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A Soldier Launching a Stinger Missile That Looks Like Lasers

Is this a picture of a soldier shooting lasers against the night sky? How did they make the beams bend? They twist and turn like bolts from a Tesla coil! Sadly, no. It’s just a fantastic picture of a Marine launching a PL-87 Stinger Missile at a flying drone in a training exercise. It’s so…

Ridley Scott aims to fill AMC with high-concept television

You’ve already heard of the snow Thing-esque drama, The Terror, that Ridley Scott is producing with Scott Free TV for AMC, but now his other secret projects are being revealed. Including one project set in the future, and another that will “bend the arc of history,” whatever that means. https://gizmodo.com/amc-is-making-an-arctic-explorers-vs-monster-show-that-5984286 Deadline is reporting that Scott…

This mysterious cave was a deathtrap for thousands of years

Call it the Sarlacc Pit of the Late Miocene: A recent study by Spanish paleontologists has shown how a nasty cave entrance gobbled-up a disproportionate number of carnivores for an extended period over 9 million years ago. The cave, dubbed Batallones-1 (or Bat-1 for short), was discovered back in 1991, and it has produced a…

Dorion Sagan Demands That We Make Science an Adventure Again

In a terrific new book out today, Cosmic Apprentice, Dorion Sagan argues that it’s time we reboot the scientific enterprise — by using philosophy. Sagan is the son of famed scientists Carl Sagan and Lynn Margulis, so he grew up surrounded by speculative ideas about both cosmology and biology — later, he also collaborated on…

Timeless: The Timer You Need Made Better

The relatively recent trend of highly focused, functional, and beautiful apps (February’s Haze, for instance) has come produced some wonderful replacements to Apple’s proprietary apps. The stock selection on your iPhone is functional, sure, but it could be so much better. And Timeless may just be the timer replacement you’re after. https://gizmodo.com/haze-turn-your-weather-forecast-into-psychedelic-art-5984565 What does it…

The PBS Avengers assemble to save us all from stupid TV

When Honey Booboo and other godawful reality shows clog the airwaves, there’s only four people you can call. Carl Sagan. Mr. Rogers. Bill Nye the Science Guy. Bob Ross. Together, they are the PBS Avengers, and this world would be a better place if this video were real. Not a real movie, mind you, although…

Yes, Captain Kirk would intervene in Syria

A debate broke out over at Foreign Policy magazine when John Arquilla, a professor of defense analysis, argued that the Prime Directive should be our model for non-intervention in Syria. Now Foreign Policy writer Michael Peck has a snappy rejoinder, arguing that Kirk would join the revolutionaries. Peck explains that even if the Prime Directive…

Scientists Are Making Oysters Safe to Eat With Electron Beams

You know what’s a turn on? Oysters. You know what’s a turn off? Vomit. Oysters might be a delicious aphrodisiac, but they have a tendency to be pretty unsanitary and they can make you sick. But researchers at Texas A&M University have found a way pasteurize the bivalves using electron beams, getting rid of some…

This Incredible Transformers Costume Totally Redeems Those Movies

Say what you will about the robot designs in the Michael Bay Transformers movies, they make for one bad-ass costume when someone puts an incredible amount of detail into it. In this case the someone is Marc De Repentigny who crafted this obscenely over-the-top costume based on the Transformers movies aesthetics. In other words, brushed…

First look at the Falcon in Captain America 2

Goodbye giant red wings, hello sexy Anthony Mackie in camouflage and straps. Here’s your first look at the newly revamped Falcon from Captain America: The Winter Soldier. These new shots from the set are short one pair of red wings — however, check out those cables and green screen. Will Mackie be getting a pair…

A Magnet Keeps the Salt Inside These Stylish Shakers

Sometimes it feels like all kitchen accessories look the same. But for something different—albeit subtle—here’s a pair of stainless steel salt and pepper shakers with magnets at the angles that work like a joint connector. It’s $30 for the pair, but it’s the kind of thing that looks like you spent a more on it.…

Japan is making mecha for kids; what could possibly go wrong?

Well, we had to know this was coming sooner or later. Sakakibara Machinery Works — makers of the adult-sized mecha suit Landwalker — has created the Kid’s Walker Cyclops, the tiny, adorable terror with the bored preteen in it shown above. The night-7-foot-tall suit has a claw arm, a spinning drill arm (perfect for Gurren…

The California-Made Earthquake Alarm That Works But California Won’t Build

For all of the devastation caused by the 2011 earthquake/tsunami in Japan, the former, a 9.0 magnitude beast called “Tohoku,” could have claimed far more lives. The reason it didn’t? Since 2007, Japan has had an early warning system—conceived ten years ago at Caltech—which California still hasn’t managed to set up. And while it only…

HeartMath Inner Balance Review: Like Meditation Training Wheels

The benefits of consistant meditation are too well told. Lower stress, better focus, easier sleep. But despite its inherent simplicity, it can be really tough to learn and practice, especially if relaxation doesn’t come naturally. The HeartMath Inner Balance is designed to hold your hand as you learn, which may be all some of us…

These fluffy romantic comedies are actually remakes of horror stories

They say there are only a few stories out there in the world. Maybe that’s why so many classic horror stories seem to have been remade as the fluffiest romances modern Hollywood has to offer. Here are just a few. We’re not entirely sure that the people who made these romcoms realized that they were…

Oslo’s So Good at Recycling that It’s Run Out of Trash

Norway’s capital city has a serious waste management issue—they’re way too good at it. Half of Oslo’s 1.4 million residents rely on a steady stream of refuse to power their appliances and heat their homes. Problem is, there just isn’t enough trash to go around. Burning municipal waste—everything from household trash and industrial scrap to…

Plug Into These Revived Vintage Speakers, Or Just Ogle Their Beauty

Camera-lovers aren’t the only ones who get to fawn over retro design nowadays. German company Soundpauli has made a racket of taking vintage speakers and restoring them to their former glory. They’re stunning. Each device is doted upon cosmetically and electronically, adding a 1.8″ mini-plug for your smartphone or iPod as well the ability to…

Which movie will be this summer’s biggest surprise flop?

It’s that time of year yet again, when we place our wagers in the Thunderdome that is the summer movieplex. A dozen huge-budget franchise pictures will do battle, and some will fall. Which film will be this year’s Green Lantern or Battleship? Make your predictions right now! Once again, we’re asking you to predict which…

WTF? Google Glass won’t recognize dirty words. http://valleywag.gawker.com/you-cant-say-fuck-on-google-glass-486227536

Walking With Dinosaurs 3D trailer is simply stunning

Behold the first gorgeous footage from Walking With Dinosaurs 3D. It is a thing of beauty. Just tune out the clichéd voice over. We love everything about this trailer and this movie, except one thing, the premise. When you check on IMDB the synopsis for this movie is: Two brothers looking to follow in their…