First Farm Run Entirely by Robots to Open in Japan
The fully automated indoor farm will produce 30,000 heads of lettuce per day.
Technology
This Is What An Orgy Looks Like in Virtual Reality
Why I'm still skeptical that VR porn will catch on any time soon.
Government Roadblock: Feds Should Just Get Out of the Way of Self-Driving Vehicles
"All government needs to do for the next transportation revolution [is to] get out of the road."
Fighting Global Censorship, ProPublica Joins the Dark Web
The investigative journalism outfit launches hidden service website on the encrypted Tor Browser.
Why Polls Don't Work
After decades of gradual improvement, the science of predicting election outcomes has hit an accuracy crisis.
How to Chat Anonymously Online
A guide to anonymous encrypted communication in 5 easy steps.
Long, Long Ago, in a Galaxy Far, Far Away, a Star Wars Actor Wore an Atlas Shrugged T-Shirt
And people have opinions about that.
Obama's Rainbow of Everlasting Joy: The Year in Presidential Photography
Despite an ongoing media boycott of White House staff photography, the president's image crafters still call the shots.
The Technology That Made Nathalie Cole So Unforgettable
The late singer's massive 1991 "duet" with her dead father foreshadowed a world of musical mashups.
Bioethics: Standing Athwart Science, Yelling 'Whoa'*
I'm a bioethicist, and I am here to help slow down scientific and medical progress
"Welcome Back, Baby!": SpaceX Returns Rocket to Earth
The private spaceflight company brings a reusable booster back from space and sticks the landing.
Good Stuff Comes from the Bottom Up
How culture, economies, technology, and government evolve
Facebook Check Wouldn't Have Stopped San Bernardino Terrorists, No Matter What GOP Candidates Say
Did an Obama-administration policy prevent the feds from looking at Tashfeen Malik's social-media profiles? Yes and no.
Secret Watchlists and Body Searches: Yes. Social Media Post Reviews: No. Our DHS in Action.
Baffling contradictions about privacy or just old-fashioned blame-shifting?
Watch Matt Welch Talk Trump and Muslims and Terrorism and Civil Liberties on Tonight's Kennedy
Be there at 8 p.m. ET, with a midnight re-run, on Fox Business Network
The Hyperloop Is Landing the Private Investment That Eludes High-Speed Rail
Company planning an early test in Nevada soon.
Bringing Biohacking to the Masses Is Latest Aim of Andreessen Horowitz
The savvy venture capitalists at Andreessen Horowitz are now banking on "smart drug" startup Nootrobox.
Google Offers to Defend Against Some Bad YouTube Takedown Demands
Attempting to protect fair use from copyright claim abuse
In Defense of Yik Yak, "The Crack Cocaine" of Social Media!
Demonized as catering to racists and stalkers, the social media service actually provides comfort and the good kind of safe spaces.
Chicago Is Making Coding Education Mandatory. Is That a Good Idea?
A school computer science program developer explains the pros and cons.
Paris Climate Change Conference
Paris Climate Conference Greenhouse Gas Cuts: Almost No Impact on Global Warming
Plenty of economic pain for a likely reduction in global temperature rise of about -0.17°C in 2100
Matt Ridley and Ronald Bailey Talk About The Evolution of Everything This Wednesday in D.C.
Incremental, bottom-up, trial-and-error innovation yields moral progress, superior technologies, and greater wealth
Eyes on the Skies! Google Wants Drone Deliveries by 2017.
Waiting for FAA regulatory framework is the pits.
Shadow-Censorship on Social Media Sparks New Concerns for Open-Internet Advocates
The digital censors of tomorrow will control information by secretly limiting or obscuring the ways that people can access it online.
Are You Better Off Now Than You Were 20, 30, 40 Years Ago?
Declinists who focus on inequality and stagnant wages miss increased freedom and opportunities.
A War on Climate Change?
We are supposed trust government technocrats - what could possibly go wrong?
What Global Food Crisis?: Ronald Bailey's Wall Street Journal Review of The Reproach of Hunger
Neo-Malthusians still get it wrong: Markets and science will feed 9 billion if not blocked.
Today's Big News Won't Be Known for Years
There's a lot of great news happening right now. We just won't know about it for a while.
I Quote This Excellent Essay on Copyright Abuse & Refuse to Pay a Single Dime to Mick Jagger!
FFS, don't authors want to be quoted? Isn't that the whole goddamned point?
I'm from the government, and I'm here to help (stop progress)*
How regulators in league with crony capitalists stymie technological advancement.
Pope Francis' Address to Congress May Not Have Been What 'Climate Justice' Activists Were Hoping For
The pontiff stopped far short of laying out a concrete environmental policy agenda.
Social Media Helps Food Vendors Dodge Regulators and Find Customers
When what you want is an illegal treat from a favorite underground source, Facebook may be the place to look
Cabbie To Uber Passenger: 'Take a Real Taxi You F***ing Cheapskate'
Violent threat, bald-faced lies, and other recent tales from the Uber wars.
Bitcoin Is a 'Fatherless' Technology. Great Attribute or Fatal Weakness?
Can Bitcoin grow and evolve without a founding figure?
Campaign Against Sex Robots Launches, Because Some People Will Panic About Anything
Two brave researchers tackle the imaginary menace of robot prostitution.
The iPhone Is Already Changing Filmmaking
The smartphone and the decentralization of video production.
The Freeman's Max Borders: Libertarians Should Be More Optimistic About the Future
Bitcoin and other disruptive technologies are having an important impact on developing countries.
Famous Twitter Troll James Woods Asks Service for Info on Less-Famous Twitter Troll
The great actor - and outspoken Obama critic - takes on the First Amendment.
Kim Kardashian Posts a 'Corrective Ad' About Morning Sickness Pill on Instagram
Posted as the VMAs started to minimize exposure. Well played.
What Vox Thinks Tech Nerds Don't Understand About Politics
Mostly that reflexive distrust of it shows you need a smug handholding "explainer."
Two Americans Headed to Prison After Tweeting Support for ISIS
As Reason regulars are all too aware, the feds have been taking a heavier hand lately when it comes to online speech.
