In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers’ sidekick-turned-nemesis undergoes drastic brainwashing to become The Winter Soldier. But is it really possible to completely change someone’s attitudes and beliefs? In this special WIRED edition of Science Friction, host Rusty Ward dives into the science behind brainwashing. Click here to check out more Science Friction.

With optogenetics, the ability to restore and enhance brain function is becoming a reality. In this World Economic Forum discussion, Nature magazine neuroscience editor I-han Chou explains how the radical method works and the ethical issues it could cause.

When a TV show goes off the air, it's supposed to stay dead. Unless it gets syndicated. But networks don't seem aware of this rule anymore, with resurrections of "24" and "Heroes" on the way. Angry Nerd does not approve of this turn of events.

In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Jamie Foxx stars as Electro, the glowing antagonist to Andrew Garfield’s Spidey. In this video, learn how Sony Pictures Imageworks used a combination of makeup and CGI to turn the Academy Award winner into a blue, electrically-charged villain--with inspiration from lightning, neurological networks, and nebulas.

The 195-horsepower engine isn’t exactly meant for a daily commute. But Ducati’s 1199 Panigale S has a slew of features and the aerodynamics, torque, and weight reduction to make it one of the fastest production motorcycles in the world. Transportation editor Damon Lavrinc tests out the bike and talks to Ducati designers to see how they engineered one of the lightest street motorcycles on the market.

The House of Mouse might be onto something: Forget the hero and make the villain the star. Disney’s new film Maleficent does just that and it actually…kind of…works. Angry Nerd explains the pros of putting the evil queens and wicked witches front and center.

The lightning pitches are over, but the finalists continue to sweat in the mentor matches. Judges and industry head honchos meet with each of the 40 students to find out more about their projects. Can the fellowship finalists effectively articulate their concepts and business plans, or will the tough questions and high-pressure one-on-ones prove to be too much?

After a weekend of activities and final pitches, the 40 students get ready to pack up their things and head back to reality until the 20 fellowships are awarded. In this episode, the students reflect back on what they’ve learned over the past few days, and what they’ll do if chosen as a 2014 Thiel Fellow.

The new sci-fi flick Edge of Tomorrow is basically a sci-fi rip-off of Groundhog Day, but with more Tom Cruise and less Bill Murray. And somehow, it manages to establish itself as one of the best movies about a video game, ever.

She’s double-majoring in computer science and human-computer interaction at Carnegie Mellon. She also just won a $100,000 Thiel Fellowship to develop a platform for customizable education-based games. Get to know teen technorati Lucy Guo.

At BizCon 2014, Tumblr CEO and co-founder David Karp sat down with WIRED senior writer Steven Levy to talk about why he doesn’t regret the Yahoo! sale, how his platform empowers creators, and the importance of enabling users.

Chris Dixon, general partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, thinks you should reconsider the power of bitcoin. In conversation with WIRED’s Steven Levy, the tech entrepreneur and investor explains why the digital payment system has the potential to enable new behaviors and innovations.

With degrees in mathematics and physics from U.C. Berkeley, 19-year-old Rebecca Jolitz is planning to revolutionize the satellite development industry. Get to know the 2014 Thiel Fellow and find out what first inspired her love of science.

Musicals. They’re great. But jukebox musicals? That’s an entirely different—and often terrible—story. Even with Clint Eastwood behind the camera of the new stage-to-film rendition of Jersey Boys, there’s only so much Dirty Harry can do for the destined-to-flop silver screen adaptation.

From the transporter room to the sick bay, take a full tour of the stage used in Star Trek Continues. Modeled after the original set used in the late '60s, Vic Mignogna takes us behind the painstakingly recreated USS Enterprise.

As the 2014 Thiel Fellows prepare to move to San Francisco for the summer, the reality of the fellowship starts to sink in. Having to drop out of school, dealing with parental judgment—is it all really worth it to pursue their ideas and projects in Silicon Valley?

Eighteen-year-old Darby Schumacher is trying to create a safer and healthier world for newborns. The 2014 Thiel Fellowship finalist is working to develop an alert system that tracks vital signs in babies to help combat Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. The Tennessee native explains what prompted her to start the project and why she wants to become an entrepreneur.

It’s hard for him to admit, but Angry Nerd just doesn’t need anymore Marvel or DC comic book movies. Instead of another big budget flick with an oversaturated superhero, why not look elsewhere for solid source material? Case in point: The excellent, new comic-to-silver-screen adaptation, Snowpiercer.

Back in San Francisco, fellows Shantanu Bala and Kaushik Tiwari visit the community workshop and prototyping studio TechShop. As they tour the space and check out equipment, Shantanu develops new ideas that he can apply to his project of building new computer interfaces that use a sense of touch to get information.

The Thiel fellows get a dose of Silicon Valley life as they visit Google’s collaborative workspace, The Garage. After a demo of Google Glass, the group gets hands-on with an innovation exercise to hone their creativity and team-building skills.

It’s more than just a prop. Vic Mignogna, who stars as Captain Kirk in “Star Trek Continues,” shows us the famous Captain’s chair and explains how the set designer re-created a replica of the original version, down to the hand-poured control buttons.

A bunch of talented teens all under 20 years old move in together. Sounds like the plot of a new MTV show, but for the winners of the $100,000 Thiel Fellowship, it’s reality. In this episode of Teen Technorati, the fellows give us a tour of their San Francisco and Oakland apartments, where they’re working on their projects and bringing their ideas to life.

The color is striking, but beauty is more than skin-deep with the JVC GR-C7U camcorder. You can record picture and sound in one unit and watch your masterpiece immediately on instant-playback. Watch out, John Hughes—there’s a new era of filmmakers on the horizon.

He's the maestro of motion capture performance. From Gollum in Lord of the Rings to Caesar in the new Planet of the Apes movies, Andy Serkis is the greatest actor you've never seen. So where is this man's Oscar? The Angry Nerd has words for the Academy—doesn't he, my Precious?

In this episode, Thiel fellow Rebecca Jolitz takes us on a tour of the NASA Ames Research Center, where she worked while attending UC Berkeley. The entire group also pays a visit to lunar transportation company Moon Express for lessons on space, technology, and how to turn the impossible into a reality.

Ever wonder what you'd do if a gang of genetically engineered apes took over the planet? Host Quinn Beswick talks to scientists, sociologists, and survivalists for tips on what to do if you find yourself in a real-life Dawn of the Planet of the Apes situation.

At San Diego Comic-Con 2013, WIRED debuted a giant robot mech. This year, a new version of the larger-than-life beast will be revealed at the ultimate fan convention. Watch a preview of what’s in store for the colossal creature, created in collaboration with the Stan Winston School, Legacy Effects, Stratasys, and WIRED. From design to tech and prototype to finished product, see how the ultimate cosplay creation came to life.

It's time to choose a concept for this year's giant creature. The only requirements this time around? It needs to be bigger and better, with even more innovative features. Watch as the team at the Stan Winston School and Legacy Effects choose a final design for the massive monster.

The design phase is over, and now it's time to prove that the 14-foot-tall creature can be built. As the team starts to build the prototype, challenges arise due to the creature's size and scale.

Designer Greg Smith walks us through the process of scaling up the massive beast to see how much volume is needed to create it. After taking photos and videos of the rough frame and superimposing it onto an image of the creature, the team is able to get a better idea of what dimensions they'll need to bring it to life.

Seventeen-year-old Thomas Hunt isn't old enough to vote, but he's conducting research that may one day cure cancer. Get to know the Thiel Fellow, take a tour of the lab where he's working to help make history, and find out what inspired him to get involved in cancer research.

Lead systems engineer Jason Lopes walks us through the process of creating a maquette—a 10 to 18-inch 3-D figure—which gives the team a tangible and highly detailed representation of the creature.

Now that the prototype is built, it's time to start constructing the full-scale pieces of the giant creature. In this episode, watch the dragon-like head come to life through an advanced sculpting process, after which it's refined, detailed, and painted for a realistic look.

In the latest incarnation of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Andy Serkis and Toby Kebbell deliver human motion-capture performances to help bring the realistic apes to life. Shot with a combination of high-speed cameras, Mike Seymour breaks down the tech behind shooting the motion-capture scenes on location versus on a sound stage.

Catch a first-look at the giant creature in action as the team tests out the mechanics of the frame.

Watch Matt Winston and the crew assemble the giant creature on Hollywood Boulevard before its big reveal on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Plus, watch Kimmel and his sidekick Guillermo take the nearly 14-foot tall, 2,000-pound creature for a ride. Watch the Kimmel segment here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plmBWOL5LBw

How do you transport a 2,000-pound, 14-foot-tall beast? Find out, as the giant creature makes its way from the Stan Winston School facilities to Hollywood for its big debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Angry Nerd is hungry for some new material. Instead of force-feeding us cinematic souvlaki with CGI blowouts of Greek-inspired story lines, maybe it's time to look beyond the Peloponnesian lore. And no, Brett Ratner, we will not be entertained with your upcoming Hercules starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

San Diego Comic-Con 2014 is underway and it's time for Bodock the Giant Creature to make his public debut. Catch a first-look at his #SDCC2014 reveal.

Bodock the Giant Creature tries to make some new friends at #SDCC2014, but ends up making a few enemies instead. Watch what happens when he faces off against two small dogs who aren't afraid of the colossal beast.

Why drive a regular cop car when you can patrol the streets in a massive beast? Watch what happens when the San Diego police department upgrades their regular vehicle to Bodock the Giant Creature.

Wonder how Bodock the Giant Creature and his alien sidekick got their voices? In this episode, we take a trip to Anarchy Post to see how the creature's voice came to life with the help of voice actors and Dehumaniser—a real-time vocal processor for monster sound FX.

It's been an eight-week-long marathon to get the Bodock Giant Creature ready for #SDCC2014, and now that the convention is over, it's time to take a look back at the best moments from the event, including the marriage ceremony he officiated.

In season four of Game of Thrones a combination of CGI and live character action were used to create impressive fight scenes and stunning visual effects. Mike Seymour breaks down the tech behind the hit HBO show.

Scripts for upcoming episodes of Doctor Who have leaked online, but should you read them before they air? It doesn't matter! The scripts aren't the secret to the Doctor's longevity. It's the companions that make or break any given episode, arc, or season, and Angry Nerd can prove it.

When it comes to film adaptations of comic-books, the source material should always be treated as gospel, right? Wrong. Angry Nerd explains why, and shares his concerns for Frank Miller's upcoming Sin City: A Dame to Kill For—which could end up being too faithful for its own good.

It took nearly 4,000 hours to grow the Giant Creature pieces that were created using 3-D printing. Find out how Stratasys—the company behind the expert rapid prototypes—managed to create one of the biggest projects they've ever worked on.

How do you make a 2,000-pound creature move with fluidity and ease? Find out, as we break down the animatronics and mechanics that control the mobility of the giant beast, including nostril flares, mouth movements, and more.

Just how does a giant creature get its realistic, custom fur? Find out, as we break down the process of fur fabrication for this year's massive beast.

What inspires a 17-year-old to go into cancer research or a 19-year-old to develop an obsession with astrophysics? Find out, as the 2014 Thiel Fellows explain how they first discovered their passions and why they've decided to turn them into careers.