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Does This Person Look Trustworthy To You? Don’t Be So Sure.

There’s little doubt humans have evolved to make useful judgements based on the appearance of a person’s face – whether someone looks angry with us, for example – but is it reasonable for us to judge someone’s character based on facial structure alone? Photo Credit: Andrew Morell via flickr | CC BY-ND 2.0 In the…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez

Bonnie Raitt: Something To Talk About

Hypothetical question time! Let’s say the Traveling Wilburys—that ultimate late-80s super(duper)group of George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty—were all still rocking and rolling (RIP), about to go on a world tour, and they had to add one new musician to their crew. Who would it be? It would be Bonnie…

Tech News Jordan Kushins

Just How Did The Ancient Greeks And Romans Cut Marble?

Watching marble being extracted from a modern quarry is an impressive sight, one that requires a tricky combination of skill, coordination, and advanced machinery to achieve. But, without the aid of bulldozers and power tools, how did the ancient miners manage it? The question popped up again and again, after observing the oddly-mesmerizing process by…

io9 Ria Misra

Animated visualization clearly shows the massive scale of sci-fi ships

It’s not nearly as large as the biggest spaceship comparison ever, but I find this kind of animation—which I made based on the work of Imgur user Devocation—to be a much clearer way to present the scale of the objects while preserving all the detail. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us…

Sploid Jesus Diaz

These Tiny Seahorses Are a Living Lesson in Camouflage

First of all, I never knew that seahorses could be this tiny. And second, I didn’t realize that their camouflage abilities are so incredibly complex. This short video about seahorses will change what you thought you knew about how animals blend into their environments and hide. This is the first in a series of science…

io9 Annalee Newitz

Cosmonauts Chuck Equipment Off The Station In Third October Spacewalk

Cosmonauts Alexander “Sasha” Samokutyaev and Max Suraev spent Wednesday’s spacewalk stripping and jettisoning surplus equipment off the International Space Station, conducting a photographic survey of the exterior, and cleaning the windows. Top image: Sasha restoring the station windows to crystal-clear perfection. Credit: ESA/NASA/Alex Gerst Cosmonauts heading out of the station. Image credit: ESA/NASA/Alex Gerst Gerst…

Tech News Mika McKinnon

Behind the Creepy Scenes at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights

Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights is one of the the best-known horror shows in the United States. We journeyed down to Orlando, Florida to see this year’s collection of nightmares, and talk to the designers who build some of the most elaborate horror attractions ever made. Full disclosure: Universal Orlando flew me to Orlando and…

io9 Ed Grabianowski

The Art on These Endangered Species Stamps Is Incredible

Since 1993, the United Nations has worked to increase global awareness of endangered species through a special set of commemorative postal stamps released each year. This year’s set was released today, and features an array of 12 beautifully drawn endangered marine animals. The US stamps include: Hippocampus denise (Denise’s pygmy seahorse) Rhincodon typus (Whale shark)…

Biology Jason G. Goldman

Hot Damn, Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice Got Optioned For Television!

And not only that, but it’s been optioned by Fabrik and Fox Television Studios, who previously worked together on The Killing and Burn Notice. No guarantee anything will ever happen, but this is still very, very good news. As Aidan Moher points out, with a TV series based on James S.A. Corey’s Expanse series already…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

Is The 100‘s Newest Faction Its Most Dangerous Yet?

In last season’s finale of The 100, Clarke found herself in a facility that was clearly neither Grounder nor Reaper. But does this new, more technologically advanced clan of Earth-dwellers represent a sanctuary for our space teens or a fresh danger? So this is what the 100 were supposed to find at Mount Weather: the…

Television Lauren Davis

“Starquakes” May Be the Reason Behind Massive Solar Eruptions

In early 2009, NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope observed an unprecedented solar storm emanating from a distant neutron star with gigantic columns of magnetized flares stretching thousands of miles into space—only the third time such an eruption had been observed. Five years later, NASA boffins think they’ve figured out what’s triggered it. Neutron stars are…

Space & Spaceflight Andrew Tarantola

Nexus 9 Hands-On: Android’s iPad Air Is a Looker, Not a Stunner

The last time HTC made a tablet, it was basically just an overweight smartphone with subpar specs. The new Nexus 9, however, is actually worthy of your consideration. https://gizmodo.com/googles-new-nexus-9-is-androids-ipad-air-1646616639 The 8.9-inch device is Google’s new flagship tablet, completely replacing the beloved Nexus 7 from last year. And it signals a shift in what Google believes…

Tech News Sean Hollister

Insannequins Is A Whole Tumblr Devoted To Weird And Creepy Mannequins

Warning: Some of these pictures of real-life mannequins cannot be unseen and will live on in your brain forever. I first learned about Insannequins when they approached me to ask if they could use this picture I tweeted of an actual mannequin in San Francisco’s Chinatown, featuring a woman’s head backwards on a torso-less pair…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders

Hydroceramic Walls Could Cool Buildings By Sweating Like Human Skin

Our reliance on air conditioning, however magical an innovation, has become a serious environmental burden. Which is why researchers in Barcelona designed a material they say can naturally cool rooms by about 5 degrees Celsius, using a moisture-absorbing polymer that “sweats” much like our own body. Check out this prototype by The Institute for Advanced…

Tech News Alissa Walker

Demons Have Possessed Mena Suvari, And Only Eli Roth Can Monetize Them

Although his usual horror entertainment seems like it would be better suited to the WWE Network, Eli Roth will bring his talents instead to Women’s Entertainment TV as producer and first episode director of the new supernatural exorcism series South of Hell, starring Mena Suvari. The show is about an exorcist (Suvari, seen above during…

Television Rob Bricken

The Future Is a Lonely Place, in William Gibson’s The Peripheral

With his new novel The Peripheral, William Gibson returns to the genre that made him famous: near-future science fiction. But the world of The Peripheral is very different from the hyperactive cyberpunk citiscapes of Neuromancer. His canvas is much bigger — and his prophesies are far more melancholy. The Peripheral centers on two characters, Flynne…

Books & Comics Annalee Newitz

Google’s Search Changes Are Reportedly Destroying Top Pirate Sites

Last week Google announced that it would be rolling out changes to its search algorithm to significantly demote sites that receive a large number of valid copyright takedown requests. Now TorrentFreak reports that top sites have taken tremendous hits in traffic coming from Google. TorrentFreak spoke to several torrent site operators who say that beginning…

Tech News Mario Aguilar

Insidious 3 Trailer Reminds Us That This Franchise Loves Jumps Scares

I loved Insidious, loved it. The second movie not so much, but thankfully Insidious 3 looks like more original Insidious. That means hold on to your fucking hats—JUMP SCARES ARE COMING. Here is the very first look at the all-new Insidious 3, which still has that old lady and the ghostbusters duo because, why not?…

Trailers Meredith Woerner

Just £10,000 can now get you a full-body morphsuit Tattoo, because WHY

Morphsuits have become an easy and relatively cheap way of getting a costume together – but have you ever thought about skipping the spandex and just tattooing the suit onto your body? No? Well, if you ever do and have ten grand to spare, the original company behind the morphsuit offer such a service. The…

Tech News James Whitbrook

What’s The Best Introductory Episode Of Your Favorite TV Show?

Getting people into your favorite TV show can be a nightmare — there’s often so much history there, and if they see the wrong episode, they’ll be turned off for years. So what’s the absolute best episode of your favorite TV show to show people and get them hooked? Please include a picture or clip…

Television Charlie Jane Anders

Does This Person Look Trustworthy To You? Don’t Be So Sure.

Bonnie Raitt: Something To Talk About

Just How Did The Ancient Greeks And Romans Cut Marble?

Animated visualization clearly shows the massive scale of sci-fi ships

These Tiny Seahorses Are a Living Lesson in Camouflage

Cosmonauts Chuck Equipment Off The Station In Third October Spacewalk

Behind the Creepy Scenes at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights

The Art on These Endangered Species Stamps Is Incredible

Hot Damn, Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice Got Optioned For Television!

Is The 100‘s Newest Faction Its Most Dangerous Yet?

“Starquakes” May Be the Reason Behind Massive Solar Eruptions

Nexus 9 Hands-On: Android’s iPad Air Is a Looker, Not a Stunner

Insannequins Is A Whole Tumblr Devoted To Weird And Creepy Mannequins

Hydroceramic Walls Could Cool Buildings By Sweating Like Human Skin

Demons Have Possessed Mena Suvari, And Only Eli Roth Can Monetize Them

The Future Is a Lonely Place, in William Gibson’s The Peripheral

Google’s Search Changes Are Reportedly Destroying Top Pirate Sites

Insidious 3 Trailer Reminds Us That This Franchise Loves Jumps Scares

Just £10,000 can now get you a full-body morphsuit Tattoo, because WHY

What’s The Best Introductory Episode Of Your Favorite TV Show?

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