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Report: Foxconn Makes College Kids Assemble PS4s to Graduate

Chinese electronics manufacturer Foxconn was accused of labor violations with the iPhone 5C, iPhone 5, iPad, Nintendo Wii Uand just in general. Now, add Sony’s PlayStation 4 to the list, with a new report claiming that university interns are staffing overtime and night shifts for credits required to graduate.

Tech News Bob Sorokanich Oct 10 '13

Stan Lee Explains the Ludicrous “Science” Behind Superheroes

Superheroes don’t make a lot of scientific sense. They’re better than science; that’s half the fun. But you’ve gotta try and keep a little believability in there, and Stan Lee explains exactly how to do it. This two minute clip is just a teaser for a full PBS special, SUPERHEROES: A Never-Ending Battle coming out…

Books & Comics Eric Limer Oct 10 '13

How to Clean Up Deadly Space Junk Before Disaster Strikes

Hit film Gravity offers a hyper-realistic portrait of life in space, including the possibility that an avalanche of space debris could be fatal. This is a real threat, so we’d better be ready. Here are ideas that scientists, engineers and other experts have proposed to reduce the space junk threat, and clean up our orbital…

io9 George Dvorsky Oct 10 '13

Adding a Little Heat Could Give Us a 40 TB Hard Drive in a Few Years

When it comes to cramming as much data as possible on a platter, hard drive manufacturers will use every trick in the book to maximize capacity. Including turning up the heat as TDK plans to do with a new technique that could deliver 40 terabyte hard drives by 2020. In layman’s terms, it’s actually easier…

Tech News Andrew Liszewski Oct 10 '13

The Black Cat You Never Saw in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2

This Black Cat concept art from Spider-Man 2 makes us sad that Felicia Hardy was cut from the film. Plus see how the Green Goblin could have looked way creepier! Illustrator James Carson has released an early vision of Black Cat, and her slinky catsuit. He also has a ton of designs for Dr. Octopus’…

io9 Meredith Woerner Oct 10 '13

A Company That Creates Fake Battles to Prepare Soldiers For Real War

Some might say that nothing can truly prepare one for the atrocities of war. From the chaos of screaming civilians and injured soldiers to the horror of exploding everything, the experience must be nothing short of horrific. And it’s this Hollywood production company’s job to reproduce it. San Diego-based Strategic Operations specializes in “hyper-realistic tactical…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes Oct 10 '13

Deodorant maker commissions study proving women need deodorant

If you can’t get women to buy deodorant because they want to smell nice, try threatening their jobs instead. That seems to be the upshot of a new scientific study, commissioned by Procter and Gamble, suggesting that women who smelled like sweat were evaluated as less competent and trustworthy by other people. We already know…

io9 Annalee Newitz Oct 10 '13

This Swing Set Is the World’s Coolest Musical Instrument

The simple pleasure of swinging is one that most of us probably haven’t enjoyed in years. At the historic Convento Das Dominicas n the Portuguese city of Guimarães—itself a Unesco World Heritage site—designers Cláudia Oliveira and Isabel Bourbon of creative studio Elas Duas gave visitors of all ages an opportunity to sway on a special…

Tech News Jordan Kushins Oct 10 '13

A Poop-Loving Fungus That Accelerates Faster Than a Bullet

What’s faster: A bullet or the fungus Pilobolus? The folks over atEarth Unplugged are back to give us a rare look at one of the fastest things on the planet, which—surprising as it may seem—is none other than this poop-loving fungus. Here, though, we’re talking fastest in terms of acceleration. Because though each spore may…

Tech News Ashley Feinberg Oct 10 '13

10 Myths About Science Fiction (And Why They Matter)

Science fiction is the literature of our times. And that means myths about science fiction are actually myths about the world we live in today. Science fiction explains our gadget-obsessed, social-media-saturated, meta-fictional present. So here are 10 common myths about science fiction, and why they’re important. Images by Jonathan Powell/CGHub 1) The best science fiction…

io9 Charlie Jane Anders Oct 10 '13

The Amazing Studio Where Hot Wheels Designs the World’s Smallest Cars

Is it any surprise that the design offices of Mattel’s Hot Wheels division are stocked full of actual vehicle designers? After all, why spend a year of your life working on perfecting a sedan’s bumper when you can churn out countless hot rods, dragsters, and supercars? The folks at Cool Hunting got a sneak peek…

Tech News Andrew Liszewski Oct 10 '13

Astronomer recreates the solar system from Lord of the Rings lore

Several years ago, Central Connecticut astrophysics professor Kristine Larsen figured out the structure of the solar system from J.R.R. Tolkien’s work, using hints scattered throughout the books as well as her own knowledge of Tolkien’s source material (which is, not surprisingly, our own solar system). This map shows some of Larsen’s findings, though the artist…

io9 Annalee Newitz Oct 10 '13

This amazing Back to the Future musical isn’t real but it needs to be

The guys of CineFix have composed a Back to the Future musical — well, a single song, titled “Great Scott!” of course — and Broadway needs to hire these guys immediately. Because the world needs a Back to the Future musical in it ASAP. Here’s a fun behind-the-scenes video if you want to see how…

io9 Rob Bricken Oct 10 '13

The 12 Most Popular Items From the Hammacher Schlemmer Catalog

When most people think of Hammacher Schlemmer, they probably think of zany inventions like the golf cart hovercraft or the hot tub boat. But true loyalists to the 160-plus year-old mail order catalog company know that the real magic happens where you’d least expect it. No, we’re not talking about the “Unexpected” section of the…

Gadgets Adam Clark Estes Oct 10 '13

This Robot Can Write All the Thank You Notes You’re Too Lazy To Send

It’s good form to send a thank you note when given a gift, but how many of us ever really manage to find the time to do so? A New York company called Bond Gifts assumes very few of us, so it’s created an app-powered robot with perfect penmanship that can hand write a thank…

Tech News Andrew Liszewski Oct 10 '13

First look at Transformers 4’s Optimus Prime and more cool toy reveals

Hasbro debuted a bunch of toys at the New York Comic-con last night, and you’re going to want to check them out. Get the first look at the redesigned Optimus Prime from Transformers: Age of Extinction, the debut of the Dungeons & Dragons Kre-O line, upcoming Marvel movie figures and more! Transformers Thanks to the…

io9 Rob Bricken Oct 10 '13

The Fitbit Force Hands-On: Ahh, This Is More Like It

Fitbit did a lot of things very right when it madethe One, its tiny activity-tracking pod. But then the company—caving to peer pressure from the likes of Nike—made the Fitbit Flex wristband. There’s nothing wrong with that form-factor, but the Flex lost a lot of the functionality that made the One so great, and it…

Tech News Brent Rose Oct 10 '13

Dropcam Pro: A Burlier Webcam to Keep Watch Over Your Home

Dropcam, the worldwide leader in nanny cams, is following up its popular cloud-powered remote monitoring system with a greatly improved piece of hardware so that you can track your home-piece in more detail than ever before. Dropcam Pro doesn’t look different than its predecessor, but there’s a lot of good new stuff under the piano-black…

Tech News Mario Aguilar Oct 10 '13

Raw Lets You Create Data Visualizations From Spreadsheets in a Snap

If you’ve always fancied trying your hand at data visualization but never really known where to start, Raw might just be the answer: a free tool designed to create vector-based visualizations from data that’s sat in a humble old spreadsheet. The brainchild of Density Design, it was originally conceived as a “tool for designers and…

Tech News Jamie Condliffe Oct 10 '13

These sexy topographic maps show San Francisco stripped bare

San Francisco is renowned for its winding roads, stunning Victorian architecture, and, of course, its sprawling bridges. But the City by the Bay is also known for its hilly terrain — a geological feature that’s often obscured by its landmarks. These new maps show the city’s sensual contours in all their glory. These maps were…

io9 George Dvorsky Oct 10 '13

Report: Foxconn Makes College Kids Assemble PS4s to Graduate

Stan Lee Explains the Ludicrous “Science” Behind Superheroes

How to Clean Up Deadly Space Junk Before Disaster Strikes

Adding a Little Heat Could Give Us a 40 TB Hard Drive in a Few Years

The Black Cat You Never Saw in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2

A Company That Creates Fake Battles to Prepare Soldiers For Real War

Deodorant maker commissions study proving women need deodorant

This Swing Set Is the World’s Coolest Musical Instrument

A Poop-Loving Fungus That Accelerates Faster Than a Bullet

10 Myths About Science Fiction (And Why They Matter)

The Amazing Studio Where Hot Wheels Designs the World’s Smallest Cars

Astronomer recreates the solar system from Lord of the Rings lore

This amazing Back to the Future musical isn’t real but it needs to be

The 12 Most Popular Items From the Hammacher Schlemmer Catalog

This Robot Can Write All the Thank You Notes You’re Too Lazy To Send

First look at Transformers 4’s Optimus Prime and more cool toy reveals

The Fitbit Force Hands-On: Ahh, This Is More Like It

Dropcam Pro: A Burlier Webcam to Keep Watch Over Your Home

Raw Lets You Create Data Visualizations From Spreadsheets in a Snap

These sexy topographic maps show San Francisco stripped bare

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