Sadly, it seems we haven’t yet reached bottom in the ever-deepening online abyss, as Miles Klee argues in horrifying detail in this piece about Bianca Devins and the trend of murders being broadcasted directly to the internet. It’s a hard read, but IMHO, an important one if you want to understand how the dark corners of the web continue to weaponize social media for headlines.
Must Read
“Bianca Devins and How Livestreamed Murder Has Become the Ultimate Shitpost”
The gruesome homicide of 17-year-old Instagram influencer Bianca Devins, perpetrated — and documented live on social media — by her “darkcel” boyfriend, 21-year-old Brandon Andrew Clark, portends a bleak future. As Miles Klee writes, it appears we’re hurtling into an era of killing as livestream theater, encouraged by hateful online subcultures that turn these murders into memes, and allowed by tech platforms unable to limit the spread of violent imagery. READ MORE
The ‘Pillow Pistol’ Brigade
It might sound like something out of a movie, but there are many people who still sleep with a gun — and not in a lock box in a drawer, but loaded, and at the ready. In fact, those who choose to keep their guns close as they slumber swear that nothing prepares them for danger better.
Everybody Was Shirtless Fighting
Remember in Season One of Vanderpump Rules when Jax and Sandoval ripped off their shirts in Vegas and tried to fight Stassi’s new boyfriend in a restaurant parking lot?
It was a scene that cemented the show as one of the best reality shows on TV, but it was also an interesting case study of a very peculiar dude trope — the shirtless fight. But here’s the thing: Does being bare-chested give you a leg up in a tussle? Joe Longo investigates.
For Science
For lice, it took a heating pad.
For porpoises, it took spending a lot of time in the San Francisco Bay.
And for Panda bears, it took a TV set and a subscription to Panda Pornhub.
Here’s how scientists film animals gettin’ it on — you know, in case you were wondering.
*Spoiler Alert*
Did you know that, in the new live-action Lion King, ◼◼◼◼ ◼◼◼◼ ◼◼◼◼, and then ◼◼◼ ◼◼◼◼ ◼◼◼◼◼◼?!?! I know, right? Yeah, blew my mind, too.
What you just read was a re-enactment of how a new spoilers-removing A.I. in development by researchers at the University of California, San Diego will work. Andrew Fiouzi explains why, in an era where cheeky trolls are weaponizing the endings of movies online, software like this is so important.
Resting Weight
Why is it so hard to keep off the weight we lose? And why, for some (lucky) people, do they not gain a pound even if they’re eating pizza everyday? According to science, our bodies maintain something called “resting weight,” and it’s likely why, if you’re trying to keep on the pounds or keep off recently lost weight, it becomes increasingly difficult the more weight is involved.
Ore-Ore-Os
Nothing, not even this in-depth interrogation of the myriad unhealthy ingredients therein, can dissuade us from ever NOT enjoying a delicious Oreo cookie. Still:
Yes, they’re basically little sugar bombs. Damn it, though, if they aren’t perfection, too.
Jeff Gross
Jeff Gross is MEL’s senior editor for social media and content marketing. His daily ICYMI column, which chronicles all things meta on the site, is the quickest way to catch up on MEL, and the funniest thing you’ll read all day. Follow him on Twitter.
