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Extraordinary pictures of the most ancient trees on Earth

Photographer Beth Moon spent 14 years traveling around the world taking pictures of the most ancient trees on Earth. The resulting photos—printed in platinum for a wider tonal range and stunning luminosity—are compiled in her book Ancient Trees: Portraits of Time. Picture above: Desert Rose. Bufflesdrift Baobab. The Bowthorpe Oak. Many of the trees I…

This Is What a 1,000MPH Car Looks Like in Kit Form

When it finally rolls out of the garage, Bloodhound SSC will hit a dizzying 1,000mph. But before it can do that, the team behind the vehicle needs to put it all together. Looking more than a little like a kit for a model airplane, this is what Bloodhound SSC looks like in kit form. There’s…

How To Use Psychological Torment For Self-Improvement And Profit

This post isn’t as evil as it sounds because it’s yourself you’ll be tormenting. The method you will use is counterfactual thinking. If you use it right, you can wring money from the gullible and improve all kinds of things about yourself… just not necessarily in that order. Poetry, Psychology, and Counterfactuals When poet John…

Neill Blomkamp’s Secret Alien Movie Looks So Good We’re Furious

Guess what? Neill Blomkamp was working on a secret Alien project that included Sigourney Weaver reuniting with Corporal Hicks, and the concept art is gorgeous. But now it’s dead, or was never going to be made in the first place, and I’m just going to scream “PROMETHEUS” into a pillow all day until I pass…

What Could Have Entered the Public Domain in 2015?

Current US law extends copyright for 70 years after the date of the author’s death, and corporate “works-for-hire” are copyrighted for 95 years after publication. But prior to the 1976 Copyright Act (which became effective in 1978), the maximum copyright term was 56 years—an initial term of 28 years, renewable for another 28 years. Under…

Secret Nazi weapons facility discovered near concentration camp

Austrian filmmaker Andreas Sulzer claims to have found Hitler’s ‘largest secret weapons research facility’ following information contained in US intelligence reports describing a massive underground tunnel system excavated in granite near the Mathausen-Gusen concentration camp. Sulzer has been trying to uncover this Nazi secret weapons nest for years. Using data gathered from countless documents found…

Math Suggests Most Cancers Are Caused By “Bad Luck”

Two-thirds of all cancers are caused by random mutations and not genetics or lifestyle factors, say scientists from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. The new paper, which now appears in the journal Science, suggests that 22 out of the 31 cancer types analyzed are simply the result of biological bad luck. These include leukemia,…

Let The First GIF Party Of 2015… Commence!

The bad news: 2014 kind of sucked. The good news: It’s 2015 now! So let’s just let the old year burn and ring in the new by celebrating with your favorite GIFs! Got big plans for this year? Did you have a wild New Year’s Eve? Have a message to share, news to announce, a…

Watch the almighty Kim Jong-un allegedly flying a plane “by himself”

To celebrate the New Year, the national North Korean television network has broadcasted this footage of the supreme leader flying a plane. According to local media, the almighty Kim Jong-un piloted and landed the aircraft by himself—with the help of his two assistants. All hail Kim! SPLOID is delicious brain candy. Follow us on Facebook…

A Russian Company Wants to Build a Base on the Moon

A private Russian company has announced that it is capable of constructing a new exploration base on the moon, which will cost in the region of $9.3 billion. Lin Industrial has designed the new lunar base, which would be built close to Malapert Mountain near the moon’s south pole, so that it can be constructed…

No, You’re Not Going To Float Away On January 4th

A bizarre rumor is going around claiming that the upcoming planetary alignment on January 4th is going to cause a “gravitational fluctuation” that will leave people weightless for a brief period. Here’s why “Zero Gravity Day” is a whole lot of malarky. The only people who’ll be floating on January 4th will be those on…

If you were affected by Sony’s PSN outage over the holidays, some good news: you’ll get five more days of PlayStation Plus to make up for it, and 10 percent off a transaction, too.

Rumor: Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje’s Game Of Thrones Role Changes The Game

Is a British actor our new Supergirl? Photos show Pirates of the Caribbean 5 beginning to build sets in Australia. The Last Ship adds to its medical crew. And get a look at Hayley Atwell and Enver Gjokaj in action in Agent Carter. Plus, look ahead to the returning Arrow, Flash, and Once Upon a…

Two-Thirds of Cancer Cases Are Simply Down to Bad Luck

A new study suggests that two-thirds of cancer cases can be put down to the bad luck of random DNA mutations rather than unhealthy lifestyles or inherited genes. The new research, published in Science, finds that DNA mutations which accumulate throughout the body during cell division are the main reason for the development of cancer.…

Report: Mt. Gox Bitcoin Loss Was an Inside Job

It’s almost a year since the Bitcoin locker Mt. Gox went offline and took its digital currency with it. Now, a report in Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper claims that 99 percent of the bitcoins that went missing from Mt. Gox falls were a result of “internal system manipulation.” The newspaper reports that only 7,000 of…

Twitter appears to be testing a new While You Were Away feature, that will update you with top tweets since you last logged in.

There’s Been a Credit Card Breach at Chick-Fil-A

Chick-Fil-A has admitted that it’s “received reports of potential unusual activity involving payment cards used at a few of our restaurants.” Further reports suggest that the fast food chain is the common link in the loss of 9,000 sets of card details. Chick-Fil-A learnted on December 19th that suspicious payment activities were happening at some…

Video: Amazing balanced stone sculptures that seem to defy gravity

Artist Michael Grab has been making amazing balanced rock sculptures for years. His secret: Steady hands, slow breathing, a big dose of patience, and lots of practice. The following video is a compilation of the work he made in 2014. You can support Michael’s work by buying his2015 calendar here. SPLOID is delicious brain candy.…

Montblanc’s New e-Strap Makes Luxury Watches (a Little) Smarter

Smartwatches may be increasingly popular, but they lack still lack the gravitas of high-end time pieces. Which is why Montblanc is trying to inject a little smart into its own luxury watches. A Blog to Watch reports that the watchmaker has unveiled a new e-Strap that will feature on its Timewalker Urban Speed Collection. It’s…

The One Where You Watch Every Episode of Friends

Still trying to figure out your New Year’s resolution? Here’s an easy one: cement a giant chunk of pop culture into your psyche by finally watching every last episode of Friends. Starting today, you can stream the entire 10-season series from Netflix. Sure, the plot is ridiculous and the characters are about as one-dimensional as…