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Windows 10, Day Two

Two days ago, I promised to upgrade my personal desktop and laptop to Windows 10, to demonstrate how wonderful or terrible the migration from Windows 8 might be. Yesterday, I was surprised how painless it felt. Today, I’m feeling a little pain. https://gizmodo.com/windows-10-day-one-1719864054 It started off brilliantly. I spent most of my second day with…

FX Releases Hilarious Tribute To Archer Voice Actor George Coe

George Coe, who voiced Woodhouse on Archer, passed away earlier this week at the age of 86. The actor was known for his work in film and television, and his most recent role on FX’s spy show has been amazing. The network has put together a funny tribute of some of the butler’s best moments.…

Twitter Is Using Copyright Law to Bust Joke Thieves

Imitation is supposed to be the sincerest form of flattery, but for comedians on Twitter it’s a pain in the ass. Joke theft is rampant, with “parody” accounts and spambots racking up thousands of followers by tweeting stolen jokes as their own. But now Twitter is helping people bust joke-stealers. If you file a DMCA…

The University of Iowa Brings Fanzines To The Digital World

The University of Iowa has an extensive and growing archive of Science Fiction and Fantasy publications, and now, they’re beginning to digitize their collection of fanzines. https://gizmodo.com/university-of-iowa-receives-18-000-volume-science-ficti-1712901055 The University has been working to preserve the fan-printed publications, and under the supervision of curator Peter Balestrieri, archivists have begun to photograph each document. It’s no small…

These Colorful Patterns Are Famous LA and NYC Neighborhoods From Above

Photographer Jeffrey Milstein is known for getting stunning shots of our culture from above; we previously covered his aerial photographs of cruise ships. For his new series LANY he photographed the two cities from a helicopter. While these views don’t necessarily feel unfamiliar (thanks Google Earth!), his composition and color transform them into magical landscapes.…

Read This Excellent Interview With Samuel R. Delany Over On SF Signal

Over on SF Signal, John Stevens has a really interesting interview with SF Grandmaster Samuel R. Delany. In it, they discuss a recent re-release of Delany’s first three novels, genre literature and his career. Here’s a snippet: Q: In Kim Stanley Robinson’s introduction to the tribute volume STORIES FOR CHIP he discusses the feeling that…

This Tiny Computer Stacks Into a Colorful Lego Brick 

Any Lego lover in the market for a new computer would want a system that stacks together into a compact brick. Even better, one whose case is made entirely of Lego. Rejoice, nerds, Total Geekdom’s Mike Schropp has heard your silent plea. Schropp’s first saleable Lego build came out in March. At 4”x5”x5”, version 2.0…

Sony Made Pixels Even Lamer to Appease Chinese Authorities

Sony apparently didn’t care very much that the script to its new sci-fi comedy movie Pixels is pretty bad. It did, however, go to pains to ensure that Pixels would pass Chinese censorship boards with flying colors. Goodbye integrity, hello authoritarian-sanctioned blockbuster. According to Reuters, which cites emails leaked by Sony hackers, Sony ‘sanitized’ the…

Batman V Superman Trailer Is So Better With Always Sunny In Philadelphia

Man of Steel was pretty grim and serious, and it looks like Batman v Superman is going to have about the same tone. Over on YouTube, user Albert Lopez decided to lighten things up by recutting the trailer for the upcoming movie with Always Sunny In Philadelphia’s song, Dayman. The juxtaposition works surprisingly well, with…

Here We Go Again: Anonymous Tries to Hold the Canadian Government Ransom

Once again, the hacktivist collective Anonymous is threatening a spectacular security breach, this time, against the Canadian government. Yesterday, Anonymous hackers told the National Post they’d stolen sensitive Canadian national security documents. They’re prepared to release said documents if the officer who fatally shot a British Columbian protestor last week is not arrested by Monday…

On Sunday, Claudia Alexander, who helped lead the Galileo and Rosetta spacecraft missions, died at the age of 56. In addition to her work with NASA, she was a prolific writer, authoring scientific papers, children’s books and science fiction. Read her obituary over on the New York Times.

What exactly is a normal curve distribution, and how do you calculate it from the mean and standard distribution?

Yes, You Can Use Cortana in Windows 10 With Any Old Microphone

One of the coolest new Windows 10 features is talking to your computer. For many people, it’ll be the first time they’ve had a voice-activated personal assistant on tap. And yet, most computers won’t have Cortana turned on by default—allegedly because they don’t have certified high-quality microphones built-in. As far as I can tell, though,…

Hitch a Ride on New Horizons in Latest Flyover Animation from Pluto

That’s it. I’m packing my bags, hitching a ride on the next rocket, and finding a way to skate on the icy nitrogen glaciers of Pluto. The latest flover animation from New Horizons data takes us soaring in the skies over the aching expanses of Sputnik Planum and the jagged teeth of Hillary Montes. Check…

Under The Dome Shows The Worst Scenario For A Hillary Clinton Presidency

Hey, it’s me. The Dome. Sorry I haven’t been around much. I’ve been kind of busy. You know how it is. They wanted to bring me to San Diego Comic-Con and put all of Hall H under me, as a publicity stunt. But then people got all squirrely about my plan to put J.J. Abrams…

The Life and Untimely Death of Technology’s Weirdest Logo

In 1988 Timothy Wilkinson, a British designer at frog design in Silicon Valley, was tasked with creating a logo for the biggest peripheral maker in the world: Logitech. The company kept Wilkinson’s logo around for almost 30 years. And while it long seemed weird to me, it’s also completely brilliant. When he designed it, Wilkinson…

You Can Still Find Groundwater in California, But It’ll Cost You

So your taps have run dry in the drought and you desperately need more water for your family. Why not just dig another well? For starters, the cost of digging a well might be more than you paid for your house. And then there’s another issue: No matter how deep you dig, someone with more…

Watch a Hippo Poop Underwater

This is equal parts disgusting and hypnotic. We’ve seen hippos using their tails to spray their poop around, but we’ve only seen it on land—and the hippo wasn’t pressed right up against glass. Let’s get a look at these fluid dynamics up close. Ah, the majestic hippo. What we’re seeing up there is actually a…

The Best of Gizmodo This Week

We were busy playing with Windows 10 all week, and published some great science explainers and debunks, none of which fascinated the internet quite as much as Converse sneakers’ first redesign in nearly a century. Here are the highlights! I Installed Windows 10 and Now I’m Talking to My Computer Unless you’re one of the…

Is It Finally Time to Accept Fat as the Sixth Taste?

There are five acknowledged tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and (slightly more controversially) umami. For awhile now, researchers have suggested the existence of a sixth taste: fat. Now, a new study has researchers saying they may have finally isolated it—and they’ve given it a name: oleogustus. When we talk about a “taste” it’s generally accepted…