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I found the entrance to hell and it’s this nearly 400-foot long tunnel of fire. When Enrico Schoeman and André de Kock hop on their motorcycle and burn through the tunnel, it looks like they’re on the surface of the Sun. The tunnel reaches temperatures of 900 degrees and you can’t even see where you’re…
Photographic negatives are like a peek into some hidden dimension. And for this week’s Shooting Challenge, we want you to photograph a negative. The Challenge Take a photo negative. And since most of you are shooting digital, it’s OK, you can fake it! The Technique A photo negative is really a color and contrast reversal.…
We know how to successfully freeze, store, and thaw human sperm. We’re still on a learning curve with human eggs. Abby Rabinowitz’s recent feature at Nautilus explores the all-too limited statistics about how well the process works and the data on why more healthy women are choosing to try it anyway. From the article: For…
It’s been a long time coming, but we’re finally going to run out of internet. Back in 2011, we warned that this web reckoning was upon us, and now we have a more substantial timeframe. According to The Wall Street Journal, we’ll be fresh out of IP addresses in the next few months. Back in…
Star Wars’ relationship with Toys has long been an intrinsic part of the franchise’s history. But there’s something about a Calendar filled with adverts for toys old and new, while also at the same time constantly reminding you when you can go out and buy new toys, that is baffling to comprehend. And yet, such…
Nature-inspired engineering isn’t new—but engineers are still finding new ways to take cues from biology. We got the beastly lowdown at day 3 of the RoboUniverse conference in New York this morning. Vijay Kumar, who’s recently been named Dean of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, delivered a keynote about the future of flying ‘bots.…
Microsoft announced Windows 10 as one big, free operating system that ran on everything: tablets, phones, PCs, televisions, game consoles and more. The fine print betrayed that marketing line, though: it would only be a free upgrade for non-enterprise customers, which meant there would still be Home, Pro and Enterprise versions of Windows 10. Now…
Captain America: The Winter Soldier smartly buoyed what could have been a pretty bland character with other fun ones which all added up to a really fun movie. One of Marvel’s best, probably. Here it is summed up in 8-bit video game style, which Captain America looks great in. SPLOID is delicious brain candy. Follow…
How do we know that we live in the future? Politicians are shaking hands with robots. Like a lot. The practice may seem silly, but new research shows that shaking hands with a robot can actually be useful for building trust during business negotiations — provided the robot is controlled by a human negotiator. A…
RadioShack, whose carrion corpse has been slowly picked apart by various consumer retail chains, is only a shambling zombie of its former DiY electronics self. But Standard General just pulled a Frankenstein, adding a jolt of electricity to the bankrupt brand and snatching up the rights to the iconic chain’s name. Auction of the dilapidated…
Last week brought the horrifying news that the Ebola virus can live in the eyeballs of survivors, even after it’s been eliminated from the rest of the body. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, though. Viruses have always hidden in parts of our bodies you’d never expect. In fact, we’re all walking virus reservoirs. It’s…
Viagra. Levitra. Cialis. Stendra. For millions of men with erectile dysfunction, these drugs are the action heroes of the bedroom, breaking down the barriers that keep them from a normal sex life. Here’s how they work. [Top image: Soru Epotok/Shutterstock] A normal erection depends on a complex dance of relaxation and blood flow. When the…
Medicine is one of the more exciting fields that 3D printing promises to radically innovate. Doctors have already used the technology to help repair damaged airways in children with a 3D-printed splint, but researchers in the pharmaceutical field have instead been dabbling with custom-shaped pills optimized for every patient’s treatment needs. Drugmakers currently mass-produce pills…
Second Amendment enthusiasts are adding a new front to their right-to-bear-arms battle: Knives. In particular, the infamous switchblade, which has been banned by federal law since 1958. Why all the fuss? Well, it all dates back to racism, xenophobia, class warfare, and political theater. Sound familiar? It’s no coincidence this was the knife Freddie Gray…
Billy Lumby’s God View is a short film about a tragic day in the life of Philip, a mentally unwell man. It’s filmed very uniquely, from entirely up above him. Like you’re seeing him move around in the real world in a top down video game or looking down on him live his life as…
Today at 10:30 eastern, watch this livestream of a fascinating discussion at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History called “Innovation Echo: Tomorrow’s Brightest Days.” A panel of experts will be talking about how we can encourage more tech innovation in America, using education and community organizing. The question the panel will grapple with is…
Sometimes instead of coming up with new ideas for scenes in movies, it’s just easier to copy your own work. Check out this video that shows how Disney recycled and re-used and repurposed scenes from its movies. Sleeping Beauty is Beauty in the Beast, Robin Hood was used in Snow White and so on. Hand…
So how realistic do you like your simulators? Some racing fans are willing to spend thousands of dollars on displays, controls, and seats that move and shake to enhance their virtual driving experience. But a company called CXC Simulations is taking things to a whole new level with a new force feedback steering wheel that’s…
Last year we got our first glimpses at the sheer insanity of Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts designer Tetsuya Nomura’s take on Gotham’s Dark Knight for the Play Arts Kai Variant Series. But now Square-Enix have revealed an even better look at the wings, claws, and power armour of this truly bizarre Batman. https://gizmodo.com/this-final-fantasy-style-redesigned-action-figure-of-b-1610394577 Yes,…
Apple’s iMessage is an all-in-one messaging solution that stays with you across mobile devices and laptops—assuming they’re all made by Apple of course. Even if you rely on the service every day, you may not know about some of the features and tricks you can take advantage of, so we’re here to help put that…
