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A startup has developed a contraceptive chip for women that can be turned on and off using a remote control device. The implant, which dispenses 30 micrograms of levonorgestrel each day, is designed to last for 16 years. Pre-clinical testing starts next year in the U.S., with the goal of having it on the market…

Planet of the Apes: A Timeline and an Explanation

Now that Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is out, it’s time to assess where we are in the complicated, time travel dystopia of the franchise that started over a half century ago. We’ve got a timeline and an analysis of where the current series puts us. Chart by Jim Cooke The Planet of…

15 Dead Simple IFTTT Recipes That Will Make Your Life Way Easier

IFTTT—If This Then That—is an automator that links different internet connected services (think: Gmail) and devices (think: your smartphone). After turning on each service, or channel, you can use it as a trigger for another service, or vice versa. It may sound complicated, but it’s actually a nice, intuitive way to simplify your life. Here’s…

These Steampunk Computers Transport Us To The Victorian Retro Future

In an alternate reality Charles Babbage’s difference engine and Ada Lovelace’s computer programming led us into a world filled with brass-keyed laptops with phonograph speaker systems. Several artists have brought that imagined reality to life, building working computers with a steampunk edge. A notebook inspired by the works of H. P. Lovecraft, built by Zackary…

Redheads aren’t going extinct because of climate change

Whether it’s blondes or blue eyes or redheads, every generation seems to have a panic over what trait is going to go “extinct” sometime in the future. But it’s nonsense. Below, an explanation from Gawker’s Antiviral about why redheads aren’t going extinct because of climate change. Factually is Gizmodo’s new blog of fun facts, interesting…

Each of These Images Is Smaller Than the Width of a Human Hair

Oxford scientistsjust revealed a new kind of display technology that can render images smaller than the width of a human hair. The detailed images you see above were rendered on these flexible, nano-pixel displays. Would you believe that each one is smaller than the width of a human hair? And that’s only the beginning. Like…

Genius trailer turns Saving Private Ryan drama into Expendables idiocy

Proving again that great editing can turn any movie into something completely different, the geniuses from Unusual Suspects took the tragic story of Saving Private Ryan and converted it into that Hollywood clusterfuck of stupidity, bad writing, and explosions that is The Expendables 3. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us on…

The Science Fiction And Fantasy TV Shows That Had Perfect First Seasons

We take it for granted that TV shows need to take some time to find their feet and get into a groove — especially genre shows, where the concepts have to “gel.” But some shows manage to come out of the gate strong. What are your picks for the science fiction and fantasy shows that…

The Mississippi Girl “Cured” of HIV Was Not Actually Cured

In March, 2013, doctors reported that a Mississippi-born child treated early and aggressively for HIV had been effectively cured of the virus. Now, the child’s doctors say the infection has returned. “It felt very much like a punch to the gut,” said Dr. Hannah Gay of the University of Mississippi, who initially handled the child’s…

Delta Put the Most Useful Ad Ever Inside Uber Cars

To promote the fact that Delta has added USB ports to every seat on its long-haul international flights, the airline installed these clever ads—as spotted by Laughing Squid’s Scott Beale—in New York Uber taxis, giving them powered USB ports too so that passengers can recharge their phones. It not only makes you wonder why every…

Thankfully, Extant Isn’t All About Halle Berry’s Space Pregnancy

Extant, the new series that finds Halle Berry’s character inexplicably pregnant after a solo space mission, may not be the smartest series on television, but it could prove a fun summer mystery show. And fortunately, there’s more to it than Berry gazing at her not-yet-expanding navel. Halle Berry is Molly Woods, our freshly returned astronaut…

That “70-year-old traffic jam” is actually just a regular old junk yard

Photos of a Belgian forest crammed with decaying old cars are making the internet rounds again. It’s being called an “abandoned traffic jam,” as if American soldiers just left their cars in the middle of the road and ran once WWII ended. That explanation is totally bogus, as Jalopnik’s Jason Torchinsky proves with some photographic…

Shooting Challenge: The 2014 World Cup

The World Cup is upon us, and this weekend, it comes to an end with one last match between Germany and Argentina. For this week’s Shooting Challenge, we want to see your photos of this year’s World Cup (even if it’s just a viewing party from your couch!). The Challenge Take a photo of World…

​Honda Just Announced The Best First Motorcycle Ever

Shopping for your very first motorcycle? Start here. The 2015 Honda CB300F promises to be fun to ride, affordable and incredibly cheap to run. It’s the perfect learning tool for new riders. The CB300F is a naked version of the new-for-2015 Honda CBR300R, itself an update of the amazingly capable CBR250R. Shorn of its plastic…

These scorpions are probably hiding in your bookcase

If you have old vintage books, you may have some book scorpions in your bookcase. Actually, you really should want to have them, even if they look scary and gross. Book scorpions protect your old books—they love to munch on the book lice that eat the glue which holds old books together. A book scorpion…

A Breakthrough in Our Understanding of How Intelligence Evolves

It’s hard to study intelligence in humans — our cultures are incredibly complex, and what counts as “smart” is defined as much by our societies as it is by our genes. So some researchers have turned to chimpanzees to understand what actually gives rise to intelligence in the brain. Photo by innotata.

A Home Dry Cleaner That Refreshes Your Clothes in Just Ten Minutes

The Swash is being pitched as a sort of personal dry cleaning machine that promises to refresh clothes in just ten minutes. But instead of the toxic chemicals often used at your local dry cleaner, it runs on disposable detergent pods. What that means is in addition to purchasing the $500 Whirlpool-engineered appliance, you’ll also…

This guy spent $500,000 in his Star Trek collection

$500,000. That’s how much a Star Trek fan Anthony Sforza is, a man who put three years of his life into turning his basement into a temple dedicated to Gene Roddenberry’s sci-fi series—then filled it with unique memorabilia. He actually bought a piece of the set to analyze it and use the exact same materials.…

Twenty Common Sex Myths, Debunked

Dr. Aaron Carroll – author of the fantastic guide to sex-debunkery, Don’t Put That in There – stopped by Mental Floss to guest-host an episode dedicated to deflating common myths and misconceptions about sex. Lots of great stuff in this episode, including a few subjects we’ve covered in greater detail in the past, like the…

Climate change creates conditions that increase the risk of disease for both animals and humans. Health officials are especially concerned about the vulnerability of livestock—which accounts for 40% of global agricultural GDP, employs 1.3 billion people, and provides one-third of human protein intake.