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Exquisite X-Rays of Toys Reveal Buzz Lightyear’s Guts
"Disappointingly few labs were willing to even understand the idea," says the photographer.
Lucy’s Based on Bad Science, and 6 More Secrets About the Film
Lucy is a perplexing blend of science and fiction. WIRED asked writer/director Luc Besson for all the secrets of his latest film.
DJ Dan Deacon on Music Apps
Maciek Jasik “There's no show without an audience,” says Dan Deacon, an electronic musician known for finding new ways to include his fans in his performances. A few years ago he created an app that responds to inaudible ultrasonic tones; when he plays those notes over the sound system, phones in the crowd light up […]
Four Smartphone Films That Are Actually Good
Elsa Jenna While you were using your iPhone to record your cat riding a Roomba, Hollywood types (and would-be Hollywood types) have used smartphones to create everything from heart-wrenching shorts to feature-length thrillers. There are a zillion smartphone films on the web; here are the ones you should watch right now. Goldilocks In 2010, Michael […]
Defender is a camera-toting connected can of pepper spray
Defender has taken connected technology in a different direction than many startups, electing to incorporate it into what is essentially a canister of pepper spray. The device is bid as a connected personal defense system, and has recently been successfully funded through Indiegogo. The Defender is a relatively small cylinder-shaped device equipped with a camera and Bluetooth connectivity, the latter … Continue reading
Adding a HUD to your car: three options
A head-up display (HUD) enables drivers to see all the details they need while driving without any hassle or risk of distraction (not to mention giving one's car the snazzy sci-fi feel of having data projected onto the windshield). Your car may not have included the technology, but that doesn't mean you can't easily equip it with its own HUD … Continue reading
Lumia 530 arrives with an unbelievable price tag
Just over the weekend, we gave you our in-depth review of the Lumia 635, poised to be a follow up to the best among the cheapest Lumia 520. Little did we know that Nokia, or rather Microsoft, had a surprise in store today: an actual Lumia 520 successor. The Lumia 530 builds up on some of its predecessor's limitations but … Continue reading
Star Wars Episode 7 leak reveals Gwendoline Christie’s role
Early last month, it was revealed that Gwendoline Christie has joined the cast of Star Wars Episode 7, and according to the latest from the rumor mill, she has a big part to play in the upcoming movie. Needless to say, there are (possible) spoilers ahead, so tread carefully. The information comes from Badass Digest, which says Christie is playing … Continue reading
Ptolemaic Watch brings a tiny solar system to your wrist
There's a watch to match every style, even if your style skews towards being a bit quaint and colorful. The Ptolemaic Watch from The Philosopher's Guild harbors a color solar system for a watch face, with the hour and minute hands serving as the moon and sun. Astronomy aside ("Let us not speak of Copernicus," says the maker), the watch … Continue reading
Looks like Google’s EU antitrust case will roll on for some time yet
When Yelp and the European Consumer Organisation joined the 4-year-old EU antitrust case against Google, it became pretty clear that competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia would not get his wish of settling the case before his departure later this year. And lo, it comes to pass: According […]
Looks like Google’s EU antitrust case will roll on for some time yet originally published by Gigaom, © copyright 2014.
Docker acquires Orchard Laboratories to beef up its tool collection
The cloud darling's purchase of the London-based two-man development shop is the company's first acquisition since changing its name from DotCloud to Docker.
Docker acquires Orchard Laboratories to beef up its tool collection originally published by Gigaom, © copyright 2014.
Review: Amazon’s Fire Phone offers new gimmicks, old platform growing pains
Amazon's first phone isn't without its charms, but is it good enough to replace the iOS or Android stuff you already have?
Andrew Cunningham
It took other companies a long time to respond to the iPad. Early efforts like the first Samsung Galaxy Tabs, the Motorola Xoom, and Barnes & Noble's Nook Color had their fans, but compared to Apple's tablets, they all had major flaws. Amazon's first Kindle Fire had its problems too, but Amazon's name recognition and the tablet's $199 price made it one of the iPad's first semi-credible competitors. It opened the door for even better tablets at the same price point, and Android's tablet market share is largely built on the cheap tablet foundation that Amazon helped establish.
Amazon's first smartphone is taking the opposite path. It's jumping into the high-end smartphone market surprisingly late in the game. The market started showing signs of saturation, and its competitors are entrenched. At $649 unlocked for a 32GB phone ($199 with a two-year contract), it doesn't have a price advantage. It's also not being subsidized by Amazon's media storefronts or by "Special Offers"-style advertisements.
Because it's 2014, because the phone costs what it does, and because there are dozens of great phones to be had at (and well below) this price bracket, it's going to be much more difficult for users to overlook flaws or shortcomings when compared to those first Kindle Fire tablets. Amazon's phone brings unique features like its Dynamic Perspective head tracking cameras and its Firefly scanning software, but can the phone get by on a couple of cool features if it has other problems?
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Are the people who refuse to accept climate change ill-informed?
Polls relating to publicly controversial scientific issues often trigger a great wailing and gnashing of teeth from science advocates. When large proportions of a population seem poorly informed about evolution, climate change, or genetically-modified foods, the usual response is to bemoan the state of science literacy. It can seem obvious that many people don't understand the science of evolution, for example—or the scientific method, generally—and that opinions would change if only we could educate them.
Research has shown, unfortunately, it's not that simple. Ars has previously covered Yale Professor Dan Kahan's research into what he calls "cultural cognition," and the idea goes like this: public opinion on these topics is fundamentally tied to cultural identities rather than assessment of scientific evidence. In other words, rather than evaluate the science, people form opinions based on what they think people with a similar background believe.
That shouldn't come as a shock, especially given the well-known political or religious divides apparent for climate change and evolution.
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YouTube star hit with copyright lawsuit, label seeks $150,000 per song
Michelle Phan, a very popular YouTube user, demonstrates the stretchiness of hair ties.
Popular YouTube user Michelle Phan is being sued for alleged copyright infringement on songs she has used in her videos, according to reports from the BBC. Ultra Records claims that Phan has used 50 of its songs in her YouTube posts and on her website illegally despite one of the label's own artists objecting to the legal action.
Phan's YouTube channel centers around using and buying makeup, and her videos are often backed by upbeat music with the artist credited in the video's description. Artists whom Phan has used in her videos include Kaskade, deadmau5, and Calvin Harris.
Kaskade spoke out on Twitter about the lawsuit, condemning Ultra for pursuing Phan for copyright infringement. "Copyright law is a dinosaur, ill-suited for the landscape of today's media," he wrote. "We can't love (& won't buy) music we haven't heard." If it's exposure artists are looking for, Phan's audience isn't a bad target. She boasts over six million subscribers and videos that consistently crack a million views each.
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Porn studio sues immigrant who has “no idea how BitTorrent works,” wins big
A defendant accused of illegally downloading porn on BitTorrent argued it was like having a pirated CD slipped in his bag on the way out of the store. The judge didn't buy it.
Porn studio Malibu Media files more copyright lawsuits than anyone else in the US since the fall of Prenda Law; hundreds of suits against "John Doe" defendants have been filed in just the last few months. Nearly all of those cases settle before the case is decided on the merits.
However, in a rare development yesterday, a Malibu lawsuit proceeded to a judgment—and it was a slam dunk for the porn studio. In a terse five-page order (PDF), US District Judge Robert Jonker tore apart defendant Don Bui's arguments that using BitTorrent and the site Kickass Torrents to get porn files didn't violate Malibu's copyright.
In the case, the defendant admitted he had 57 unauthorized copies of Malibu Media movies on his hard drive and had used BitTorrent technology to get them. Bui tried to shift the blame to the Kickass Torrents website, but it didn't work. He also tried to distinguish the technology he used from earlier technologies found to violate copyright laws, like Grokster. That didn't sway Jonker, who wrote:
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