughter, Lizzie, who was acquitted but thereafter lived under the shadow of the crime. Why was Lizzie accused, and how did she beat the rap? Let’s take a look. Motive…

Steampunk Batman Is An Internet Fever Dream Turned Into An Action Figure

“The kids love the Batman! They love the gears and the steams and the punkiness! They also love mashing things together!”—someone, somewhere at Square-Enix, before deciding to unleash this wonderfully insane action figure onto the general populace. Yes, the DC variant line from Play Arts Kai that has already given us Cowboy Batman and Giant…

8 Craziest Mega-Engineering Projects We Could Use to Rework the Earth

Humans have been modifying the Earth for thousands of years, but we’ve barely scratched the surface of what’s possible. Here are eight dramatic ways we could change the face of our planet. For the purposes of this list, we’re limiting the discussion to megaprojects involving the Earth’s geology, atmosphere, and biosphere. This means no technological…

How To Pitch Freelance Stories to Gizmodo

If you’re a freelance journalist who covers science, technology, internet culture, and/or the future, we want your stories! Yes, we pay in actual money! Here’s how to send us your ideas. Who We Are Gizmodo is obsessed with tech, science and the world of tomorrow. We love slipstream journalism that combines speculation with skepticism and…

The Martian Astronauts Decompress After 10 Days in Pre-Trip Isolation

This fall, America is going to send a manned mission to Mars, and it’s not going to go well. But before all that, any astronauts slated to take this trip would obviously undergo lots of tests—one of which might be an extended period in isolation. And that’s the subject of the latest viral video for…

Malvertising Attack on Yahoo Is Another Reminder to Disable Flash 

In case you weren’t already aware that Flash is useless trash that you should disable immediately, consider the sad tale of last week’s malvertising attack on Yahoo. Hackers bought ads on Yahoo’s sprawling ad network, but the ads used malicious codeto hijack the computers of people with old versions of Flash on Windows. Yahoo shut…

The threatened cilantro crisis has officially hit. The CDC confirmed almost 400 case of Cyclospora infection in clusters around the country all linked to cilanto. While our friends over at Gizmodo may beg to differ, we (and our salsas and chutneys) are waiting anxiously for the threat to our favorite herb to pass.

Apple Wants To Be Your Smartphone and Your Carrier

Following (again) in Google’s footsteps, Apple may create its own mobile virtual network operator, according “sources close to Apple” via Business Insider. Like Project Fi, Google’s attempt at an MVNO with its own Nexus 6, iPhone users would pay Apple directly for calls, texts, and data. Technology is filled with all kinds of rumors and…

Acer’s Cloudbook: Like a Chromebook, But With Windows 10 for $170

Acer has just announced a new pair of computers that offer Windows 10 within a thin-and-light laptop case—and they start at just $170. The Aspire One Cloudbook comes in 11 and 14 variants, which refer to their respective screen sizes. They both feature 1.6GHz Celeron processors, 2GB of RAM, and full-size keyboards, along with USB,…

Write Some Six-Word Science Fiction Stories for Us!

Tell me a story, please! Involving robots, lasers, futuristic sharks, sunless worlds, sentient plants, or anything else you’ve got a mind for—and do it in just six words. Write and then post your very own six-word science fiction mini-epics below, and then all there’s left to do is to start reading and star all your…

The Dungeons & Dragons Movie of Your Dreams Is Rolling Your Way

Fifteen years ago, there was a Dungeons and Dragons movie. And it sucked. Well now, Warner Bros. has cleared up the rights issues and announced they’re moving forward with a new movie not just based on the RPG, but on its immensely popular Forgotten Realms setting. The fact that the film will be set in…

This Air Force Workshop Is Like an Engineering Operating Theater

At home, you might be content with a wrench and an oily rag to fix up your car. But that doesn’t cut it for Air Force mechanics. Here, members of the 23rd Component Maintenance Squadron Propulsion Flight perform maintenance on a TF-34 engine in spotless surroundings. The engine will find its way into a Moody…