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This Is Britain’s Ultra-Secret Middle East Spy Base

It’s emerged that Britain has an ultra-secret spy base in the Middle East which taps undersea cables running through the region. The Register reports that the base and its operations are”above-top-secret” and, despite being leaked by Edward Snowden, have until now remained under wraps. Apparently some media organizations have been subject to government pressure not…

What Makes You Trust — Or Be Wary — Of New Technology?

It’s not enough for new technology to be good. It also has to make you trust it. So what is it that makes you do that? Is it seeing in action as other people you know start to use it? Maybe it’s knowing a whole lot more about the design specs and the company behind…

​The Declassified History Of The Tiananmen Square Protests

More than two-dozen U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency records, released through the Freedom of Information Act, contain vivid eyewitness accounts of the crushing of the Tiananmen protests — and describe the panic that erupted across China amid sharp disagreements between the country’s military and political elite. The records have been posted on the website of the…

No, this isn’t the Eye of Sauron: it’s an amazing image of the ringed star HR 4796A, captured by the new Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet Research (SPHERE) instrument at the Very Large Telescope atop Cerro Paranal in Chile. The newly installed SPHERE filters out light to acquire exceptionally sharp images like these—unlike any telescope before it.…

Using a helicopter to trim trees next to a power line looks insane

Watch this helicopter pilot trim trees with a giant 10-blade saw right by a power line. Apparently, it is the only practical way to cut back vegetation in isolated, hard-to-access locations. Amazing skills and courage. Apparently, these machines are used by Bond villains too: SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us on…

Astronomers Discover A Weird “Stellar Hybrid” — A Star Within A Star

An exotic type of ‘hybrid’ star has been discovered nearly 40 years since it was first theorized, but until now has been curiously difficult to find. In 1975, renowned astrophysicists Kip Thorne, of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, Calif., and Anna Żytkow, of the University of Cambridge, UK, assembled a theory on…

How Boomerangs Work

Non-returning boomerangs have been used for at least 20,000-30,000 years, with the oldest known example carved from a mammoth’s tusk. These non-returning boomerangs were used for hunting and were carved for straight flight and to stay in the air as long as possible when thrown correctly. The hunter was then able to throw the primitive…

Uh, Apparently The New Star Wars Canon Actually Started Awhile Ago

Remember how Disney announced that it was scuttling Star Wars’ Expanded Universe to create one, new, everything-matters continuity? In a very weird twist, the new #150th issue of Star Wars Insider magazine says that canon began in their last issue, with a short story titled “Blade Squadron.” Written by David J. Williams and Mark S.…

How Much of Thanos Will We See In Guardians of the Galaxy?

Have we only seen one of two Batsuits in Batman v. Superman? An old Doctor Strange casting theory is resurrected. And George R.R. Martin once again proposes a solution to Game of Thrones’ problem of running out of books to adapt. Check out set video from Ridley Scott’s Halo. Spoilers now! Top image: Guardians of…

A Brief Cartoon History of Planet Earth

Climate change is no laughing matter—but maybe it should be. Here, you can read an excerpt Yoram Bauman and Grady Klein’s new book The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change—an entertaining overview of climate science, predictions, and policy. The above is an excerpt from The Cartoon Introduction to Climate Change by Yoram Bauman and Grady Klein.…

Are you alone in the Universe?

Are you alone in the Universe? Yes—and no. This video shows that every human is on a journey, growing from a single cell to 50 trillion, carrying DNA that connects us to every living and dead animal that ever existed on Earth, made of atoms that connects us to the Universe itself. These atoms may…

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s theme played by two guys on one drum kit

These guys play a brilliant cover of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air using a very complicated drum kit where they have to share most of the drums, cymbals and specifically the kick. This is the first time I have seen anyone playing drums four hands—and four feet. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff.…

This Is What Happens When You Ask the Internet What You Should Draw

The Internet is a weird and wonderful place, but what happens when you turn to it for inspiration? Ben Redford found out when he sought suggestions to create a new artwork—drawing only what people told him to. Put together as a Kickstarter, Internetopia is a bizarre but rather pretty artwork where the canvas was filled…

Report: NASA Can’t Afford Manned Missions to Mars

A large-scale review of NASA’s human spaceflight program has revealed that it doesn’t have the budget to successfully undertake manned missions to Mars. The report—a 286-page monster by the National Research Council—took 18 months and, ironically, $3.2 million to perform. The main conclusion: the space agency currently has an unsustainable strategy for landing human feet…

How Your Cell Phone Knows Where You Are — Even Without GPS

Nowadays our phones use GPS to let us work out where we are. But mobile phone networks were able to work out where you were long before phones got smart—and this video explains how. It’s all to do with base stations and some clever math which is used to send data to your phone. Crucially,…

Explore All 12 World Cup Stadiums (No Riot Gear Required)

The World Cup is the biggest sporting event in the known universe. The only thing is Brazil is a long trek for most of us, and, y’know things around the world cup tend to get a bit… rowdy? Well, Google Maps is bringing Street View to all twelve of the stadiums, so you can explore…

We will see these street signs from the future very soon

Signs From the Near Future—a Tumblr that features photoshopped images that show the upcoming consequences of technology development—has quickly become one of my favorite blogs. Some of the street signs are genius— I have no doubt that we will see them in the very near future. Here are latest ones—and some of my favorites. Make…

This photo of the ISS looks like a scene from a space horror movie

If you told me this was a frame from Alien 5*—with some dude about to get into the dark corridor in which the xenomorph hides, waiting to kill him—I would totally believe you. In reality, it’s another cool image by astronaut Reid Wiseman, who is now working in the International Space Station. * Talking about…

The Astonishing Art of Birds and Flowers Cut From Maps

This is a piece by Claire Brewster who makes art pieces of birds, bees, and flowers from maps. Some of her work is hand cut and others are laser-cut. All are gorgeous. From Brewster’s artist statement: I use old and out-of-date maps and atlases as my fabric to create intricate, delicate and detailed sculptures and…

Dad makes crazy sound effects by playing drums on his kid’s back

Let’s not freak out, guys. It’s a kid and his dad having fun. The dad, who is in the band Atticus Avenue, uses his kid’s back to play the drums and ends up creating some awesome sound effects and a fun drum beat because of the combination of squeaks, squeals and laughter coming from his…