-
Tech News
The Most Beautiful Version of Monopoly Yet Celebrates Japanese Arts and Crafts
After licensing the classic board game to a company called USAopoly, there’s now a version of Monopoly for almost every fan base you can imagine. But the latest version of the game, which celebrates Japanese arts and crafts traditions, might be one of the most beautiful yet. Designed to help commemorate the 300th anniversary of … Continued
-
Tech NewsAmazon
There’s a Gigantic Reef Surrounding the Amazon River and Nobody Noticed
It’s incredible that it escaped notice for so long, but scientists have just discovered a massive, 9,500 square-kilometer reef system at the mouth of the Amazon river. And it’s home to some truly bizarre life forms. When we hear “reef,” we typically think colorful corals and crystal-clear tropical waters. Which is probably why nobody ever … Continued
By Maddie Stone -
Tech News
This Chatbot Is Like Having a Music Genius In Your Pocket
Finding a good chatbot in the current sea of mediocrity is nearly impossible. Most don’t work, and the ones that do are either too limiting or too annoying. But Record Bird’s new music-obsessed bot is something I would actually use. The idea is simple. Record Bird, a website that curates your musical interests and keeps … Continued
By Darren Orf -
Tech NewsSploid
Melting a Lock with a Torch Is a Great Way to Break It Open
Locks are meant to be broken. Torches are meant to wield fire. So it makes total sense to use a torch to melt the hell out of a lock to bust it open, right? Exactly! Watch as the fire from this torch completely obliterates the lock, so much so that it just oozes open and … Continued
By Casey Chan -
Tech News
Forget the New Playstation 4.5, an SSD Is All You Need
The rumors are already flying that we’ll be getting a new PS4 soon. Well, sort of. It won’t play different games than the current PS4 does, it will just play them better. This is all in aid of making a PS4 that can handle the beefy graphics requirements of Playstation VR, and do what the … Continued
By Alex Cranz -
Tech News
Snapchat’s New Face-Swap Feature Is a Good Reminder of All the Weird Shit in Your Phone’s Camera Roll
Snapchat just released an update for its face-swapping tool, that weird but admittedly amusing feature that lets you switch faces with whatever happens to be around you. Now, instead of “doing it live,” as it were, you can swap faces with old photos in your camera roll. “That’s boring,” you might be saying. Well, yes, … Continued
-
Tech News
Stanford Built a Turbulent Wind Tunnel for Birds to Help Drones Fly Better
In terms of airborne maneuverability, Mother Nature’s flying creations still put our aircraft to shame. So when it comes to teaching drones and other autonomous aircraft how to stay aloft in the worst of conditions, it only makes sense to copy how birds do it. Randomly pointing a high-speed camera at the sky and hoping … Continued
-
Tech News
Please RT This Blockbuster Tweet If You Have a Case of the Mondays
Hard to believe that it’s almost Monday. How time flies. If you’ve got a case of the Mondays, Office Space style, please RT this tweet from four years ago. Blockbuster’s Twitter account sails on—like a ghost ship filled with Mondays, of which we all have cases. RIP Blockbuster. Well, except for those 50 or so … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech News
Fancy Camera Maker Slaps Name on a Phone With a Totally Garbage Camera
Leica has a well-earned reputation for making some of the best camera gear in the world, so it was a pretty big deal when it announced a partnership with Chinese phone manufacturer Huawei, and their first jointly developed phone camera in Huawei’s flagship P9. While Leica isn’t new to partnerships—its splashy name has been stamped … Continued
By Alex Cranz -
Tech NewsSploid
The Evolution of Iron Man in TV and Film
In the popular imagination Iron Man is a lot of things: smart, smarmy, a little bit of a lecher, and a raging alcoholic. A lot of that is owed to Robert Downey Jr. But everyone’s favorite armored scientist has come a long way since 1966. Burger Fiction just posted an exhaustive retrospective collecting the many … Continued
By Avery Ellis -
Tech News
A Brief Reminder That Earth Is the Best Planet
Earth Day isn’t just about planting trees. It’s about appreciating what a complex, living machine our planet is. And we’re better equipped to do that now than ever before, thanks to an army of Earth-orbiting satellites collecting real-time data on everything from the ozone layer to sea level changes to the abundance of tiny green … Continued
By Maddie Stone -
Tech NewsSploid
10 Hidden Easter Eggs in Superhero Movies
How is a superhero movie supposed to appease die-hard fans while appealing to a new audience? Easter eggs, and lots of them. Sometimes its as simple as a name-drop or allusion to other heroes. Dr Strange, for instance, got his shoutout in Spider-Man 2 way back in 2004. Directors also love to give a nod … Continued
By Avery Ellis -
Tech NewsSploid
The World’s Longest Rail Slide on Skis Feels Like It Goes on Forever
With a GoPro camera strapped to his chest providing a first-person view of the stunt, skier Tom Wallisch shattered the previous rail sliding record of 241 feet with this epic 424 feet long run that saw him fighting to maintain balance on a pair of skis while sliding along at 36 miles per hour. We … Continued
-
Tech News
There May Be a Giant Lake Lurking Beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
In further proof that our planet still has amazing secrets to give up, scientists are reporting evidence of an enormous, never-before-seen subglacial lake, buried beneath the East Antarctic ice sheet. Cthulhu hunters, take note. The first hints of the lake, presented at the European Geosciences Union Meeting in Vienna this week, include a series of … Continued
By Maddie Stone -
Tech News
An $80M Bank Hack Has Been Blamed on $10 Routers
Sometimes it pays to spend. The central bank of Bangladesh has found that out the hard way, as police are blaming its loss of $80m during a hack on crappy $10 routers. You might remember that a team of hackers tried to steal vast quantities from the bank earlier this year. Their attempts were brought … Continued
-
Tech News
The Year’s Best World Photography Is Out of This World
Every year, the Sony World Photography Awards round up the best amateur and professional photographs from across the globe. This year, some of the winners look like they could have been taken on another planet altogether. The winners have been chosen from a total of 230,103 images submitted from over 180 countries. Here are some … Continued
-
Tech News
China’s Planning to Build Floating Nuclear Power Stations
Finding a site to build a nuclear power plant isn’t straightforward—so why not send them out to sea? That’s what China is apparently planning to do. The state-run Chinese newspaper Global Times has reported that the similarly state-run China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation has plans to build up to 20 floating nuclear power stations. The director … Continued
-
Tech News
This Autonomous Garden Would Roll Its Way to the Perfect Plot
If you lack the skills to keep plants alive, this architectural concept might appeal. Called Hortum Machina B, the sphere contains electronics that enable it to sense its surroundings and move in order to keep its internal garden healthy. The concept is the brainchild of William Victor Camilleri and Danilo Sampaio from the Bartlett School … Continued
-
Tech News
Uber’s $84M Settlement Keeps Drivers as Contractors
Uber has announced that it’s just settled two class-action lawsuits in California and Massachusetts for a cool $84 million. And for that princely sum, Uber gets to keep its drivers as contractors, rather than employees. The ride-hailing company will stump up $84 million as part of the settlement, which will be distributed to 385,000 drivers … Continued
-
Tech News
If New York Mayor Bill de Blasio Can’t Go Car-Free for One Day I’m Moving to Canada
April 22 is Car Free Day in New York City, which is kind of like having a day that celebrates breathing. In a place where 54 percent of the city commutes using public transit and about half of the residents don’t have cars at all, you’d think it would be pretty easy for anyone to … Continued