- Tech NewsGiz Asks
Are Superhero Capes Aerodynamic?
Not all superheroes wear capes, but many do, and it’s a long-established fact that these capes are crucial when it comes to flying around town to fight crime and brood and whatnot. And yet the people still don’t know, with anything approaching certainty, how exactly capes facilitate this process (at least, the capes that aren’t … Continued
- Tech NewsBest of the Week
Working for Amazon, a Net Neutrality Mess, and ‘Unlimited’ Plans: Best Gizmodo Stories of the Week
Amazon is one of the biggest companies in the world, is owned by the richest human on earth, and is creating tons of jobs with every new Fulfillment Center that it opens. But as we found out this week, the company’s brutally efficient supply chain often puts warehouse workers in a tough spot, pushing them … Continued
By AJ Dellinger - Tech News
Silicon Valley Invents Shoes
Silicon Valley firms crunched their hardest in 2017 to rebrand ordinary merchandise long produced by other industries as uniquely innovative product lines. Some of them were pretty obnoxious, like Lyft’s totally-not-just-a-bus shuttle service, or WeLive’s attempt to market living in communal housing as a lived experience, or the company selling a “private pop-up space” that … Continued
By Tom McKay - Tech NewsGoogle
Google Translate Can’t Provide Consent for a Police Search, Judge Rules
Google Translate is a useful tool for some quick and easy translations, but a federal judge in Kansas ruled this week that the machine translation service isn’t good enough to allow a person to consent to a police search. Omar Cruz-Zamora, a Mexican native in the US on a legal visa, had his vehicle searched … Continued
By AJ Dellinger - io9
People are Asking AT&T Customer Service to Release the Snyder Cut of Justice League
This is what you might call corporate miscommunication. Some context: as of yesterday, AT&T has wrapped up its massive purchase of Time Warner, a move that give sit control of Warner Bros., CNN, and HBO, among others. This means that the entire DC Extended Universe on film, including Justice League, is now ultimately the property … Continued
By Julie Muncy - Tech NewsNews
A Paper Straw Factory Is Opening Up in Britain Before a Planned UK Single-Use Plastics Ban
The first paper straw factory in the “last several decades” in Britain is planning to launch in Wales as fast-food chains prepare for a planned ban on single-use plastic products throughout the UK, the Guardian reported, with some chains already preparing their own plans to phase out plastic in favor of paper. The plant, run … Continued
By Tom McKay - io9
PSA: Some Scenes in Incredibles 2 Might Be a Problem If You’re Epileptic
When Incredibles 2 showed up at theaters this week, it appeared without one potentially very important detail: an epilepsy warning. Over the past few days, reports have been mounting that certain scenes in the film could trigger seizures in members of the viewing population who are sensitive to strobing, flashing lights due to epilepsy and … Continued
By Julie Muncy - Tech NewsAmazon
Oh Cool, Amazon Is Peddling Conspiracy Theories Now
Amazon Prime Video, the streaming service you turn to when Netflix doesn’t have what you’re looking for, is best known for shows like Transparent, The Man In the High Castle, and *checks notes* films claiming the government is run by human-reptile hybrids. The Telegraph reported that Amazon’s video streaming service has started promoting content from … Continued
By AJ Dellinger - Tech NewsNews
Word Salad President Demands ‘Really Long Strike’ Against Jeff Bezos
In between bragging, retweeting himself, and managing to repeat the phrase “Russian Collusion” four times in one tweet, Donald Trump found the time on Sunday to rev back up his ongoing feud with billionaire Jeff Bezos, who controls two companies the president hates: Amazon and the Washington Post. Though the president seemed a little unclear … Continued
By Tom McKay - io9
Rick and Morty Has Trading Cards Now, for Some Reason
I feel like I understand most merchandising decisions. This one is a little lost on me. As reported by Comicbook.com, Cryptozoic is debuting a series of Rick and Morty trading cards, including characters, moments, and apparently even gags from the series. The trading card packs also come with temporary tattoos, standees, stickers, and scratch-and-sniff things, … Continued
By Julie Muncy - Tech NewsNews
FTC Puts Tech Support Scammer Who Stole Millions from Consumers Out of Business
The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement this week with a notorious scammer who worked with telemarketers to pose as large technology firms and offer fake tech support services to the elderly. Parmjit Singh Brar—the operator of Genius Technologies, LLC and Avangatee Services, LLC—agreed to a $7.5 million fine, though he will only pay $136,000 … Continued
By AJ Dellinger - io9
Report: There May Be as Many as Nine Star Wars Movies in Development
According to one actor involved in the Star Wars franchise, there is a lot going on. That actor is Tom Kane, a voice actor who has held several roles in the franchise (he was Ackbar’s voice in The Last Jedi), and who is especially known for being the guy they call to voice Yoda when … Continued
By Julie Muncy - io9Movies
MoviePass Bought a Stake in Gotti, Which Might Be the Worst Movie of the Year
MoviePass, the movie-ticketing startup whose whole business model is essentially subsidizing enough impossibly cheap tickets with investors’ money that it gains leverage over theaters, is fast hemorrhaging cash. But with the firm possibly running out of funds by the end of next month (or turning to a line of credit) and trying a last-minute swing … Continued
By Tom McKay - io9
Terry Gilliam Has Lost the Rights to The Man Who Killed Don Quixote
Well, this is a strange new chapter in one of the strangest stories in modern film. For decades, famed genre director (and former Monty Python, uh, snake) Terry Gilliam struggled to make The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, his own surreal take on the classic Spanish novel. He succeeded, finally, with a rendition starring Adam … Continued
By Julie Muncy - ScienceHealth
Coffee Sold in California Might Not Get Cancer Warning Labels After All
Officials with California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) have intervened to nullify a recent court ruling saying coffee sold in the state—say, like at a local Starbucks—must be accompanied by warning labels saying brewed coffee contains the carcinogen acrylamide. The Los Angeles Superior Court ruling ordered producers to put warning labels on the … Continued
By Tom McKay - Tech NewsNews
Scott Walker Finally Gave Foxconn Enough Handouts to Get the Company’s US Headquarters in Wisconsin
Foxconn, the giant Taiwanese electronics manufacturer that works with everyone from Apple to Amazon, now has a North American headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin after purchasing a large office building in the city, according to the Associated Press. The company is taking over a seven-story building previously owned by Northwestern Mutual, which is located about 30 … Continued
By AJ Dellinger - io9
A Theatre in Antwerp Accidentally Used a Hawkeye-Centric Fan Poster for Avengers: Infinity War
A few months ago, artist BossLogic created a very fun Infinity War-style poster that featured Hawkeye, Hawkeye, and more Hawkeye. It was a pretty convincing poster. Maybe a little too convincing. According to user 3STUDIOS on Reddit, the UGC Theatre in Antwerp, a city in Belgium, mistook BossLogic’s poster for the real thing, putting it … Continued
By Julie Muncy - Tech NewsNews
CryptoKitties, Which Is Like Beanie Babies on the Blockchain, Seems to Be Crashing
Axiom Zen’s CryptoKitties, which is essentially a digital version of Beanie Babies based on the Ethereum blockchain, sucked in a massive amount of funding just a few months ago. But it looks an awful lot like people bought into CryptoKitties looking for a quick return on their investment and are finding that digital cats don’t … Continued
By Tom McKay - io9
Following Allegations of Abuse, Chris Hardwick Has Been Pulled from AMC Programming and San Diego Comic-Con
Yesterday, allegations surfaced claiming that Chris Hardwick sexual assaulted and emotionally abused his ex-girlfriend, the model, cosplayer, and actress Chloe Dykstra. Today, AMC issued a statement indicating that Chris Hardwick’s programming will not air on the network. The statement, below, also indicates that Hardwick’s planned panels at San Diego Comic-Con, which included a Doctor Who … Continued
By Julie Muncy - Tech NewsNews
Man Gets 20 Years in Jail for Trying to Steal a Domain Name at Gunpoint
There were 332,198 robberies in the US last year according to the FBI, but (probably) only one of them involved a man trying to forcibly steal a domain name. Now the man responsible for the bizarre instance of domain hijacking will spend 20 years in prison. Sherman Hopkins Jr., a 43-year-old man from Cedar Rapids, … Continued
By AJ Dellinger