Adam Epstein

An unfortunate number of Americans believe, incorrectly, that their country was founded as a “Christian nation.” Not only did the Founding Fathers go out of their way to specifically indicate that it was not a Christian nation, but many of them were not Christian themselves, and were skeptical of all organized religions. James Madison, often considered to be the “father” of the US constitution, was a deist.

After 15 years, one of the biggest shows in the history of American television is closing up shop. Fox announced today at its annual upfront presentation that American Idol will end after its 15th season in 2016 (paywall), after which it will either descend into television heaven, or be banished to the depths of TV hell, depending on your opinion of the influential singing program.

Avengers: Infinity War parts one and two, the next installments in Marvel’s ridiculously huge Avengers franchise, are already likely to be some of the biggest films ever. But now they’re going to become even bigger—literally.

Bill Simmons, one of the most popular sports columnists in the United States, is leaving ESPN after nearly 15 years at the network, according to the New York Times.

A technology developed by NASA and the US Department of Homeland Security designed to save people trapped by debris in natural disasters has been used in the field for the first time. FINDER (Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response) lived up to its name, locating and saving four people trapped under rubble for days after the 7.8 earthquake in Nepal killed more than 7,000 people and injured countless others.

Usually, if someone says you look younger than you are, it’s a compliment. How about 130 times younger, though? Astronomers discovered a galaxy, called EGS-zs8-1, that was birthed 13.1 billion years ago—less than a billion years into the universe’s existence. It’s the oldest and most distant galaxy ever discovered.

Thomas Edison invented many things, most of which we take for granted today. But one of his creations should have, perhaps, been left to remain in obscurity.

Last year, A+E Networks bought a 10% stake in Vice Media, the media company founded by Shane Smith that aims its brand of brash gonzo journalism at millennials. On April 28, news broke that A+E will soon hand over one of its myriad channels, H2, to Mr. Smith, who will rebrand it as “Vice.”

Unsheath your lightsabers, nerds, for it is the day you’ve been waiting for.

There are many rites of passage that come in the wake of a new Apple product launch. There’s the analysis, the analysis of analysis, the reviews, the unboxings, and the endless takes—both hot and cold.

It’s not quite a Transformer, but it’s getting there: NASA and the United States Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) have teamed up to develop a plane with wings that can change shape mid-flight. NASA has flown 22 research flights over the past six months using the technology, and it passed with flying colors.

An unmanned Russian spacecraft is currently spiraling out of control and will soon fall back to Earth. Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, made attempts to contact the spinning ship and regain control of it, but those efforts have failed. It will now slowly descend through Earth’s atmosphere, where most of it is likely to burn up.

Following protests in Baltimore—some of which have turned violent—the city’s major league baseball team is making some fairly unprecedented decisions.

Some more light is being shed on Netflix’s notoriously mysterious viewership numbers. According to Variety, San Diego-based Luth Research has discerned the percentage of Netflix subscribers that watch its original shows like House of Cards and Daredevil (unfortunately, there is no data yet for Orange is the New Black).

The advanced research arm of the US defense department has developed a bullet that can adjust its path in mid-air to hit a target. Apparently, it works pretty well.

Another engineering feat from the nerds at Stanford: Researchers at the school’s Biomimetics and Dextrous Manipulation Lab designed a tiny 12-gram robot that can pull up to 2,000 times its weight—the equivalent of a human being dragging a blue whale across land.

Have you ever wanted to drive the Batmobile, or the DeLorean, or some crazy synthesis of the two? If the answer is “yes,” which it should be, you might be in luck. The American auto maker Chevrolet unveiled its futuristic FNR concept car at the Shanghai auto show last week, and to say it looks cool would be a serious understatement.

This post has been updated. 

Norman Rockwell’s iconic World War II painting Rosie the Riveter, which appeared on the Memorial Day cover of the Saturday Evening Post in 1943, quickly became a wartime symbol of female resolve.

Today, April 22, is Earth Day. It’s a day intended to reinforce the environmental movement, and to honor—and admire—the planet we call home.

George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, is well known for his charity. After he sold his movie studio Lucasfilm to Disney for $4 billion in 2012, he pledged to donate much of the sales to education. And now, he’s giving back again, but this time it’s at the expense of his wealthy San Francisco Bay Area, California neighbors who previously did him wrong.

As only he can, John Oliver dished out a simultaneously sharp and hilarious censure of so-called patent trolls on his HBO show Last Week Tonight. Patent trolls are companies that don’t actually create the patents—they merely stockpile and sue anyone who violates them. Because legal fees are so expensive, companies typically settle on an arbitrary amount with the patent trolls out of courts, even when their claims are ridiculous.

Norway’s ministry of culture declared last week that FM radio will soon be no more in the country. Starting in 2017, all existing FM stations, which transmit an analog signal, will be shut off for good, to be replaced by digital radio. The news was first reported by Radio.no.

Latinos in the United States are losing a cultural icon. Sábado Gigante, the wild and wacky Univision variety show that has endured for more than 53 years, will end in September (link in Spanish).