-
Tech NewsCrimeOK, Who Tried to Infest This Pennsylvania Walmart With Bed Bugs?
Police in Washington Township, Pennsylvania near Erie are searching for whoever left pill bottles containing live bed bugs at a local Walmart, the New York Times reported on Monday. According to the Times, the Pennsylvania State Police found that a closed pill bottle containing the virulent pests was left in a “boy’s jacket that was … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech NewsBlood Feasts, Cashless Stores, and Quantum Computing: Best Gizmodo Stories of the Week
Excellent news here at Gizmodo, where I presume what’s left of our blogger-chewed Forbidden Sandwich is still festering in the back of a fridge. We have discovered yet more ingredients to add to the mix, including head cheese from an ancient species of Pleistocene wolf found preserved in Siberia, cannabis residue scraped from a brazier … Continued
By Tom McKay -
ScienceBiologyBed Bugs Have Been Creeping Around and Sucking Blood Since the Age of Dinosaurs
While bed bugs have been tormenting humanity for millennia, it’s long been assumed their evolutionary journey as parasites first began tens of millions of years ago, when they fed on bats. But an international team of scientists has found evidence suggesting the origin of these vampiric insects extends even further into the past—back to the … Continued
By Ed Cara -
Tech NewsNo Software Updates Will Fix Apple’s Worst Bug
New York’s Apple store on 5th Avenue is infested with bed bugs, according to a new report from the New York Post. And employees at the store are being told to wrap all their belongings in plastic bags to protect against the bed bug scourge. Anonymous private messages published on Twitter appear to confirm the … Continued
By Matt Novak -
Tech NewsA California Family Won a $1.6 Million Lawsuit Over Their Bed Bug Infestation From Hell
A California family plagued by bed bugs for months has come away with some solace: On Wednesday, a civil court jury ordered their former landlords to pay them $1.6 million over the ordeal. In 2012, Liliana Martinez and her husband alleged in their complaint, their apartment complex in Inglewood, California became infested with bed bugs. … Continued
By Ed Cara -
ScienceHealth
Bed Bugs Are Pooping Histamine Into Our Homes—and Possibly Making Us Sick
There are few living things on earth that can set our nerves more on edge than the aptly named bed bug (Cimex lectularius). Even if you’ve never had the displeasure of being their unwilling blood bank, you probably know someone who has. Since at least the 1990s, bed bugs have started to resist the pesticides … Continued
By Ed Cara -
Tech News
DIY Bed Bug Treatment Attempt Accidentally Results in Massive Fire
Bed bugs—the blood-sucking, chitinous nightmares which serve as the clearest proof that if there is a divine creator behind the universe, it hates us—were once nearly eradicated from the U.S. But in recent years they’ve come back worse than ever, beefed up from decades of exposure to insecticides and helped along by an increase in … Continued
By Tom McKay -
Tech News
There’s Now Science-Backed Advice on How to Avoid Bringing Home Bed Bugs
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. Scientists have noticed an expansion in bed bug cases across the world, … Continued
-
Tech News
Bedroom Redecorating Just Got Easier Because Bed Bugs Have Color Preferences
People who live in bedrooms with color schemes favored by seedy bachelors and Hot Topic-loving teens may have yet another reason to redecorate: bed bugs. According to new research published in the Journal of Medical Entomology, the loathsome fuckers prefer to hide in shelter that’s colored red and black. Greens, yellows, and whites, on the … Continued
-
io9Books & Comics
The Forgotten Era: When Bed Bugs Were Tested for Combat in Vietnam
In 2004, Brooke Borel got bed bugs in New York. Then she experienced them again in 2009—twice in two different apartments. Because of those experiences, which were part of a widespread bed bug resurgence in the US, Borel, a science journalist, decided to explore why the bugs were back. This excerpt is one of many … Continued
Brooke Borel -
Tech News
The Best Weapon to Trap and Kill Bed Bugs Is Hidden in Our Blood
Bed bug infestations are a nightmare. The tiny, assholish insects can resist all sorts of measures to kill them completely. Drawn-out infestations are a scourge, but also fairly common in big cities like New York. There are plenty of remedies, from all-natural bean leaves to special heated suitcases, but none are foolproof. One new weapon … Continued
By Kate Knibbs -
io9Man Gives Himself A Tattoo By Letting 1,000 Bed Bugs Feed On Him
Letting a swarm of hungry bed bugs feed on your arm sounds squirm-inducingly unpleasant, but this entomologist decided to have a little fun with it. He gave himself a temporary tattoo while giving his bed bugs a nice big meal. It’s making us itch just thinking about it, but when his lab had a jar … Continued
By Lauren Davis -
Tech News
There’s an All-Natural Bed Bug Cure That Actually Works
As man still struggles to find a way to overcome the scourge that is bed bugs, it turns out that Mother Nature has already created a highly effective trap for the pests. Using bean leaves was once thought to just be an old folk remedy, but researchers at the University of California, Irvine and the … Continued
-
Tech NewsGadgets
LG’s Bedding Vac Battles Bed Bugs on Their Home Turf
Falling somewhere between a compact Dustbuster and a full-sized floor vacuum, LG’s new VH9200DS is specifically designed to rid your bed and sheets of all the tiny critters hoping to spend the night with you. But it can also handle dust and crumbs, so you never need to feel bad about snacking in bed. The … Continued
-
io9
Researchers decode the chemical signals of bed bugs in real time
Bed bugs are a major cause of paranoia, and the mere suggestion of an infestation can lead to mass panic. But with all the scientific tools at our disposal, we ought to be able to figure out how these things work, and stop them from infesting our homes and us miserable. Right? And now, luckily, … Continued
-
io9
How fungus could help us win the war on bed bugs
Cities across North America and Europe are in the midst of a bed bug epidemic, a plague of bloodsucking parasites that are infesting bedrooms and hotel rooms across the nations. And they are so gross, leaving unwary victims with irritated skin and a profound case of the willies. It’s gotten so bad that the U.S. … Continued
-
io9
Why are bed bugs so damn hard to kill?
With New York still in the grips of a bed bug epidemic, the question keeps popping up: why are these little bastards so damned hard to kill? According to new research, their resurgence in the last few years has definitely been closely linked to the Big Apple, but it’s actually been happening in all 50 … Continued
-
Tech News
Almost-Indestructible Bed Bugs Can be Sniffed Out With This Device
From the same man who invented the George Foreman spin fryer, the fuel-tank mechanism for the F-22 Raptor jet and dozens of other awesome products comes…the bed-bug sniffer! It takes just 15 minutes to pick up the scent of the nasties, which can hide in all areas of the house, and not just the bed … Continued
