conquered

A s anyone who’s laughed uncomfortably at Taylor Tomlinson’s “dead mom” jokes is well aware, her mother died of cancer when she was eight years old. (She used to tell friends her parents were separated — which they were, she argued onstage, “by Jesus.”) Tomlinson’s mom lived to be just 34 years old, a fact that’s always floated on the edge of her daughter’s consciousness as a sort of cosmic deadline, pushing her to hit milestones in her comedy career at a nearly freakish pace. “I’ve done a lot of work on that…

The NFL couldn’t have scripted it any better if they’d tried — not that we’re suggesting they did. But after several tumultuous years marked by press cycles centered around racism, police brutality, protests, sexual assault, domestic violence, shaky ratings, culture war shenanigans, and the little fact that the very game itself is destroying the brains of all those who play it, the National Football League enjoyed a 2023-2024 season where the main storyline seemed to be its mere proximity to Taylor Swift, vis-a-vis her…

After a week of verbal warfare between rappers Nicki Minaj and Megan Thee Stallion, a clear winner has finally emerged from the wreckage.Despite Minaj weaponizing her huge fanbase to slap down her former Hot Girl Summer collaborator, Megan’s Hiss topped this week’s Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first solo No 1. Meanwhile, Minaj’s response track Big Foot – a song disappointingly trading on racist and misogynistic tropes – debuted at No 23.It is a rare stumble for Minaj, the self-proclaimed queen of rap, not least because…

A new study has revealed that the evolution of suberin lamellae in seed plants played a crucial role in their dominance over ferns in Earth’s changing climate. This discovery offers new insights into plant evolution and has significant implications for enhancing drought resistance in crops.A recent study published in Nature Plants by Chao Daiyin’s team at the Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with Lyu Shiyou’s team at Hubei University, has revealed, for the first…

exists, created in part by UK-based Clicks Technology and two industry veterans who are very familiar with using physical keyboards, Michael Fisher (aka Mr. Mobile) and Kevin Michaluk (aka CrackBerry Kevin). The attachable case accessory provides iPhone users with a full physical keyboard -- addictive tactile feedback included -- without consuming any of the device's screen real estate. It's launching today, with preorders now available, and general sales beginning on February 1. Clicks TechnologyThe Clicks for…

Conan O’Brien loves to pick on Matt Gourley, the producer and co-host of his podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.” They have a big brother-kid brother dynamic — O’Brien recently turned 60, Gourley 50 — and their playful roasting has become as much a part of the show’s charm as the interviews with celebrity guests. On a recent episode, the famous host joked that Gourley‘s ego has been inflated by the show’s success and he’s driving around L.A. in a fancy car with the vanity plate “PODKING.”Gourley doesn’t actually have…

For the major studios, 2023 has proven to be a year to forget, with all of the usual suspects enduring at least one major misfire before we’d even reached halfway on the calendar. Warner Bros. has watched The Flash go down in a ball of flames to wind up as one of the biggest box office bombs in the history of the industry, while Disney has sat by and been unable to prevent Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny from failing to keep its head above water. Screengrab via YouTube/Angel Studios Not even the mighty Marvel has…

For all its merits outside of the creative world, the specific brand of hostility that artificial intelligence can elicit is nothing short of fascinating. On one hand, artists should in no way feel threatened by the bots and their non-existent grasp on the human experience, but on the other, art has never had to be good in order to rake in the dough. For that reason and many more, AI shouldn’t be given even an inch in this space. Indeed, it’s fairly easy to separate the true creatives from the hacks by hearing…

Photo by gotpap/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images Being named as part of an altogether bizarre $3 billion lawsuit doesn’t appear to have affected Dwayne Johnson‘s ability to head out and hype himself up in front of the entire world, with the only figures at the forefront of his mind being box office totals. Obviously, his last couple of trips to the multiplex haven’t gone too well when DC League of Super-Pets and Black Adam both flopped to leave him cast out of the DCU in record time after he’d spent 15 years developing…

Twenty years ago, Paris Hilton was the stiletto-heeled embodiment of the zeitgeist. With a chihuahua called Diamond Baby kennelled in her designer handbag, this nepotistic partygoer juggled five mobile phones while cantering across continents to sell branded merchandise to the fans she smarmily addresses as “my Little Hiltons”. Now, in her early 40s, she has published a memoir, which for ephemeral, unreflective celebrities like her is usually a way of fending off imminent obsolescence.The book – ventriloquised by Joni…