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io9A Brief History Of The First Robots To Appear In Fiction
Robots are so common in today’s stories as to be almost ubiquitous. Whether we’re talking killer robots, robot swarms, sentient robots, robots with human emotions, or even human/robot hybrids, we’ve seen them all. But when did the very first robots show up in our stories? Despina Kakoudaki joined us today to take our questions about … Continued
By Ria Misra -
io9
There’s A Spelling Error In One Of White House’s Most Famous Paintings
In the largest room in the White House hangs an iconic full-body portrait of George Washington renouncing a third term as president of the United States. There is a small but obvious spelling error contained within the portrait—and it’s actually there for a very specific reason. Top image via Wikimedia Commons. The portrait of Washington … Continued
By Lauren Davis -
Tech News
These GIFs From The Smithsonian Archives Make History Come To Life
The charm of a perfect looping image cannot be denied. Old timey illustrations are delightful nostalgia inducers. Pair ’em together and hot damn: That is a recipe for sure-fire internet love. Drawing from seemingly endless stores of digitized archives, the Smithsonian Libraries have been posting original gifs on their Tumblr, and—spoiler alert—they’re wonderful. From The … Continued
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io9
The USS Enterprise Is Being Shut Down
It’s the beginning of the end for the USS Enterprise. After 50 years of service, the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier is going dark at the same shipyard where it was first built. Around 600 sailors and 1,200 employees at the Newport News shipyard in Virginia have been tasked with completing the “inactivation.” As the … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
A Forgotten Einstein Model of the Universe Describes the Big Crunch
Way back in 1931, Albert Einstein visited the U.S. for three months. Inspired by meetings with Edwin Hubble, he began thinking about the Universe differently, writing a paper in four days to get down his thoughts—and now, those first scribblings have been translated into English for the first time. “On the cosmological problem of the … Continued
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io9
CIA Analysis Of The War Of 1812 Finds Same Failures That Led To 9/11
This month is the 200th anniversary of the British capture of Washington, DC, and the torching of the White House. How did this disaster happen, despite ample warnings? A CIA analyst who pored through historical documents blames the same types of intelligence failures that preceded Pearl Harbor and September 11th. The British invasion of Washington, … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
io9Television“Blank Is My Middle Name” Is Over 100 Years Old
This trope has moved from being a badass boast to being a joke fairly recently, considering that it peaked in the 80s and can be traced to 1902. Esoteric is our other middle name. Watching this supercut made me wonder who popularized this trope. Thankfully,Stephen Chrisomalis at Glossographia had already done the legwork for me. … Continued
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io9
The Technological Decision That Doomed Richard Nixon
A botched burglary, lies, cover-ups, abuse of power—all of these things culminated in the resignation of President Richard Nixon forty years ago. But history could have turned out differently if the scandal-ridden president had not made a fateful decision years earlier. [Image: Library of Congress] Less than a week into his presidency, Nixon was anxious … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
Alvin the Deep Sea Submersible is Half a Century Old!
Fifty years ago, the deep sea vehicle Alvin made its first free dive, submerging to 35 feet below the waves. Since then, DSV Alvin has been repeatedly overhauled and upgraded, keeping pace with current technology in countless dives and endless missions carrying humans into the deep blue sea. Top image: Even octopus love Alvin. Or … Continued
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Tech NewsSploidThe Palestine conflict history explained in one absurd animation
This animated short by Nina Paley—in the tradition of the best Monty Python music skits—might not be an orthodox history lesson, but it’s an accurate depiction of the horrible 6,000-year bloodshed in the region of Palestine, with dozens of tribes and nations fighting each other to claim ownership of that land. Here is a summary … Continued
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io9
Black And White Photos From The First World War, Now In Color
To commemorate the World War I centenary, the Open University enlisted a photograph restoration expert to painstakingly colorize black and white images found in archives around the world. Staring at us from across a century, the people in the images convey iconic moments on battlefields and at the home front. A trench on the Albanian … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
Tech News
Did Astronauts Returning From the Moon Really Pass Through Customs?
I love the Customs forms signed by the Apollo 11 astronauts on their return trip from the moon, but are they real? Yes, but not really. The form is a real form, but it wasn’t filled out by the Apollo 11 astronauts when they transited Hawaii. Instead, it’s more likely that the form was created … Continued
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io9
The Ships That Were Transformed Into Research Stations
Ranging from retrofitted military surplus to custom-built research vessels, these ships have been teaching us about just what goes on deep in the water for more than 80 years. Check out the pictures — and details on their history — after the jump!
By Ria Misra -
Tech NewsI Prefer Watching These Heavily Slurred Versions of American History
Drunk History is in many ways the best show on television at the moment. You get the LOLs of absurdist sketch comedy while arming yourself with enough History Channel-quality Fun Facts™ to make you sound smart the next day. At the same time, it feels like hosting a party in your living room—one that inevitably … Continued
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Tech News
Marie Curie’s century-old radioactive notebook still requires lead box
Marie Curie made some of the most significant contributions to science in the 20th century. And as most people already know, she did so at a great cost to her own health. What most people probably don’t know, however, is that the radiation levels she was exposed to were so powerful that her notebooks must … Continued
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Tech News
These 5,000 Melting Figures Commemorate World War One’s Fallen
Today marks the 100th anniversary of Britain’s entry into World War One, and commemorative eventsare taking place across the country. None are more beautiful than Nele Azevedo’s “Minimum Monument”, however. The Brazilian sculptor had 5,000 ice figurines placed on the steps of Birmingham’s Chamberlain Square this weekend, with the slowly melting sculptures representing those that … Continued
Gerald Lynch - Gizmodo UK -
io9
888,246 Ceramic Poppies Will Fill The Moat At The Tower Of London
The Tower of London will mark the 100-year anniversary of the First World War with an installation created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins. The Tower’s famous dry moat is being slowly filled with red poppies — each representing a British or Colonial fatality during the war. Volunteers have already begun planting the ceramic flowers for … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
io9Watch The European Colonization Of North America In Just 14 Seconds
At first glance, it looks like a nebula seen through the Hubble Telescope. But these expanding patches of flashing, colored light depict migration patterns across the North American continent, spanning a period of 400 years. The map is the creation of Maximilian Schich, a professor of art and technology at the University of Texas at … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
io9
A Map Of The U.S., If There Had Never Been A Mexican-American War
In 1846, President James Polk, driven by a belief in Manifest Destiny, waged a war to seize land from Mexico and expand the nation’s boundary from Texas to California. But events could have plausibly gone very differently, resulting in a map of the U.S. that would be significantly unlike the one we have today. When … Continued
By Mark Strauss -
io9
Recreation of Richard III’s Skeleton Shows Why He Was Called an Imp
Tourists visiting the Richard III Visitor Centre in Leicester can gaze into the empty grave where the king’s skeleton was discovered in 2012. His actual bones are being reinterred in Leicester Cathedral. But a 3D-printed replica is there, revealing details such as the late monarch’s twisted spine and mortal wounds. King Richard III was killed … Continued
By Mark Strauss