Latest

Thank Goodness We’re Getting Disney’s Lovely Moana Sooner Than Expected

Feast your eyes on some lovely new artwork for Moana, the Disney animated film about a Polynesian girl who goes on a dangerous journey. When we first told you about this film it was slated for a 2018 release — but thank goodness, we’re getting it in November 2016 instead. Along with the new artwork…

In Ancillary Sword, There Are Worse Things Than War with the Empire

Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice swept all the major science fiction awards last year, and made her legions of fans. Now, in her much-anticipated sequel Ancillary Sword, we have a chance to return to the incredible world she built. Though Ancillary Sword takes place just a week after the action of Justice, the book’s structure is…

Can You Get Handoff to Work in OS X Yosemite?

When Apple first announced OS X Yosemite, Handoff was one of the features I was most excited about. And then this week, when the Yosemite update arrived, I was stoked to use it. Unfortunately, I can’t—and not just because of compatibility issues, either. Handoff simply doesn’t work with my iMac and iPhone. It also doesn’t…

The Big Lebowski painted after classic art works

I love Joe Forkan’s The Lebowski Cycle, a series of oil paintings that uses frames of The Big Lebowski to reference artwork by classic painters like Caravaggio, Velázquez or David. I would like to have the one above—the last one of the series—made after The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio. After Supper at Emmaus…

The View From the ISS Is Surprisingly Colorful

At night, the view from the International Space Station is surprisingly colorful. Earth’s many types of artificial lights create a bright mosaic, with the different hues revealing different lightbulbs and even different countries. Take this photo, which an ISS member took of a narrow strait between South Korea and Japan. On the left is South…

Scientists Have Identified the First Sex Act Performed on Earth

Scientists from Flinders University in Australia say they have identified the first example of penetrative sex in evolution. And wow, was it ever weird. Illustration: Brian Choo/Flinders University. The new study, which now appears in the journal Nature, describes the copulation technique of an ancient, armored fish called placoderms that lived about 385 million years…

One Lord of the Rings Pillow to Rule Them All

The One Ring has many powers, but considering it’s a) a ring and b) made of nigh-invulnerable magical gold, it’s not the easiest thing to rest your weary Hobbit-head on. This adorable version of it solves all of those problems (with none of the magic, of course)! This 40x40x10 cm pillow is by Rbitencourt USA,…

Compressing Containers Squeeze the Air Out of Your Stored Food

Anyone who’s squeezed every last molecule of air out of a Ziploc bag full of leftovers knows that food lasts longer that way. But instead of man-handling a plastic bag, or buying some kind of vacuum contraption to get the air out, consider upgrading your canisters to Prepara’s new Evak line which features a manual…

Yik Yak Wants to Be More Than Your Kid’s Favorite Shit-Talking App

“The real tech story is Yik Yak is blowing up,”Josh Miller, a Facebook project manager rumored to be working on an anonymity app for the social network, tweeted and deleted that comment recently, asking many people to wonder what the hell he was talking about. Miller was talking about Yik Yak, an anonymous posting app…

These metal machining super-slow motion videos are so damn satisfying

Someone sent me this link to a YouTube black hole of glorious slow-motion videos and I have spent the last hour going through an endless torrent of metal shaving, drilling, chipbreaking and whatever else these machines are doing. It’s so satisfying. The music is horrible, so mute your computer to watch in silence. SPLOID is…

​Plants Know When They’re Being Eaten Alive

When an insect chews on a leaf, it might not kill the plant, but that doesn’t mean the plant is fine with it. In fact, the plant can deploy a variety of defenses to drive off the munching critter. But how do plants “know” they are being eaten? A new study has some intriguing answers.…

Ryan Murphy Claims To Have Invented The Genre Of Horror-Comedy

While we’re super optimistic about the idea behind Ryan Murphy’s new female-lead, Fox horror comedy series, Scream Queens, someone needs to tell Murphy about Buffy (and Evil Dead and A-Haunting We Will Go and Beetlejuice and Cabin in the Woods). Looking at a press release for Fox’s new horror anthology series Scream Queens, Slashfilm writer…

Watch The Book Of Life Director’s Day Of The Dead-Themed Student Film

Book of Life director Jorge Gutierrez wowed us with his stunning visuals and his portrayal of the Mexican Day of the Dead. And it’s clear from his student Emmy-award-winning short film that he’s been playing with these designs and themes for a while. Gutierrez made Carmelo as his CalArts thesis film in 2000. And even…

Why iOS Updates Require So Much Space

Every iOS update is a small deception. 117MB, well that’s not so bad! Then you look at the fine print, and some a few gigabytes are required make to actually install the damn thing. So what’s really going on here? It’s annoying, but it’s actually for your protection. The Tech Block points out a great…

Tinderjust announced that the so-far totally free dating app will launch a premium service in early November. “We are adding features users have been begging us for,” said CEO Sean Rad. No word on what those features will be yet, however.

The Best Part of Chris Pine’s Vampire Lawyer Series Is The Credits

Chris Pine has been working on his passion project Vampire Lawyer secretly for many years. And here’s the first footage of Vampire Lawyer, the series. But his best work is truly found in the behind-the-scenes clips in the credits. Vampire Lawyer with Chris Pine from Chris Pine [via Funny or Die]

How Mask Makers Turn Silicone Into Glorious Guts and Gore

If you’re looking for ideas on how to transform yourself into a disease-ridden horned demon this month, you’ll want to head behind-the-scenes at Immortal Masks. The Hollywood-based company designs high-end creature masks for special effects teams in film. Or anyone who wants to seriously scare the shit out of trick-or-treaters. Most of the masks you’ll…

Don’t Deprive Yourself Of Seeing The Beauty Of Princess Kaguya

Animation has seldom felt so alive and expressive as it does in Princess Kaguya, the latest movie from Studio Ghibli. Fans of Hayao Miyazaki will find this movie delightful, but it’s unlike any other Ghibli movie I’ve seen. This is something truly, heartbreakingly special. See it in theaters. You’ll be glad you did. Minor spoilers…

Taking Apple Pay Out for a (Slightly Rocky) Spin

Now that iOS 8.1 has gone live and Apple Pay let loose (assuming you have an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus), we decided to take it out for a spin. And the results were… mixed. Setting It Up Setting it up was the easy part—alarmingly easy, in fact. Considering the trouble people have been having…

Chemists Discover Why This Mushroom Tastes Like Maple Syrup

Candy cap mushrooms have become a trendy food. These unusual little things taste exactly like maple syrup – to the point where the extract from them is put in cakes and ice cream. Chemists finally found out why, after over twenty-five years of research. When they’re put on menus, candy cap mushrooms tend to raise…