Category Archives: technology

economy, technology

EIT Water prepares to call for projects in 2027

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EIT Water, the EU’s new community for water-related innovation, is set to start work in 2026, with the first calls for projects and training launching in 2027.

This new knowledge and innovation community will be the tenth launched by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). Like its predecessors, EIT Water will provide entrepreneurship training, as well as business and acceleration support to innovators across Europe.

In November, the EIT selected a group of 50 organisations from 24 countries to launch EIT Water, with Denmark’s Aarhus University taking the lead. The consortium will receive €5 million and one year to establish the organisation, recruit staff, and develop a comprehensive strategy.

“It’s like rapidly building and scaling a very fast start-up,” said Michelle Williams, project coordinator at Aarhus University, in an interview with Science|Business.
https://sciencebusiness.net/news/r-d-funding/european-institute-innovation-and-technology/eit-water-prepares-call-projects-2027

children, entertainment, games, history, technology

Did you know: National game and puzzle week

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Battleship was one of the first games to be made into a computer game in 1979 Candy Land was invented by a retired schoolteacher while she was recovering from polio Battleship was one of the first games to be made into a computer game in 1979 Candy Land was invented by a retired schoolteacher while she was recovering from polio Using all of your letters in one Scrabble turn is called a bingo, you add 50 points to your score for that turn Two journalists invented Trivial Pursuit in 45 minutes after being shocked at the price of a Scrabble set Monopoly is one of the best-selling board games of all time Chess is considered the “King” of board games Scrabble holds the record for the most words played in a single game; in 1982, Karl Khoshnaw and Philip Appleby played 1,049 words in a single game of Scrabble, achieving an impressive feat The phrase “back to square one” might have been inspired by Chutes and Ladders The player who goes first in Connect Four can win 100% of the time The name Jenga is based on the Swahili word meaning “to build” — https://facts.net/lifestyle/18-enigmatic- facts-about-playing-board-games/ Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don’t Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don’t knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the ‘Report’ link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We’d love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article. Rev. Carolyn C. Cavaness looks back on first year as Mother Bethel AME Church’s first female pastor Sorry, there are no recent results for popular images. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. Sorry, an error occurred. Already Subscribed! Cancel anytime Thank you . Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. Check your email for details. Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password. An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account. No promotional rates found. Secure & Encrypted Thank you. Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in. | Rate: | | | Begins: | | | Transaction ID: | A receipt was sent to your email.
https://www.phillytrib.com/news/the-learning-key/did-you-know-national-game-and-puzzle-week/article_7a64f9a7-5244-4be7-8337-d3d90baf68a1.html

economy, politics, technology

Trump issues Executive Order creating Genesis Mission AI Action Plan for America

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Section 1. Purpose. From the founding of our Republic, scientific discovery and technological innovation have driven American progress and prosperity. Today, America is in a race for global technology dominance in the development of artificial intelligence (AI), an important frontier of scientific discovery and economic growth. To that end, my Administration has taken a number of actions to win that race, including issuing multiple Executive Orders and implementing America’s AI Action Plan, which recognizes the need to invest in AI-enabled science to accelerate scientific advancement. In this pivotal moment, the challenges we face require a historic national effort, comparable in urgency and ambition to the Manhattan Project that was instrumental to our victory in World War II and was a critical basis for the foundation of the Department of Energy (DOE) and its national laboratories. This order launches the “Genesis Mission” as a dedicated, coordinated national effort to unleash a new age of AI‑accelerated innovation and discovery that can solve the most challenging problems of this century. The Genesis Mission will build an integrated AI platform to harness Federal scientific datasets the world’s largest collection of such datasets, developed over decades of Federal investments to train scientific foundation models and create AI agents to test new hypotheses, automate research workflows, and accelerate scientific breakthroughs. The Genesis Mission will bring together our Nation’s research and development resources combining the efforts of brilliant American scientists, including those at our national laboratories, with pioneering American businesses; world-renowned universities; and existing research infrastructure, data repositories, production plants, and national security sites to achieve dramatic acceleration in AI development and utilization. We will harness for the benefit of our Nation the revolution underway in computing, and build on decades of innovation in semiconductors and high-performance computing. The Genesis Mission will dramatically accelerate scientific discovery, strengthen national security, secure energy dominance, enhance workforce productivity, and multiply the return on taxpayer investment into research and development, thereby furthering America’s technological dominance and global strategic leadership.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146962/trump-ai-genesis-mission-executive-order

technology

Psyonix says it’s implemented changes to combat Rocket League server attacks

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Rocket League developer has released a lengthy statement acknowledging an ongoing issue with server attacks within the game. In an attempt to combat them, the studio has deployed some key changes, but says that thwarting hackers is an ongoing battle. Psyonix posted a statement on X in article format to discuss the game’s ongoing server attack issue. In it, they discuss the two primary types of server attacks: DOS (Denial of Service) and DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks. Psyonix explained how and why hackers do this. To combat this issue, Psyonix says that it has optimized Rocket League’s server code and added a new DDoS detection that’ll prevent server hackers from receiving a win. According to the developer, these changes have already led to a decline in server attacks.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146959/rocket-league-server-hacking-statement

economy, politics, technology

Explained: the EIC advanced innovation challenges pilot

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The European Innovation Council (EIC) has provided more details about what to expect from its pilot advanced innovation challenges, a new staged funding instrument based on the US Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) model. The EIC wants to assess whether staged grants can accelerate the path to market for high-risk deep-tech innovations, and whether early involvement of end users can enhance the uptake of breakthrough solutions. It will inform the wider roll-out of ARPA-style mechanisms in the EIC in the next iteration of Horizon Europe, from 2028. The EIC currently offers Pathfinder grants, supporting early-stage development up to proof of concept; Transition grants, to mature and validate new technologies; and the Accelerator, to develop and scale-up innovations. But technologies do not always move smoothly from one phase to the next. “There are some potentially.
https://sciencebusiness.net/news/r-d-funding/european-innovation-council/explained-eic-advanced-innovation-challenges-pilot

science, technology

Insider’s View: how generative AI could make scientific publishing fairer, and more competitive

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Scientists from around the world are using generative artificial intelligence tools to write papers in English, and it’s already altering the publishing landscape. A new study from the University of Basel has found that papers by scientists from countries where English is not the primary language have become “measurably” closer to a US benchmark since 2022, when ChatGPT, the world’s most used generative AI tool, launched. This convergence effect has been strongest in papers from countries linguistically distant to English. While papers from countries such as Saudi Arabia and South Korea suggest a high adoption of AI tools for writing, those from countries that are closer to English linguistically, such as Germany and Sweden, show lower levels. Adoption appears to be lowest in English-speaking.
https://sciencebusiness.net/news/r-d-funding/ai/insiders-view-how-generative-ai-could-make-scientific-publishing-fairer-and-more

gaming, technology, virtualreality

Marvel’s Deadpool VR review: The merc with an HMD

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For a second consecutive year, Oculus Studios has delivered a superhero game as its flagship VR experience for the fall. Last year it was Batman: Arkham Shadow and this year it’s Marvel’s Deadpool VR. The popular Marvel character feels right at home in VR, even if experience is bogged down by the woes of the hardware. Maximum effort Marvel’s Deadpool VR finds the titular antihero on a mission for S. H. I. E. L. D. when he’s forcefully brought in by the villain Mojo to capture other villains for his upcoming reality TV show. It’s the sort of wacky plot synopsis that only Deadpool could get away with. As Deadpool jumps into different areas of the universe, he does battle with villains like Lady Deathstrike and Mephisto. There’s a sense of life to the world of Deadpool VR. Developer Twisted Pixel brings in a lot of lesser-known characters to fill out the roster, which I always appreciate in a game like this. That combined with the various locations really makes it feel like you’re exploring an untouched corner of the Marvel universe. Of course, this is a Deadpool game, and it does not skimp out on the humor and fourth wall breaking. Deadpool is constantly acknowledging the fact that he’s in a video game, that it’s VR, and that he’s being controlled by a human player. He references characters not just from the Marvel pantheon, but pop culture as a whole. I was usually on board with Deadpool’s humor, but it’s a reality of comedy that when you’re constantly firing off jokes, you’re going to have some misses. It also didn’t help that Neil Patrick Harris, who plays Wade Wilson, feels like he’s doing a Ryan Reynolds impersonation most of the time. Your mileage will vary greatly based on how much you love to hear Deadpool crack jokes about anything and everything happening around him. I wore my red pants today VR is a platform where gameplay has to come first, and Deadpool VR provides an excellent playground for chaos. Wade Wilson is equipped with pistols, swords, bombs, and a grappler that he can use in tandem to kill enemies in a plethora of ways. My personal favorite was throwing his swords like daggers, which would then pin enemies to a nearby wall if they were close enough. You can also grab automatic weapons and rifles from defeated enemies or various weapon caches around the world. I’m lucky enough that I don’t struggle with VR sickness, but if you do, Deadpool VR has three settings for you to customize your experience. These settings will tweak locomotion and on-screen movement so that you’re not getting queasy as Wade Wilson falls from great heights or propels himself up using the grapple gun. After playing enough Deadpool VR, you’ll notice that the majority of encounters boil down to you being stuck in a room as waves of enemies enter until you can defeat them all and move on. Combat is fun, but this setup can feel repetitive after a while. There were a few instances where I caught myself hoping that I had just finished the last wave of enemies before I could progress, which isn’t how I should feel in an action game. Still, if you just want to slice some heads, this game should be on your radar. The devs don’t hold back on the blood and gore; you can decapitate and dismember enemies as you fight through hordes of them. Enemies can also destroy your limbs, and you’ll have to wait as Wade’s regenerative powers form baby limbs that grow into adult size. Superhero landing Marvel’s Deadpool VR doesn’t hit the immersive highs as Batman: Arkham Shadows did last year, but it’s still a fun superhero romp from Oculus Studios. The developers at Twisted Pixel make great use of the Deadpool IP, and there’s no shortage of havoc to wreak if you’re just looking for an action-heavy VR experience. This review is based on a code provided by the publisher, played on Meta Quest 3. Marvel’s Deadpool VR is available now for $49. 99 on Meta Quest 3 and Meta Quest 3S.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146899/marvels-deadpool-vr-review-score

games, technology

EVE Online Catalyst’s Odysseus ship is a space explorer’s dream come true

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The EVE Online: Catalyst expansion launched this week, and with it came a massive collection of new features. The new mining upgrades make for exciting new industrial opportunities for drillers, haulers, and security details throughout the galaxy. However, one of the new ships to come with this expansion also feels like an incredible inclusion to the overall roster. The Odysseus Exploration Command Ship is a beast of a vessel from the Sisters of EVE faction, and between covert, support, and offensive capabilities, it feels like a strong one-size-fits-all for exploration, fleet play, and other operations. A new way to explore New Eden I got to play with the Odysseus during an early access period leading up to EVE Online: Catalysts launch, and wow, this thing is delightful. The ship is a Sisters of EVE Command ship with an emphasis on support and evasion, but make no mistake, this thing bristles, and it’s not just in the hardpoints, but in the ship’s sheer capabilities. The Odysseus features options for a covert ops cloak, increased scanning, a massive ship maintenance bay, and more, allowing it to be arranged and refitted for a lot of different builds. In terms of sheer versatility, it was the scanning that stood out to me. The Odysseus has a special new Expedition Command Burst that comes in several forms. Other Battlecrusiers can use this Command Burst, but only the Odysseus gets a strength and duration buff while it’s active at this time. What makes it so important? Well, there’s a Pinpointing Charge version that helps speed up salvage, and a Strength Charge that aids in hacking, but the Reach Charge is incredible. It increases Directional Scanning range by 20 percent, and if you apply proper Skill leveling and other buffs, that gives you a huge increase in range for about five full minutes, making the Odysseus a pivotal ship for sniffing out trouble and locking in on it. And then there’s the Ship Maintenance Bay. 75, 000 m^3 capacity for ships to get stored and refit in the field as long as they’re close enough to the Odysseus. It’s a mobile depot. And that means being able to deploy some hefty hardware on the fly. Several combat frigates? Yes. A burly miner like the Prospect? Also yes! And given that you’re riding the Odysseus, which can use Covert Ops Cloak, gets increased scanning, and is bristling with its own hardpoints? This thing is mean, and fun. One of the few major drawbacks in the Odysseus is that if you get caught in a tight spot and need to make an escape, you’re in for a stressful time. Without buffs or improvements, the Odysseus has a warp time of about 10. 6 seconds. That’s a lot. Every second counts when you need to warp out of a hot zone and that’s long enough that if you’re in a catastrophic situation, you could stand to lose big time. Thankfully, this thing has some really great PvP and PvE fits for a variety of situations that mean it’s not going down easy if you play appropriately. A mighty vessel for an exciting expansion EVE Online: Catalyst brings a lot of great new fun and features to the game, including a new online map that’s much easier to navigate, a wealth of mining content including high-value Phased Fields of asteroids containing Prismaticite, the new Pioneer Ore Mining Destroyer (which was a whole different kind of blast from the Odysseus), and much more. The Odysseus promised to be fun, but I think it’s a game changer and I’m excited to see what the EVE community does with it. For more on the game, stay tuned to the EVE Online topic here at Shacknews.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146896/eve-online-catalyst-launch-odysseus

games, technology

EVE Online Catalyst’s Odysseus ship is a space explorer’s dream come true

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The EVE Online: Catalyst expansion launched this week, and with it came a massive collection of new features. The new mining upgrades make for exciting new industrial opportunities for drillers, haulers, and security details throughout the galaxy. However, one of the new ships to come with this expansion also feels like an incredible inclusion to the overall roster. The Odysseus Exploration Command Ship is a beast of a vessel from the Sisters of EVE faction, and between covert, support, and offensive capabilities, it feels like a strong one-size-fits-all for exploration, fleet play, and other operations. A new way to explore New Eden I got to play with the Odysseus during an early access period leading up to EVE Online: Catalysts launch, and wow, this thing is delightful. The ship is a Sisters of EVE Command ship with an emphasis on support and evasion, but make no mistake, this thing bristles, and it’s not just in the hardpoints, but in the ship’s sheer capabilities. The Odysseus features options for a covert ops cloak, increased scanning, a massive ship maintenance bay, and more, allowing it to be arranged and refitted for a lot of different builds. In terms of sheer versatility, it was the scanning that stood out to me. The Odysseus has a special new Expedition Command Burst that comes in several forms. Other Battlecrusiers can use this Command Burst, but only the Odysseus gets a strength and duration buff while it’s active at this time. What makes it so important? Well, there’s a Pinpointing Charge version that helps speed up salvage, and a Strength Charge that aids in hacking, but the Reach Charge is incredible. It increases Directional Scanning range by 20 percent, and if you apply proper Skill leveling and other buffs, that gives you a huge increase in range for about five full minutes, making the Odysseus a pivotal ship for sniffing out trouble and locking in on it. And then there’s the Ship Maintenance Bay. 75, 000 m^3 capacity for ships to get stored and refit in the field as long as they’re close enough to the Odysseus. It’s a mobile depot. And that means being able to deploy some hefty hardware on the fly. Several combat frigates? Yes. A burly miner like the Prospect? Also yes! And given that you’re riding the Odysseus, which can use Covert Ops Cloak, gets increased scanning, and is bristling with its own hardpoints? This thing is mean, and fun. One of the few major drawbacks in the Odysseus is that if you get caught in a tight spot and need to make an escape, you’re in for a stressful time. Without buffs or improvements, the Odysseus has a warp time of about 10. 6 seconds. That’s a lot. Every second counts when you need to warp out of a hot zone and that’s long enough that if you’re in a catastrophic situation, you could stand to lose big time. Thankfully, this thing has some really great PvP and PvE fits for a variety of situations that mean it’s not going down easy if you play appropriately. A mighty vessel for an exciting expansion EVE Online: Catalyst brings a lot of great new fun and features to the game, including a new online map that’s much easier to navigate, a wealth of mining content including high-value Phased Fields of asteroids containing Prismaticite, the new Pioneer Ore Mining Destroyer (which was a whole different kind of blast from the Odysseus), and much more. The Odysseus promised to be fun, but I think it’s a game changer and I’m excited to see what the EVE community does with it. For more on the game, stay tuned to the EVE Online topic here at Shacknews.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146896/eve-online-catalyst-launch-odysseus

technology

Battlefield 6 update 1.1.2.0 patch notes

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Update 1. 1. 2. 0 for Battlefield 6 adds the California Resistance & Eastwood map while also resetting Aim Assist to its Open Beta tuning. Battlefield 6 has received some more patch notes thanks to the arrival of Update 1. 1. 2. 0 on November 18. The patch adds the new California Resistance content drop which includes the new map, Eastwood. Players can enjoy a new mode, additional weapons, a new mission type in Gauntlet, and much more. The patch notes also address Aim Assist and fix a bunch of other issues. Battlefield 6 update 1. 1. 2. 0 patch notes The following patch notes for Battlefield 6 come courtesy of the official EA website. This is a good time for players as there is also a free trial of Battlefield 6 happening alongside this content release. New Content: California Resistance New Map: Eastwood. A map with the Southern California theme. Variations of this map will be available for all official modes. Conquest mode on this map will include tanks, helicopters, and the Golf Cart. New Time-Limited Mode: Sabotage. A themed event mode focused on demolition and counterplay. New Weapons: DB-12 Shotgun and M357 Trait Sidearm. Gauntlet mode to include a new mission type: Rodeo. This mission provides multiple vehicles for players to fight over and battle with each other with. Players earn bonus points for defeating enemies while in a vehicle. Portal updates: Sandbox map. This option will let Portal experience builders start with a more level playing field to bring their imagination to life. The Golf Cart vehicle is available for use in building experiences. Battle Pass: The California Resistance bonus path becomes available for a limited time. New feature coming later in the update: Battle Pickups. These powerful weapons will be available in specific experiences and Portal with limited ammunition but pack enough firepower to help turn the tide of battle in your favor. Major Updates for 1. 1. 2. 0 Aim Assist has been reset to its Open Beta tuning, restoring consistent infantry targeting behaviour across all input types. Improved input latency and stick response for controllers, providing smoother aiming and more responsive soldier movement. Weapon accuracy and dispersion tuning: fixed unintended weapon dispersion increase rates and improved non-Recon sniper rifle accuracy while globally reducing dispersion across all weapon types. Challenge and progression clarity improvements make requirements easier to understand and track. Major polish pass to deployable gadgets, including the LWCMS Portable Mortar, LTLM II Portable Laser Designator, and Supply Crate systems. Fort Lyndon added to Portal, expanding available segments for community-created experiences. AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT Aim Assist As we got closer to launch, we revisited aim assist tuning based on internal testing and the full range of maps and combat distances coming with release. Our goal was to make aim assist feel more effective beyond mid-range fights which was one of our focuses within Battlefield Labs and Open Beta. At launch, we increased slowdown at longer ranges, but once the game went live, we saw that this made high-zoom aiming feel less smooth and harder to control. After reviewing player feedback and gameplay data, we’re reverting aim assist back to the values some of you experienced during Open Beta and Battlefield Labs. This change keeps aim slowdown consistent across all ranges, helping with muscle memory and providing a steadier, more reliable feel as we move into future seasons. CHANGELOG PLAYER: Aim Assist: fully reset to Open Beta tuning, with related options reset to default to ensure consistency. Fixed an issue where Vehicle Stick Acceleration Presets would affect Infantry Aiming Left/Right Acceleration option availability. Fixed an issue where setting Stick Acceleration Presets to “Standard” would set the Aiming Left/Right Acceleration options incorrectly to 50% instead of 70%. Fixed missing Infantry and Vehicle prefixes in captions for Stick Acceleration Presets and Aiming Left/Right Acceleration options. Fixed an issue where stick deadzones would ignore the first 10% of movement if using a PS5 Controller on PC. Fixed an issue where player movement Extended top UI on Strikepoint to show detailed alive/downed/dead player counts. Fixed incorrect Assault Training Path icons. Fixed incorrect colour usage on squad-mate health bars. Fixed missing tooltips and UI prompts across tutorials and mission briefings in Single Player. Fixed missing XP Tracker icon at level 3 when using Field Upgrades. Kill-confirmation indicator now displays if a victim bleeds out after being damaged by the player in modes using the crawling downed state mod. UnloadMusic, mod. PlayMusic, mod. SetMusicParam. Fixed RayCast in ModBuilder to properly detect terrain and environment objects. HARDWARE: Fixed an issue where framerate would be be capped to 300FPS with Nvidia cards REDSEC VEHICLES: Fixed the issue where the Golf Cart could set off the PTKM-1R gadget in Gauntlet. Fixed persistent gunner MG model after Rhib Boat destruction. UI & HUD: Added level display information to the Training Path section within the Class Details screen. Fixed an issue where soldiers and UI elements could be missing in pre-game lobbies after matchmaking. Fixed an issue where the M417 A2 would not appear in kill cards or the kill feed. AUDIO: Fixed an issue where the squadmate death sound effect could trigger for non-teammates. Those are all of the patch notes for Battlefield 6 Update 1. 1. 2. 0. Stop by our Battlefield 6 Strategy Guide for our ongoing coverage of EA’s smash hit shooter. Sam Chandler Head of Guides Hailing from the land down under, Sam Chandler brings a bit of the southern hemisphere flair to his work. After bouncing round a few universities, securing a bachelor degree, and entering the video game industry, he’s found his new family here at Shacknews as Head of Guides. There’s nothing he loves more than crafting a guide that will help someone. If you need help with a guide, or notice something not quite right, you can message him on X: @SamuelChandler From The Chatty.
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146881/bf6-update-1120-patch-notes