Gizmodo

Smart rings have a few advantages over more common wrist-worn wearables. For starters, they can be more discreet, fashionable, and comfortable to wear while sleeping. The main issue is there aren’t as many of them out there—much less ones that offer the same breadth of features as wristables. That’s why it’s nice to…Read more...

A task force organized by the American Institute of Physics, a not-for-profit organization made up of other American physics societies, has released the results of a study into why African American students are persistently underrepresented in receiving undergraduate degrees in physics and astronomy.Read more...

The workers of Mechanical Turk, Amazon’s on-demand micro-task platform, say they have encountered mutilated bodies, graphic videos of botched surgeries, and what appeared to be child pornography. They say they have been asked to transcribe Social Security numbers and other personal data. Sometimes their temporary…Read more...

The tropics are the most biodiverse part of the world. Some tropical rainforests are home to more species than entire continents, and tropical coral reefs are believed to have the highest biodiversity of any marine ecosystem on the planet. But thanks to human action—specifically, the actions of the fossil fuel…Read more...

One small step for a startup, one giant leap into finally launching the filthy rich into space: NASA announced on Monday that it has selected Houston-based startup Axiom Space to build the first commercial destination module for the International Space Station.

An organized campaign against the use of biometric surveillance at universities and colleges in the U.S. is ratcheting up pressure on institutions it believes are currently using—or are likely soon to adopt—face recognition technology.Read more...

Computer Gold Box | AmazonRead more...

Germany, Japan, and Taiwan have all reported the first cases of a new SARS-like virus in people who haven’t recently visited China. The announcements, made on Tuesday, come as the number of confirmed cases of 2019-nCoV worldwide reached 4,587 and the death toll hit 106.Read more...

Lake County, Florida deputies arrested a former contributor to Alex Jones’ conspiracy theory hellhole InfoWars, 73-year-old Wolfgang Halbig, on Monday after he waged a relentless campaign of online harassment against the families of Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victims.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) on Monday announced that its research into the Ring app’s Android version identified several embedded third-party trackers sucking up “a plethora” of personal information.

There’s rarely as satisfying a moment on TV as watching someone strike it rich on Antiques Roadshow when a random item turns out to be worth a fortune. That’s exactly what happened on this evening’s episode when an Air Force veteran learned a rare Rolex he’d never worn was worth upwards of $700,000.Read more...

The State Department has urged U.S. citizens to reconsider traveling to China amid an ongoing outbreak of coronavirus there that has killed at least a hundred people and has begun to spread across the globe, Bloomberg reported on Monday. Authorities are also considering implementing stricter screenings at borders and…Read more...

Doctor Who’s latest episode was full of surprises—to the point where a major cast member making their long-awaited return wasn’t even the biggest part! The actor behind one of the coolest cameos this side of the TARDIS is sharing details about that fateful Chris Chibnall phone call, what his codename was on set, and…Read more...

Convicted securities fraudster Martin Shkreli is facing fresh allegations that he and his company purposely and illegally inflated the price of the drug Daraprim, a life-saving medication used to prevent malaria and treat deadly diseases caused by foodborne illness.

As a newly discovered pneumonia-causing virus threatens to engulf China and spread far beyond its borders, governments and researchers are scrambling to create a preventive vaccine. But will it arrive too late to help people? And is it possible that we missed having a head start on its development?

Intel on Monday announced the third in a series of patches meant to address processor vulnerabilities. The latest is closely related to issues addressed in November known as ZombieLoad 2, or TSX Asynchronous Abort. A fix will be available in the near future, an advisory notice said.

Air pollution is expensive. Like, really freaking expensive. That’s why it’s worthwhile to keep our air clean. A study out recently has found that reduced air pollution levels between 1993 and 2013 saved the U.S some $24 billion a year looking only the benefits to elderly people and early deaths related to the air…Read more...

If you spend your life living under a rock you might have missed one of the recent obsessions amongst the young’ns: sequin-covered pillows, plush toys, and even clothing that change color when you rub your hand across them. It’s a completely pointless experience, but also an incredibly satisfying one that’s actually…Read more...

The climate crisis is changing all aspects of human life, from the communities we live in to the air we breathe to the food we eat. Thinking about it is terrifying. It makes me want a glass of wine to soothe my nerves.Read more...

With credits that include Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, Superman, Jaws, Jurassic Park, and Home Alone, everyone knows that composer John Williams can do it all. But whoever thought he could win a Grammy for a theme park?Read more...

In case you haven’t heard, Microsoft Edge is back: The rebooted, revamped, and rebuilt program is now based on the same Chromium engine as Google Chrome and a variety of other browsers, and Microsoft has taken the opportunity to streamline and tidy up the application at the same time. Here’s how to give it a trial…Read more...

Google Drive and Google Docs are down...at least for some people. According to Downdetector, the popular cloud service and software suite appeared to crater out of existence at 12:57pm Eastern Standard Time today.Read more...

Astronomers have documented a bizarre cycle of molecular destruction and rebirth on an ultra-hot, Jupiter-like exoplanet where surface temperatures exceed 7,750 degrees Fahrenheit.

Last night’s Doctor Who was meant to be, like much of season 12 so far, a reminder of its more familiar self of the past few years in the wake of last season’s bold experiments with the tone and scope of the show. Familiar aliens stalking familiar Earth streets, a monster-packed romp just like the good old days. And…Read more...

If you want to describe how an infectious disease spreads, one handy number is what epidemiologists call R (“R naught”), the disease’s basic reproductive number. Right now, scientists are trying to figure out the R for the new coronavirus from Wuhan, China. So far, it seems to be a little bit higher than for the…Read more...

Vine 2.0 is officially live, and it’s already crawling with users thirsty for those follows.Read more...

NETGEAR 8-Port Gigabit Ethernet Smart Managed Plus Switch | $17 | AmazonRead more...

The Witcher continues its trek across the countryside. The popularity of the Henry Cavill-led show has led to a spinoff anime called Nightmare of the Wolf, a soundtrack featuring Jaskier’s tunes, and even a 500,000-book reprint of the original series. We reached out to Andrzej Sapkowski, creator of The Witcher, to get…Read more...

Instead of simply releasing devices and hoping that people like them, Eve relies on its community to help design its products—sourcing feedback and ideas from the company’s forums. A few years ago, Eve used this method to create the V, a Surface Pro clone with interesting specs, and now Eve is back in 2020 to announce …Read more...

The iMac is due for a redesign, and a recent Apple patent hints at an all-in-one desktop made from a single sheet of curved glass. Interestingly, the patent also accounts for potentially built-in keyboards and touchpads, and also the possibility of using the device as a display dock for a MacBook.

A windshield wiper sale, 2TB Seagate Firecuda, foam roller, and a supplement Gold Box lead of Monday’s best deals from around the web.Read more...

Think back to your greatest childhood accomplishment, was it making a pot holder out of popsicle sticks? Or maybe beating Super Mario Bros. in a single afternoon? Impressive feats, but Morgan and Mason McGrew spent eight entire years of their childhood using a combination of stop-motion and live-action footage to…Read more...

Temperature is one of the most critical things when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep. Too hot and you’re sweating under the covers constantly searching for the cool side of the pillow (and failing). Too cold and you spend hours shivering and waiting for the icy specter of sleep to consume your body.Read more...

Jim Carrey says he’d be open to a new Mask film, depending on who got attached. Blurry new art teases Richard Madden’s Eternals look. Meet Mulan’s villains in some new character posters. Plus, what’s to come on Batwoman and Supergirl, and a new clip from the Sonic the Hedgehog movie. Spoilers get!

In the annals of most world religions, a quick walk-on from an alien would not, at least on the surface, seem particularly strange. Unusual occurrences are kind of key to the whole enterprise. And adherents of both camps—UFO-watchers and the religious—know what it means to believe in the face of long odds. Should a…Read more...

Hong Kong Disneyland closed indefinitely on Sunday, becoming the second Disney theme park in Asia to shutter its gates in response to a SARS-like virus, which has killed 81 people and sickened roughly 3,000 worldwide.

Refurb Sony WH1000XM3 Noise Canceling Headphones | $180 | eBayRead more...

Earlier this month, Amazon told employees to stop talking publicly about its inadequate climate plan or risk losing their jobs. In response, 350 employees took to Amazon Employees for Climate Justice’s (AECJ) Medium page on Sunday evening to lay out why Amazon should beef up its climate plan and what the stakes are…Read more...

Give yourself a pat on the back, folks, because we’ve almost made it through the first month of 2020. For those of you still grinding hard at your New Year’s resolutions, congratulations! As for those of you who’ve already flung yourself hurdling off the wagon, you’re still just as valid and lovely and tomorrow’s…Read more...

Apple’s AirDrop, the feature that lets iOS users seamlessly transfer files across the company’s devices, has been the envy of Android users for a while. Don’t worry: Google listened, and is working on its own version of AirDrop called Nearby Sharing. Although the feature hasn’t been released yet, we now have an idea…Read more...

Motorola released a whole slew of YouTube videos Sunday about its new Razr, a revamped throwback to its mid-2000s flip phone of the same name, in celebration of the phone’s pre-order launch. But with them came a disclaimer about the foldable phone: “Screen is made to bend; bumps and lumps are normal.”

Nerd fame is a strange thing. The sheer passion with which people relate to you, or to something you’ve created, is a lot to handle, even for the most seasoned actor or creator. For the cast of a phenomenon like Star Trek, it must be even more overwhelming.Read more...

The third season of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is now available for streaming, and if you devoured it in one big magical gulp you might be a bit perplexed by some of what happened. It’s a twisty mystical world of teen witches and hell legions, and this show’s storytelling has never been straightforward.Read more...

Well, this is awkward . . .

The news that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman personally sent malware to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, which led to the compromise of massive amounts of data from Bezos’ phone, has taken the tech world by storm. While the spotlight has been focused on the plot’s outlandishness, in recent days the attention has shifted…Read more...

Disneyland’s Excalibur attraction, featuring the famed kingly sword in an anvil, is normally a chance for the park’s visitors to be reminded of The Sword in the Stone. You know, the way-underrated Disney version of the Arthur story, where the chosen one gets to pull the sword out and proceed on his way to the kingdom?…Read more...

The Harley Quinn-led Birds of Prey looks like so much fun. From the colors to the characters, to the sheer bursting energy that each released bit of footage has had, the whole package seems like a much more interesting space to occupy than most other glimpses of the DC Universe we’ve gotten on film.Read more...

And he only kills, like, a couple of people. Truly, he’s growing.Read more...

All Hong Kong primary and secondary schools are shutting down until February 17 as part of the latest effort to curb the deadly Wuhan coronavirus’ spread, the Associated Press reported Saturday. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam also announced that officials have raised the government’s response level to its highest…Read more...

Birds of Prey has been, for Margot Robbie, a long time coming.Read more...