Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
One thing that sort of irks me is when people mistake DEFCON 5 as worse and crazier and insane and severe than DEFCON 1. I know more always sounds better but it’s not. That has nothing to do with the world’s largest hacking conference, DEFCON, but I just wanted to put it out there. DEFCON:…
According to Taylor Wimberly, who was correct on a few Moto X leaks, Motorola will be making the next Nexus device and it’ll be completely different from the Moto X. We’ll see.
Researchers who’ve been hunting for Mona Lisa’s skeleton are now opening up a family tomb in hopes of confirming Mona Lisa’s existence. They want to confirm that bones they found last year under a convent are the remains of Lisa Gherardini. The family tomb they’re cracking open is the resting place for Gherardini’s two sons…
At left, you see Michael J. Fox’s aged character from the 1980s movie Back to the Future. At right, you see the actual Michael J. Fox as he really appears in 2013. How did the movie makers do with young M.J.’s old makeup? Not so bad, but rich actors can afford to age better than…
Getting anywhere in Washington DC traffic can be a nightmare, even if you’re the leader of the free world and have a motorcade at your disposal. But at least the president can hop aboard Marine One (the fleet of presidential helicopters) and rotor to his next appointment instead. The VH-3D Sea Kings that currently shuttle…
You know those poison darts in Raiders of the Lost Ark and other exciting adventures that use indigenous tribal people as scary bogeyman? The darts used by the Emberá people in the Colombian rain forest are made with the very, very toxic secretions from this frog, cleverly named the golden poison frog. https://amnh.kinja.com/discovering-the-golden-poison-frog-1042858760
Imagine pointlessly wandering around your own boring home, day after day. You might encounter strange beings such as your own spouse and children. What’s going on here, anyway? Nothing that anyone can figure out. This is the game you’ve spent your whole life playing. Now it’ll be available on PC. https://kotaku.com/a-game-about-what-really-matters-in-life-1065975282
Johnny Cash gives James Bond a new sort of soul with “Thunderball,” the theme song for the eponymous spy flick. This is the harpoon-laced opening sequence to the 1965 adaptation, with the lyrics of the song describing the film’s story. The song itself is terrific, but it’s worth tracking down the DVD and watching Sean…
It is a truth universally acknolwedged that anyone and everyone loves a good timelapse video. The same goes for timelapse photos. They can get a little predictable, though. Thankfully, photographer Fong Qi Wei found a way to shake things up a bit with his lovely time-slice snapshots that show dozens of distinct moments side by…
If you’re heading out for a day of shooting, or even on a vacation, it’s a good idea to bring along a few extra SD cards. Not only for those times when you run out of storage, but as cheap insurance that you won’t lose your shots. By swapping out cards occasionally, you’re helping to…
Director Neill Blomkamp is about to release Elysium, his futuristic version of Occupy Wall Street starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster. He got incredible artists, including Syd Mead—the guy who designed Blade Runner—and the company behind the Lord of the Rings. Here’s an exclusive look into their creative process. https://gizmodo.com/designing-elysium-all-the-secrets-of-neill-blomkamps-1069787673
Is this the wonder warehouse of 1962? And if so, why is everyone so… happy? That was the question in 1956 when this ad for New Departure ball bearings proclaimed, “TOMORROW: Use no hands! For in this magic warehouse, orders fill themselves in seconds — electronically.” This vision of the completely automated warehouse is floating…
How many have you found yourself locked out, stuck with a visiting friend who has to wait on the curb cause you aren’t able to get them a key yet, left out in the cold with a lost key and locksmith, or any number of other unfortunately common circumstances? As long as people use physical…
What’s causing the current problems with women trying to be “sexy and cute,” like some kind of horrible baby troll doll that is also “sexy” to some subset of humanity? One expert with a Ph.D says the blame can be squarely laid at the large feet of cartoon character Mickey Mouse, popular during the Great…
An article by Tim Lahey suggests that medical schools could change the admissions process to make sure the most deserving students get in by replacing the traditional student interview with, of all things, an MRI brain scan. Never gonna happen, for every reason you’ve already thought of. But even so… is it maybe a good…
There are many reasons why we still have size limitations on technology, but when it comes to data storage, one thing really stands out. You can only squeeze particles so close together before they start bumping into each other and screwing up the data. That’s all about to change. Scientists have finally created a long-theorized…
Many comics aren’t worth reading. Many infographics don’t say anything at all. But when one of the keenest visual minds targets one of the most expansive visual mediums, wonderful things happen. Tim Leong’s Super Graphic: A Visual Guide to the Comic Book Universe is the perfect collision. And I want it. Leong has done art…
In case you haven’t noticed yet, Amazon’s been hitting its Kindle Fire HD 7-inch with sale after sale, and right now, you can pick one up for the lowest price ever in its relatively short history—a cool $160 compared to the usual $200. The sale’s being offered for a limited time only, so if you’ve…
Elon Musk—the man who invented the dreadful PayPal and then went to make electric cars and space rockets—will unveil his crazy new plan on Monday: The Hyperloop will take people from LA to San Francisco in 30 minutes using a completely new and magical technology. Here’s a graphic explaining all the details so far. https://jalopnik.com/all-that-we-know-about-musks-hyperoop-the-infographic-1066973247
As lasers go, this pointer won’t do much damage outside of maybe burning a few retinas if pointed in the wrong direction. However, if you’re a supervillain presenting your plans for world domination to a panel of evil venture capitalists (redundant, we know) this shark with a frickin’ laser pointer is the only way to…
