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A Disturbing Statue Commemorating Golden Age Comics’ Scariest Creator

Fletcher Hanks stands alone among Golden Age comics creators — his creations like Stardust the Super-Wizard and Fantomah the Jungle Girl are so odd and alarming, there’s nothing else quite like them. And now you can own a statue of Fantomah, pointing at your friends and coworkers with her skull face. Around the same time…

The Best (and Worst) Super Bowl Ads of 2014

Last night advertisers of all brands and commodities shelled out millions to get their ads in the coveted Super Bowl commercial break. So what did these million dollar spots produce? A whole lotta 80s nostalgia and a few tears. Here’s our list of the best and worst commercials from the 2014 Super Bowl. Personally, I…

Computer models show how Tatooine-like planets with two suns form

Over the past several years, astronomers have discovered a number of planets within so-called circumbinary systems, including Kepler-34(AB)b — a planet reminiscent of Star Wars’ Tatooine. Now, using computer models, scientists have finally figured out how these planets can form in such gravitationally hostile environments. Planetary formation in a single-star system is a relatively straight…

There Is Technically No Such Thing as an Electric Eel

There are, however, electric fish: eight-foot long, 600 volt, mouth breathing, alligator-killing fish. Electrophorus electricus Although there are a number of fish that produce an electric charge, the species that is called “electric eel,” E. electricus, is a member of the fish order, ostariophysian. Mistaken for an eel due to its shape and lack of…

We’re writing some science fiction — in only six words!

Some of our very favorite science fiction is of the epic variety. But there’s also a special place in our hearts for science fiction that is shorter — in this case, only six words. We were big fans of the stories you wrote us last time, whether you were riffing on the theme itself (“Post…

Why the Earth is wobbling

The Earth is not the steady round rock we think it is, and it’s not turning the graceful circles we imagine. Every little-bit-more-than-a-year, we make a sort of wobble in space called a nutation. Why? Imagine a top spinning in front of you. At first, when it spins quickly, it’s steady on its tapered base.…

Latest Windows 8.1 Update Leaks Onto File-Sharing Sites

Microsoft’s latest Windows 8.1 update has hit the web early ahead of its March release, letting those happy to take a punt on an unofficial, torrented version of the update check out what’s in store for the divisive operating system. Most of the obvious improvements deal with better keyboard and mouse support, such as a…

If you stopped watching Agents of SHIELD, Clark Gregg kind of hates you

The supremely affable Clark Gregg, star of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series, appears to be testing his affability. In an interview which he almost certainly already regrets, Gregg called those who have stopped watching the slow-burning show “losers.” Here’s the quote from his interview with The Salt Lake Tribune: If you’ve given up on…

This Beautiful Tintype Portrait of Hoffman Will Haunt Us Forever

This haunting tintype photo is probably the last studio portrait of Philip Seymour Hoffman. It was taken on January 19, 2014 at 08:59:11 PM, at The Collective and Gibson Lounge, during the 2014 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead on Sunday in his Manhattan apartment. He was 46…

Does the choice of writers for Thor 3 mean we’ll see Ragnarok?

A Watchman star could have a key role in Batman Vs. Superman. Game of Thrones could be delving deep into A Dance With Dragons for one character. And did a non sequitur in the Coven finale actually hint to the plot of American Horror Story’s next season? Plus, the Supernatural spinoff’s character descriptions. Spoilers now!…

How Two Men Made Low-Res Fonts Look Good Forever

While we now take crisp-looking typography for granted, it wasn’t always that way. Back in the 80s, low-res fonts looked dreadful—but fortunately two men changed all that. When John Warnock and Chuck Geschke left Xerox PARC in 1982, they had with them years of experience in computer graphics, laser printers, fonts and design. In time,…

The True Pain of Watching YouTube Tutorial Videos

It’s such a shame that ten seconds of valuable information requires watching awful online ads and rambling, ill-produced amateur video. [Doghouse Diaries]

U2’s new song Invisible—which featured in a Super Bowl ad—is free on iTunes until 23:59 EST today to support HIV and AIDS charity. For every download, Bank of America will donate $1 to Red.

AT&T Is Making Its Shared Data Family Plans Way Cheaper

Over the weekend, AT&T announced that it’s cutting the prices of its Mobile Share Value plans that are aimed at families—and it could save you between $50 and $100 a month. The Mobile Share plans will continue working in the same way: you purchase a bucket of data (unlimited talk and text included) to share…

NYT: Apple’s Smartwatch Could Use Wireless Charging and Solar Power

The New York Times reports that Apple is researching new technologies to charge its products—and it could see its smartwatch come equipped with solar charging capabilities. Some day. In a feature about the future of power portable electronics, the Times mentions that “two people who work at the company” have told them that Apple is…

Punch-Drunk Love: Where Philip Seymour Hoffman Steals Every Scene

Philip Seymour Hoffman was found dead in his apartment today in New York City, a 46-year-old actor with a staggering range who could slip nearly undetected into the most difficult of roles. Hoffman was Oscar-nominated for dark, complex films like The Master, Doubt, and Capote, but he was also a regular in cult-hit crowdpleasers: The…

New Captain America The Winter Soldier Trailer: Metal Arm Solid

If you had even the faintest doubts that Marvel’s followup to Captain America would be anything but a series of kickass fights and flying ships going boom, well, be at ease. The new trailer is here, and it looks incredible. It’s exciting to get a better look at Falcon, whose equipment looks badass however implausible,…

Disquiet: 15, 10 & 5 Years Ago This Week (2014.05)

This would be roughly the week of January 27 through February 2. 5 Years Ago (2009): Downstream (free download) entries included Wavespan’s music made from fields recordings of the Santa Cruz area, a “mega mix” of the Downstream entries from 2008 stiched into one single piece by Loopy C, some proof-of-concept experimentation with the Nintendo…

Aphex Twin SAW2 Countdown: Track 12 (“White Blur 1”)

I am going to do this track-by-track countdown to the release, on February 13, 2014, the day prior to Valentine’s Day, of my book in the estimable 33 1/3 series. It is a love letter to Aphex Twin’s album Selected Ambient Works Volume II, which will mark its 20th anniversary this year, less than a…

One Boob Built YouTube: How Nipplegate Changed the Way We Share Video

Think about it this way: If Justin Timberlake hadn’t partially exposed one of Janet Jackson’s nipples during that fateful Super Bowl halftime show, you wouldn’t be able to watch all the nipples you’d like on your computer today. Ten years ago, Timberlake’s promise to “have you naked by the end of this song” as he…