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If everything from technology to politics will be different in the future, then so will human reproduction. That's why so much science fiction deals with the question of how humans make babies — or don't make them — in alternate worlds that are often quite close to our own. It's also why reproduction is a political issue. After all, a political campaign represents the promise of a new kind of future. More »
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In the soils of northeastern India, researchers from Delhi University have uncovered an entirely new family of amphibians. Meet the Chikilidae, which belong to an earthworm-like order of amphibians known as caecilians. Seven new species of Chikilidae were uncovered by the team, who recently published their findings in The Proceedings of The Royal Society B. More »
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Paul Verhoeven's RoboCop was mordent critique of Eighties corporate excess, what with its privatized police department and dystopian fake advertisements. But like some sort of cyborg ouroboros, RoboCop himself became a media personality and the pitchman for many a bizarre product. Here are ten times RoboCop has moonlighted as something other than Detroit's finest man-machine. Watch as his dignity is completely disassembled!

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Arnold Schwarzenegger's Total Recall made a huge impression by combining action movies with insane mind games. Based on a Philip K. Dick short story, it kept audiences guessing until the very end. And it was one of the most successful movies of the early 1990s. So why didn't we ever get a sequel? More »
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Rare old books are occasionally bound in human skin, including nipples, and even the face of a Guy Fawkes conspirator. Antiquarians have discovered these grisly leather covers on prayer books, astronomy treatises, court cases, and anatomy texts — all written in the past three to four hundred years. More »
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With every passing election year, the statistical likelihood increases that we'll elect a U.S. president who's really a robot, or an alien. Or maybe a charismatic plant, grown in some kind of tank. How will you recognize a non-human candidate for president when one comes along? And more importantly, which non-human would be the best pres? More »
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Alex the gray parrot was no ordinary bird. The subject of a thirty-year investigation into avian cognition, by the time he died in 2007, numerous scientific publications had pointed to Alex as proof that a bird's mathematical abilities could be on par with — and even exceed — those of chimps and other non-human primates. More »
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This is a fisheye view of a NASA-funded rocket being shot into the Aurora Borealis in Alaska. More »
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Doctor Who adds two more awesome guest stars for its new series. John Carter's costume designer discusses the wardrobes... of Mars. Jason Isaacs takes us inside his reality-hopping show Awake. Plus the latest on Fringe, The Walking Dead, and more! More »
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Pluto is about forty times the distance from the Sun as Earth. But the Solar System is over 50000 times that length across, meaning it could be hiding some huge secrets. That's now looking like a small but real possibility. More »
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Think pandas are inept when it comes to carrying on the species? Think again. The giant panda is a champion reproducer compared to a chubby, land-bound parrot called the kakapo. Between navigational problems, botanical problems, and the occasions when horny male parrots try to have sex with animals that can kill them, this is the most hopelessly inefficient reproducer on Earth. More »
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NASA's Kepler mission has been spoiling us with planetary discoveries left and right as of late. Now, researchers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have discovered an entirely new class of planet — they call it a "waterworld," and it might be covered in broiling-hot ice. More »
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All too often, endings are synonymous with "letdown." We all love to complain about how our favorite science fiction TV series or movies ended. And we're kind of sick of twist endings and "WTF Mindfrak" endings. But on the other hand, there are some endings that we just don't see enough of. More »
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World War II was a period of dramatic change across the globe. But along with all the political machinations and military strategies, some seriously bizarre stuff happened. Here are five of the most mysterious incidents from World War II.

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The narrow-leafed campion is not a particularly long-lived flower; and yet, the parents of the campion pictured here blossomed in the presence of mammoths and woolly rhinos. How is that possible? More »
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Doctor Who starts filming its new season, and we have the first photos. The executive producers of Alcatraz tell you everything you ever wanted to know about what's ahead. Plus Olivia Thirlby gives the lowdown on her Dredd character! More »
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These days, Doctor Who is approaching its 50th anniversary as one of the most successful television shows of all time. But originally? Doctor Who was a small show that the BBC expected to run for a few episodes, and then vanish forever. The show had a tiny studio and huge cameras, and a shoestring budget. But the people who were making the show were outsiders, who were anathema to the entrenched BBC culture. More »
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Physics is defined by its symmetries, from thermodynamics laws like the conservation of mass and energy, to the principle that the universe is basically the same all over. Symmetry can also suggest some truly bizarre ideas. One of those ideas is time crystals. More »
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It's fun to watch chemistry labs explode on video, but you know what's even more fun? Watching a chemistry experiment in action, with a good explanation of what's going on. That's science at its most awesome. Here are ten of our favorite chemical reactions caught on video — which also include excellent commentary on what you're seeing.

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On this week's TV, Wolverine shows up to deal with some flying shrimp. Also, The Walking Dead features some sage relationship advice. But more importantly, the British Being Human returns to American TV — and it's twice as crazy as ever! Also, Shannen Doherty is playing a witch once again, and chewing enough scenery for four Halliwell sisters! And this week's Fringe episode will be full of huge, universe-shattering answers — see for yourself! More »
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Approximately 200-400 years ago during Japan's Edo period, an unknown artist created what is easily the most profound demonstration of human aesthetics ever committed to parchment. I am referring to He-Gassen a.k.a. 屁合戦 a.k.a. "the fart war." In this centuries-old scroll, women and men blow each other off the page with typhoon-like flatulence. Toss this in the face of any philistine who claims that art history is boring.

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Close to 1,500 years ago, indians living in what is now Quito, Ecuador buried their most revered dead in 16-meter-deep tombs. An ancient alcoholic beverage was commonly included in these burial vaults. Now, by examining the clay vessels used to ferment and store this brew, a team of South American researchers has managed to not only recover the microbes the indians used to ferment the ancient beverage, they've actually revived them...and they're unlike any species they've ever seen.

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Karen Gillan explains what's ahead for Amy Pond, and what she wants to see from her character's eventual departure. Plus the show is leaving the UK again for some overseas filming, and a beloved character who was introduced last season might return! More »
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This is the Arecibo message, created by legendary astronomer Frank Drake in 1974. Of course, it's still competing with all the TV and radio signals we're constantly emitting...but at least this interstellar communication has a touch of dignity, you know?

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It's like Grumpy Old Men in tights! Behold the first trailer for the short movie Liberator, starring Lou Ferrigno as a retired superhero with a dark past, and Ed Asner as the President of the United States, OBVIOUSLY. Plus watch a WWI soldier zombie ride a boat back home. More »
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For the last twenty million years, Chile's Atacama Desert has been the driest, most inhospitable place on Earth. But deep below the surface of this unimaginably arid world, microbes are flourishing without even oxygen or sunlight. Meet the extremest extremophiles. More »
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The French city of Urville exists in two places: in the mind of Gilles Trehin and in the elaborate drawings Trehin created. But what's incredible isn't just the detailed designs he created for the city's architecture and layout, but the entirely plausible history for his fictional city. More »
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This week, io9 is hosting a week of posts about the science of sex, starting off with a post that focuses more on the sexy stuff than the science. We've rounded up eight of the steamiest and raunchiest webcomics this side of a paywall. Enjoy them when you have a little time to yourself. More »
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What if Pokemon were a bit less Pikachu and bit more Poky Little Puppy? Adventure Time cover artist Becky Dreisdadt and her collaborator Frank Gibson are designing a series of collectible critters with a children's book flair. More »
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One of the real pleasures of watching Fringe is seeing the same themes and ideas brought up again and again, in new and interesting ways. Over time, these themes start to reveal more surprising facets, and you glimpse a greater meaning to the show. More »
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Mos Eisley becomes the nexus of all science fiction realities in this giant print from artist Ulises Farinas. How many out-of-place characters can you find?

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This week's concept art writing prompt takes us back to the playground — but it might not be quite the way you remember it. Have an awesome story idea to go with this crazy painting? Write a piece of flash fiction and post it in the comments. More »
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Soldiers practically inhabiting the mechanical bodies of androids, who will take the humans' place on the battlefield. Or sophisticated tech that spots a powerful laser ray, then stops it from obliterating its target. More »
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Not everyone can be Captain Kirk. While the corset-wearing flagship captain is off punching aliens and violating the Prime Directive, other captains are simply putting their noses to the grindstone and following the rules. Too bad that doesn't win them the adoration of the alien ladies — or Starfleet command. More »
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Clone Wars takes the week off, but we've got a sneak preview of the season finale featuring an appearance by Darth Maul! This Saturday morning also brings clips from this week's episodes of Adventure Time, Archer, and a couple of new reader request shows! Minor spoilers ahead!

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Mass Effect is epic. It's the product of the best parts of Star Trek, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica and more with a protagonist who could be the love-child of Picard, Skywalker, and Starbuck. It's one of the most important pieces of science fiction narrative of our generation. Mass Effect goes so far beyond other fictional universes in ways that you may not have yet realized. It is cosmic in scope and scale. More »
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The Karman Vortex Street isn't someplace you'd want to take up residence — it's literally the path of destruction, where buildings collapse and destruction reigns. Unfortunately, under the right conditions, a Karman Vortex can follow you. More »
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Out of all the X-Men titles on the stands, writer Rick Remender's Uncanny X-Force has consistently been one of the best. This is thanks to intricate story arcs, the morally muddled politics of Wolverine running an assassination squad, and the comic's willingness to delve into byzantine corners of X-Men lore. More »
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For thousands of years, we've divided days into 24 hours, hours into 60 minutes, and minutes into 60 seconds. But why do we have to do that? Here's the story of the one gloriously failed attempt to decimalize time. More »
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Taylor Wilson built his first bomb when he was 10 years old. Four years later, he became the thirty-second person on Earth to ever build a working nuclear fusion reactor. More »
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