Tech News

Strikingly beautiful pictures show the horrors of the BP oil spill

Seattle-based photographer Daniel Beltrá took these images for the book Spill (which you can buy here.) They’re beautiful, perfectly crafted shots despite their horrible—and gut-wrenching to the point of nausea—subject matter: The 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The incompetence of British Petroleum, Halliburton, and Transocean killed 11 people and…

A peek at Crimea’s controversial election day, Philly widens freeways by mistake, and does Austin, Texas, have a drinking problem? Plus, the incredible story behind Rio’s most famous monument, and the truth about earthquakes in L.A. Come along with us on this week’s Urban Reads. 96.7 percent of Crimeans can’t be wrong: What a (likely…

How fires will be extinguished in the skyscrapers of the future, according to the March 1927 issue of Science and Invention magazine.

Should People Be Allowed to Drink and “Drive” Self-Driving Cars?

Autonomous cars are coming soon, people, maybe as soon as 2015 if you live in California. And with them will be a whole set of new rules and regulations when it comes to driving. Or, ahem, not driving. This will obviously be a gargantuan task, spanning issues related to privacy, security, safety, and, of course,…

This Icy Blue Tower Will Be New Jersey’s Tallest Residential Building

New Jersey has plenty of tall buildings, to be sure, but it’s not known for its skyscrapers. A new development planned for Jersey City hopes to change all that with a bright blue set of towers that will boost the city’s skyline. Located in the Journal Square neighborhood of Jersey City, the 1,840 unit-development will…

This Wooden Birdfeeder Tries To Thwart Squirrels With a High-Wire Act

Of all the technological and engineering challenges mankind has faced throughout history, none have been as daunting as designing a bird feeder that prevents squirrels from stealing seeds. And even if the wire-suspended Spun still isn’t the perfect solution, at least it looks good while giving squirrels a real challenge. Made from maple and other…

NY Is Cracking Down on High Frequency Trading Tech That Runs the NYSE

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman vowed today to crack down on the technology that gives high frequency traders an unfair advantage in the market. And that’s a very good thing for regular humans with money in the marketplace. Attorney General Schneiderman specifies some of the services that trading venues offer high speed trading organizations.…

Android Wear Is Just a Google Now Watch (And That’s Great)

Google just announced its first real foray into the frenzied fray of the smartwatch world: Android Wear. That’s an accurate name for a wearable, Android-powered device, sure, but it’s also a little misleading. This is a Google Now watch. And that’s excellent news. https://gizmodo.com/android-wear-heres-the-future-of-android-smartwatchwe-1546388688 Google Now While the name says Android, Google’s more-than-a-little-optimistic teaser trailer…

Apple Just Patented a System That Could Put Siri In Charge of Your Home

While we were all focused on sensors that fit on our wrists, Apple was quietly winning 38 patents for a system of sensors as big as a house. The patents describe a system that would let Siri do her job throughout your home, from reminding you to take your meds to turning out your lights.…

These Architectural Posters Were Printed With Bike Tires And Ink

Biking to the top of the Empire State Building ain’t gonna happen. But hey: Rolling across a sheet of loose leaf can give a pretty fantastic, small-scale interpretation of the Big Apple icon. Seven different inked-up tire tracks came together to make this cool print—it just might be the closest you’ll get to scaling the…

Even More Reasons To Be Glad Google Isn’t a Real Guy

Let’s face it: There’s no one in the world who knows you quite as well as Google does. It’s the only place we’ll get truly, uncomfortably intimate, revealing every bodily function, personal secret, bizarre question, and government-watch-list-worthy keyword. Now imagine if, instead of an inanimate website, we were dishing all that out to some dude…

Scientists Discover the Key to Making Paint That Never Fades

It seems like scientists are all about immortality these days. It’s not just plants and people that are getting the treatment, though. A team of Harvard engineers are developing a way of producing color that could produce paint that never fades, and displays that never go dark. Believe it or not, the method is based…

Neon Lights Make These NYC Water Towers Into Inter-Dimensional Portals

Have you ever stuck your head up a water tower? Wait, what? You haven’t? Well, here’s your chance. On display at Madison Square Park in New York right now are three water towers, each illuminated with neon lights and mirrors. Even if you’re not in New York, you can take a look at these trippy…

The College Kid Who Built a Secret Tunnel Underneath the Berlin Wall

At its peak, the Berlin Wall was 100 miles long. Today only about a mile is left standing. Compared with other famous walls in history, this wall had a pretty short life span. The Great Wall of China has been around for 2500 years. So have the walls of ancient Babylon—although its most famous part,…

A Nick in Time: How Shaving Evolved Over 100,000 Years of History

Removing unwanted body hair has been a part of human hygiene since the dawn of history. Over the centuries, this practice has served to denote everything from high-ranking social status to acts of contrition. And as the tradition of shaving has evolved in step with global culture, so too have the tools of the trade.…

New Safety Lasers For 3D Scanners Won’t Burn Your Retinas

If there’s one rule of thumb that goes along with lasers—no matter how weak they may be—it’s that you should never, ever point them at your eyes. But lasers are more energy efficient and responsive than LEDs, making them better suited for the 3D scanners used to detect gestures on a game console. So Sharp…

15 Faked Miniature Photographs

Tilt-shift photography wasn’t invented to transform real world scenes into small scale models, but who’s complaining? Here are 15 faked miniatures, by you. https://gizmodo.com/shooting-challenge-tilt-shift-1542972565 Winner: Tiny Texas Tech My first Shooting Challenge. Stadium architecture always fascinates me. Photo of Jones AT&T Stadium on the campus of Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX. Camera: Canon EOS…

A Three-Pound iPhone Case Turns Texting Into a Weirdo Workout

What if every call you answered, every text you sent, and every Facebook status update you posted actually worked to improve your fitness? It’s kind of a ridiculous notion, but the ToneFone—which is basically the heaviest case you’ll ever slap on your iPhone—promises just that. So how does it work? It’s heavy, and that’s pretty…

Great Deals on Panasonic Shavers, Logitech Speakers, Roku 3 [Deals]

We’ve dug up great deals on a nice variety of products today, from cheap but popular Logitech computer speakers, to high-end shaving gear. And of course, who wouldn’t like to get $50 off a $100 purchase at Advance Auto Parts? That’s like half off a new battery! Everyone needs a decent set of computer speakers,…

This Five-Bladed Behemoth Is the World’s Largest Cargo Ship Propeller

Modern international trade is only possible because of our fleets of seafaring cargo ships. And as these gigantic vessels continue to grow to meet the increasing demands of a rapidly globalizing marketplace, so too do their components. Spanning nearly 34 feet in diameter and weighing a stout 113 tons, this massive cargo ship propeller is…