Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
There are 20,000 genes in the human genome, but only a small fraction of them are active in any given cell. This video from Nature explains with beautiful clarity the system that activity, turning genes on and off. It’s called the epigenome, and it’s incredibly important. Now you can understand how it works, too. Back…
I’m flabbergasted. I have never seen anything like the closeup images of marine life captured in this short film by Sandro Bocci. Most of them truly look like beings from another planet. We live in a truly wonderful world, my friends. SPLOID is delicious brain candy. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter.
On January 2, 1951, the Rex Morgan, M.D. comic strip featured a New Year’s greeting insisting to readers that time is measured by progress instead of simply by years. And it’s not a bad thought! But looking at the “headlines of the future” from 1951, one can’t help but be a little bummed out. Miracle…
A new nonprofit called UAViators is promising to offer experienced drone pilots a place to sign up for humanitarian missions where their aircraft can do some good. Pretty soon you might be showing the world how drones can save lives, not just take them! All you have to do is go their website, create a…
According to top-secret documents given to The Intercept by Edward Snowden, British and American spies stole encryption keys from the largest SIM card manufacturer in the world. This could make it a lot easier for the NSA to conduct widespread surveillance of wireless communications without ever asking permission or even letting on that it’s doing…
Our buddy Sinuhe shot some awesome photos of the Jeep Renegade. You know you want to look at them. https://jalopnik.com/2015-jeep-renegade-is-an-off-road-poster-child-in-this-1686822051
Feeling bored? You need a store that sells ridiculous, confusing products that probably shouldn’t even exist. Let me introduce you to one of my favorite online retailers: Dealextreme. It’s one of the internet’s largest purveyors of cheap tablets, obscure cables and amazing off-brand oddities. Need a knock-off GoPro? They’ve got it. Some sexy lingerie that…
Traveling for work usually involves bringing along a small mountain of electronics, each with cables that need to tag along too. But a new Kickstarter promises to replace them all—power, video, and audio—with a single multi-headed cord that can handle any connection that wireless hasn’t already replaced. Universal cables with swappable connectors aren’t a new…
Happy Thursday, my app warriors. Need new some new software to power that smartphone in your pocket, or looking to just kill some time? All these apps are worth at least a few idle moments of exploration to see if they could be smartphone mainstays. They’re also all free, so download away without worry. Android…
After reports of their demise at the hands of smartphones were greatly exaggerated, watches are becoming more and more popular again, especially as they start to gain smarter functionality. That goes for pocket watches too, with the Tissot Pocket Touch gaining an LCD display, a touchscreen interface, and a host of environmental sensors. At just…
It looks like NECA is ready to stop teasing its Master Chief-inspired motorcycle helmet and finally start shipping an actual product as early as July of this year. And while it might look like a Halloween or cosplay costume accessory, this helmet is officially DOT-approved and will protect your noggin’ whether you’re riding a motorcycle,…
The HTC One has a horrible name, but it’s also a fitting one. It’s HTC’s One saving grace, the One thing that almost single-handedly gave an injection of adrenaline to its dying corpse. It’s also the One Android phone that changed how Android handsets were made—metal beats plastic. And now a new One is coming,…
It’s a tale as old as time: Celebrity joins Twitter, celebrity gets viciously harassed on Twitter, celebrity becomes a shell of their former self because of Twitter, until finally—celebrity leaves Twitter. Rapper Iggy Azalea is now counting herself among the chosen few (hundred). Because remember: Twitter’s broken, and it’s not getting fixed any time soon.…
When we first got a good look at Funko’s new line of 6″ Firefly figures, Browncoats were rightly concerned about a distinct lack of hats included with the Jayne figure – but rejoice, Firefly fans: There’ll be a hatted Jayne alongside the rest of the Firefly figures when they hit in a few months. Look…
Apple recently, finally banned bonded servitude in its supply factories, which means those factories can’t mistreat workers by withholding paychecks and passports until they pay off the cost it took to hire them. But hold the applause. Because they are not the only company that has forced people to work for substandard wages — or…
If you’ve got a baby on the way and are worried that parenting might be a little overwhelming, don’t worry, there’s now an app for that. Fisher-Price’s new 4-in-1 Smart Connect Cradle ‘n Swing can be remotely operated from a smartphone or tablet using a free accompanying app, so you don’t need to be anywhere…
Sony’s got a new deal for audiophiles, and it’s so scammy it’s almost impressive. The electronics company that apparently doesn’t want to be an electronics company anymore is now peddling a Micro SD card “for Premium Sounds.” A 64GB card will cost $160 which is more than five times what you’d pay for a normal…
I don’t remember what the first thing I ever made in Photoshop was, much less why. What brought me to the software in 1996, at age thirteen, is a faded memory. But I’d like to think that I saw a power in learning its magic—even then, I knew it could conjure incredible things. Today is…
If you spend the night at the Coconut Forest in Piaui State, Brazil, you’ll be able to see a rare species of fungus that glows in the dark. Although scientist already understand how they light up, they are still struggling to understand the reason why they do it and how that affects their ecosystem. This…
Why choose what you are going to watch next when you can let the algorithms decide for you? The question is, which recommendation engine are you going to trust? The built-in tips served up by iTunes, Spotify et al aren’t quite as robust as they could be, and sometimes you want something a little more…
