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#superconductors
Superconductors Make Life (and Science Fiction) Awesome
If you've ever had an MRI scan or accelerated a sub-atomic particle to near light speed, then you've experienced the wonders of superconductors. Here's how they work, what they do, and how they can be used in science fiction.
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#bookreview
The Memory of Feeling is Not Feeling: "Memory Sticks" Explores Human Computers
At what point does the use of technology dimish your humanity? Wood Ingham gets deep into the human-computer interface in his new novella Memory Sticks. More » -
#publishing
The Best Way To Break Into Science Fiction Writing Is Online Publishing
The only way forward for new writers is digital publishing, says game and novel writer Michael Stackpole. If you want to write for a living, learn to love this post-paper age. More » -
#gaming
Mechwarriors, Starships, Martians and More at the Origins Game Fair
The Origins Game Fair, devoted to tabletop gaming, was held in Columbus, OH this past weekend. Along with all the dragons and elves, there were a lot of sci-fi themed games. I've got the lowdown for you. More » -
#apocalypsemobile
The Rise (and Fall) of the Apocalypsemobile at the Enduro Smashup Race
On New Year's Day, while you were complaining about the Gregorian calendar or nursing a wicked hangover, I was hurtling around a snow-covered racetrack, en route to destroying a perfectly good Saturn station wagon. More » -
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#militarytech
We All Live in a Flying Submarine
For some military operations, you need a submarine. For others, you need a plane. But what if you need both? DARPA has a plan for that - a submarine that flies. Or a plane that submerges, depending on your point of view. More » -
#spaceporn
Mysterious Infrared Aurora Glows at Saturn's North Pole
This stunning infrared image of Saturn's northern region shows a luminous aurora with the planet's mottled rings below. The aurora appeared in an area that the Hubble Space Telescope can't see, so no one knew it was there until Cassini spotted it recently. What's really weird is that astronomers aren't really sure what's causing it, since this aurora doesn't conform to known models of aurora formation. More » -
#madscience
Giant, Deep Sea Sponges Evolved Fiber Optic Exoskeletons
This gigantic sea sponge has an exoskeleton made of glass rods, and each rod can grow up to a meter in length. In the deep sea, these massive sponges contain a menagerie of other tiny lifeforms, all dependent on their sea sponge hosts for something in short supply far under the water. They need light - and some sponges have a evolved a way to provide it using fiber optics. More » -
#fallout3
Fallout 3 Gives You the Glamorous Apocalypse
It's nearly dusk as you approach the abandoned supermarket, crouching behind a burned out hover-bus. You nearly make a mad dash to the entrance, dreaming of the food and medical supplies you might find inside. Then you notice the mutilated corpse chained up above the door. Raiders! Cautiously, you watch the parking lot...there they are. Heavily armed, too. You'll be able to loot the store if you want to, but there will be blood. In the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout 3, nothing comes easy. More » -
#madscience
Ultrasound Can Give You Memories of Learning Things in College
Want to remember doing something, like attending 400 lectures on molecular cell biology, without ever actually having to do it? A special kind of ultrasound can trigger neurons in your gray matter, and the team of Arizona State neuroscientists who discovered this immediately played the Total Recall card. They're already talking about implanting memories of everything from fake vacations to learning kung fu. More » -
#monsterpocalypse
Monsterpocalypse is a Rampaging Good Time
Anyone who ever spent a Saturday afternoon as a kid gleefully watching Godzilla or Gamera battle weird space dragons or giant robots while destroying the vital infrastructure of Japan has got to love the idea of Monsterpocalypse. We've played a bunch of games to see if the game lives up to the hype - and by "hype," we mean, "our fervent kaiju-loving desire for an awesome giant monster fighting game." More » -
#melgibsonwasconspicuouslyabsent
Apocalypsemobile Update: Heavy Metal
There's been a lot of work done to the io9 Apocalypsemobile in the last few weeks, not all of it as glaringly obvious as the custom paint job. The car has a certain Tank Girl/David Lee Roth circa 1985 vibe going on - at least it will be a colorful Apocalypse. We've picked up some additional sponsors and made some safety and performance upgrades in preparation for the January 1 race. The project has not been without setbacks, though. More » -
#megageology
Giant Crystals Create an Alien Landscape
This photo looks like it could have been taken on another planet - miners harvesting dilithium, perhaps. But this cave full of monstrous crystals is located in Mexico, and the crystals themselves are a form of gypsum, one of the most common elements on Earth. What geologic processes caused the crystals to get so freaking big? More » -
#ibex
NASA's IBEX Ready to Measure the Edges of Our Solar System
A NASA mission to measure and study the mysterious edge of the solar system is underway this week. The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is one of the low-cost "Small Explorers" missions - it can study the termination shock area of our solar system without even leaving Earth's orbit. How will it manage that? By acting as a target for particles that have traveled hundreds of millions of miles. More » -
#stealthispitch
Cthulhu Needs a Perky Blond Sidekick
Sure, a talking dog movie is money in the bank, but what about a talking Great Old One movie? Cthulhu is all the rage these days - there are freaking Cthulhu bunny slippers, for Yog-Sothoth's sake! And since Lovecraft's creations are all public domain, a studio could pen the script without having to license any rights. The time is ripe for Cthulhu to rise again...with a perky blond sidekick. More » -
#militarytech
It's Like a Heatwave Burnin' In the Subcutaneous Layer of Your Skin
The terms "U.S. Marines" and "non-lethal" seem pretty antithetical to each other, but the Leathernecks are close putting in an order for Raytheon's Silent Guardian millimeter wave defense system. As far as non-lethal weapons go, this one's pretty hardcore - it slowly cooks you from the inside. But they swear it will stop before it does any "permanent damage." More »
