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Scientists: Police can identify suspects’ faces from victims’ eyes

Rob Jenkins and a team of scientists at the University of York’s Department of Psychology have demonstrated that people can recognize a suspects’ face reflected in a victims’s cornea 80 percent of the time: Criminal investigations often use photographic evidence to identify suspects. Here we combined robust face perception and high-resolution photography to mine face…

How synthetic biology could save bats (and the world)

One of the most terrifying epidemics of the modern era isn’t among humans at all. It’s a deadly fungus that attacks bats in the Americas, and it has an almost 100 percent fatality rate. A bat extinction could destroy humanity, too — but some scientists think there’s an unusual solution on the horizon. Image via…

No, Real ID Is Not a National ID Card

Big Brother! Little Brother! Medium-sized Brother! Conspiracy-minded websites are ramping up the rhetoric in the lead-up to full enforcement of the Real ID Act, set to happen early next year. “It’s a National ID card!” they scream. No, no it’s not. Back in 2005, the federal government set standards for what security features state-issued IDs…

Uh Oh, Drone Operators Can’t Tell a Weapon From a Shovel

You know how it feels to squint at a pixelated video. Now imagine if being able to tell what you’re looking at were a matter of life or death. According to a searing first-hand account in The Guardian, that’s a situation drone operators face all the time. Heather Linebaugh, a former imagery analyst in the…

​The Biggest Mistakes, Blunders and Bad Ideas of 2013

To err is human, to forgive divine. So I guess if you forgive these people and companies for making some of the most moronic decisions of this year, you’re a god. Congratulations! Now cast your divine attention to learning how DC, Cartoon Network, Disney and more bungled their way through 2013. DC Hires Orson Scott…

Ireland Is Tearing Down Thousands of Empty, Brand New “Ghost Homes”

Phoenix, Madrid, even Astana: These are the cities we tend to hold up as examples of the havoc that construction booms—and busts—can wreak on a housing market. Ireland is in the news less, but its situation is just as dire; thousands of brand-new Irish homes have sat empty for years. And now the government is…

Hidden faces can be found by zooming into hi-res photos of eyes

Talk about a scene right out of Blade Runner: By zooming in on high-resolution photographs of faces, researchers recovered images of unseen bystanders from reflections in the subjects’ eyes. The technique could eventually be used in criminal investigations. The dark and shiny areas of our cornea are like a black mirror reflecting the surrounding environment…

What kind of fantastical mirror world is this? We usually see self-replicating fractal patterns in 2-dimensions, but they can also be expressed in 3-dimensions as well, namely via Mandelbox and Mandelbulb sets. This otherworldly 3D fractal pattern was created by mathematician Jos Leys. This image is republished here with permission. [h/t APOD]

This photo shows the future we once dreamed of—and lost

This incredible photo of a SR-71 Blackbird being refueled in mid-air was taken by Sgt. P.A. Tubridy in 1988. It was the symbol of the United States’ military power. It was the symbol of the country’s incredible technological prowess. Now, it represents the future that we used to dream of—and make. A future that feels…

These Pigs Glow-in-the-Dark to Save Lives

Though they may not be the first set of glow-in-the-dark critters born for the sake of science, the newly bioluminescent pigs of the South China Agriculture University aren’t any less incredible—or for that matter, adorable. Wilbur, eat your heart out. https://gizmodo.com/glow-in-the-dark-snails-make-boring-research-beautiful-1190008316 And as far as the pigs are concerned, looking good is pretty much their…

The Design Genius Behind the NYT Mag Is Leaving to Revamp Apple

Bad news for New York Times readers, great news for anyone who’s ready to see Apple deviate from its twee ad campaigns: Arem Duplessis, the Design Director at the NYT Magazine, is leaving his post to become a Creative Director at Apple. You may not have heard of Duplessis, but you’ve almost certainly seen his…

This Week’s TV: Can Community be good again? Is Space Dandy too sexist?

To help you start to answer those pressing questions, we’ve got three clips from this week’s Community season premiere, featuring the return of creator Dan Harmon. Plus tons of info about Space Dandy, from the creator of Cowboy Bebop. Here’s all the details and clips for this week’s TV! Top image: Community Today: Being Human…

The Most Important Gadgets of 2013

Every year, we’re hit by yet another wave of new gadgets. Some of them are good, a lot of them are bad, but a very select few manage to be important. Here are the gadgets that had the biggest impact on the technological landscape in 2013. The following are listed in no particular order, and…

Dolphins like to get high by sucking on puffer fish

Using a remote-controlled camera disguised as a sea turtle, marine biologists watched as young dolphins got themselves stoned by ingesting a nerve toxin released by puffer fish. And as if sharing a joint, the dolphins could be seen passing it around. Puffer fish, when provoked, protect themselves by releasing a nasty toxin that can be…

BBC Servers Were Hacked and Access Auctioned Off on Christmas Day

How about giving a nerdy Doctor Who fan the ultimate gift this year: hacked access to a BBC server. That was the deal apparently on offer on some “underground” internet sites on Christmas Day, after a hacker allegedly gained access to a BBC server and tried to sell on his access method. According to Reuters,…

​A good night of sleep is like hosing down your filthy brain

Why animals sleep remains one of the enduring mysteries of biology, but new research suggests the primary reason might be to allow cerebrospinal fluid to wash all the gunk out from between your brain cells. Sleep seems to strengthen links between cells, helping turn short-term memories into long-term ones. But scientists have struggled to understand…

SD Cards Are Tiny, Hackable Computers (For Good or Evil)

An SD card isn’t just a dumb chunk of memory; it’s a dumb chunk of memory with a built-in brain, a microcontroller. And at this year’s Chaos Computer Congress, enterprising hackers showed off exactly what those brains can be used for: cheap hardware for makers or malware machines for malcontents. The reason SD cards have…

What was your highlight of 2013?

2013, you brought us so much that was good, so much that was bad, and so much that we’re still trying to figure out (picket-fence building spiders? Why, 2013? Just, why?). With only two days left to go, we want to know what your highlight of the year was. https://gizmodo.com/scientists-finally-know-what-created-these-mysterious-r-1487367394 Look out over the year…

This Lord of the Rings-inspired dining room is perfect for Elevenses

One dining room to rule them all, one dining room to feed them; one dining room to bring them all and in the darkness seat them. I also imagine this thing is a hell of a gaming table, too. It was born for rolling 3d6. [Via The Mary Sue]

This Minimalist Outdoor Grill Rolls Open Like a Sleeping Bag

There’s nothing quite like roasting a meal you just caught while you’re braving the great outdoors. It’s an experience made all the better with a campfire grill that doesn’t feel like a sack of bricks in your backpack. And while designer Roee Magdassi’s Stakes grill doesn’t exist just yet, we’re hoping at least one manufacturer…