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Mexico may amend its constitution so that it can drill for more oil

Mexico sits atop some positively massive quantities of shale oil and gas, but, unlike America, has not pursued these lucrative subterranean reserves. Why? According to Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, doing so is against the country’s constitution; so he’s asking the government to change it. Above: The world’s largest shale gas deposits. Mexico’s go largely…

I Want to Live Inside This 1960 Painting of a Monorail Station

This 1960 painting of a never-built monorail station is so beautiful, such an amazing example of sleek, midcentury design, that I really wish I could just step inside it and live there. Or, at the very least, blow it up as a giant photomural for my apartment like in Stardust Memories. Back during the planning…

This Oil and Vinegar Dispenser Stores One Inside of the Other

Why waste counter space with separate bottles of both olive oil and balsamic vinegar when the talented folks at XD Design have come up with a better all-in-one solution? Their Orbit features a pair of mouth blown glass globes sitting inside each other, keeping the two liquids separate—while also playing up the fact that oil…

Beauty and the Beast‘s So Boring, Ripping a Heart Out Can’t Save It

OH GOD, WHY IS THIS SHOW SO BORING? It literally showed Vincent removing a dude’s heart, Temple of Doom-style, and that’s barely enough to pique my interest. The good news is that I’ve found the cure for my chronic insomnia. The bad news is that this show reached whole new heights of repetitive dullness this…

See Mars through a rover’s eyes with this interactive panorama

This newly released Mars panorama gives armchair explorers a 360°, rover’s-eye view of the Red Planet, from a vantage point near the base of Aeolis Mons. Also known as Mount Sharp, the 18,000-foot mound of sedimentary layers forms the central peak of Gale crater, and is the Curiosity Rover’s primary scientific target. Curiosity’s come a…

A 120-Year-Old Animation Machine That Can Play Your Favorite GIFs

Way back in 1894, an inventor named Herman Casler started a business making Mutoscopes, a newfangled device that animated still images using a hand-cranked winch. Casler probably never imagined that a version of his device would be used to animate digital files. Behold: The Giphoscope. Italian design studio Officina K dusted off and rethought Casler’s…

Solar Panels: Not Just Big Rectangles on the Roof Anymore

In designing the 28th Street Apartments in South Los Angeles, architects at KoningEizenberg had several underlying missions: To restore an 80-year-old structure, to add a new residential wing, and to modernize the entire complex, making it more sustainable. In sunny L.A., adding solar energy was a no-brainer. But where exactly to add that solar is…

Young-adult science fiction tackles ethics. We think of young-adult novels as a fun ride, or as a vehicle for exploring alienation. But the American Library Association has a great list of YA titles with thought-provoking ethical questions, from Ender’s Game to Sherri L. Smith’s Orleans.

Man of Steel discovers Honest Trailers is its own kind of kryptonite

We’ve had some fun with Man of Steel… and now that the movie has hit DVD and Blu-ray today, I see no reason to stop now. Honest Trailers works their magic on Superman’s latest outing, and even the most strident of the film’s defenders should get a laugh out of the dubstep doomsday machine.

Incredible video of the magic morphing table that lets you touch things

Remember the morphing table that can replicate your body and movements in real time? It’s name is inForm. Daniel Leithinger—from the Tangible Group at MIT Medialab—just told Sploid about their first official video. This thing is so damn awesome. https://gizmodo.com/this-morphing-table-can-create-a-virtual-version-of-you-1458375473 They added a screen in portrait mode so you can see the person who is…

How We’ll Swear in the Future

Every culture has its swear words, nasty and highly offensive terms that pack a powerful punch when we’re not in polite company. But many of our swear words have diminished in potency over time, a sure sign of their ever-changing nature. Here’s how you can expect to be swearing in the future. Alright people, seeing…

Fuji Instax Mini 90 Review: Photos You Can For Real Hold in Your Hand

Polaroid may be all but dead, but there are still instant film cameras to be enjoyed by the nostalgia-craving public. Fujifilm’s latest, the Instax Mini 90 Neo-Classic, is an odd little thing with more options that you’re used to from instant film cameras. What Is It? It’s a $200 fixed focal length camera that shoots…

I’m trying to watch my TV show and you’re being a war criminal

Watching television with your friends can be a lovely bonding experience — unless someone acts like a jerk, and ruins it for everyone. Here’s our helpful rundown of the worst types of obnoxious behavior to avoid when watching TV with your crew. This essay will be structured in two parts: 1) A list of the…

Scientists Have Made Bullets Out of Light

Light beams can be super powerful, but they tend to scatter and lose focus over distance. Bullets are great for aiming at a far-off target, but tend to do a bit more damage than photons. What if you combined the two? You’d have light bullets, which sound like science fiction, but are very recently real.…

Architecture for Humanity’s Founders Step Down After 14 Years of Work

One week after winning a prestigious design award, Cameron Sinclair and Kate Stohr have left Architecture for Humanity, the humanitarian design organization they founded in 1999 and that currently counts 59 chapters in 16 countries. Sinclair and Stohr are recipients of the Curry Stone Design Prize‘s new Vision Award, which recognizes leaders who have inspired…

Let’s all move to the Isle of Wight and camp out every. Single. Night.

Astrophotographer Chad Powell captured this vision of the Milky Way arcing phosphorescent over England’s Isle of Wight, which island is renowned for its lack of light pollution. https://gizmodo.com/this-is-why-astronomers-build-telescopes-in-the-mountai-5893347 https://gizmodo.com/what-do-we-really-mean-when-we-say-light-is-pollution-552474812 Photo published by kind permission of Chad Powell Powell tells io9 the panorama (which he’s titled, appropriately, “Too Many Stars to Count”) was shot on a…

The U.S. Military’s Mortar Launchers Are Getting a 21st Century Upgrade

Despite continued efforts to modernize and improve handheld mortars, like the 60-mm M224 carried by American soldiers, soldiers today still aim it as their forefathers did in WWII: by looking over the barrel at a fixed analog sight. But thanks to the Office of Naval Research’s (ONR) rapid prototyping program, these venerable artillery launchers are…

Some Mad Genius Made Play-Doh That’s Safe To Eat

The exact science behind what could be one of the greatest innovations in children’s afternoon activities isn’t clear, but what’s certain is that somewhere some brilliant chemist has found a way to make a type of Play-Doh that’s as delicious—and safe—to eat as it looks. After all, any kid will tell you that technically all…

Gizmodo Is Hiring an Editorial Fellow in New York City

Hello, Internet! We’re looking for a new editorial fellow for our New York office. Editorial Fellows are Gizmodo’s entry level editorial positions. We ask a lot of you, but, in return, you will learn a lot about this whole professional blogging enterprise. The ideal candidate is someone who’s looking for a career in media, but…

This is what a McRib really looks like before cooking it

DJDanaK has a friend who works at McDonalds and took this photo of some raw frozen McRibs. They look gross, like frozen pink snowmobile tracks. But I don’t care. They’re delicious. This pork patty is the core ingredient of this scarce trash gourmet delicacy—made with processed pork meat compressed and pre-cooked in a mold to…