Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Even though it’s incredibly hard to believe and goes against sound Sun rises in the east and sets in the west logic, Chris Hemsworth (and to a lesser extent Thor) is not a perfect being that doesn’t make goofy mistakes. This gag reel proves he’s human after all! Just like us! And sometimes moments get…
When you eat a big meal like a Thanksgiving Dinner or feast during the holidays or gorge out on Super Bowl party platters and leftovers, you’re probably eating a lot more than what your body is used to. Some sources say those heavy party dinners can range anywhere from 3,000 to 4,500 calories. That’s quite…
This is so great. Famous movies you know and love—like Citizen Kane, Blade Runner, The Shining and others—are re-imagined and re-told in the form of a 30 second animation movie trailer. So E.T. becomes a horror flick, The Big Lebowski is now a Kung Fu tale and Citizen Kane becomes a story about a Gross…
Have you ever heard about the Thatcher Effect? I just learned about it after seeing it in action—and it freaked me out. First watch the video, then read the explanation. Discovered by Psychology Professor Peter Thompson in 1980, the Thatcher Effect demonstrates that our brains “have, or learn, very specific abilities to process faces, their…
People complain about having to use antiquated business cards to pass along contact details, but they’re not going away anytime soon. So instead of complaining, the folks at TouchBase simply found a way to make business cards smarter. To access someone’s contact info, all you need to do is tap these business cards on your…
Not everything always came in technicolor; TVs, movies, and photography only existed in black and white for the beginning. And while 3D printing has been largely stuck with single-color creations, it’s recently started to explore more colorful results. Objet500 Connex3 is the latest along those lines, a machine that can print in 46 hues and…
Even if they are primarily just cheap knockoffs, China’s rapidly growing fleet of next-gen aircraft are poised to seriously challenge American air superiority in the coming years. To prevent that, argues Chief of U.S. Air Force Air Combat Command Gen. Michael Hostage, we’ll need plenty of fifth-generation fighters of our own—no matter the cost. During…
Nothing lives forever, not even our universe. Eventually it’ll go kaput and be destroyed… but how? Smart people have wrapped their heads around the universe’s destruction and have come upwith three different theories. The Big Rip, Heat Death (or the Big Freeze) and the Big Crunch and Big Bounce. They all sound like they’re going…
The TSA needs help—bad. The agency and its blue-shirted officers have never been the most popular kids on the block, but things got worse last week when a former employee told all in a Politico article. But don’t worry, TSA. The designers are here to save you. A few students from the School of Visual…
Beijing’s smog, the West’s drought, Alaska’s avalanche, and everybody’s cigarettes are part of this week’s landscape reads. The Microbial Ecosystem of Beijing’s Smog Bacteria are everywhere, and the dark smog of Beijing is no exception. Scientists have published the most detailed study of air bacteria yet, finding 1,300 species in the city’s smog, most of…
Idiots, racists, and old-fashioned xenophobes took to social media this past weekend to express their disgust with Coca-Cola. The international beverage company had the audacity to run an ad during the Super Bowl that featured people singing “America the Beautiful” in different languages. This, of course, was unacceptable to those who believe that the U.S.…
Sometimes the integrated inputs on your Chromebook just simply aren’t good enough (looking at you, Chromebook 11 trackpad). But the OS is still new enough that not many major manufacturers directly support it. Sure, Chrome OS is supposed to be plug-and-play compatible with any USB HID peripheral, but this nest of un-pairable wireless mice on…
A headlamp can keep your hands free while you’re out exploring in the night, but sometimes you really have to angle your head to get the beam exactly where you want it. So Snow Peak came up with its new Mola headlamp that features an automatically tilting LED, which better matches the angle of your…
Designer furniture is all too easy to knockoff—but Modern Ruins, a makeshift showroom by artist Stephanie Syjuco, makes art out of imitation. Each classic piece in her collection is made entirely from scavenged materials. These “shanty-life” reproductions look legit, but hint at the complex relationship between modernism, affluence, and affordability. [Recology SF]
Just a day after the real-life Punxsutawney Phil forecast six more weeks of winter, the bed and breakfast where Groundhog Day was filmed hit the market. You could buy it, set an old-fashioned clock radio to go off at 6:00 a.m. playing “I Got You, Babe,” and relive the same day over and over—and over…
Do you hate rats? If so, you’re not going to like what Dr. Jan Zalasiewicz, a University of Leicester paleobiologist, has to say about the future of Earth. This week, Dr. Zalasiewicz reported on the heartiness—and ambitiousness—of rats, explaining how our rapidly changing planet is soon going to be filled with gigantic, super-evolved rodents. And,…
The Amtrak Dock Vertical Lift bridge spans the Passaic River in Newark, NJ. Built in 1937, the bridge carries train traffic as part of the Northeast Corridor. It is still capable of raising to it’s maximum clearance of 135 feet with prior notice of 24 hours, though it has not been raised since 2004. [Photo…
Do you remember the first time you saw your own shadow? I don’t. But apparently it’s a pretty shocking experience. I don’t blame these kids. If you really think about it, shadows are damn freaky. STOP FOLLOWING ME, YOU DAMN SPECTER. SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us on Facebook
To stop bleeding, apply pressure—with tiny sponges. A group of veterans, scientists, and engineers in Oregon have a developed a device that uses small medical sponges to stop bleeding from gunshot wounds in just 15 seconds. Hemorrhaging is the leading cause of death on the battlefield. When a soldier is shot, medics use gauze to…
Even though it’s still not quite finished, it’s ok to envy the toddler who’ll be riding off into the imaginary twin sunset aboard this AT-AT rocking horse. It’s being built by Epbot’s Jen and her husband, and so far over 40 individually cut pieces of MDF have gone into its construction. It’s still waiting for…
