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The Planet Is Losing Groundwater at an Alarming Rate

When it comes to water scarcity, the loss of groundwater is like the silent killer: It isn’t as easy to measure or monitor as, say, a shrinking reservoir. We’ve known that many aquifers are overtaxed, but a new report shows we’re draining major aquifers faster than they’re being replenished. Not just in California—this is happening…

The Best YouTube Channel for Film Nerds

Okay, you’re reading Gizmodo, so there’s a good chance you’re a tech nerd. But are you a double-whammy tech and film nerd? If so, scope out CineFix, a YouTube channel brimming with videos about the movie world, from GCI to stunts to DIY 8-bit Hollywood remakes. Chances are you’ve at least stumbled upon one of…

Spoilers And Rumors For Civil War, Fantastic Four And Agents Of SHIELD!

There’s one character from the Green Arrow comics that Arrow will never touch. Who is Matt Smith playing in Terminator Genisys? Find out where Hannibal could go after season three. Plus our first official look at the X-Files relaunch, and the first clip from Fear the Walking Dead. So many spoilers! Star Trek 3 The…

How To Use SoundCloud to Start Your Own Podcast for Free

A couple months ago, SoundCloud opened its podcasting service up to everyone. There are limits to what you can do with a free account, but it’s a great way to dip a toe into the podcasting waters without spending any money, and you don’t necessarily need any in-depth technical knowledge. We’ll walk you through the…

Views of Central California From Space Are Amazing—and Troubling

This view of central California from space is amazing for any number of reasons: you can make out the San Andreas Fault, for one, and it’s quite simply gorgeous to look at. But it’s also a parched landscape, whose vibrant greens have dulled to dirty browns. This radar image was captured on April 1st by…

Are Plastics Making You Infertile?

Recent research into the health effects of the plastic-making chemicals phthalates has reignited concerns about low sperm counts. But the evidence is far from conclusive. Recent research has reignited concerns that exposure to chemicals from plastics might be to blame for low sperm counts in young men. I share the concerns about the high prevalence…

Soldiers on (Virtual) Patrol

This is not a drill. In fact, it’s a virtual drill. You’re looking at soldiers from the 35th Engineer Brigade of the Missouri National Guard as they use a VR training tool known as the Dismounted Soldier Training System. The system uses motion tracking to allow soldiers to train in a simulated deployed environment, performing…

In response to the newsthat Hasbro is using male pronouns for the toys of the decidedly female dinosaurs of Jurassic World, there is now a Change.org petitionto stop the sex-swapping. As of now, 1,680 signatures have been obtained.

The Harry Potter Play Opening Next Year Won’t Be a Prequel

We’ve known that J.K. Rowling was working on a play, but now we know for certain that it will open next year. And that, contrary to earlier speculation, it’s not a sequel. Rowling revealed that the play was written with Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany, and it will bear the name Harry Potter and…

Audi’s Developing a Moon Rover For Google’s Lunar Xprize

Audi is no stranger to branching out from cars, but its most recent project is perhaps more ambitious than usual: with a team of German scientists and engineers, it’s helping build a rover that could one day make it to the moon. Working with a team known as Part-Time Scientists, the car manufacturer is developing…

If Your Life Were Fanfiction, How Would It Be Tagged?

Now you can find out! Ever since I found it, I have been completely unable to stop clicking the “generate tag” button on the AO3 Tag Generator. Full warning: Not only are a some of these NSFW, even the ones that aren’t will break your brain. Sometimes the tags on the fanfiction of Archive of…

A Visual Guide to Your Company’s Organizational Structure

Oh man why don’t we all just give up right now and go and live in a field some place? (Full version below.) [Doghouse Diaries]

Would You Buy This Retro ThinkPad Stuffed With Modern Tech?

What goes around comes around, especially when it comes to design aesthetics. Now Lenovo design VP David Hill gas dreamed up a new concept: an old-school ThinkPad stuffed with ultra-modern guts. Would you buy one? In a blog post on the Lenovo website, Hill explains how his idle daydream about a modern remake of the…

Ant-Man Has Two Credits Scenes For Fans To Speculate About

We’re not going to spoil anything, but we can report that after taking a brief hiatus from the end credits scenes with Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel Studios is bringing them back in a big bad way with Ant-Man. Not only is there a mid-credits scene, like Avengers: Age of Ultron, but an end credits…

Now It’s Europe’s Turn to Fight For Net Neutrality

Americans won big on net neutrality in February, when the FCC voted to adopt new rules that would allow it to rein in the abusive and discriminatory practices of big telecommunications operators, such as blocking or throttling of Internet data, and charging content providers for access to an Internet “fast lane.” Four months later, while…

The Sun Emitted a Lovely, Mid-Level Solar Flare Today

NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured an image of a mid-level solar flare that pealed at 4:16 EDT this morning. It comes from the sunspot group that’s been flaring up since it was spotted. Today’s flare was classified as an M7.9, M-classes being one tenth the size of X-class flares, the most intense. Luckily, (or unluckily,…

HBO Is Finally Working on a Science Fiction Romantic Comedy

Although HBO’s been gathering accolades for genre drama with Game of Thrones, next year could bring it into the realm of genre comedy, a niche that the premium network has left untouched. Until now. According to USA Today, the network’s inked a deal with Greg Daniels (The Office, King of the Hill) to develop a…

Stop the Entertainment Lobby’s Dumb Attempt to Cripple Internet Privacy

If you’ve ever registered a domain name, you’ve probably stumbled across WHOIS, a series of databases that contains basic information on whoever registered a particular domain name. While WHOIS makes this information public by default, it’s long been possible to hide behind a proxy — something the entertainment industry is hellbent on changing. The benefits…

This Dormant Monster Black Hole Just Woke Up

What you’re seeing is V404 Cygni, a binary system consisting of a star and a black hole, some 7800 light-years away. It has lain quiet for the last 25 years, but a week ago, NASA’s Swift satellite noticed a burst of new activity. V404 is a binary system, consisting of a star and a black…

Tonight, the 41st Annual Saturn Awards were given out. Congratulations to the nominees and the winners!