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Now you can understand Fourier transforms — like a boss

If you’ve spent any time on the Internet, at some point you’ve heard the phrase “Fourier transform.” It’s it’s a mathematical discovery that’s baked into everything from MP3s to quantum physics. Once you understand it, the world is your oyster. Luckily, Aatish Bhatia has a terrific article in Nautilus that will explain it all to…

Toys “R” Us creates the most anti-science ad ever

Wrong, wrong, wrong, Toys “R” Us. Wrong. An inane commercial like this — in which children are taught that science and the environment are boring — sends the exact wrong message. In the ad, a group of school children are loaded onto a bus labeled, “Meet the Trees Foundation.” A ranger shows them pictures of…

Adorable baby stops crying whenever he hears the Star Wars theme song

The force is strong with this one, it seems. Gezi Parkı on YouTube uploaded a video of a baby being calmed by the Star Wars theme song. The baby boy goes from crying to silence to gleeful within the first few notes of John Williams’ Star Wars theme song. This kid is going to be…

The “Naked Miley Cyrus in Space” Music Video You Didn’t Know You Wanted

Miley Cyrus is some sort of naked alien in the glittery, emo music video for Future’s new song “Real and True.” I’m not sure what’s supposed to be happening here, but it looks like Miley’s sheer levels of body glitter are too much for the space crew that finds her on a planet, and their…

The Civil Wars: 20 Years

CGI may be the wave of the future, capable of crossing the uncanny valley and generating photo-real imagery, but it’s a cold visual medium. For as closely as digital drawing tablets dutifully replicate the action of drawing, it cannot match the effect of physically crafting—it’s an inherent technological disconnect between the artist and the art,…

​All your Questions about Thor 2‘s Multiple Endings — Answered!

As with all the previous Marvel movies, Thor: The Dark World’s final moments were full of surprises — including two scenes during the end credit. So we asked Marvel’s Kevin Feige and director Alan Taylor all about the end credit scenes and the big twist before the credits. Major spoilers ahead… We organized their answers…

This Technicolor Dream Cloth Is Woven From Optical Fibers

We live in a magical age filled with robot maids, flying cars (sorta), and mechanical guard dogs. And now, finally, that list includes color-changing home furnishings, like this fiber optic throw pillow. This is the 21st Century for crying out loud. https://gizmodo.com/17-better-ways-to-waste-your-money-than-this-crowdfunde-1458308873 Developed by a team of researchers at Japan’s Meiji University and called the…

These fish are not real but incredible layered paintings

These are the paintings of masterful artist Keng Lye, who paints 3D objects using layer after layer of clear resin painted with acrylic. Kind of like a human 3D printer. The results are so realistic that anyone can believe there are real fish and octopi inside some of these plates and bowls. This red octopus…

Feminist cyborgs unite! The “feminist science fiction” issue of the open-source academic journal Ada is out now, and it includes essays on Cabin in the Woods, Octavia Butler, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and Lois McMaster Bujold.

This Week’s DVDs are just more collateral damage to the Man of Steel

There’s not much going on this week, home video-wise, but that’s okay. If there were, they’d just be obliterated by Man of Steel as it focuses on its deadly battle to get all the sales this week. But look among the rubble and you find a swell new edition of Akira, tee-totaling tentacle monsters and…

How the Paris World’s Fair brought Art Nouveau to the Masses in 1900

The Paris World’s Fair of 1900 (also known as The Exposition Universelle) was held in Paris between 15 April and 12 November. On display were many new inventions: matryoshka dolls, Diesel engines, talking film, and the telegraphone. But more importantly, the architecture and design of this World’s Fair brought the wonderful Art Nouveau style into…

An Exquisite Book Printed Entirely Without Ink

Everybody who’s familiar with her work knows that Dutch graphic designer Irma Boom is brilliant with books. She’s crafted everything from a bite-sized biography to a rainbow-hued, 2,136-page corporate history. But her latest work is missing something all the others had: Ink. The result is stunning. Commissioned by Chanel for its No. 5 perfume line,…

Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman: Overture comic has already been delayed

Looking forward to issue #2 of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman: Overture prequel series? Well, good news — you’re going to be looking forward to it for the next four months! DC announced the much-anticipated second issue has been pushed back from a December release to February 2014, for unknown reasons. If it makes you feel…

Inside Rotterdam’s Super-Efficient New Train Terminal

This fall, Rotterdam’s new Centraal Station is open for business again, nearly ten years after the project got underway. Thanks to its massive solar roof and its super-compact layout, it’s one of the more efficient train stations in Europe—a building designed for the next century of transit. The building was designed by a coalition of…

Maybe the most d’awww-worthy photo of an astronaut ever taken

Pictured here: Leland Melvin (NASA Astronaut and the Agency’s Associate Administrator for Education) with his two dogs, Jake and Scout (Adorable Assistants to NASA’s Associate Administrator for Education). Another shot of Jake (left) and Scout (right): More info on all three here. ht Courtney O’Conner

What’s the greatest spaceship explosion of all time?

Sometimes, a gallant space explorer has no choice but to make a massive sacrifice, and blow up the spaceship. And sometimes, a ship just blows up whether you want it to or not. But what’s the coolest, or most dramatic, spaceship explosion of all? Please include a picture, book cover or clip of the detonation…

Disney wants to adapt Princess Bride for the stage

Disney is toying with the idea of a Princess Bride “stage adaptation.” Please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck, please don’t suck. EW says Disney aims to adapt Princess Bride as a stage production, but no clue whether or not this…

Proof that Princess Leia actually used her bikini on a real beach

The Leia Bikini—one of the sexiest garments in the nerdverse along with Ripley’s panties and Sean Connery’s underpants in Zardov. I knew she sunbathed wearing it, waiting between takes in the middle of the desert with her stunt double. I didn’t know that she actually used her bikini on a beach. https://gizmodo.com/these-are-the-bikini-princess-leias-you-are-looking-for-5397774 With Darth Vader…

A Handy Purse That Hides a Secret Phone Charger

Is there anything worse than leaving the house only to realize your iPhone is way low on juice and might crap out before you have a chance to charge? Yes! Of course, there are a million worse things, don’t be ridiculous. But we’re nothing if not dependent on our handheld devices. Mighty Purse is a…

17 Better Ways to Waste Your Money Than On This Crowdfunded “Flying Car”

Every six months or so we hear that Paul Moller’s flying car is just a few years away! Too bad we’ve been hearing that for the past 40 years. Moller is back in the news this week after starting a crowdfunding campaign to get his flying car off the ground. But do not — I…