Latest

Lego Embrickens Another Frank Lloyd Wright Masterpiece: The Imperial Hotel

Lego has revealed the first addition to its Architecture series for 2013, and once again the company is paying tribute to a master of the craft—Frank Lloyd Wright—with Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel. The series has already included several of Wright’s creations before; like Falling Water, the Guggenheim Museum, and the Robie House, and it’s unfortunate that…

A new theory on why the moon looks bigger on the horizon

The Moon Illusion is probably the oldest optical trick that the world plays on us. When the moon is on the horizon, it appears to be huge and dramatic. When it’s directly overhead it seems no more than a dime-sized light in the sky. Why the extreme difference in apparent size. There are a lot…

Samsung’s Next Galaxy Note Will Supposedly Be an 8-Inch Monster (Updated)

Samsung’s mobile head JK Shin has supposedly confirmed that there’s an 8-inch Galaxy Note coming next month at Mobile World Congress, a trade show in Barcelona. That means you’re going to need to buy a pair of Jncos if you want to carry this rumored monstrous phablet in your pocket. Besides the report that the…

Starbucks’ New Machine Is a Little Too Realistic

Face it, you go to Starbucks to feed your socially acceptable drug addiction. Starbucks is the dealer, and you’re jonesin’. Being surrounded by conspicuous writers writing conspicuously, other impatient addicts, and baristas who didn’t quite hear your name correctly is just a bonus. And SNL imagines a world where you can bring that last part…

The Cuddly Blanket Chair. You’re Gonna Sit Here All Winter

Designer Aga Brzostek took the Snuggie one step further to create the Autumn/Winter Chair, a.k.a. a giant foam chair with a blanket attached. Has she gone too far? Hell no. She’s gone just far enough. The seasonally-appropriate seat looks like the most comfortable thing in the world. You’d never have to leave. Now all we…

Is light a particle, a wave, or a bunch of tiny, photon-gathering horses?

Check out the wave-particle duality as presented by Colm Kelleher and animated by Nelson Diaz for TEDEd; it’s a clever explanation to a longtime quantum conundrum. Even better: it’s delivered with a lilting Irish accent — which makes the historical bit about the eye-horses that much more entertaining. [TEDEd]

Finally, an ethical way to trap your favorite animals inside a jar

It’s not nice to keep animals trapped inside of jars, but what if they were virtual animals, instead? This is the thinking behind Jarpet, an interactive 3D projection system that recently won a Red Dot design award. Using Jarpet, children can visualize and interact with 3D projected pets that seem to appear and move inside…

Tiny RC Tanks Somehow Make War Seem Adorable

If you find yourself in a disagreement with a friend or co-worker you can either settle it using a grownup approach like polite discussion, or with a set of these awesome RC Battletanks. Controlled via an accompanying Android or iOS app they can turn any neutral cubicle into a militarized zone in no time. Available…

A returning Captain America character is confirmed. And has a major villain in Amazing Spider-Man 2 just been revealed?

One of Marvel’s latest superheroes could be crossing over to The Avengers 2. Check out new trailers for Oblivion and the Evil Dead reboot. Ryan Murphy keeps on talking about American Horror Story’s next season. Plus Hugh Jackman hints at tons of returning mutants in X-Men: Days of Future Past! Spoilers from here on out!…

A 3D-Printed Hamburger Would Cost You $300,000

Making fake meat in a lab sure isn’t easy, but 3D printing promises to revolutionize the process. The only downside: a 3D-printed hamburger will set you back $300,000. https://gizmodo.com/it-is-almost-impossible-to-create-fake-meat-5920351 Growing meat in the lab is a long-studied avenue of research. But now 3D printing could make the process quicker. The BBC explains: https://gizmodo.com/lab-grown-meat-its-whats-for-dinner-5804190 [I]nstead of…

What Are These? (Answer)

They are in fact… snowflakes. From Tech News Daily: Researchers at the University of Utah have developed the Multi Angle Snowflake Camera (MASC), which uses three high-speed cameras triggered by infrared sensors to shoot flakes as they float to the ground, with exposures as quick as 1/25000 of a second. The device also measures the…

Scientists Spot Quadruple Helix DNA Working in Human Cells

Forget the humble double helix: scientists from Cambridge University have now spotted four-stranded strings of DNA working inside human cells. The researchers have published a paper in Nature Chemistry which demonstrates the existence and function of quadruple helix human DNA. The researchers believe it might be related to cancer—and that understanding it could be key…

You’ve Never Seen So Many Stars Squeezed Into One Tiny Room

As digital displays are becoming more common than ever, good old-fashioned projectors are getting rarer and rarer. That includes the hulking beasts that are planetarium projectors, those often massive, rotating behemoths that spout out views of the entire sky. Fortunately, the antiquated gadgets have a home at the aptly named Planetarium Projector Museum. Maintained by…

What Are These?

These objects seems to vary from shapeless blob to chaotic scribble—but they are in fact short-lived structures that have been captured in fine 3D detail for the first time. Can you work out what they are? Sadly for you, we’re going to let you puzzle over the answer for a little while. To give you…

RIM’s Blackberry App World store is now Blackberry World—but it still doesn’t have any music or video (yet). [BB World]

Earth Was Hit by a Massive Gamma-Ray Burst in the Year 775

A team of scientists has determined that Earth was hit by a massive gamma ray burst—the most powerful explosion known in the Universe—all the way back in AD 775. Last year, researchers discovered ancient cedar trees in Japan that contained unusual levels of radioactive carbon-14, as well as spikes of beryllium-10 in Antarctic ice. By…

Atari Files for Bankruptcy Protection

Some good news: the Los Angeles Times is reporting that Atari Inc. is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which could see the retro computer game company live on. The filing will help free the company from French parent Atari SA, formerly Infogrames. Currently Atari Inc owes a huge chunk of cash to a company…

IBM predicts that 2013 will be the year of steampunk. Behind the curve, much? [IBM]

When Sergey Brin Rides the Subway, He Does It Wearing Project Glass

Noah Zerkin spotted Sergey Brin riding New York’s downtown 3 train last night—and the man from Google happened to have a pair of the company’s glasses strapped to his face. Quite why he needs to wear them on public transport is unclear, but combined with his outfit they make him look like he should feature…

RIM: We Might Sell Our Hardware Division

RIM CEO Thorsten Heins has admitted that he is considering selling the company’s hardware division after the launch of new OS BlackBerry 10. In an interview with German newspaper Die Welt, Heins openly voiced the possibility of selling off RIM’s hardware division—adding weight to last year’s rumors. From the interview (translation): https://gizmodo.com/rumor-rim-to-sell-handset-business-5920980 This strategic review…