When the U.S. House passed an emergency $8.3 billion spending bill to battle the coronavirus epidemic last week, Republican Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona questioned the tremendous cost. But Gosar announced last night that he and his staff are going into self-quarantine after it was revealed that Gosar recently spent an…Read more...
With all this talk about the spread of COVID-19, I would blame you if you’re considering staying inside and away from people (more than usual, at least) until all this blows over. I know I am. Thankfully, if voluntary house arrest is in your future, the good folks at Gizmodo have plenty of amazing coverage to keep you…Read more...
Twitter’s new rules concerning manipulated content went into effect this week, and—not surprisingly—President Donald Trump has already proven why the platform needed them in the first place.
Italy’s government took the most drastic measures outside of China to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus on Sunday, announcing that it would lock down much of its northern region. The rules restrict the movement of approximately 16 million people.Read more...
by Alyse Stanley on Earther, shared by Alyse Stanley on (#50E29)
Europe employs a “use it or lose it†system to determine an airline’s flight slots, so what are operators to do when a global outbreak tanks flight demands? The answer: “ghost†flights.
Facebook announced this week that it’s temporarily banning ads and commerce listings for medical face masks on two of its platforms—Facebook and Instagram—in light of the novel coronavirus outbreak. Company officials said that they were against people exploiting this public health emergency to make a profit.Read more...
by Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Alyse Stanley to Giz on (#50DYH)
The Witcher had a good first season, mostly. But it had an even better breakout song, in the form of “Toss a Coin to Your Witcher,†a ballad sung by Jaskier (who I still call Dandelion in my heart, adaptation be damned) that becomes something of a theme song for the humble, grumpy Geralt of Rivia.Read more...
A hotel in southeastern China collapsed Saturday, trapping 71 people among the wreckage, authorities said per a BBC report. According to local media outlets, the building had recently become a quarantine center due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.Read more...
by Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Alyse Stanley to Giz on (#50DYJ)
Baby Yoda toys may be harder to come by than the fandom for this wrinkly green child would like. What is a Baby Yoda stan to do? Well, you could try making your own. But Grant Imahara probably has you beat.Read more...
by Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Alyse Stanley to Giz on (#50DS3)
There’s nothing so satisfying as being a fan of what you’re working on. Which makes it pretty fun when actors get authentically a bit geeky about their roles.Read more...
The benefits of virtual private networks, or VPNs, are well-documented: They keep you safer on public wi-fi and help you access content not usually available in your region, among other useful . There are now dozens and dozens of VPN options to choose from, which can make it difficult to decide which one is the best…Read more...
Apple announced a new worldwide service program for 3rd generation iPad Air models that experience a strange problem with their screens. According to Apple, the screens on some iPads apparently flicker or flash before going blank permanently, which means bye-bye iPad.Read more...
Various big tech companies announced this week that they will continue to pay hourly employees that provide their offices with much-needed services, such as food catering, security and cleaning, even as an increasing number of tech giants ask their full-time employees to work from home to contain the novel coronavirus …Read more...
by Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Alyse Stanley to Giz on (#50D3S)
One of Martin Freeman’s most iconic roles is as Bilbo Baggins in Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit. Say what you will about that trilogy, but the casting is perfect. No one else could have played that Bilbo the way Freeman did. Unfortunately, he was almost certain he was going to have to pass on the part.Read more...
by Julie Muncy on io9, shared by Alyse Stanley to Giz on (#50D0N)
Once upon a time, on the press tour for a little-known film called Rogue One, actor Diego Luna expressed a desire. A forbidden desire. Since then, he has not known peace.Read more...
by Alyse Stanley on Earther, shared by Alyse Stanley on (#50D0Q)
Due to mounting coronavirus concerns, the United Nations announced Friday that it’s canceling in-person meetings in Bonn, Germany and elsewhere through the end of April. These meetings were intended to prepare for November’s global climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, predicted to be the most important round of…Read more...
by Brian Kahn on Earther, shared by Jody Serrano to G on (#50CV5)
If you’re not the type to bring a reusable bag to the store, bioplastics have become an increasingly attractive alternative to the plastic that is slowly strangling the oceans, rivers, municipalities, and the very sediment record of Earth itself.
A new oddball streaming service is gearing up to enter the streaming fray. And with just weeks before its official launch on April 6, the company has revealed it’s initial rollout will include 50 shows—yes, five-zero—with episodes of each running 10 minutes or fewer.Read more...
With the novel coronavirus outbreak continuing to spread in America, gig economy titans are facing increasing scrutiny for their lackluster directives to a workforce that can’t always afford to take a sick day. Several companies such as Uber and DoorDash have issued warnings to their independent contractors that echo…Read more...
It seems the Federal Communications Commission is sick of asking nicely for telephone companies to implement anti-robocalling technology. In a Friday press release, the agency announced it plans to mandate service providers adopt so-called SHAKEN (Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs) and STIR…Read more...
New research looking into China’s early containment efforts of the deadly new coronavirus suggests the government’s strict travel restrictions may have bought the world some time, if not China itself. But it also seems that other travel restrictions to affected areas won’t really help prevent the outbreak from…Read more...
Construction is set to begin for a large telescopic array dedicated to detecting natural and artificial sources of optical and infrared light. Once operational, the system, called PANOSETI, will be capable of scanning the entire sky, significantly boosting our chances of detecting alien laser signals.
by Nathan Grayson on Kotaku, shared by Alyse Stanley on (#50C8E)
Over the past 72 hours, I’ve spent an ungodly amount of time watching TikToks created by Twitch streamers. It all began with a simple question: Can people whose whole line of work is built around creating the lengthiest, least-filtered form of pop culture possible excel in a medium where minimalism thrives?
The novel coronavirus has, as of Friday, infected more than 100,000 people and killed more than 3,400 globally. Fear, uncertainty, and doubt are pervasive. What happens next is anyone’s guess, but it’s safe to assume that whatever it is will be a shitshow of historic magnitude—it’s already a tragedy for thousands of…Read more...
As the novel coronavirus continues to spread—thanks in part to the disastrously inadequate response by failing governments like those in Iran and the United States—events are being cancelled faster than reporters can keep track of them, and employees in various industries are being asked to postpone all travel and…Read more...
by Rose Pastore on Earther, shared by Rose Pastore to on (#50C3Q)
Update 6pm ET: This is possibly a hoax—but reportedly not. CBS Los Angeles, which originally reported the supposed campaign, has deleted its story, and Shell has not responded to Gizmodo’s request to confirm its legitimacy. (Sam Gavin’s tweet above, which contained a video promoting the “She Will†campaign, has also…Read more...
by Cheryl Eddy on io9, shared by Kaitlyn Jakola to Gi on (#50C3R)
There’s nothing Disney loves more than mining its previous hits for new content, which is why a Beauty and the Beast streaming series about its villains makes perfect sense: It’s a spin-off prequel of a live-action remake of one of Disney’s most beloved animated classics. How was this not already in the works?Read more...
Philips Hue was one of the first smart lighting systems to go mainstream. However, after first launching way back in 2012, Hue is finally ending support for its Bridge v1 at the end of April. Here’s what you should know.Read more...
by Brian Kahn on Earther, shared by Andrew Couts to G on (#50BW7)
In the pantheon of companies that have destroyed the climate, ExxonMobil has long sat on the throne. It’s spread disinformation for decades even as it knew the risks of its products, is the largest investor-owned source of emissions since 1980, and the third-biggest driver of ocean acidification since 1880. And on…Read more...
Nearly 1,000 vultures died in Guinea-Bissau from a possible poisoning, according to a Vulture Conservation Foundation release. The critically endangered hooded vulture was hit especially hard, the group said.Read more...
A failed partnership 28 years ago between a pair of gigantic names in gaming has resulted in one of the rarest pieces of hardware in video game history selling at auction today for a staggering $360,000—and it doesn’t even include a single game.
A radio antenna in Australia in dire need of upgrades will be offline for the next 11 months, during which time NASA mission controllers won’t be able to transmit commands to the Voyager 2 probe, which is currently in interstellar space.
by James Whitbrook on io9, shared by Andrew Couts to on (#50BWA)
Let’s be honest: no matter how you feel about the film as a whole, a lot of The Rise of Skywalker is weird. Some of that weirdness comes from its gleeful embrace of Star Wars’ silliest indulgences, some of it is from the fact that it is, at all times, Quite A Lot. But one of its weirdest moments does a huge disservice…Read more...
These days, there are millions of songs, podcasts, and audiobooks you can listen to on your morning commute. And given that nearly infinite selection of songs, podcasts, and audiobooks, I choose to listen to trains.
The ongoing outbreak of a newly discovered, sometimes fatal coronavirus has many people wondering how much they should be altering their daily lives to avoid infection. As the disease known as COVID-19 has begun spreading locally in parts of the U.S., we’ve compiled answers to commonly asked questions submitted by our…Read more...
Quibi—that funky mobile-first video service that’ll either be genius or a spectacular disaster—will officially launch on April 6 with a head-spinning 50 original shows covering a wide variety of genres. It’s also launching with a pretty hefty trial period of 90 days—so you’ll have some time to figure out whether you…Read more...
by Gabe Carey on Co-op, shared by Gabe Carey to Gizmo on (#50BFT)
At the start of the week I asked you, the readers who are always right and absolutely never wrong, for your air fryer recommendations. As I said before, I’m a novice—I’ve never air fried anything, even if I have baked, which effectively yields the same results without making your food taste dryer.
by Charles Pulliam-Moore on io9, shared by Kaitlyn Ja on (#50BJ7)
Antebellum’s first trailer made it obvious that Janelle Monáe’s Veronica Henley was destined to become mixed up in all types of wildly dangerous situations over the course of the film. What wasn’t clear was whether the racist dangers she was facing were from the present day or whether, somehow, Veronica was literally …Read more...
President Trump’s coronavirus task force promised earlier this week that 1 million tests for the virus would be distributed to states by the end of the week, with Vice President Mike Pence insisting on Tuesday that “any American can be tested.†It’s Friday, and it’s safe to say none of that is true.
A few months ago, Sonos drew the ire of some customers and recyclers trying to trade in their old devices. The main issue was that in order to partake in its Trade Up program—which rewards customers with a discount on new Sonos products if they recycle their old ones—you had to essentially brick the device. People…Read more...