Latest

Watch How a Real Kidney Grows From Cells Into an Organ

We all grow from small bunch of cells into fully-fledged adults, but rarely do we get to see the process in action. In this video, researchers have peered into a mouse kidney, to watch how cells branch out to form the organ’s internal pipework. The images, a time-lapse created by Nils Lindstrom from the University…

The Best Spy Comedy Is: Get Smart

It’sspy week here at io9, and every night we’ll be highlighting a particularly stellar example of spy fiction. Tonight: parody and humor. And the king of it all, Get Smart. (Don’t worry, you’ll get the chance to tell me how wrong I am.) There are a lot of spy comedies out there. In movies, there’s…

California’s submitted a plan to the EPA to bring it into compliance with federal safe drinking standards, after 2,5oo instances where the state authorized oil and gas operations in protected water aquifers. 140 of 2,553 injection wells were actively injecting oil-field fluids into “good water quality” aquifers. [New York Times]

Amazing aerial photos show Las Vegas like you have never seen it before

After capturing the most amazing images of New York ever,Vincent Laforet is using the same technology to photograph other major cities around the world. This is Las Vegas. The results are even crazier than NYC—with this unprecedented clarity and from this vantage point, Sin City looks like the world of Tron. Unreal. Click on the…

In This Short, The Ghost Only Appears When You Hold Your Breath

This short focuses on two men who visit a location with woman who can only be seen when they hold their breaths. For an under-five minute movie, there’s a lot going on here that’s plenty eerie. [via Vimeo Staff Picks]

A Second Panel Will Probe the FCC’s Net Neutrality Plan

Last week, the FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler announced that he will be propose that broadband be reclassified under Title II, but some members of congress worry that Obama’s involvement is suspicious. With one investigation already announced, a second Senate investigative panel has now been opened, too. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Senate’s own…

Poll: What’s The Best Spy Comedy of All Time? 

I’ve made my case for what I think is the best spy comedy of all time, but my opinion isn’t the only one that matters. So now we open it up to a vote: What do you think is the best spy comedy? Answer the poll and either find your answer validated or scream at…

This Is What a Gravitational Lens Looks Like

NASA’s just taken the best accidental smiley photo ever. It’s galaxy cluster SDSS J1038+4849, and it’s got one hell of a creepy grin. The photo comes courtesy of NASA’s Hubble telescope. It’s made up of two galaxies — each of the eyes — and the arcs are caused by something called gravitational lensing: Galaxy clusters…

How Cities Decide What To Do With Snow

By all accounts, Boston is having one hell of a winter — no seriously, just look at that picture — which has given the mayor some problems, like there’s no room left to put the snow. But it’s not just Boston: keeping cities running despite feet of snow is a problem that’s been bothering town…

Nikon D810A: An Incredible DSLR Camera Modded to Shoot the Stars

The Nikon D810A is a slight modification to Nikon’s existingD810 professional DSLR powerhouse. Its guts have been tweaked to help astrophotographers shoot the beautiful cosmos. Here’s the key change: The D810A’s infrared cut filter has been modified to let the hydrogen alpha spectral wavelength pass through. In other words, the camera’s optics don’t filter a…

The truth about Samuel L. Jackson’s hair in Pulp Fiction and other facts

Because everyone loves Pulp Fiction, CineFix followed up their original 9 things that people probably didn’t know about Pulp Fiction with 7 more factoids. This time we find out the story about Samuel L. Jackson’s hair, why Christopher Walken drank hot sauce behind the scenes and how Stanley Tucci is connected. SPLOID is delicious brain…

Researchers in London Are Using Lego Bricks On Its Bug Specimens

Insects are fragile, and scientists researching them have to be very careful with their specimens. Unfortunately, the devices out there are expensive and size-specific. So a group of entomologists have turned to that most customizable of materials to serve their needs: Legos. Image credit: Figure 1, Dupont et al. “IMp: The customizable LEGO® Pinned Insect…

Facebook Keeps On Not Understanding Native American Names

Facebook’s policy on real names only has got it in some PR hot water in the past, when it forced members of the LGBT community to use their legal (but not preferred) names. But it also seems like it has a track record of stupidity when it comes to the Native American community. Colorlines has…

Thunderous Art From The Collector Scenes In Guardians Of The Galaxy

Some of the most cosmic connections in the Marvel Universe happened when the Guardians of the Galaxy went to visit the Collector, played by Benicio del Toro. We already showed you art of the most surprising characterin his collection. But here’s concept art of Cosmo the dog, and some other stuff. The artwork below comes…

Seeing a bunch of random scenes in slow motion is surreal (NSFW)

If you ever wondered what hitting an egg with a golf club or throwing pork belly into a pan or shooting an arrow through a light bulb or cutting a woman’s hair all looked like in slow motion, you don’t have to wonder anymore, this video shows you and a lot of other awesome random…

Why You’d Want To Go On A One-Way Trip To Mars

Mars Oneis the program that’s planning on sending four humans on a one-way trip to Mars to establish a human colony. Applications are in, a shortlist has been made, and all that’s left to do is um fly to Mars, build a colony, and die a lonely death among the stars. The Guardian has asked…

It’s Official! Spider-Man WILL Appear In The Marvel Movies 

Big, big, big news! Spider-Man will no longer stand alone in Sony pictures, Peter Parker WILL be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Updated Now With More News! Marvel just announced that Spider-Man will appear in an unspecified Marvel film, that takes place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Then after this “appearance”: “Sony Pictures will thereafter…

Law Enforcement Is Treating Online Trolling Like a Serious Crime

Though it’s still difficult for people dealing with online harassment to get help from police, there is one kind of online troll that the police aren’t ignoring anymore. These are swatters, people who call in SWAT teams on their targets for the lulz. A newly-arrested swatter, Brandon Wilson, is facing five years in prison. Brandon…

Imagine Your Workstation Had This View of the Galaxy

Being an astronomer working at the Very Large Telescope is probably one of the best jobs in the world. Just look at the view this office has. It’s full of stars! The VLT is a giant telescope operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) on Cerro Paranal in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The…

A Decade of Our Favorite Google Maps Fuckups

Google Maps launched 10 years ago, on February 8, 2005, and it’s become the gold standard for apps that help get you from point A to point B. But it’s also the greatest prank platform ever designed. Here are some of the best deliberate (and non-deliberate) ways that Maps has been borked over the past…