Futurism

In The Future, We Will All Live In Double Decker Buses

Designer Aristide Antonas has thing for wheeled homes – first, he brought us the cozy tanker truck cabin, and now he brings us the double decker bed-and-breakfast. It’s perfect for zombie evasion, escaping Master Blaster’s minions, or tea time. https://gizmodo.com/how-to-convert-a-tanker-truck-into-a-post-apocalyptic-h-5498725 Antonas is an associate professor of architecture at the University of Thessaly. Here’s his synopsis…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

5 Ways The Google Book Settlement Will Change The Future of Reading

If you care about the future of books, you need to understand the Google Book Settlement. It’s a complicated legal document, but we’ve talked to some of its architects, detractors, and defenders – and break it all down for you. The Google Book Settlement could easily be the twenty-first century’s most important shift in how…

io9 Annalee Newitz

These Are Probably What the Gates to MegaCity One Would Look Like

You might not be able to judge a book by its cover, but you can judge a city by its front door — and the metropolis behind this tagged behemoth has gotta be a hoot. Scottish conceptual illustrator Paul Scott Canavan, working with architect Roland Brown, whipped up this mood painting for an untitled videogame…

io9 Marc Bernardin

Hitachi’s Biometric Coke Machine Lets You Pay With Your Pulse

For those people who still have trouble figuring out which way to slide George into the vending machine, a prototype from Hitachi makes things a little simpler: it identifies caffeine-fiends by reading the pulse in their fingertips. The futuristic Coke machine identifies the customer using Hitachi’s VeinID technology. Thinking about some micromachine taking my pulse…

Tech News Kyle VanHemert

Klip House – Built Out Of Lego-Like Parts For A Future Without Mortgages

The Klip House project, by Texan architects Interloop, dates back to 1997-2001. The architects describe it as “a delivery system that provides the physical and operational infrastructure for trade corporations to participate in the production, delivery, and servicing of housing.” Not limited only to housing, however, the Klip system was seen as being just as…

io9 Geoff Manaugh

How To Convert A Tanker Truck Into A Post-Apocalyptic Home

After the complete breakdown of civilization, the best place to live is going to be in a tanker, hitched to the back of a truck. Designer Aristide Antonas has figured out exactly how to convert a truck into a home. A futurist art and architectural project, Antonas’ images of the “KEG Apartments” suggest ways to…

io9 Annalee Newitz

Water Silos Could Tap Underground Lake In Sudan

These baobab-inspired towers from Polish firm H3AR are designed to pump water from the 19,110 sq. mile lake under Darfur. And although they exist only in concept, these water-gathering monoliths could ostensibly slake the thirst of this drought-plagued region. These three clay-brick towers from H3AR would pump water up from the underground to an artificial…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Build Your Own Futurist Theory With This Handy Chart

Want to market your awesome new theory of the future, but can’t come up with a buzzword? This spiffy chart can help. [via Russell Davies (no not the Doctor Who one)]

io9 Annalee Newitz

What Does Your Email Address Say About Your Personality?

If you picked your own email address, your choice of [email protected] telegraphs a lot about your personality. A recent study by German researchers showed that certain types of email addresses elicited similar assumptions from people. And they were often correct. What’s interesting is that this analytical tool can’t predict whether you’re extroverted or not. Ah…

io9 Annalee Newitz

What Is The Most Futuristic State In The United States?

I’ve just returned from Texas, a state that blends old-school American values and high tech industries into a strange hybrid culture of digital cowboys. Is Texas the most futuristic state? Let’s consider a few other candidates for most futuristic state, and then do the American thing and take an easily-gamed vote on it, shall we?…

io9 Annalee Newitz

“Techno-Snot” May Be The Most Futuristic Technology

These days it’s become a truism to say that it feels like “we’re living in the future” because we have smart phones and 4chan. But SF writer David Levine says techno-snot is a sign that tomorrow has arrived. Over at Laptop Magazine, Tempest Bradford asked several science fiction authors what technologies made them feel like…

io9 Annalee Newitz

In Soviet Russian Concept Art, Fiction Sciences You!

Ever wonder what sort of galactic visions brewed in the Eastern Bloc? These vintage illustrations from Soviet science and technology publication Teknika Molodezhi give an awesome look at (fictional) Reds in space. Also, behold the incredible Soviet corkscrew-wheeled truck! [via Dark Roasted Blend] Teknika Molodezhi – USSR, 1950. Teknika Molodezhi – USSR, 1953. Teknika Molodezhi…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

In Ten Years a Box of Sand Could Power Your House

After eight years and 600 million dollars, a fuel cell has been developed that can power an office building. Let’s take a look at how fuel cells work, their advantages over other fuels, and what’s coming next. Fuel cells consist of specific materials sandwiched together in particular order. The outer-most layers are covered with a…

io9 Esther Inglis-Arkell

In The Future, You’ll Play Tetris On Your Skin

A group of researchers has created “Skinput,” a device that turns your body into a touchscreen by sensing movements in your skin and muscle. Witness the future of the mobile – literally in the palm of your hand. Researchers Carnegie Mellon University and Microsoft Research are presenting a paper about Skinput next month at the…

io9 Annalee Newitz

What Will Americans Of The Future Look Like?

In 1910, the New York Tribune published this photo composite of what a “future American” might look like. Time magazine repeated the experiment in 1993 with a computer-generated blend of faces. Could either be right? SF author Nalo Hopkinson called attention to the 1910 image on twitter, asking, “Who’s missing in this pic?” In retrospect,…

io9 Annalee Newitz

In The Future, Your iPhone Will Be A Universal Translator

Google recently unveiled a smart-phone app that can translate German text into English just by scanning it. And even though we’re a long way from Hitchhiker-like Babelfish, the universal translator of Star Trek lore is closer than you think. At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Google revealed a German-to-English text translator that utilizes Google…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Robots Teach Korean Students English

Due to a shortage of accredited English teachers, some South Korean schools have begun experimenting with robotic instructors who look a little like cartoon characters. According to pupils, these automated schoolmarms aren’t all bad – in fact, they’re easy graders. After several months of trials, South Korea will spend approximately $45 million to place robotic…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Cryonics Company And Family Battle Over Ownership Of Woman’s Head

A bizarre legal case pits the family of recently-deceased Mary Robbins against Arizona cryonics company Alcor. Robbins signed a contract with Alcor to have her head cryogenically frozen after her death. But now her daughter won’t hand the head over. It sounds like a lawsuit from the future. Four years ago, Robbins, a nurse, signed…

io9 Annalee Newitz

In The Future, We Will Cook Dinner On Giant, Fiery iPads

Appliance manufacturer Electrolux recently unveiled designs for the Heart of the Home, a giant touchscreen stove that will grace the next generation’s kitchens. Sadly, there’s no robotic maid included. The Heart of the Home – which strongly resemble the tablet computers from Minority Report – will allow future chefs to fricassee with the touch of…

io9 Cyriaque Lamar

Futuristic And Genetically-Engineered Families That Already Exist

We all know that IVF and other innovations can help infertile couples have children. But can science also help family structures emerge that have never existed before, like kids with three parents? It already has. Here are four examples. On the TV series Caprica, the pagan culture on an alien planet produces very unusual families.…

io9 Annalee Newitz

In The Future, We Will All Live In Double Decker Buses

5 Ways The Google Book Settlement Will Change The Future of Reading

These Are Probably What the Gates to MegaCity One Would Look Like

Hitachi’s Biometric Coke Machine Lets You Pay With Your Pulse

Klip House – Built Out Of Lego-Like Parts For A Future Without Mortgages

How To Convert A Tanker Truck Into A Post-Apocalyptic Home

Water Silos Could Tap Underground Lake In Sudan

Build Your Own Futurist Theory With This Handy Chart

What Does Your Email Address Say About Your Personality?

What Is The Most Futuristic State In The United States?

“Techno-Snot” May Be The Most Futuristic Technology

In Soviet Russian Concept Art, Fiction Sciences You!

In Ten Years a Box of Sand Could Power Your House

In The Future, You’ll Play Tetris On Your Skin

What Will Americans Of The Future Look Like?

In The Future, Your iPhone Will Be A Universal Translator

Robots Teach Korean Students English

Cryonics Company And Family Battle Over Ownership Of Woman’s Head

In The Future, We Will Cook Dinner On Giant, Fiery iPads

Futuristic And Genetically-Engineered Families That Already Exist

Unprecedented Images Show Sperm Whales Acting as Midwives to Help a Mom Give Birth

‘Butt Birth’-ing Rhinoceros from Ace Ventura Sequel Sold at Auction for a Whopping $60,000

The Ryan Gosling Sci-Fi Streak Will Continue Until Morale Improves

Study Challenges Popular Theory on Why Primordial Bugs Were So Darn Huge

Ewan McGregor and Anne Hathaway’s Mystery’s Sci-Fi Film Has Its First Trailer

Scientists Just Found the Salt Limit That Pushes Your Heart to the Breaking Point

White House Social Media Just Had Its Covfefe Moment

Roborock F25 Ultra Steam Wet Dry Vacuum Is Now at Its Lowest Price, but Only During the Spring Sale Window

Sonos Play Review: Call It a Comeback

Sonos Era 100 SL Review: The Cheapest Way Into Wired Sonos Sound

Asus ROG’s Massive Swift OLED Gaming Monitor Epitomizes Excess in the Best Way

The Ikea Varmblixt Smart Lamp Fills a Donut Hole in My Life

Nothing Headphone A vs. Headphone 1: Which Pair of ANC Wireless Headphones Wins?

Asus ROG’s Cetra Open Wireless Gaming Earbuds Might Be Better Than Wearing a Headset

Nintendo’s Talking Flower Is Annoying as Hell. I Love It

Level Lock Pro Review: As Good as a Secret Smart Lock Gets

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