Tech News

When will the Universe end and how?

Physicist Dr. Dave Goldberg tries to give an answer to a complex scientific question on io9: When will the Universe end? And how? There are still many theories, but one timeline seems likely. Not that I care too much beyond pure curiosity—it all feels too far away compared to the certain and nearness of our…

Why Google’s Secret Smartwatch Is the First One You’ll Actually Want

The smartwatches are coming. Whether you love ’em or hate ’em, there’s no denying the coming onslaught. In fact, it’s already started. Disappointed in the first wave? Don’t worry. Google’s entry is coming soon, and it’s going to be awesome. https://gizmodo.com/i-actually-really-want-a-smartwatch-1257227834 We’ve been hearing rumors about Google’s smartwatch for a while. It started with some…

The La Brea Tar Pits Remind Us That Los Angeles is an Ancient City

Conventional wisdom designates Los Angeles as a young, capricious metropolis—an underage drinker in the geopolitical nightclub—but it’s simply not true. L.A. is actually an ancient city, and the proof is bubbling right up to the surface at the La Brea Tar Pits, one of the richest paleontological sites in the world and the only one…

Five Ancient Cannons Were Just Rescued From Blackbeard’s Sunken Ship

Looking like something straight off of Davy Jones’ ship in the Pirates of the Caribbean, five cannons saw air for the very first time in almost 300 years yesterday as they were lifted from what’s believed to be legendary pirate Blackbeard’s sunken ship. The capsized vessel in question, Queen Anne’s Revenge, is recorded to have…

We Will Receive Samples From Mars In This Neat Candy Box

Although it is more a proof-of-concept design than an actual mission hardware, European Space Agency made this fully functional spherical container which has already undergone testing in simulated thermal conditions, including a 400 g shock test. https://gizmodo.com/this-metallic-sphere-will-some-day-carry-martian-sample-1453992197

NASA’s view of a brain in the sky and other dead things in space

NASA has released three Spitzer telescope images for Halloween, showing dead things in space. From left to right: the Exposed Cranium Nebula—I see the brains—the Ghost of Jupiter Nebula—I see the resemblance—and Little Dumbbell Nebula—I can only see a pair of boobs. NASA’s descriptions: Exposed Cranium Nebula The brain-like orb called PMR 1 has been…

Russian Authorities Seize Goods from China Implanted with “Spy” Chips

A weird thing happened in St. Petersburg last week. The Russian press reports that local officials intercepted a shipment from China that contained home appliances with “spy” microchips capable of spreading malware to wi-fi enabled devices within 200 meters. Tea kettles were apparently the chief culprit. Specific details of the dodgy shipments remain shady. It’s…

Sol Republic Tracks Air: Sweet Bluetooth Headphones at a Nice Price

A good pair of on-ear Bluetooth headphones is surprisingly more expensive than you want it to be. Tack $100-$150 onto the price you’d ordinarily pay for a certain level of quality, and that’s the price you’re going to pay for Bluetooth. And yet Sol Republic’s excellent, budget-friendly Tracks headphones, liberated from their wires, come at…

New Instant-Fix Fabric Is 100x Stronger Than Duct Tape

It’s joked that duct tape can be used to fix almost anything. But a new product called FiberFix might very well be the only tool you’ll ever need for emergency repairs. And the secret is its special resin adhesive that hardens stronger than steel as it cures. Unlike duct tape which is just a peel…

Are these the best Halloween costumes of 2013? Most probably

I agree with ViralNova: these green army men ares one of the cleverest, best executed Halloween costumes I’ve ever seen. From the plastic finish of the clothes and weapons to their perfect posture, they are perfect.

Why Samsung’s Curved Smartphone Display Isn’t Just Hype

A new generation of curved displays for Smartphones and TVs has just been launched. While there have been curved screens around before, they were actually just flat displays with a curved cover glass on top. This time the displays themselves are actually curved and that makes a significant difference. Dr. Raymond Soneira of DisplayMate Technologies…

Start your week off right with these excellent stories from the urban world. This week: baseball economics, a ghastly smelling tour, Canadian sewers, radical policing tactics, and more. Why World Series tickets cost 81 percent more in Boston than they do in St. Louis. [Next City] “30 million people in the American West depend on…

How a Genome Hacker Made a Family Tree With 13 Million Branches

What happens if you let a genome hacker—a kind of computer scientist-turned-biologist—loose on the world’s online genealogy sites? The world’s biggest family tree is what, which shows how over 13 million people are related. The work of computational biologist Yaniv Erlich, which he presented at the American Society of Human Genetics annual meeting in Boston…

Amazon’s Kindle MatchBook Service Is Now Live

In this modern age of tablets and e-readers, it’s always a little bit tough to decide whether to buy the hardcopy of a book or just go for the e-book. Now, you don’t have to choose with the newly launched Kindle MatchBook service that offers cheap e-book versions of hardcopy books you’ve purchased on Amazon.…

Spectacular rescue of a drowning surfer trying to break a world record

Yesterday, 26-year-old professional surfer Maya Gabeira tried to break the world record for the largest wave ever surfed. That record was set on the same beach—Nazaré, Portugal—by Garret McNamara on January 2013. Unlie McNamara, Maya failed and nearly died in the process. What followed was an spectacular rescue that almost failed. Maya fell and couldn’t…

A Self-Powered Treaded Skateboard That Can Plow Through Any Terrain

The smallest rock can topple even the most skilled skateboarder. And if your town is devoid of smooth, safe skateparks and half-pipes, maybe it’s time to upgrade your gear? With a set of spiked treads and a four-stroke engine, Dan Baldwin’s Ungoverned will happily plow through gravel, dirt, snow—pretty much any terrain you can think…

Bullet-Stopping Cellphone Saves Gas Station Clerk Held at Gunpoint

In what’s some fantastic news for both HTC and anyone who keeps their cellphone in their shirt pocket, a Florida gas station attendant’s life was saved when his dearly departed smartphone became a martyr during a recent holdup. https://gizmodo.com/moto-razr-stops-bullet-saves-mans-life-5097093 Yesterday morning at 4:45AM in an Orlando suburb, a man entered a gas station, showed the…

14 Awesome Dollhouses Built By Today’s Top Architects

Architecture-with-a-capital-A isn’t always regarded as one of the more playful creative fields, but give the pros a good cause and they just might surprise you. London-based developers Cathedral Group enlisted the star-studded talents of 20 top UK architects and firms to make a custom dollhouse for an upcoming auction benefiting Kids, a charity dedicated to…

WSJ: Google’s Smartwatch Could Be “Ready Within Months”

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Google’s smart watch is “in late-stage development,” and the company is in talks with suppliers to begin mass production of the device soon. According to the paper’s sources, the device will—surprise!—run Android and be deeply integrated with Google Now. That’s an obvious and useful route to take. Frequent…

How the Electric Guitar Was Invented

For as far back as we are able to look into the prehistory of the human race, music has been a crucial part of the life of humans. Some scholars even speculate that human music may have come before language. From the beginning, people living in little groups sang and danced to self-made music. Drums…