Future Stories

As it turns out, our readers have a lot of thoughts on gaming chairs. Earlier this week, we asked you to tell us what the best gaming chairs were and there was no shortage of responses. Readers brought their A-game with a diverse list of options that highlighted how important certain features are to gamers. Just as… Read more...

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Bad presidents may leave (hopefully) and effective vaccines may arrive (eventually), but there’s not a ton of hope regarding the horrific effects of climate change . Shot in 2019 but filled with eerily prophetic themes, short film Inoculation updates the eco-horror genre with a realistic yet dread-filled story. Read more...

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It’s no secret that the Arctic is in trouble . And while the worrying state of the ice in the region has made numerous headlines this year, they’re just the latest twists and turns in a long-term trend. Read more...

For better or for worse, in many ways, 2020 was defined by capitalism, a system unprepared to provide as many hospital beds as there are sick people during a pandemic. Or PPE gear to health care workers exposed to those sick people. Or even face masks to those ordinary people just trying to shop for groceries who are… Read more...

As The Expanse ’s fifth season continues on Amazon, viewers are starting to get an up-close look at the most contentious relationship the show has ever seen, as bitter exes Naomi Nagata (Dominque Tipper) and Marco Inaros (Keon Alexander) are forced into an uneasy reunion. If you want to know more, you’re in luck! io9… Read more...

This might be the most overused sentence ever: 2020 was a strange time. But somehow, life still managed to happen. This included getting to see some excellent movies, although it happened in the comfort of our living rooms . This fan trailer mash-up celebrates the movies that we still managed to get in this hellscape… Read more...

Researchers from Yokohama National University in Japan have developed a prototype microprocessor using superconductor devices that are about 80 times more energy-efficient than CMOS semiconductor devices. Computers currently use 10% of global electricity. The adiabatic quantum-flux-parametron (AQFP) is a building block for ultra-low-power, high-performance microprocessors, and other computing hardware for the next generation of data centers and communication networks. They made a four bit AQFP that proves practical energy-efficient high-speed computing is possible. The prototype 4-bit AQFP microprocessor called MANA (Monolithic Adiabatic iNtegration Architecture) is the world’s first adiabatic superconductor microprocessor. A separate chip shows data processing part of the The post 80 Times More Energy Prototype Superconducting Chips that Will Soon Reach 10 Ghz first appeared on NextBigFuture.com .

We are six years into The Sims 4 , and with 2021 around the corner, it will be exciting to see what’s next from this franchise. But before we enter a new year, I want to reflect on the best and worst aspects of Sims 4 content this year. The main game has improved in some subtle yet excellent ways, but the numerous… Read more...

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2020! What a year, huh? As the world turned upside down, pop culture tried to make the most of one of the most tumultuous periods of modern history. Here’s some of the most popular posts you’ve read on io9 this year, from theme park nightmares to DuckTales delights. Maybe there’s a few things about little-known indie… Read more...

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’s Kiernan Shipka hopes for a Riverdale crossover. Matt Reeves’ The Batman shooting schedule may be leaving the crew feeling “exhausted.” Plus, a new look at WandaVision and hints about The Boys season three. To me, my last spoilers of 2020! Read more...

“ Starship Mine ?,” Star Trek asked. “ Starship Ours , ” Discovery answered. Read more...

Even though no one will actually be in Park City, Utah to see it, the 2021 Sundance Film Festival is still happening. It’s taking place mostly online from January 28-February 3 and anyone can go, if they buy tickets and passes. Those go on sale January 7 so, in the build-up to that, we went through the schedule and… Read more...

Even a cheap TV will give you pretty great picture quality these days , but as sets have gotten thinner and better, the speakers have become tiny and awful. Want explosions that put a boom in your room? Your TV won’t cut it; those speakers can barely deliver solidly intelligible dialogue. Given all that, a soundbar is… Read more...

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At the same time that Zack Snyder has been finalizing a new cut of his Justice League film for HBO Max, actor Ray Fisher—who originally portrayed Cyborg in the film—has been using his platform to call out director Joss Whedon for his on-set behavior that took over finishing Justice League ahead of its original… Read more...

At the corner of West Pico Blvd. and South Genesee Ave. in west Los Angeles sits a tan, six-story building. It’s nothing much to look at: It’s set back from the street by a manicured lawn, lined by a row of trees on each side. An American flag flies out front. Read more...

Despite being over five years past Toho’s original projected release, Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time is finally making its way to the public with a new story about the squad of children selected to either save the world or bring about its ruin by piloting massive, humanoid beings known as Evas. Read more...

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In November, DARPA X-61A Gremlins Air Vehicle (GAV) flew for more than two hours, successfully validating all autonomous formation flying positions and safety features. Nine attempts were made at mechanical engagement of the GAVs to the docking bullet extended from a C-130 aircraft, but relative movement was more dynamic than expected and each GAV ultimately, safely parachuted to the ground. DARPA wants to launch smaller swarm of two to four unmanned aircraft out the back of a C-130 or from wing mounts. Eventually, a single C-130 could launch and recover up to 16 gremlin vehicles. Gremlins could be launched from The post DARPA Gremlin Drone Tests first appeared on NextBigFuture.com .

Losing folks you don’t personally know, but who have influenced your life in a major way thanks to their creative contributions , can be pretty upsetting. While 2020 was terrible for a whole host of reasons , io9 wants to take another look back at the losses in our community to pay tribute to all the wonderful moments… Read more...

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A childhood spent obsessing over Batman’s wonderful toys eventually transitions to a disappointing adulthood where you realize those gadgets just can’t exist in real life, even with a billion-dollar budget. That hasn’t stopped many from trying, and JT from YouTube’s Built IRL has come closer than most at recreating… Read more...

Everyone’s been through a lot on Star Trek: Discovery . Evil Captains. Mirror Universes. Killer A.I.. Time travel to the far future. Spock with facial hair . But one character who’s maybe gone through almost as much as its hero Michael Burnham is her closest confidant: Saru. And for the actor behind our favourite Kelpien Read more...

This week’s Expanse episode title is “Down and Out,” so you know everyone’s going to be feeling the hurt of what’s happened so far—and man, it’s been a lot . But just because certain characters are in regroup mode doesn’t mean the action gets any less tense this week. Quite the opposite: season five shows no mercy! Read more...

Before its demise at the explosive hands of Mt. Vesuvius, Pompeii was a bustling town with a strong agricultural economy and an appetite to match. Painted scenes and archaeological remains have long hinted at the diets of its doomed residents. On Saturday, the Pompeii Archaeological Park announced the excavation of… Read more...

LG CX OLED TVs and a Cubii Pro under-desk elliptical lead Wednesday’s best deals. Read more...

Spider-Man’s costume is one of the most recognisable pop culture iconographies of all time . While Peter and his fellow Spiders have worn variants over the years , and got updates to that classic look, that red and blue, that black webbing, those reality-defying eye pieces, they’re burned into our collective… Read more...

Robert Rodriguez still has hopes for more Alita: Battle Angel . Jodie Whittaker reflects on losing two of her Doctor Who companions. Plus, what’s to come on The Stand and A Discovery of Witches ’ return, and a new look at Cobra Kai ’s third season. To me, my spoilers! Read more...

It didn’t feel like it, what with a major pandemic and massive financial crisis, but 2020 was actually an incredible year for gadgets. For companies like Apple and Microsoft, this could have been a landmark year were it not for everything else going on. While the competition for our attention this year was steep,… Read more...

Whether you’re talking about Steven King’s book or the new CBS All Access show, The Stand   is not a story that’s easily, or quickly, summarized. In a pinch though, it kind of boils down to a group of heroes , lead by Mother Abigail, and a group of villains, lead by Randall Flagg, battling for control of the world after… Read more...

In Warner Bros.’ Wonder Woman 1984 , princess Diana of Themyscira whips out a bevy of new, magical tricks to aid in her fight to save the world. She does battle with both Max Lord and Cheetah, two villains meant to embody all wanton greed and consumption that defined the decade . Though both her foes are   armed in their… Read more...

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In a time when you have to go out of your way to buy a new TV with less than 4K resolution, one Redditor has decided that their eyes don’t need such luxuries as 4K, 2K, HD, or even standard def videos, and have created a custom VCR that plays full-length movies on floppy disks with just 1.44 MB of storage. Read more...

The Expanse is a show with an ensemble cast , but if you had to pick a “main character,” it would probably be James Holden. Played by Steven Strait, who’s also a producer on the show, Holden captains the Rocinante and has a unique connection to the dangerously mysterious protomolecule. Read more...

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Here’s how weird 2020 was for movies : Unless you saw something in January or February (like The Invisible Man, Birds of Prey, or Bloodshot ), there’s a good chance you didn’t see a movie in a movie theater for the entire year. A whole year without going to the movies . Frankly, it’s hard to even fathom, even though we… Read more...

2020 sucked. You know it, I know it. It was amid this chaotic year that the fighting game community found itself pushed out of the arcades, hotels, and convention centers to which competitors had grown accustomed and into the unpredictable world of online play. Early on, organizers were unsure if the community could… Read more...

The US Army is making new drones to replace the RQ-7B Shadow which will give brigade commanders’ primary day/night, reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition system. Commanders will see and understand the battlespace and gain situational awareness on the battlefield. They will takeoff like helicopters and will not need a runway. The new drones will be quieter and more survivable. Heavily protected areas will be observable and provide immediate situational awareness on the battlefield. The US Army is mainly facing sneak attacks, IED (improvised explosives) and attacks from an enemy that is hiding. The new drones will be loaded up with The post Next Generation Army Drones first appeared on NextBigFuture.com .

After helping to save the world in the CW’s many Crisis events, Tyler Hoechilin’s Clark Kent and Elizabeth Tulloch’s Lois Lane will team up to tackle the challenge of parenting in Superman & Lois , Todd Helbing and Greg Berlanti’s l atest addition to the already-sprawling Arrowverse of superhero shows. Read more...

Look, considering the “Skywalker Saga” (to be clear, you’re absolutely a narc if you call it that) came to a close last December, 2020 was still a banner year when it comes to Star Wars merchandise. Between The Mandalorian merch finally hitting in full force after a slight delay, a whole bunch of killer releases to… Read more...

Wonder Woman is supposed to be the best of women. This isn’t me starry-eyed about a fictional character and forcing her to be a defender and icon. William Moulton Marston created her to be the best of women. The character, besides being heavily rooted in Marston’s love of bondage, was also rooted in his love for women… Read more...

His Dark Materials ended its second season on heartfelt reunions, sinister plots, and a hero’s journey into a land of angels. Lee Scoresby’s story was a battle he’d been preparing for his whole life–one that actor Lin-Manuel Miranda knew was coming thanks to Philip Pullman’s books couldn’t quite prepare himself for… Read more...

When the universe was a fledgling billion years old, a galaxy   spewed a ginormous, fast-moving jet of radiation and plasma into the cosmos. Nearly 13 billion years later, that jet is visible to humans in the form of a blazar. The jet was recently imaged and analyzed by a team of Italian astronomers. Their findings,… Read more...

The Acer Nitro 5 and a Crane & Canopy winter sale lead Tuesday’s best deals. Read more...

James Gunn heads a bizarre Peacemaker rumor off at the pass. Mission: Impossible 7 will resume filming after some covid-19 concerns . A small peek at Disenchantment season 3 and more. Spoilers right this way... Read more...

Nextbigfuture found cost of living data indicating that China’s purchasing power parity economy is about $31 trillion. This is 30% larger than official estimates and is 50% larger than the $21 trillion US economy. In a decade or two China’s currency will strengthen to a value that matches its purchasing power level. Japan reached per capita income levels equal to the people in the UK. This is about 70% of the per capita level of the USA. The USA will also have immigration and population growth to 400-450 million people in the mid-21st century. China’s per capita income should double The post China Becoming Economically Stronger Than the USA But Not the US and Allies first appeared on NextBigFuture.com .

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Tom Hanks has been one of the biggest movie stars on the planet for as long as most of us have been alive. He’s won Oscars, grossed billions at the box office , and worked with all the best directors (he’s even directed himself). Basically, he knows what he’s talking about when it comes to movies, and in a new… Read more...

Do you have information about something going on in the genre (sci-fi, horror, fantasy) entertainment industry? We want to know! Email us at tips@io9.com —not just with info, but if you’ve made art or a cool fan film that you’d like us to showcase, or anything else, you can send that too! Don’t forget you can follow… Read more...

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In the era of the ongoing covid-19 pandemic making it difficult for many Hollywood productions to take place safely with everyone together physically, animation presents a number of unique advantages, as creative teams don’t have to be in close proximity to one another in order to make new things. Lazor Wulf is one of… Read more...

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Viewers are turning to streaming entertainment more than ever thanks to the global pandemic, and the plethora of services can serve as a much-needed escape. At the start of each month , most streamers do a little shuffle, adding new movies and taking some away, and io9 is here to help with your decision making. Read more...

Quick question: What the heck is going on with HBO Max’s content discovery? Read more...

Earlier this year, my neighbors and I all had some weird quarantine-induced scheme where we decided we would all gift each other gaming chairs. The idea was that we’d all be in lockdown working from home, so we might as well upgrade our chairs with some lumbar support. We kept describing this as a “Gift of the Magi”… Read more...

Though we’re still a long ways out from being invited back into Westworld in the series’ mysterious fourth season , HBO’s just dropped a new trailer for the 1973 movie meant to remind you that the original story still more than holds up in 2020, and now’s the perfect time to check it out . Read more...

In Pixar’s Soul , a music teacher with a burning passion for jazz suddenly dies. The event puts him on a path in the afterlife that makes him realize how he never lived with much passion during his time on Earth, and how hard he’s willing to fight for another chance. Read more...