“That’s the thing, the way music is thought or written about now, is so much different,” explains Ben Webster, who goes under the DJ sobriquet Butcher Bear, as he takes indecisive drags off a half-lit cigarette. “When I was 13, I would go to [defunct Drag record emporium] Sound Exchange for hardcore records, or whatever. […]

Scientists have determined the physical limits of invisibility and it’s not looking very good for Bilbo Baggins.   (Article by Jordan Collver) What power would you rather have: flight or invisibility? It’s a question most of us have asked or been asked at some point. People used to think that flight was an unattainable fantasy, but […]

Astronomers Aaron Smith and Volker Bromm of The University of Texas at Austin, working with Avi Loeb of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, have discovered evidence for an unusual kind of black hole born extremely early in the universe. They showed that a recently discovered unusual source of intense radiation is likely powered by a […]

The Austin City Council could soon put teeth into its fingerprinting requirementfor drivers with ride-hailing services. (Article by Ben Wear) A proposed ordinance, in something less than straightforward fashion, would penalize ride-hailing companies that don’t get a certain percentage of their drivers fingerprinted by making the companies pay the city an additional 1 percent of […]

Uber and Lyft’s May departure left a wake that still ripples across Austin today. Dealt a huge, public loss, the Austin tech community faced questions and criticism from across the country. Investors lost faith, visitors were astounded and the companies and people that built a vibrant and booming tech ecosystem looked up and wondered what […]

Theater & dance “Buyer and Cellar.” Alex, a struggling Hollywood actor, takes a job working in Barbra Streisand’s Malibu Barbra dream house, located in an underground mall that houses her showbiz collections. Unexpectedly, the star herself comes downstairs to “shop” — but will this desperate actor she encounters ever be invited upstairs to Babs’ palatial […]

For childhood friends Ryan Sansbury and Jeremy Bastian, it all began as a series of living room experiments. Using coffee grounds and “beer dirt,” they started a mushroom farm, throwing in some “21st century Chia Pets” for good measure. A successful Kickstarter and a move to Ceres Park Ranch later, they are now running a […]

Austin’s Best Places to Work for 2016 have been unveiled — 75 companies that will perk you up with benefits such as access to a company RV, free phones and Fitbits, and all the vacation time you can manage. (Article by Colin Pope) The slideshow details some of the perks at the top 20, and […]

In recent months, the Austin Police Department has been working to develop policies that will govern its new body camera program. Implementation is expected to begin at the end of September with the outfitting of 500 police officers with lapel cameras, as well as coordinating iPhones that will be used to view the footage. As […]

One of America’s best music festivals is just around the corner. The Austin City Limits Music Festival, branded after the famed PBS music program of the same name, has grown to become Austin’s second-largest music festival. Austin City Limits is popular in that not only does it bring in big name artists, but it gives […]

Thanks to all the young/tech/art people, Austin is a freelancer’s town. And thanks to UT and St. Edward’s, Austin is also a student’s town. (Article by Katherine Lewin) And all you people who don’t real jobs, or have a side hustle, or who are just insanely productive, need places where you can set up shop […]

The City of Austin is facing a lawsuit from vacation rental owners, less than six months after passing aggressive regulations governing short-term rentals. The City Council voted in February to completely phase out type 2 rentals – second homes unoccupied by the owner – by 2022. Lawmakers took the regulations one step further, barring guests […]

Rows of kindergartners collectively gasped as they saw a large dinosaur bone pulled out from under a table. The bone, about four-feet long, was a replica of a Diplodocus’ femur. (Article by Alex Smith) “Woah,” the youngsters exclaimed as some stood to get a better look. The Science Museum of Minnesota presented about dinosaurs, fossils […]

AUSTIN, TX — University of Texas at Austin researchers have redefined the adage If at first you don’t succeed, try try again: After nearly half-a-trillion tries molecular scientists witnessed a rare event in the lab that could potentially solve an evolutionary conundrum. (Article by Tony Cantu) The find centers on how introns — noncoding sequences […]

Sometimes in dance it really is just all about the feet. (Article by Jeanne Claire van Ryzin) Recently we dropped in on a rehearsal with A’Lante Flamenco, the award-winning Austin troupe headed up by the husband-and-wife team of Isai and Oliva Chacón. A’Lante has show this weekend at the Long Center. “Snapshots: New World Flamenco” […]