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Why Everyone Wanted to Buy Twitch

Even if you’re not “a gamer,” you’ve heard of Twitch. It’s a live-streaming juggernaut, the fourth-highest source of peak-time internet traffic in the United States, the place that did that Pokemon thing. It only makes sense that Google wanted to buy them, and that Amazon just did. In fact, the surprising thing is that more…

Yep, Amazon’s Buying Twitch for $970 Million

The rumors are true, Amazon is in fact buying Twitch for $970 million, despite rumors that Google almost pulled the trigger just weeks ago. While the price didn’t crest Google’s rumored billion, it’s certainly up there, but still a steal for the household name of live-streaming. Amazon and Twitch’s statements on the acquisition are unsurprisingly…

Watch How an Emmy Statuette Comes to Life

Before the Emmy winners are announced tonight and they grasp their shiny trophy on stage in front of millions, each one of those statuettes began as a pool of pure virgin metal, liquified at 700 degrees. That’s hot. The team at Chicago-area R.S. Owens has been manufacturing the awards for 38 years, and this short…

How To Rescue Doctor Who‘s Most Shamefully Underused Companion

The history of Doctor Who is full of supporting characters who were never allowed to develop. Most of the time, the show only has one star. But I can’t think of a character who had more untapped potential than Nyssa, companion to the Fourth and Fifth Doctors. Here’s how her story could have been something…

Heroic Firefighters Save An Injured Koala By Using Mouth-to-Mouth

Late last week, wildlife rescue workers responded to a call about an injured koala in Melbourne. After rescuers retrieved the marsupial, who they nicknamed Sir Chompsalot, they realized they would have to perform CPR. After becoming injured, the koala managed to climb a tree. While the rescuers were trying to retrieve the little guy, he…

First Ant-Man Easter Egg Spotted!

The first Ant-Man Easter Egg has been spotted, and it is adorable. Mild spoilers ahead! Thanks to ComicsBlog, we have a look at the first ever Ant-Man movie Easter Egg, and it was spotted in the wild. For those of you unaware, please refer to the above clip from The Incredible Hulk (starring Ed Norton…

Why Ikea Is Ditching Giant Parking Lots

Ikea is synonymous with the suburbs; part of the furniture shopping ritual has always included an often-lengthy drive to a industrial or semi-rural area of your town. But this summer, the company is testing out a new paradigm for its empire: Stores in the city. With far fewer spots for cars. This week, Bloomberg sent…

HBO Making Shutter Island Series With Martin Scorsese Back To Direct

HBO and Paramount TV are teaming up to bring Martin Scorsese’s creepy horror flick Shutter Island to the small screen. Deadline is reporting that the new series, possibly titled Ashecliffe, is centered around the creation of the island-located mental institution. So this would predate the 1954-set film starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Rumor has it Scorsese will…

How Much Innuendo Do Kids Understand?

Almost all of us have, as adults, gone back to the stuff we watched as a kid and realized it contained some “dirty” stuff that went over our heads. Innuendo in kids comedies is pretty common. But how much innuendo do kids understand? Above is an infamous scene from Animaniacs, a popular kids show in…

The Movie and TV Release Calendar, August 25 Update

The Walking Dead Season 4 Limited Edition preorder is down to $80 today, its lowest price so far. The season comes out tomorrow, and there’s a good chance the price will shoot back up after release. [Walking Dead Season 4 LE, $80] We’ve also got the Best Buy exclusive Walking Dead Season 4 with limited…

The Somber History Behind These Wild-Looking Cube Houses

In villages all over Hungary you’ll find cube houses—more or less identical in shape but painted in fantastical colors by their residents. While these houses may look utterly delightful and whimsical to our eyes, they’re less welcomed in their own communities. In her book Hungarian Cubes, photographer Katharina Roters tells the story of standardized housing…

The Future of Telescopes Is Looking Bigger and Brighter Than Ever

Astronomy has come a long way in the 405 years since Galileo’s historic first survey of the night sky over Florence in 1609. The next generation of terrestrial telescopes are set to peer deeper into the cosmos and further back in time than ever before. We sat down with Dr. Patrick McCarthy, Director of the…

Why Does Your Food Cost So Much?

You know how much money you spend on buying food, but just where does that money go? This graphic shows you exactly where your dollar ends up. The USDA has put together a series of “Food dollars” showing how the costs of your food breakdown. More than half of the average dollar that you spend…

Google launched iOS app Slidestoday, along with updates to its Docs and Sheets apps. Slides lets you collaborate on presentations from your mobile devices, including PowerPoint files. The whole push is geared to make sure people who create stuff using Google products don’t get frustrated when they can’t pull them up on different devices. If…

Walking Dead Showrunner Writing “Romantic” Omen Sequel Series

Get ready to fantasize about the Anti-Christ! Lifetime is making an Omen sequel penned by former Walking Dead showrunner Glen Mazzara. Only one question will remain: will you be on Team Damien or Team Jesus? Deadline is reporting that Lifetime has ordered 6 episodes of an Omen sequel series titled Damien. Honestly, we’re shocked this…

Secrets of the Manhattan Project Leaked 1500 Times During World War II

The World War II program to develop an atomic bomb was the largest secret project ever undertaken by the U.S. government. But newly-declassified documents reveal how it hard it was to keep things secret as the weapon neared completion. Information leaks were everywhere, even in church sermons. Trinity Test plutonium bomb image courtesy of Truman…

Did these earthquake scientists deserve to go to prison for six years? David Wolman has a fascinating article in Matter today about the Italian geologists who were imprisoned for manslaughter after residents of a city sued them for not warning them strongly enough about quake risks.

Insane Video Takes You Inside the Cockpit of a Blue Angels Jet

The Blue Angels are the stunt pilots of the US Navy and Marines, showing off the very best aviation tricks every year at airshows. They soar, swoop, and turn upside down — all in formation. It’s incredible to watch from the ground, and it’s just blisteringly insane from inside the cockpit. I love watching the…

​The Strain Finally Had A WTF Moment And It Was Worth The Wait

I don’t know that it makes up for the interminably slow and lackluster season so far, but I do know for the first time ever I can genuinely say I’m excited to see what the hell happens next week. Before the ending — and I’ll get to that in a bit, if you’re one of…

​You Can Take This Tiny Crane With You Anywhere

The ParaPull is an ingenious block and tackle pulley system scaled down to work with common 550 paracord. It fits in your pocket and gives you a 6:1 mechanical advantage over any heavy object. Correction: I state in the video that the ParaPull provides a 7:1 mechanical advantage; in actual fact it’s a 6:1. Sorry.…