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This Headlamp’s Tilting Beam Always Matches the Angle Of Your Eyes

A headlamp can keep your hands free while you’re out exploring in the night, but sometimes you really have to angle your head to get the beam exactly where you want it. So Snow Peak came up with its new Mola headlamp that features an automatically tilting LED, which better matches the angle of your…

Designer furniture is all too easy to knockoff—but Modern Ruins, a makeshift showroom by artist Stephanie Syjuco, makes art out of imitation. Each classic piece in her collection is made entirely from scavenged materials. These “shanty-life” reproductions look legit, but hint at the complex relationship between modernism, affluence, and affordability. [Recology SF]

New Divergent trailer finally explains what a “Divergent” is

The very last Divergent trailer before the movie comes out actually explains what it means to be labeled “divergent” in this future dystopia. Warning: confusing exposition ahead. For those of you who haven’t read the YA book by Veronica Roth, we learn that the new Chicago survived some sort of war that’s shrouded in secrecy.…

Wake Up at the B&B from Groundhog Day Every Morning for Eternity

Just a day after the real-life Punxsutawney Phil forecast six more weeks of winter, the bed and breakfast where Groundhog Day was filmed hit the market. You could buy it, set an old-fashioned clock radio to go off at 6:00 a.m. playing “I Got You, Babe,” and relive the same day over and over—and over…

Prepare Yourself For the Age of the Super-Rat

Do you hate rats? If so, you’re not going to like what Dr. Jan Zalasiewicz, a University of Leicester paleobiologist, has to say about the future of Earth. This week, Dr. Zalasiewicz reported on the heartiness—and ambitiousness—of rats, explaining how our rapidly changing planet is soon going to be filled with gigantic, super-evolved rodents. And,…

Does your favorite movie have a “spiritual sequel”?

Oh, sequels. Sometimes they’re as good, or even better, than the originals (see: Toy Story 2 and Terminator 2), and sometimes they mean that you have to watch another 90 minutes of Transformers. But what about the movies that, while not really sequels, just kind of belong together anyway? In response to this post about…

The Amtrak Dock Vertical Lift bridge spans the Passaic River in Newark, NJ. Built in 1937, the bridge carries train traffic as part of the Northeast Corridor. It is still capable of raising to it’s maximum clearance of 135 feet with prior notice of 24 hours, though it has not been raised since 2004. [Photo…

Watching kids discover their own shadow is surprisingly fun

Do you remember the first time you saw your own shadow? I don’t. But apparently it’s a pretty shocking experience. I don’t blame these kids. If you really think about it, shadows are damn freaky. STOP FOLLOWING ME, YOU DAMN SPECTER. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us on Facebook

More evidence that sweetened foods and beverages are killing you

New research published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine shows that eating added sugar in foods such as soft drinks, cereals, and cakes does more than just make us pack on the pounds, it can also increase our risk of dying from heart disease — and by a significant margin. In a nutshell, here’s what…

This Simple Invention Seals Gunshot Wounds in 15 Seconds Flat

To stop bleeding, apply pressure—with tiny sponges. A group of veterans, scientists, and engineers in Oregon have a developed a device that uses small medical sponges to stop bleeding from gunshot wounds in just 15 seconds. Hemorrhaging is the leading cause of death on the battlefield. When a soldier is shot, medics use gauze to…

Watch Bill Nye “debate” the Creation Museum live, right here!

At 7:00 pm EST, the fabled debate between Bill “The Science Guy” Nye and creationist Ken Ham will go down at the Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky. Seeing as neither of them believe in each other’s view in the slightest, this should be insane — and you can watch the madness as it unfolds live,…

It’s Okay To Be Insanely Jealous of This Kid’s AT-AT Rocking Horse

Even though it’s still not quite finished, it’s ok to envy the toddler who’ll be riding off into the imaginary twin sunset aboard this AT-AT rocking horse. It’s being built by Epbot’s Jen and her husband, and so far over 40 individually cut pieces of MDF have gone into its construction. It’s still waiting for…

The Drinking Principle is the easiest possible form of social control

So, you’ve decided to be an evil puppet-master. That makes sense, you seem like the type. If you want to turn your fellow human beings into automatons following your direction, all you have to do is scoot over to a bar. Then you need to apply the Drinking Principle. The Drinking Principle is stated this…

It’s so freaking warm in Alaska that roads turned into rivers

NPR wasn’t kidding: Move to Alaska if you want to avoid the harsh winter in the rest of the US. Here’s proof: A road in Alaska flooded by snow melted by the high temperatures, 40 degrees above normal for this time of year. The temperatures are wreaking havoc in the Land of the Midnight Sun.…

Google Now Is Adorable When It’s Confused

Thanks to a tiny issue when it comes to parsing commas, YouTuber SpiderDice discovered that Google Now is convinced our planet is divided into over 189 quadrillion countries. Our testing confirmed that a Nexus 5 returns the same results when you ask it “how many countries are in the world?” It’s an easy mistake for…

Almost Human is at its best when it focuses on its robots

For a show about law enforcement being unable to keep up with criminal technology, Almost Human can be a bit weak when it comes to its technology-aided crimes. Fortunately, the series is much better when it turns back to its real heart: robots and how they interact with human beings. It feels like Almost Human…

What Was the First Facebook Message You Sent or Received?

This is mildly embarrassing, but if we’re going to be embarrassed, we might as well do it together here in the trust tree. Today is Facebook’s tenth birthday, so show us the first Facebook message you ever sent or received. Warning: lots of cringing ahead. Messaging pre-dated a lot of the features of Facebook as…

The U.S. Government’s Cybersecurity Is a Total Shitshow

Today, a report from the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Minority Committee offered an overview of the fed’s current state of cybersecurity. And how is the government with which we entrust our most sensitive and private information looking? In short—bad. Very, very bad. It’s no secret that the federal government isn’t exactly what you might…

The World’s Most Expensive Wasteland

In the abandoned mansions of Bishops Avenue—London’s second most expensive street—ferns poke through staircases, water runs down walls, and animal skeletons litter the carpets. How is decay blooming amid such valuable property? In fact, it’s blooming because of it. In London, where housing prices steadily climb as the rest of the country struggles through a…

The Most Astounding Airships, Dirigibles and Zeppelins in History

In our dreams, the skies belong to airships and zeppelins. These classic vehicles are among the most elegant and beautiful modes of transport ever created, and there’s a reason why so many science fiction shows feature them. Here’s a gallery of brave and beautiful air vehicles of the past. Pax, a colorful airship, constructed by…