- Tech NewsSploid
Skyscraper Window Replacement Goes Horribly, Horribly Wrong
Construction workers in Moscow using a rooftop crane to lift a giant pane of glass to the top of a 30-plus-story skyscraper will unfortunately have to try it once again. The glass was almost in their reach when the cable apparently snapped, sending the window and its support rig plummeting to the ground. But well … Continued
- io9
Solo‘s Most Gruesome Death Was Inspired By Indiana Jones
Conventional wisdom says that you’re bound to see some crazy shit if you fly through the vacuum of space long enough, but there’s a moment in Solo: A Star Wars Story that you can really only describe as being… how to put it? Horrifically shocking. Creatures have always been the best part of the Star … Continued
- Tech NewsPrivacy and Security
Report: Steam Had a Bug for 10 years That Could Allow Hackers to Take Over Your PC
A researcher at security firm Context has published the details of an exploit they found in PC gaming giant Steam’s desktop client. The nasty bug has reportedly been around for the last 10 years and left millions of users’ PCs open to being remotely commandeered by hackers. Context’s Tom Court published his findings on Wednesday … Continued
By Rhett Jones - ScienceHealth
The Experiment That Made Philadelphia Chinese Food Healthier
As anyone who’s made a habit of ordering late-night delivery well knows, these meals typically aren’t too healthy. And when it comes to heaping amounts of salt in these foods, there’s perhaps no greater culprit than Chinese takeout. But a new study published Wednesday in Public Health Reports details a strategy that helped Chinese restaurant owners … Continued
By Ed Cara - Tech NewsGoogle
Google Labeled California Republicans as Nazis After Someone Vandalized Wikipedia
Recently, if you searched for the California Republican Party on Google, you might have read that the political party’s ideologies included conservatism, market liberalism, and nazism. The latter listing has since been removed, and Google is blaming the results on Wikipedia “vandalism.” Vice first reported the inclusion of “Nazism” under ideologies in Google’s knowledge panel—the … Continued
- EartherNatural Disasters
Southern California Is Losing Its Clouds and That’s Bad News For Fire Season
June Gloom season is upon Southern California. For as long as anyone can remember, that’s meant clouds wrapping the landscape in a milky white cocoon as cool, moist ocean air known as the marine layer moves inland. But as with everything in our world, this is now changing. June—and summer as a whole, it turns out—is … Continued
By Brian Kahn - io9
Just Look at This Gorgeous Dungeons & Dragons Art Book
Ready your bags of holding, because you’re going to want to stock up on this awesome special edition of the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons: Art & Arcana—and we’ve got an exclusive look at the goodies contained within. Publishing this October from Penguin Random House, Dungeons & Dragons: Art & Arcana offers an insider look at … Continued
- ScienceArchaeology
Something Completely Unexpected Happened to the First Settlers of South America
As the last Ice Age was coming to an end, and as the first settlers arrived in North America, two distinct populations emerged. One of these groups would eventually go on to settle South America, but as new genetic evidence shows, these two ancestral groups—after being separated for thousands of years—had an unexpected reunion. The … Continued
- Tech NewsSploid
This Paper Shredder Upgraded With a Scary-Powerful Motor Looks Like It Could Rip Off an Arm
Destroying sensitive documents using a paper shredder is a long and boring process because most of the machines are woefully underpowered. Destruction is supposed to be fun, so a gifted Danish hardware hacker upgraded a run-of-the-mill shredder with a 44,400-RPM brushless motor, letting the machine tear through a page in less than a second. Why doesn’t … Continued
- EartherEnvironmental Justice
Topsoil Service Con-Man Who Terrorized Australia With Asbestos Is Getting Locked Up
These days, the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s got no shame cozying up to polluters. Head to Australia, though, and it’s a whole different game. Ever heard of Dib Hanna? Me neither, but apparently, he’s a notorious criminal in Sydney, Australia. His crime? Serial asbestos dumper. (And no, I’m not kidding.) Hanna’s dumping spree has … Continued
- ScienceSpace
Astronomers Spot Surprising Evidence of Methane Dunes on Pluto
Astronomers peering closely at images of Pluto have spotted what look like dunes on the surface of the former planet. They wouldn’t be sand dunes, but dunes of methane ice—an Earthly feature on a totally alien world. Dunes don’t just happen—they require both tiny grains and some sort of force, like wind, to push them … Continued
- io9
The Crow Remake Has Lost Its Star (Again) and Director (Again)
Ever get the feeling something is cursed? Because the absurd story about the rise and fall (and rise, and fall, and so on) of the attempted remake of The Crow is starting to feel like there’s some serious hexing going on. The movie’s best chance of happening in years just vanished. Deadline is reporting that … Continued
- io9
Here’s How the Legion of Doom Is Returning to DC Comics
For the last few years, Lex Luthor has been parading around in power armor with Superman’s S-shield on it, acting as an imperious good guy. But this summer, he’s going back to being a big bad in a big way by creating an all-new team made up of the DC’s elite archvillains—meaning the Legion of … Continued
- Tech NewsNews
Man Says Dying Roach Left Eggs in His Ear: ‘I Heard It Die in My Head’
A Florida man was reportedly struggling with a roach infestation at his apartment earlier this month when he realized the problem had migrated to his ear canal. And this is your last chance to stop reading before you have to live with this knowledge for the rest of your life. The Tallahassee Democrat reports that … Continued
By Rhett Jones - EartherEarth Science
Stop Whatever You Are Doing and Look at These Images From NOAA’s New Weather Satellite
Any day with a new full disk image of Earth is a good day. And folks, today is one of those days. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) launched the GOES-17 satellite in March. It’s a next generation weather satellite that will provide a major upgrade over what NOAA is currently operating with over … Continued
By Brian Kahn - io9
Why Don’t We Know More About Star Wars‘ Droids?
Some of the most interesting bits of world-building introduced in the most recent Star Wars spinoffs have come from the films’ droid characters. Sure, droids have always been a part of Star Wars’ mythos, but what’s been so surprising about Rogue One and Solo is how they gave us a glimpse at the inner lives … Continued
- Tech NewsGadgets
Canon Kills Film Because Apparently Digital Is In
Most kids today don’t even know what a film camera is, so to get with the times, Canon is finally ending sales of its one remaining 35mm SLR: the Canon EOS-1V. Originally launched way back in the year 2000, the EOS-1V actually boasted some impressive specs for its time thanks its ability to shoot up … Continued
- EartherEnvironmental Justice
Companies Want to Begin Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for Oil by Winter
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is no longer safe. Two Alaska Native corporations and an oil services form have jointly applied to begin seismic testing on the refuge’s pristine 1.5 million-acre coastal plain—the calving grounds of the Porcupine caribou herd, which the nearby Gwich’in First Nation relies on for food security and culture. This … Continued
- Tech NewsNews
Apple and Microsoft Help Create New Standard for Braille Displays
Today, many people who are blind or have low vision must cobble together different hardware and software just to use computers. But a new standard backed by some of the biggest names in tech should mean that braille device users wont have to search for custom software for different operating systems and screen readers. The … Continued