Five questions for Dr. Rubin, who’s armed with a mic and a bowtie

Five questions for Dr. Rubin, who’s armed with a mic and a bowtie

Dr. Rubin’s feed Bullshit is cheap but truth is expensive. Anyone with half a brain cell can post wild misinformation that goes mega viral, which wastes the time and expertise of highly trained people who feel an obligation to inform others of the truth. Today I want you to meet one of those highly-trained people,…

Former Xbox studios Double Fine and Compulsion will keep games after going indie

Former Xbox studios Double Fine and Compulsion will keep games after going indie

Microsoft is spinning off four of its Xbox game studios – Compulsion Games, Double Fine Productions, Ninja Theory, and Undead Labs – as part of the restructuring announced today. However, two that are going independent, Double Fine and Compulsion, will get to keep their franchises and games catalogs, according to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma. “Compulsion…

I spy

I spy

I’m just doing my job, but turns out, it feels lousy holding other people’s privacy in your hands. I’ve long argued that Hollywood has simultaneously set and ruined our expectations for smart glasses. But after binge-watching two seasons of Netflix’s A Man on the Inside, this is perhaps the first time I’ve seen Hollywood, perhaps…

Mr. Lif’s Emergency Rations EP is post-9/11 hip hop at its most daring

Mr. Lif’s Emergency Rations EP is post-9/11 hip hop at its most daring

First, you drop bombs, then you send aid. Totally logical. | Image: Definitive Jux There was a period in the early aughts when Definitive Jux (nee: Def Jux) seemed like it was going to be the future of hip hop. While the label featured plenty of experimental, boundary-pushing, and politically minded acts, Lif stood out…

Infuriating Google commercial imagines the founding fathers embracing AI

Infuriating Google commercial imagines the founding fathers embracing AI

I call BS: the founding fathers definitely would have been Microsoft Teams users. | Image: Google “Group project, but make it 1776.” That’s how a new commercial for Google Workspace opens. And things only get cringier from there. The clip imagines what it would be like if the founding fathers turned to Google’s collaboration tools…

The Sourdough Sidekick automates the boring bit of baking

The Sourdough Sidekick automates the boring bit of baking

The Sourdough Sidekick was codeveloped with King Arthur Baking Company. Baking sourdough bread is inherently old-fashioned, relying on natural fermentation and wild yeast instead of the simple, predictable commercial stuff. So it might sound anathema to bring a gadget into the mix. The trick to the Sourdough Sidekick – backed and branded by King Arthur…

NASA launched an emergency mission to stop the Swift Observatory from crashing to Earth

NASA launched an emergency mission to stop the Swift Observatory from crashing to Earth

Engineers from Katalyst Space Technologies testing Link. | Image: NASA/Scott Wiessinger The Swift Observatory was launched in 2004, but recent solar storms have pushed its orbit lower, and it’s in danger of burning up in Earth’s atmosphere as soon as this year. To try and stave off its demise, NASA has enlisted Katalyst Space Technologies….