The 100 Most Popular Gizmodo Posts Of 2017

What a year, huh? While Facebook snooped on your family secrets, Trump tweeted us deeper into disaster, and various foreign objects were being pulled out of unsuspecting people’s heads, there was some joyous things to behold too. Like a hand-squeezed Juicero bag, or a flat Earther trying to go to space to prove a point. The new iPhone also happened! Take a journey into a time you’re going to miss next year. These are the 100 most popular Gizmodo posts from 2017 according to Google Analytics.

Bernie Just Printed a Gigantic Trump Tweet and Brought It to the Senate Floor

The US Senate is currently debating the repeal of Obamacare. And since Senators love their visual aids, it makes sense that Bernie Sanders brought one along with him to work today. But Bernie’s sign marks the dawn of a new era in a lot of ways. He literally just printed out a tweet from President-elect Donald Trump.

Exclusive: Here’s The Full 10-Page Anti-Diversity Screed Circulating Internally at Google [Updated]

Photo: AP

A software engineer’s 10-page screed against Google’s diversity initiatives is going viral inside the company, being shared on an internal meme network and Google+. The document’s existence was first reported by Motherboard, and Gizmodo has obtained it in full.

This Is Almost Certainly James Comey’s Twitter Account

Digital security and its discontents – from Hillary Clinton’s emails to ransomware to Tor hacks – is in many ways one of the chief concerns of the contemporary FBI. So it makes sense that the bureau’s director, James Comey, would dip his toe into the digital torrent with a Twitter account. It also makes sense, given Comey’s high profile, that he would want that Twitter account to be a secret from the world, lest his follows and favs be scrubbed for clues about what the feds are up to. What is somewhat surprising, however, is that it only took me about four hours of sleuthing to find Comey’s account, which is not protected.

Photo: Getty

Congratulations to those of you who used proper solar eclipse glasses and witnessed the phenomenon without permanently damaging your vision. Good job! But now you’re probably wondering what to do with those flimsy pieces of cardboard and black polymer that were basically priceless just hours ago.

The Switch to Outdoor LED Lighting Has Completely Backfired

Florida at night. (Image: NASA/JSC)

To reduce energy consumption, many jurisdictions around the world are transitioning to outdoor LED lighting. But as new research shows, this solid-state solution hasn’t yielded the expected energy savings, and potentially worse, it’s resulted in more light pollution than ever before.

United Loses $US800 ($1,037) Million in Value After Passenger Dragged Off Plane

Photo: AP

United’s market capitalisation, essentially the current value of the company, has fallen by more than $US750 ($972) million from $US22.5 ($29) billion after a video showing a bloodied United passenger who was dragged off a flight made headlines on Monday.

The Last of the Iron Lungs

Photo: Jennings Brown/Gizmodo

Martha Lillard spends half of every day with her body encapsulated in a half-century old machine that forces her to breathe. Only her head sticks out of the end of the antique iron lung. On the other side, a motorised lever pulls the leather bellows, creating negative pressure that induces her lungs to suck in air.

National Park Service Banned From Tweeting After Anti-Trump Retweets [Updated]

The National Park service retweeted some sick Donald Trump burns, noting how, uh, lightly attended his inauguration was compared to Barack Obama’s in 2009. But now, the NPS has been ordered by its Washington support office to “immediately cease use of government Twitter accounts until further notice,” according to an internal email obtained by Gizmodo.

Guess Who Comes Up When You Google the President of the United States? [Updated]

Photo: Getty

President Trump isn’t going to like this. Journalist Patrick Züst noticed something funny when he googled “donald trump office.” Can you spot it? It’s not exactly subtle.

‘Just Kill Me’: Horrifying New Video Shows United Passenger Drooling Blood

Screenshot: Twitter

A disturbing new video has emerged showing the bloody outcome after a United passenger was savagely dragged off his overbooked flight after refusing to give up his seat to a United employee on stand-by.

Oh My God

Photo: AP

Oh my god, he really did it. President Trump really did the one thing you’re not supposed to do during a solar eclipse.

Behold The Most Hilarious Wildlife Photos of 2017

Image: Bence Mate/ Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards

Wildlife photographer Tibor Kércz would spend a few nights each year camped out in a tent near a tree, hoping to capture photos of little owls and their nestlings. But just before nightfall on one fateful evening, three of the birds flew out onto a short branch. They landed and tried stabilizing themselves… but the owlet on the end began to fall.

Trump Is Letting Go the People in Charge of Maintaining Our Nuclear Arsenal [Updated]

Photo: Getty

Between the Trump transition team’s infighting, incompetence, and high-profile resignations, any decisions that signalled even a modicum of stability for the country would come as a relief at this point. Unfortunately, the nascent Trump Administration isn’t inclined to calm anyone’s nerves. According to an official within the Department of Energy, the Trump transition team has declined to ask the head of the National Nuclear Security Administration and his deputy to temporarily stay in their roles after Trump takes office on January 20th.

Andy Serkis Reading President Trump’s Tweets as Gollum is a Bit Too Perfect

Andy Serkis, the actor who played Gollum in the Lord of the Rings series, was on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert last night. And Colbert, a huge LOTR nerd, had Serkis read President Trump’s tweets on air. It’s honestly just too perfect.

President Trump Lands in Rome, Gets Rejected by Melania Again

Remember yesterday when First Lady Melania Trump swatted away Donald’s extended hand? Well, the President just landed in Rome, and it looks like things are still a bit shaky in the Trump household.

Trump Supporters Cry Bias After NPR Tweets the Declaration of Independence

Photo: Getty

NPR tweeted the entire Declaration of Independence in 140-character chunks yesterday to celebrate Independence Day. But more than a few people thought that the tweets were a political stance against Donald Trump. Seriously.

If You’ve Got an Older Android Phone, Google Just Threw You a Bone

This February Google finally brought the Google Assistant from the Pixel and Google Home to other Android devices, but they were newer products like the Samsung Galaxy S7 and HTC 10. Older phone owners were stuck with upgrading or going Assistant-less. That changes now, the company announced on Wednesday that Google Assistant is now coming to some older devices.

Can You Find the Perfectly-Camouflaged Snow Leopard Hidden On This Mountainside?

Photo courtesy Inger Vandyke – Wildlife Photographer

There’s a good reason it’s so difficult for photographers and film crews to capture the elusive snow leopard in the wild. The animal’s not only a master of stealth, it also sports a patterned fur coat that turns it nearly invisible in its natural habitat. Can you find the big cat sneaking up on its prey in this amazing photo by wildlife photographer Inger Vandyke?

Hired Goon Drags Man Off United Flight After He Refuses to Give Up Seat [Updated]

Image: Facebook/Audra D. Bridges

On Sunday, a man was forcibly dragged off a United flight headed from Chicago to Louisville after he refused to give up his seat to a United employee who “needed to be in Louisville” for a flight the following day, The Courier-Journal reports.

Melania Swats Away Donald’s Hand In Latest Viral Misery From Trumpland

It’s been well documented that Donald Trump is a total dick to his wife. So it’s no surprise that when he extended his hand on the tarmac in Israel this morning Melania literally swatted it away.

After More Than 100 Years, California’s Iconic Tunnel Tree Is No More

Photos: Flickr/Tom Purcell/Facebook/Jim Allday

The Pioneer Cabin Tree, a giant sequoia in Calaveras Big Trees State Park that was tunneled through in the 1880s, has fallen due to severe winter weather. It was believed to be hundreds of years old.

This Time Lapse Video of the Grand Canyon Will Give You an Existential Crisis

Image Courtesy of SKYGLOW

What better way to start off your day with a nice, hot cup of existential uncertainty? Forget everything you think you know about yourself or reality, because a gorgeous new video of the Grand Canyon is about to irrevocably fuck you up. In a good way, we think.

Juicero CEO Begs You: Do NOT Squeeze Our Juice Bags [Updated]

This week saw the latest chapter in the utterly wonderful saga of Juicero, the $US400 ($518) juice machine maker that attracted $US120 ($156) million in venture capital funding. On Wednesday, a bombshell Bloomberg report exposed the secret that threatened to ruin the company: You can get almost exactly the same juice without the company’s expensive press by squeezing their damn bags yourself with the hands God gave you.

Mysterious Apocalyptic Message Interrupts TV Broadcasts in California: ‘Violent Times Will Come’

Photo: AP

Many Californians’ regularly scheduled broadcasts were interrupted Thursday morning with strange emergency messages warning of extraterrestrial invasions and the beginning of Armageddon. The bizarre warnings aired on TVs in the Orange County area, affecting Cox and Spectrum cable users, according to the Orange County Register.

Drone Video of Border Wall Prototypes Accidentally Shows How Worthless the Wall Would Be

US Customs and Border Protection recently released video of President Trump’s border wall prototypes in San Diego. And we couldn’t help but notice something strange from the video. It shows a bird’s-eye view of the wall from the perspective of a drone. And the drone is much, much higher than the wall.

Trump Deletes Misspelled Tweet, Which May Be Illegal [Updated]

Photo: AP

We’re officially through the looking glass, and it’s time to find out what powers our country’s legal system has over the president. One day after his inauguration, Donald Trump has already fucked up a tweet and deleted it. The problem is that he very likely isn’t allowed to do that anymore.

US Homeland Security Will Start Collecting Social Media Info on All Immigrants October 18th [Updated]

Photo: Getty

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is expanding the kinds of information that it collects on immigrants to include social media information and search results. The new policy, which covers immigrants who have obtained a green card and even naturalized citizens, will take effect on October 18th.

Doctors Pull Live Cockroach From Woman’s Skull After Complaints of ‘Crawling Sensation’

Photo: AP

On Tuesday, a 42-year-old Indian woman went to the hospital, complaining of an extremely painful “tingling, crawling sensation.” After being transferred three times, doctors determined that there was a “foreign body that seemed to be mobile” in her head.

Mike Pence Touches NASA Equipment Labelled ‘Do Not Touch’, Becomes Instant Meme

Original photo: Reuters

Vice President Mike Pence made a big mistake during his tour of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center yesterday. He touched a piece of critical space flight hardware in the Orion clean room, despite the fact that there was a sign that clearly read, “DO NOT TOUCH.” So, of course, the photo is now a meme.

Watch a Woman Destroy $US200 ($259),000 ($259,175) Worth of Art While Taking a Selfie

Screengrab: YouTube/Party Pooper

Taking selfies with art is an entire photographic subgenre unto itself. So, when an exhibition is touted as a “series of wondrous, over-the-top sets for the perfect selfie,” why wouldn’t you pull out your camera and a snap a pic for the ‘gram? This is why.

The Fungus That Turns Ants Into Zombies Is More Diabolical Than We Realised

Image: David Hughes/Penn State University

Carpenter ants of the Brazilian rain forest have it rough. When one of these insects gets infected by a certain fungus, it turns into a so-called “zombie ant” and is no longer in control of its actions. Manipulated by the parasite, an infected ant will leave the cosy confines of its arboreal home and head to the forest floor — an area more suitable for fungal growth. After parking itself on the underside of a leaf, the zombified ant anchors itself into place by chomping down onto the foliage. This marks the victim’s final act. From here, the fungus continues to grow and fester inside the ant’s body, eventually piercing through the ant’s head and releasing its fungal spores. This entire process, from start to finish, can take upwards of ten agonizing days.

Yes, Google Uses Its Power to Quash Ideas It Doesn’t Like — I Know Because It Happened to Me [Updated]

llustration: Jim Cooke/GMG, photo: Getty

The story in the New York Times this week was unsettling: The New America Foundation, a major think tank, was getting rid of one of its teams of scholars, the Open Markets group. New America had warned its leader Barry Lynn that he was “imperiling the institution,” the Times reported, after he and his group had repeatedly criticised Google, a major funder of the think tank, for its market dominance.

How Facebook Outs Sex Workers

Illustration by Jim Cooke/GMG

Leila has two identities, but Facebook is only supposed to know about one of them.

People Are Mass Unfollowing John McCain After He Asked for Help Hitting 3 Million on Twitter

Photo: Getty

Senator John McCain is learning the hard way that follows do not equal endorsements.

Facebook Figured Out My Family Secrets, And It Won’t Tell Me How

Illustration: Jim Cooke/GMG, photo: Getty

Rebecca Porter and I were strangers, as far as I knew. Facebook, however, thought we might be connected. Her name popped up this summer on my list of “People You May Know,” the social network’s roster of potential new online friends for me.

Developers of the MP3 Have Officially Killed It

Photo: Getty

MP3, the digital audio coding format, changed the way we listen to music and drove the adoption of countless new devices over the last couple of decades. And now, it’s dead. The developer of the format announced this week that it has officially terminated its licensing program.

Thousands of People Are Watching Two Google Homes Argue With Each Other on Twitch

If you ever wanted to watch two virtual assistants argue with each other for hours on end, well, you’re in luck. Some maniac is live streaming two Google Homes arguing with each other, so of course thousands of people are watching it.

Apple Just Leaked iOS 11 and Looks Like We’re Getting an ‘iPhone X’

Image: Gizmodo

Surprise! The Golden Master build of iOS 11 leaked online Friday night, with users spreading links to the software on Reddit. It’s full of details about the upcoming line of products being teased for the company’s September 12th event, including that Apple appears poised to skip releasing a 7S line entirely and move directly to the iPhone 8.

Someone Hacked Into HBO and Is Now Releasing Game of Thrones Info

Image: HBO

It’s cyber deja vu time in Hollywood. HBO just confirmed that hackers broke into their servers and stole an unknown quantity of data. Now, unreleased episodes of Ballers and Room 104 have appeared online as well a script that looks an awful lot like next week’s Game of Thrones episode. This is not a drill.

Change Your Passwords. Now.

Image: Cloudflare

A massive memory leak from web services and security company Cloudflare may have exposed user data for thousands of sites. In other words: it’s time to change your passwords.

There’s Now Science-Backed Advice on How to Avoid Bringing Home Bed Bugs

Image: Gilles San Martin/Flickr

Bed bugs are bed bad. People’s entire lives have been overturned by these (increasingly common) blood-sucking, itch-inducing pests. Thankfully, they’re not disease vectors, but I would rather not share my home with a roommate who wants to eat me, thank you very much.

Donald Trump Asked Why ‘Samurai’ Japan Isn’t Shooting Down North Korean Missiles

Photo: AP

President Donald Trump has headed to Japan at the head of an 11-day Asian tour, with last-ditch efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis before it spirals out of control at the top of the agenda. And, true to form, the guy is not exactly being a confidence builder with respect to his understanding of missile defence systems.

‘There Are No Words’: Tourists Spot Hundreds of Polar Bears Swarming Whale Carcass in Siberia

Image: Alexander Gruzdev, Wrangel Island State Nature Reserve

There are around 26,000 polar bears on the planet out there doing their best as the ice caps melt. We’ve all seen the infamous starving polar bear picture, which has become a symbol (rightfully or not) of the impact of climate change on vulnerable species. But last week, instead of starvation came a story of glut.

People Keep Finding Coins in Their MacBooks and Nobody Knows Why

Image: greatease/ Imgur

Look, I love my Macbook, but Apple’s products are often (rightly) criticised for being too expensive. We finally have an explanation for the huge price gouge customers have come to expect: they’re made with literal money!

Melania Trump’s Twitter Just Liked a Tweet About How Much She Hates Her Husband

Screenshot: Twitter

Melania Trump’s personal Twitter account has been dormant since election day. Once a prolific tweeter, the first lady has since transferred her activity to the @FLOTUS account — she doesn’t use it very much. But the Twittersphere lit up this evening with screenshots of a tweet that was liked from her personal account, which suggests that the rumours of her dislike for her husband could be very true.

GOP Data Firm Accidentally Leaks Personal Details of Nearly 200 Million American Voters

Photo: Getty

Political data gathered on more than 198 million US citizens was exposed this month after a marketing firm contracted by the Republican National Committee stored internal documents on a publicly accessible Amazon server.

Man Who Saved the World From Nuclear Armageddon in 1983 Dies at 77

Photo: AP

On September 26, 1983, Soviet military officer Stanislav Petrov received a message that five nuclear missiles had been launched by the United States and were heading to Moscow. He didn’t launch a retaliatory strike, believing correctly that it was a false alarm. And with that, he saved the world from nuclear war. But now reports have surfaced that Petrov died this past May. He was 77 years old.

The 11 Best Tiny Houses You Can Buy on Amazon

Image: Amazon

Did you know that you can buy everything on Amazon? Medical devices, snack foods, designer clothing, books, pet supplies, art, and — you’re never gonna guess this one — buildings!

That HBO Game of Thrones Hack Was Worse Than We Thought

Image: HBO

Well, this isn’t terribly surprising. According to the latest dispatch from Variety, the hackers who broke into HBO’s servers and stole 1.5 terabytes of data, including at least one Game of Thrones script, also stole employee data. More specifically, the hackers made off with “thousands of Home Box Office (HBO) internal company documents.” That’s bad.

How Long Will It Take Bing to Realise There’s a Penis on Its Homepage? [Update: Now We Know]

Image: Bing

On Thursday morning, people began pointing out that there was a penis hiding on Bing’s homepage.

Watch a Speeding Train Blast a Bunch of Commuters With Snow

Here’s a free piece of advice should you ever find yourself waiting for the first train to roll into a station after a heavy snowfall: Stand as far away from the tracks as possible, assuming you don’t want to get blasted with a massive shitstorm of snow.

Killer Whales Eat Enormous Great White Shark in South Africa

Image: Fallows et al/PLOS One

If you’re afraid of sharks, well, this blog should convince you it’s actually orcas you should avoid. Orcas are among the most savage killers in the ocean, wrecking tiger sharks, seals, beaked whales — and probably one of the most infamous apex predators out there, the great white shark.

Here Is the Porn Video That Played in DC’s Union Station Last Night [NSFW]

Last night, a display screen in Union Station — one of Washington DC’s main transit hubs — found itself moonlighting as a tiny pornographic theatre. Now, Gizmodo can exclusively reveal footage of the incident, and I can assure you that, one, it’s definitely pornography, and two, I have never had a commute this stimulating.

This Fake Cracking Effect On a 1,158.24m High Glass Skywalk Might Be the Meanest Prank Ever

Modern materials engineering allows us to build what looks like precarious glass skywalks perched thousands of feet off the ground. They’re completely safe, but knowing that doesn’t make them any less terrifying to traverse — especially when the glass skywalk you’re on uses transparent LCD screens to make it look like it’s about to shatter and collapse.

Everything You Need to Know About Cloudbleed, the Latest Internet Security Disaster

Image: Cloudflare / Gizmodo

Have you heard? A tiny bug in Cloudflare’s code has led an unknown quantity of data — including passwords, personal information, messages, cookies, and more — to leak all over the internet. If you haven’t heard of the so-called Cloudbleed vulnerability, keep reading. This is a scary big deal.

The Guy Who Invented Those Annoying Password Rules Now Regrets Wasting Your Time

We’ve all been forced to do it: create a password with at least so many characters, so many numbers, so many special characters, and maybe an uppercase letter. Guess what? The guy who invented these standards nearly 15 years ago now admits that they’re basically useless. He is also very sorry.

A Dangerously Convincing Google Docs Phishing Scam Is Spreading Like Crazy [Updated]

Image: Gizmodo / Pexels

Oh God, a hacker’s on the loose with a new (but familiar) Google Docs phishing scam, and journalists (among many others) are in the crosshairs.

How a Genius Lived in a Storage Locker for $US200 ($259) a Month

Actually trying to live out of a cheap storage locker goes against every single legal document you have to sign in order to rent it out, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible, as YouTuber 007craft demonstrates.

Sean Spicer Just Tweeted Something That Looks an Awful Lot Like a Password

White House Press Secretary and shouting ball of wax Sean Spicer has tweeted plenty of dumb things. (And who among us hasn’t?) This morning, though, he may have accidentally compromised the security of his Twitter account.

Uh, This Flat Earther’s Homemade Manned Rocket Launch Does Not Sound Totally Advisable

Photo: AP

61-year-old DIY enthusiast and stuntman “Mad” Mike Hughes is planning his first manned launch of a homemade, $US20,000 ($25,917) steam-powered rocket with “RESEARCH FLAT EARTH” written on the side on Saturday, the Associated Press reported.

Fans of Cheap Drugs and Printer Ink Just Won Big in the Supreme Court

Image: Wikipedia / Pfizer

On Tuesday, a scary case reached a surprisingly positive outcome in the Supreme Court of the United States. Impression Products, Inc. v. Lexmark International, Inc. was seven-year-long standoff between a small business and an international corporation that stood to upend the world of consumer rights, especially for tech and pharmaceutical companies. Guess what: the little guy won.

No, Facebook Did Not Panic and Shut Down an AI Program That Was Getting Dangerously Smart

Photo: AP

In recent weeks, a story about experimental Facebook machine learning research has been circulating with increasingly panicky, Skynet-esque headlines.

Report: Your Mean Tweets Upset Donald Trump on His Special Day

Photo: AP

On Friday, Donald Trump was sworn in as President of the United States, an occasion that most people would celebrate as one of the greatest moments in their lives. Donald Trump, however, reportedly spent the day getting “increasingly angry” — all because of some not-so-nice messages on Twitter.

Earth’s Underworld Is Real and Scientists Just Mapped It

Image: Public domain

Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch’entrate, reads the gates to the Inferno. “Abandon all hope, you who enter,” which is a pretty nice way of saying “welcome to Hell.” But there’s a real underworld, albeit one with fewer dogs and less being blown around by the wind or wading through shit. Scientists are working on a comprehensive map of it. A map of hell. Kind of.

Smart Device Breaks Up Domestic Dispute By Calling the Police [Correction]

Photo: Gizmodo

We’re gradually learning that smart home devices can be quite valuable for police. Following a recent case in which Amazon handed over data from its Echo device to police investigating a murder, a smart device called the police when a couple was allegedly involved in a violent domestic dispute.

How Facebook Figures Out Everyone You’ve Ever Met

In real life, in the natural course of conversation, it is not uncommon to talk about a person you may know. You meet someone and say, “I’m from Sarasota,” and they say, “Oh, I have a grandparent in Sarasota,” and they tell you where they live and their name, and you may or may not recognise them.

Trump’s Awkward Photo with Pope Francis Becomes a Horror Movie Meme

Photoshop by James White with a photo by Evan Vucci for the Associated Press

Yesterday, Pope Francis met with President Trump. And needless to say, the pope didn’t look too happy about it. Maybe it had to do with the fact that Trump previously called the pope “disgraceful” and said ISIS will attack the Vatican, but who knows? The photo was surreal, and sure enough, people have been photoshopping the hell out of it.

The Latest Netflix Price Hike Pushed Me Over the Edge

This morning, after about five clicks over the course of 10 seconds, I cancelled my Netflix membership. The company had started notifying people of its latest price increase — a two buck bump from $US12 ($16) to $US14 ($18) in my case — and I just couldn’t do it any more. In fact, you should ask yourself if you need to keep paying for Netflix. It’s not as special as it used to be.

What’s Really Going On With Google Drive

Image Source: Google

On Thursday, Google made a confusing announcement that could easily scare the crap out of 800 million people: Google Drive’s going away — but actually, no, it’s not. However, there are a few things you should know about the changes that are coming.

The Haunting Face of a Man Who Lived 700 Years Ago

Credit: Dr. Chris Rynn, University of Dundee

This may look like a photograph, but the highly realistic face staring back at you belongs to a man who died over 700 years ago. The researchers who performed this unbelievable facial reconstruction say their work is providing new details about the way ordinary people lived in medieval England.

Yes, the Eerie Carl Sagan Prediction That’s Going Viral Is Real

Photo: AP

Did Carl Sagan really warn about a time in the future when manufacturing jobs would slip away, when the average person would have virtually no control over their political lives, and when we would all cling to superstitions? Yes, Sagan did predict just that. The screenshot you may have seen floating around social media is real. And plenty of people are worried that Carl was talking about our era.

Trump Accuses Amazon of Not Paying ‘Internet Taxes,’ Which Aren’t a Thing

Photo: Getty

In an apparent attempt to discredit The Washington Post the day after it published a report on fake Donald Trump Time magazine covers hanging up at his golf courses, the president posted one of his most confusing tweets since taking office.

Badass Trucker Nails the Gnarliest Right-Hand Turn You’ve Ever Seen

Those towering wind turbines that are slowly starting to cover countrysides around the world don’t just show up overnight — and they’re definitely not dropped in place by a helicopter. They arrive on trucks in pieces — staggeringly massive pieces — that test the skills of drivers navigating roads not designed to accommodate 60.96m long trailers.

What This Coming Winter Has in Store for the United States

Photo: AP

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center has issued its forecast for the 2017-18 winter season and, for the second year in a row, La Niña is poised to be a major factor in how the season shapes up. In general, the forecasters are predicting a cooler, wetter north, and a warmer, drier south.

Popular YouTuber JonTron Has Some Batshit Crazy Thoughts on Immigration He’d Like to Share [Update]

Screengrab via JonTronShow

Jon Jafari is a popular YouTube gamer and comedian better known as JonTron. He’s the founder of Normalboots — a network of channels including Did You Know Gaming and Peanutbuttergamer — and was the original cohost of the “Let’s Play” channel Game Grumps. Between those projects, Jafari wields influence over an estimated 12 million subscribers, not counting minor cameos and crossovers elsewhere within the YouTube community.

Apple Reportedly Fires Engineer After Daughter’s iPhone X Video Goes Viral

Screengrab via 9 to 5 Mac

Apple is very protective of its trade secrets, particularly unauthorised leaks of information about upcoming products. Case in point: The tech giant reportedly fired an engineer after his daughter recorded a video showing off features on a pre-release iPhone X at Caffè Macs, the company’s high-end employee cafeteria at its Cupertino, California headquarters, last week.

Best Buy Apologizes For Selling $US42 ($54) Packs of Water While CNBC Asks If Disaster Capitalism Is So Bad

Photo: Getty

Did you see those packs of water being sold at a Best Buy store in Houston for as much as $US42 ($54) per pack? The photos went viral as an example of predatory price-gouging in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. But the company is now apologizing and saying it was all a big misunderstanding. Meanwhile, CNBC doesn’t think that disaster capitalism is such a big deal.

A Deadly Brain-Invading Worm Is Disturbingly Widespread in Florida

Image: CDC

Scientists in Florida have found traces of rat lungworm in five counties, bolstering the idea that this potentially fatal parasite may be expanding its geographical range on account of — you guessed it — climate change.

The Pentagon Worried Trump Was About to Start a Nuclear War With His Tweets Yesterday

Photo: AP

It’s official. President Trump is, objectively speaking, a threat to the safety and security of the United States. And perhaps nothing demonstrated that better than when Trump started a tweetstorm that sent the Pentagon into a panic yesterday. The US military spent nine full minutes wondering if the president was about to start a war with North Korea.

How to Hide Your Browsing History From Your Snooping ISP

Photo: Getty

Congress has moved to dismantle some Obama-era rules that would have protected the online privacy of everyday Americans. This sucks. The deregulation means it will be easier for huge telecom companies to track and sell their customers’ browsing history. This sucks! But not all is lost.

Scientists Just Found the Perfect Spot to Build an Underground Colony on the Moon

Image: NASA/Goddard/Arizona State University

For years, scientists have wondered if dark, crater-like features on the lunar surface might be entrances to giant caverns carved long ago by flowing lava. Researchers from Japan and the United States have uncovered new evidence to prove that these features actually exist — which is good news for future lunar colonists looking for a convenient and safe place to live.

Why Are You Still Using Microsoft Word?

Image: Lifehacker

So you’re still using Microsoft Word. Seems like an odd decision in the year 2017, but I didn’t come here to judge. I’m legitimately curious why some people continue to pump their money into the MS Office Suite, despite mounting evidence that the software offers shitty security and a historically terrible user experience. So why bother?

Chris Cornell’s Last Tweet Shows Just How Surprising His Death Was Last Night at 52

Photo: AP

When a celebrity dies unexpectedly, there’s a strange new ritual that fans partake in as we remember the person’s contributions to our lives. We scour the internet for social media posts for a glimpse of their last moments. In the case of Chris Cornell, the lead singer for Soundgarden who died last night at the age of 52, we have his last tweet.

Flat Earth Researcher Told He Can’t Blast Himself Into the Sky at 805km/h on Public Lands

Photo: AP

61-year-old stuntman and amateur Flat Earth theory researcher “Mad” Mike Hughes, who planned to launch himself some 548.64m up at 805km per hour in an untested homemade steam-powered rocket over the Mojave Desert ghost town of Amboy, California on Saturday in some sort of gambit to prove the Earth is flat (spoilers: it’s not), will not be doing any of that that this weekend.

Supreme Court Printer Cartridge Case Could Be the Citizens United of Products

Photo: Wikipedia

It’s an obscure case that hasn’t received a ton of attention as it has made its way to the Supreme Court but the final verdict could set off a cascade of consequences in the world of consumer products.

Storm Chasers Unite to Give Bill Paxton an Epic Tribute

Storm chasers combined forces this afternoon to pay tribute to a man who put them on the map by literally putting his initials on their maps. Hundreds of professionals and enthusiasts are checking in to form the letters “BP” with their GPS coordinates.

I Hate How Much I Love the iPhone X

Photo: Alex Cranz/Gizmodo

I’m a total gadget nerd, and it’s been five years since a new smartphone made me nod to myself with the understanding that, “Yes, I need that thing more than I need air.” But the buzz around the iPhone X has had me a little more hyped than usual. Not just because the iPhone finally ditched the bezels and got an OLED display — Samsung’s Galaxy S8 lost its bezels in March — but because the iPhone X is the line’s first significant overhaul since god knows when. I should know better than to fall for the hype, but after spending nearly a week with the device, I’ve actually convinced myself that spending $US1,000 ($1,296) on a phone seems like a good idea. If you hate me for saying that, that’s ok, I hate me too.

Power Company Sends Fire-Spewing Drone to Burn Trash Off High-Voltage Wires

Photo by Wang Hu/VCG

What happens when your power lines get all kinds of trash hanging from them and it’s not safe to send up a human? In Xiangyang, China, you send in the drones. Specifically, the drones that shoot fire.

Giant Sea Monster Washes On Shore Because World Is Ending

Image: YouTube/Patasiwa Kumbang Amalatu

While many of us envisioned the world going out in a wicked blaze of glory, sadly, that doesn’t seem to be the way things will go. Instead, we have to settle for Ted Cruz, the other horsemen of the apocalypse, and this massive beast that just washed up on the shore of Indonesia’s Maluku province.

Guy Who Ran Really, Really Huge Scam Warns ICOs Are the “Biggest Scam Ever”

Photo: AP

A hustler knows a hustle. So if you have ever considered sinking money into an initial coin offering — a complicated, barely regulated, and booming new form of financial vehicle where startups offer investors stakes in “new” cryptocurrencies rather than traditional stock — it might be a good idea to listen to what one of finance’s most notorious criminals-turned-authors has to say.

Doctors: Seriously, Stop Sticking Q-Tips In Your Ears

Photo: Getty

I tingle just thinking about the full-body sensation accompanying a Q-tip exploring the inside of my ear canal. But the guilt-ridden pleasure is always followed by a nagging mother whisper: “don’t put anything smaller than your elbow into your ear!” Well, scientists have decided to amplify that whisper.

Use This Tool to See If Your Name Was Used to Support Net Neutrality Repeal

Photo: Getty

So far, the FCC has refused to cooperate with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s investigation into identity theft during the commenting period on net neutrality repeal. So Schneiderman is using the internet to find the evidence and he needs help.

Watch an Oil Painting Instantly Lose 200 Years of Grimy Varnish

What you’re seeing is a valuable painting being partially dissolved on purpose.

Stunned Scientists Detect Suspected Hidden Chamber Within Great Pyramid of Giza

Image: ScanPyramids Mission

Though they were constructed nearly 5,000 years ago, the Great Pyramids of Egypt are still packed with secrets. Using a technique that leverages the power of cosmic rays, scientists have confirmed the presence of a large empty space within Khufu’s pyramid — a void that’s signalling the presence of a possible hidden chamber.

Restored Prisoner’s Letter Uncovers Horrific Details of Life at Auschwitz Death Camp

Photo: Michel Zacharz AKA Grippenn via Wikimedia Commons

In 1944, Marcel Nadjari — a Greek Jew who was forced to remove bodies from the Auschwitz gas chambers — buried a letter in a forest near the camp. The text was rediscovered in 1980, but it was virtually unreadable. Using a new imaging technique, scientists have finally reconstructed the letter, and it’s providing harrowing new details of the Holocaust — and what it was like to work as a forced laborer in a Nazi extermination camp.

Verizon Is Booting 8,500 Rural Customers Over Data Use, Including Some on ‘Unlimited’ Plans

Photo: AP

Verizon has decided to abruptly cut off wireless internet to some 8,500 rural customers in 13 states, saying their heavy data use had made it impossible to profit off of the accounts — even though many of the users had purchased unlimited plans.

Trump’s New FCC Chair Is Screwing Everything Up as Fast as He Can

Photo: Getty

Less than two weeks after Ajit Pai assumed leadership of the FCC, the agency quietly announced several troubling actions Friday afternoon, including major blows to net neutrality and a program designed to give poor people internet access.

Horrified Surgeons Discover 27 Contact Lenses in Woman’s Eye

Image: BMJ

While prepping a 67-year-old female patient for routine cataract surgery at England’s Solihull Hospital, physicians noticed a strange bluish blob in one of her eyes. On closer look, the blob turned out to be 17 contact lenses stuck together. Another 10 lenses were subsequently discovered in the same eye. The surgeons have never seen anything quite like it.

Chrome Will Soon Mute Autoplay Videos With Sound — Here’s Why You Should Be Worried

Image Sources: Google, Adblock

Google has surveyed the advertising landscape that it dominates and determined that it’s time for a change. Beginning in January, its Chrome web browser will mute autoplay video ads with sound by default. The effort is being framed as a drive to clean up the web, but it could just as easily be interpreted as a disguised move to further solidify Google’s monopoly.

Amazon Just Broke the Internet

Photo: Getty

A little after 1pm on Tuesday, countless websites and web services ground to a halt following a reported widespread outage of Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Plex Just Killed My Cable Box Rental, and It Could Kill Yours Too

Image: Plex

One of the dirty secrets about streaming live TV services like PS Vue and Hulu TV is that in many cases you’re paying the same amount of money as you would for basic cable. The main difference, besides the benefit of not dealing with a godforsaken cable company, is the crazy monthly fees local operators like to charge for their hardware — often $US8 ($10) to $US12 ($16) a month. But Plex, a popular video app that lets you easily share your entire video library to practically any device you want, just added support for streaming live TV. Which means that with a little investment, you can escape most of those rental fees for good. I tried it, and I’m just about ready to get rid of that cable box forever.

Amazon Delivery Driver Drops Off a Bag of Poop on Family’s Driveway

A man in east London was expecting a package from Amazon but the special delivery on his driveway was not what he’d ordered. After finding a bag filled with poop and Amazon calling cards, a quick check of CCTV cameras indicated that a delivery driver for the e-commerce giant was responsible.