The Ars Technicast

Ars Technica's podcast continues with a series of live discussions about today's science, tech and culture recorded at Longitude, Oakland's premier tiki bar. In this episode, Annalee Newitz and Cyrus Farivar hosted a live chat with Dr. Krish Seetah, a Zooarchaeologist / Stanford professor, about the history of meat production.

Mr. Robot, USA's cybersecurity and hacking drama, is a favorite within the Ars Technica Slack/IRC channels. So for the summer, we'll be following along with the series on our new podcast—Decrypted. Each week, we'll dive into the show in the way only Ars can.... which is to say it'll be thorough, we'll talk with experts, and no detail is too minute or nerdy. The show returns on July 13, so check out our preview episode before S2 gets started.

This year saw an event that only happens every six or seven years, on average: two major gaming consoles released at just about the same time. The PS4 has just released, and the Xbox One launches on Friday. Gaming Editor Kyle Orland has been losing many sleep cycles as he writes reviews of the hardware and system software for both consoles, but he made some time to join Social Editor Cesar Torres and Senior Reviews Editor Lee Hutchinson as we talk about their highs and the lows. If we were to call Kyle's coverage of these two launches extensive, we would be making a total understatement. He's written thousands of words about the Xbox One and PS4's new games, he's talked to developers about their opinions about both systems. And as if that weren't enough, he's written news, opinion, and historical analysis of the Sony and Microsoft's systems. As you read Kyle's reviews of the PS4 and the Xbox One, gaming fans will wonder, which machine is best? Which should I get? Kyle wrote exactly about this as he compared b

Now that we’re closing in on the last few months of the year, movie season ramps up again as Hollywood releases some of its biggest films to close out the year. Just before Halloween, Cesar caught a screening of the Carrie re-boot by director Kimberly Peirce. That got us talking about Stephen King’s novel, and the ways it has been adapted over time. Later this month, Catching Fire also comes out. It marks the second installment of the Hunger Games series, which is based on the novels by Suzanne Collins. Some of these novels have won’t the hearts of readers, but are their adaptations noteworthy? Are filmmakers able to tackle the heart of the book but still please audiences? Join us in this episode of the Technicast as we talk about book-to-film adaptations. We cover films like The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and we also talk about the serialization of novel series like Game of Thrones into a successful television series. Join Social Editor Cesar Torres, Ars Writer Casey Johnston and Senior Products Specia

In this week’s episode, we take a couple of steps back from the announcement by Apple to look at current pricing strategies and models for some of the giants in computing. Co-hosts Social Editor Cesar Torres and Ars Associate Writer Casey Johnston welcome Reviews Editor Ron Amadeo and Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham on the program. We discuss Microsoft’s own release of Windows 8.1 (also free), as well as the ways in which Apple’s desktop line may be following suit to iOS’ free upgrades. We also tackle office productivity applications, as Appleannounced all of iWork will now be free. We look at Microsoft Office and the way its group licenses are in contrast against offerings by Google’s own Google Docs or Apple’s suite. Also, stay tuned for some discussions about how app store revenue streams differ between iOS and Android, and why Android OS culture may keep paid apps from getting a foothold.

Spoiler Alert: In this episode, we go into detail about some key plot points from the film Gravity. If you haven’t seen it yet, you’ve been forewarned. Senior Reviews Editor Lee Hutchinson still hasn’t seen the full film Gravity. Social Editor Cesar Torres already saw the film, and between both of them, they dissect the film. Is it scientifically accurate? Is it good movie-making? Or both? Well, Lee’s at least seen the trailer already. In fact, he saw it with Zeb Scoville, the EVA task group lead at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston, Texas. The NBL is an astronaut training facility that prepares astronauts for work in outer space. At Ars Technica we’ve done plenty of coverage when it comes to some of the issues revolving around the science of gravity and space. You can check out our original Zeb Scoville interview, or take a look at our hands-on piece inside the NBL by former worker Terry Dunn. And if you want to geek out over what happens when debris floats in space, you can revisit our article abou

In this episode, Gaming Editor Kyle visited the show to talk about the SteamOS announcement this week. It’s big news, because a SteamOS could mean that gamers could have more choices when it comes to playing Steam beyond their gaming rigs. It looks like Steam wants to place itself squarely in the living room, though we don’t know hardware details quite yet. We also talked about Kyle’s coverage at the Tokyo Game Show and Akihabara in Japan. You also will want to hear how arcade gaming is going strong in Japan, and we lament that we can’t get arcades as good as these. Also, stick around for a bit of analysis on what’s to come this Fall as PS4 and Xbox One roll out. Join co-hosts Social Editor Cesar Torres and Ars Writer Casey Johnston in this gaming-focused episode. Let’s do this.

On Tuesday Apple announced two new versions of its iPhone line: the colorful 5c (a sleeker revamp of features in the current iPhone 5) and the higher-end iPhone 5s, which includes a finger print scanner. Apple also announced September 18th as the release date for iOS 7. In this episode, Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham visits the virtual studio to tell us what he thinks of the new iPhones, which he personally played with on Tuesday. But wait. There’s more. Editor at Large Jacqui Cheng comes back to this episode of the podcast to provide some analysis on Apple’s iPhone strategy, and we find out what she thinks of the 5s’ new fingerprint scanner. And then we hit the big question: what kind of impact will the gold iPhone 5s have? Will users want it? Some of our preferences and predictions will surprise you. Join hosts Social Editor Cesar Torres and Ars Writer Casey Johnston in this episode of the Technicast. What did you think about the new iPhones and their specs? Will you be upgrading? Share your t

In this episode Ars Tech Policy Editor Joe Mullin joins hosts Social Editor Cesar Torres and Ars Writer Casey Johnston to talk about Ars Technica’s coverage of NSA and  leaker Edward Snowden, who is at the center of much of the media coverage. Most recently, Ladar Levinson, the owner of Lavabit, a secure-email service that Snowden used in the past, shut down the service. Snowden is a former user of the service.  We also discuss a recent Congressional vote on shutting down the NSA phone dragnet. Joe shares with us commentary on the Ars exclusive that he wrote about Ed Snowden’s former life in IRC chat rooms and in the Ars OpenForum. We discuss the recent job cuts inside the NSA and the how President Obama’s appointment of Director of National Intelligence James clapper to lead a panel reform. Joe also talks about a lack of transparency in the government’s interpretation of the law, and what implications it holds for future legislation and reform.  What are your thoughts on the controversies surrounding the NSA

Earlier this week, Google’s breakfast event, the tech giant announced several new products and services, including Chromecast, a competitor to Apple TV, as well as the refreshed Nexus 7 tablet, which supersedes its predescessor on several fronts. Google also announced Android 4.3 (which we will be comparing to 4.2 on the site next week). That’s a whole lot of Google news to take in, and though Google Reader is now dead, we are ready to talk some analysis regarding product lines. In this episode, Ars Contributor Casey Johnston and Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham discuss the new products, and Casey wonders if Google’s approach might be a disingenuous funnel that leads all users to eventually be forced into using Google+ someday. Will the Chromecast , and whatever happened to Google TV? Again, all paths seeem to lead back to Google+, according to Casey. Join us in this Google-filled episode. 

In this episode we talk about NASA in light of next week’s 44th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. We are excited to welcome special guest Amy Shira Teitel, who specializes in writing about the history of NASA. According to Amy, the Apollo 11 trip was the beginning of the end of our perception of space travel. The mission set up the expectation that space travel was only limited by our imaginations, but the facts and requirements of actual space travel tell a different story, Amy tell us.  In this episode we also cover many historical events and controversies in NASA’s history.Amy talked to us about the differences between the feasibility of traveling to the Moon versus Mars. She also discussed the roles of women in NASA mission and space travel. She also shares with us the story of how a rogue sandwich might make history in outer space. To hear the rest of these stories in NASA history, tune in to the show. 

In this episode of the Technicast, we set out to take a look back at the announcements we covered at E3 last week. Gaming Editor Kyle Orland and Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham were on site at the event, and they joined me and co-host Casey Johnston to provide some analysis on announcemnts. But then a funny thing happened. Just a couple of hours after we recorded, Microsoft announced that it was reversing its stance on used games in the XBox One. (Kyle also wrote about some of its implications afterward).  At the top of this episode, you’ll hear us talk about the breaking news, and what we think it means for the battle between Microsoft and Sony for gamer’s console of choice. Then we time shift back to our recap of E3, where we noticed that a few items, like DRM, flew “under the radar.”

While the Internet’s saturating itself like a wet sponge with rumors about what Apple has in store for iOS at the World Wide Developers conference, the Ars Technicast is staying dry and packing its bags to cover the conference next week. As we do so, we thought we’d talk about what we can expect from Apple this time around.  In this episode we discuss a few areas of iOS that we feel could use an overhaul or some much-needed attention, while staying away from the old rehash of Internet rumors about what Apple will include in iOS 7. We also talk about some of the possible refreshes that Apple may announce for product lines, such as MacBook Air and MacBook Pros. Join Social Editor Cesar Torres, Ars Associate Writer Casey Johnston, Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham in this episode as we prepare to send off our crew to WWDC. 

In this episode we debate the issue of 3D printers and the patterns and designs available to make handgun components. We shed some light on the previous coverage we have written here at Ars Technica on the subject, and we talk about how difficult or expensive it might be to try to print out these handguns or try to mass produce them. We also talk about the potential regulation of this phenomenon, and how handmade guns compare to other technologies that can be put to nefarious uses. Join hosts Social Editor Cesar Torres and Ars Contributing Writer Casey Johnston, and Senior Products Specialist Andrew Cunningham, and Senior Reviews Editor Lee Hutchinson as we delve into the world of 3D printing and its ramifications.

Now that you can watch a movie on your laptop, tablet, or even your phone, the cinema has a lot of new options to compete against. The cinema is not dead, but it sure is evolving. Many of us at Ars Technica enjoy the trip to the theater to see a movie, and as the summer movie season gears up, we talk about some of the upcoming films we want to see, including Man of Steel, Pacific Rim, Star Trek: Into Darkness, The Great Gatsby, and more. Also, we explore whether movies have the same impact for us when we watch them on a tv or mobile screen. And inevitably, we also talk about the ways in which television has evolved and eventually competed against standalone movies. Yeah, there’s a lot of folks who think a tv series might actually be better than a 2-hour feature film. That’s sure to get some fans riled up. Join host Senior Apple Editor Jacqui Cheng, Senior Reviews Editor Lee Hutchinson, Contributor Casey Johnston, and Social Editor Cesar Torres in this episode dedicated to our love affair with the movies.

Nowadays, when a big story breaks, one of the first places that people go to for information are social sites. Reactions on social media have become part of the headlines themselves, as social networks like Facebook and Twitter are used to both distribute and consume news. These are not like the news cycles of the past. With so much immediate information in the form of news, rumor and analysis, we set out to discuss what makes news in 2013 different than before the arrival of social.  But even if people are using social media to disseminate the news, have the behaviors of people changed all that much?We set out to discuss these topics in this episode of the Ars Technicast.

Facebook announced Facebook Home last week, and they want users to get really cozy. So cozy that your friends' news feed updates will take over the screen of the phone, putting Facebook interactions and messaging at the forefront of the OS. Will this be a success for Facebook? In this episode of the Ars Technicast, we talk about the specs and features of the HTC handset that comes pre-loaded with Facebook Home. As we discuss Facebook home itself, we talk about user experience, messaging habits, and what we do and don’t want in our feeds. Join host Senior Apple Editor Jacqui Cheng, Reviews Editor Florence Ion, Contributor Andrew Cunningham, and Social Editor Cesar Torres in this episode that touches on social networking, smart phones and the way we connect. 

Over the years, some of us have left behind online services. In some cases, we closed out the account, and in others, it languished in the graveyard of the Internet. Today, we talk about the ghosts they left behind. Some of the services we talk about in this show include the original Hotmail, AOL, LiveJournal and MySpace. Join Host Senior Apple Editor Jacqui Cheng, Ars Contributors Casey Johnston and Andrew Cunningham, and Social Editor Cesar Torres, in this look back at the things we abandoned as our lives grew more connected with the Internet.

Most computer and gadget owners have lived through the nightmares of failed hard drives, fried circuits, cracked screens and other horror tales. Here at the Ars Technicast, we have had our own shares of tech mishapss. On this episode, Senior Apple Editor Jacqui Cheng, Ars Contributors Andrew Cunningham and Casey Johnston, and Social Editor Cesar Torres share their own tech horror tales, but they also share some of the ways they solved the problems. You'll also want to watch this archived clip of the day Jacqui's phone shattered, and everyone at the table laughed.  What is your tech horror story? Leave us a message in the comments and tell us what you did to resolve it. If you have pro tips on how to dry out hardware or perform extensive backups, share those with us, too. 

Sure, a little bit of mystery is not a bad thing. Mystery helps us feel a bit of anticipation, and in the case of Sony, they are teasing us with the PlayStation 4, the follow-up to the Playstation 3. It’s been seven years since the release of their last console, and this time around, Sony held an event in New York City to tells us a lot, but not to show us a lot. We know the specs of the machine and some of its social features, but what about the casing, and what about the games? Sony were so vague that they also didn’t indicate what countries get the PS4, or when they can buy it. In this episode of the Ars Technicast, we talk about what we want to know more about, and what we think this might mean for gaming for the consoles and for PCs. Host Senior Apple Editor Jacqui Cheng is joined by Gaming Editor Kyle Orland, Ars Contributor Casey Johnston, and Social Editor Cesar Torres.