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Hands-on experiments can make studying chemistry slightly more enjoyable, but the bulk of the learning usually comes from a massive and boring textbook. Maybe the world would have more aspiring chemists if classes were instead taught using these microscopic videos of chemical reactions happening right before your eyes. The Beauty of Science created Precipitation3, a…
Jared Kushner has a lot on his plate right now. As a senior advisor (and son-in-law) to President Trump, Kushner is heading the new White House Office of American Innovation, engaging in diplomatic talks with China, and is even visiting Iraq right now. But that last fact was thrown into question overnight as Reuters retracted…
Rentberry has been operating in test cities and angering affordable housing advocates since 2016. But with its new expansion into 1,000 cities in the United States, the rental bidding website is about to piss off a lot more people. https://gizmodo.com/only-three-us-cities-have-good-jobs-housing-and-cultu-1781562314 Alex Lubinksy, founder of Rentberry, seems to be pursuing an image that’s closer to Uber’s…
A few days ago, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) published a report that Verizon plans to install highly-invasive spyware on its subscribers’ Android phones. Since then, Verizon has insisted that the “AppFlash” software is only a test run and has only been installed on one type of Android device. https://gizmodo.com/internet-providers-have-some-disingenuous-promises-abou-1793924714 The original report identified AppFlash…
Just in time for doomsday, Norway’s “Doomsday Vault” is getting an expansion. Officially known as the World Arctic Archive, the vault opened this week and has already taken submissions from two countries. This time, instead of storing seeds that will survive the apocalypse, the vault is archiving data using specially developed film. https://gizmodo.com/scientists-add-50-000-seeds-to-arctic-doomsday-vault-be-1792627097 Located about…
We all know the bloodcurdling sound of a bloodsucking mosquito that has made its way into our general vicinity. It’s a distinct buzz that immediately gets your attention. A team of researchers has finally cracked exactly how mosquitoes fly and according to their findings, its flight “is generated in a manner unlike any previously described…
Faced with rising public outrage over Congress’ decision to repeal Obama-era rules that would prevent internet service providers from selling customers’ personal web browsing data without their knowledge or consent, several major ISPs have released statements saying they don’t and don’t plan to do that. https://gizmodo.com/congress-just-gave-internet-providers-the-green-light-t-1793698939 All of the letters are pretty much the same.…
A German court has ruled on a copyright infringement case that dates back to 2011 and the verdict has disturbing consequences for parents. The ruling found that parents must identify their child by name as the one responsible for downloading a torrent or they will be held responsible for the violation. A series of recent…
Last week, the drug company Mylan issued a recall in seven countries for the EpiPen. The initial recall of the emergency allergy product didn’t include the US, but Mylan issued a new recall last night which not only includes EpiPens sold in the US, but also involves the children’s version, known as EpiPen Jr. The…
Whale vaginas are an enigma. That’s because research on cetacean genitalia (dolphins and whales are both cetaceans) is pretty biased towards penis-havers. Comparatively less work has been done studying cetacean vagina-bits. So, a team of scientists decided to break down the cetatriarchy in order to really understand these poorly-explored parts. As it turns out, cetacean…
Most of the major smartphones of spring have been announced, and we noticed something curious. The LG G6 and Samsung Galaxy S8 are both rocking big displays with an aspect ratio larger than the 16:9 you’re used to on your phones, television and desktop displays. These phones have some of the widest aspect ratios ever…
If lawmakers have their way, police in one US state could soon be using drones as lethal weapons against the citizens they’re supposed to protect. On Thursday, Connecticut’s judiciary committee approved a new drone regulation bill that, if passed, would make it the first state in the union to let cops use deadly drones later…
Ever wonder why your photos never turn out as amazing those posted by your favorite Instagrammer? There’s probably a lot of post-processing happening in Photoshop you don’t see. But instead of poking at sliders for an hour, computer scientists want to make it incredibly easy for even amateur photographers to achieve results comparable to a…
Camera traps set up in Utah’s Great Basin Desert have captured unprecedented behavior showing a badger burying an entire cow by itself. Incredibly, the buried carcass was able to sustain the badger for months. To protect its food from other animals, and in the absence of a refrigerator, this badger did what any crafty scavenger…
On Friday, Twitter unveiled a new default profile pic for users, swapping out the site’s ubiquitous egg avatars for a human-like blob. According to the company, the move was made to encourage “people to express themselves” after noticing “an association between the default egg profile photo and negative behavior.” To recap, here’s what Twitter has…
As Jennifer Lopez is apparently learning, it’s hard to be a social influencer. TMZ and Variety are both reporting that J.Lo (who will always be “Jenny From the Block” in my heart) has been sued for failing to sufficiently promote a hoverboard brand on Instagram and Twitter. According to the outlets, Sidekick Group Corp claims…
In a disturbing repeat of last year, Japanese whalers returned to port Friday with the carcasses of 333 minke whales on board. Since 1986, a global moratorium has banned the hunting of whales, but Japan claims the killings are being done for “scientific research.” This is nothing new—Japan has been exploiting this scientific research loophole…
Apple released iOS 10.3 this week, and in addition to a new file system and a built-in “Find My AirPods” app, the new update also fixes a very important bug that could allow assholes to robocall 911. Back in October, 18-year old Meetkumar Desai was arrested after software he allegedly wrote—which allowed iPhones to continuously…
Proving that satire is dead and we live in the dumbest possible universe, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin apologized today for recommending that people go see Lego Batman, a movie he helped produce. Earlier this week, Democratic senator Ron Wyden called for the Office of Government Ethics to investigate Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin for promoting the Lego…
Throw aside your politics for a bit. Government scientists at the EPA concluded that a pesticide sprayed on crops was toxic. A few months later, a new guy comes into the agency, looks at the agency’s petition to ban the substance, and denies it—he decides that, although the substance is poisonous, he’d rather keep spraying…
