The U.S. Marshals Service will begin auctioning off some of the personal items of Ted Kaczynski, better known to you and I as the Unabomber. The auction starts here on May 18. “The U.S. Marshals Service has been given a unique opportunity to help the victims of Theodore Kaczynski’s horrific crimes,” said U.S. Marshal Albert Najera. [...]
The case for charter cities as a effective way to fight third-world poverty (based on the example of Hong Kong), is an interesting proposition. Directly, each charter city would allow millions of people to better their lives by integration with the world economy. While critics often belittle this achievement as mere “cream-skimming,” the sad truth [...]
Vi Hart is back with another video using PI to explain the flaws of copyright law. Consider your mind blown. [via reddit]
A BBC reporter becomes the first journalist to tour the Virgin Galactic space program, which hopes to be operational within a few years to take civilians into outer space. Here’s what caught my attention: “The current spaceship has not been into space yet, even in testing. But it’s gradually being released at higher and higher [...]
Kickstarter is changing the way creative people finance their products. Whether it’s musicians funding their studio time or filmmakers putting together a budget for their latest film, or inventors looking to fund their crazy new prototype. Micro-loans are in. Kickstarter is so obvious, it’s hard to imagine it hasn’t always existed. Wired takes a peak [...]
The UK’s Royal Mail has released a limited edition set of 60p stamps “featuring some of the world’s most famous wizards, witches and enchanters.” Which is absolutely ridiculous because nowhere on this list is Gandalf The Gray. Or even Gandalf The White, for that matter. Still, I suppose some wizard stamps are better than no [...]
Wired investigates: Scientists and frequent bathers know that skin can absorb a tremendous amount of water, and still be a strong barrier between our bodies and the harsh outside world. “Your skin wrinkles, yet it maintains its structure,” said mathematician Myfanwy Evans of the Australian National University, lead author of the new study. “It doesn’t [...]
I’m not really sure what Craigslist-creator, Craig Newmark’s new site, craigconnects, is all about. However, it seems like the threads are there for something truly amazing. If I had to hazard a guess, it seems like a place to bring non-profits and other organizations together with volunteers or people who have the intention to help [...]
As someone who spent many a wayward afternoons wasting both time and money at the arcade, it’s been depressing to think both advances in home gaming and their lack of profitability have essential made them endangered species. The biggest factor in their demise, however, is America’s reliance on the quarter. “My feeling is that this [...]
