The M4 Max Mac Studio is a compact powerhouse that effortlessly sits on my desk - while outperforming my PC tower in multiple ways.

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - JULY 27: Robert Downey Jr. speaks onstage at the Marvel Studios Panel during ... [+] 2024 Comic-Con International at San Diego Convention Center on July 27, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)Getty ImagesRecently, there was a leak of what was reported to be concept art for the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, drawn not by some sort of AI generation, but from an actual, currently employed Marvel artist, lending it legitimacy.However, even if that was indeed a Marvel artist, Avengers: Doomsday directors Joe and Anthony Russo told THR that it was not actually a leak from their film:JOE: No [it doesnt spoil anything], because that artwork was not from Avengers: Doomsday or Secret Wars.ANTHONY: Nothing spoiling in there. Thats not our concept art.While we have no reason to doubt them, the fact that this is not actually the concept or look of the Avengers: Doomsday film is sort of disappointing. Generally speaking, it was so well-received that some even believed Marvel had let it leak purposefully as a trial balloon for the upcoming film, which reportedly once struggled with its concept until the Russos said they had a breakthrough. Disney didnt even seem to bother issuing copyright takedown notices for the images.The art seemed to imagine a medieval-based concept where Doom ruled over Latveria, seemingly surrounded by alternate versions of existing MCU characters. Yelena holding Reed prisoner with Bucky in a dungeon. Hulk and She-Hulk dressed in period outfits in the village.Ms. MarvelDisneyThere were also more modern-day settings, which included a seemingly re-cast TChalla in Wakanda, and Star Lord hanging out with White Vision, Wong and the cast of the new Young Avengers, Kate Bishop, Cassie Lang, Speed, Wiccan and Ms. Marvel. There were notable absences like the new Captain America, Thor, Captain Marvel, Spider-Man and especially Scarlet Witch who many believe will have a prominent role in the film.Again, all of this looked pretty cool, but the Russos seem to indicate that this isnt just not their concept art, but its not spoiling anything because its not even the concept at all.A quote making the rounds from that same interview is how the Russos have been keeping track of the expansive casts for their movies, which now involve literal custom, magnetic baseball cards about salaries and contract lengths. Shuffle them around and create a cast and story, it seems.The Russos have made three high-profile MCU movies for Marvel, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. But theyve also dipped into Netflix original films, their latest being The Electric State, a movie with a huge budget that currently has a 16% critic score. So of course, many are hoping their return to Marvel in 2026-2027 across the next two Avengers movies goes better than that. But it wont involve what weve just seen here, it seems.Follow me , and .Pick up my sci-fi novels the and

Arguably one of the classics of anime from the latter half of the 80s, this new release of Bubblegum Crisis has a lot to offer.Set in the year 2032, Bubblegum Crisis takes all the 80s tropes surrounding cyberpunk and tries to do something different and interesting with them.The main protagonists in the series are the Knight Sabers, an enigmatic group of women who wear bespoke power armor to take down a new threat known as Boomers on the future streets of Mega Tokyo.Created by the Genom Corporation, Boomers are used in all walks of life, but they also have a habit of going berserk. Normally, the A.D. Police would handle this threat, but they are oddly underfunded to counter this menace.Over the course of the eight episode run of the series, more becomes clear behind what is driving the Boomer outbreaks and what Genom are really up to.Bubblegum Crisis is an interesting show on several counts, from Shinji Aramakis great mechanical designs to Kenichi Sonodas excellent character designs. It also used the then-current popular music of its time to really drive the whole setting home.The mecha design by Aramaki is also notable as it follows his work on MOSPEADA and Megazone 23, both of which have motorbikes transforming around their riders into mecha. This is one of the highlights in Bubblegum Crisis, as the transformable Motoslave bikes are impressively designed.'Bubblegum Crisis' is now widely available in Blu-ray.AnimEigoThe brainchild of Toshimitsu Suzuki, who had tried and failed numerous times to get similar projects funded. Bubblegum Crisis mostly succeeded where the likes of Techno Police 21C failed, which also featured crime fighters wearing power armor to take out a new mechanized threat.However, Bubblegum Crisis was cut short, and the subsequent sequels lacked the intensity of the original. The story behind those sequels is also quite involved, as Suzuki wanted royalties for the use of his ideas, which sadly didnt work out for him.As for this new Blu-ray release, apart from a new and nicely chunky book tucked into the case, there are a lot more extras this time around. Not least an all-new interview with Kenichi Sonoda recorded in 2024.The image transfer is also excellent, as is the audio, which is pristine throughout. What with this being an AnimEigo release, the translation is also handled well, and fans of the series will be happy to see the dialogue dealt with properly.Considering that Bubblegum Crisis was more of a hit internationally than back home in its native Japan, it feels only fitting that this series is readily available again in the West, and at such high quality.While Suzuki didnt quite manage to land the entirety of what he wanted to accomplish with shows like Bubblegum Crisis, he did help birth a unique series that has definitely found its international audience over the years.If youre new to this kind of anime cyberpunk, then Bubblegum Crisis is one of its stronger entries and the 80s artstyle and designs are still as punchy as ever.Bubblegum Crisis is now available on Blu-ray and can be purchased via Amazon for $31.32.Disclosure: AnimEigo sent me this Blu-ray set for the purposes of this review.Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.

WTF?! Old hardware typically slows down over time as newer software becomes less optimized and components degrade with age. However, speedrunners and researchers have discovered the opposite effect on the SNES. While the phenomenon is intriguing, its impact on gameplay remains purely theoretical. Tinkerers and speedrunners have recently discovered that the audio processors in many aging Super NES consoles are now running at slightly higher clock frequencies. While the difference is currently just a few hundred hertz, research suggests the effect may become more pronounced over time.Alan "dwangoAC" Cecil, a developer of speedrunning tools, first raised awareness of the anomaly last month. To investigate further, he collected data from over 100 SNES owners using a flash cartridge and a diagnostic ROM. The results indicate minor but consistent speed increases, which may be influenced by heat.Based on 143 responses, the SNES DSP rate averages 32,076 Hz, rising 8 Hz from cold to warm. Warm DSP rates go from 31,965 to 32,182 Hz, a 217 Hz range. Therefore, temperature is less significant. Why? How does it affect games? We do not know. Yet. See docs.getgrist.com/fpwWkqDcnxXR... for more.[image or embed] TASBot (@tas.bot) March 6, 2025 at 6:10 PMThe SNES's SPC700, a secondary CPU that controls the console's Sony audio processor, officially runs at 32 MHz. However, Cecil's study found frequencies reaching up to 32.3 MHz, with evidence suggesting this phenomenon has been gradually intensifying for over two decades.Third-party documentation from 2003 recorded the SPC700 running at 32.04 MHz, which matched the speed used by SNES emulators in the early 2000s. Cecil notes that the average frequency has since risen to 32.076 MHz. The likely cause is the SPC700's ceramic resonator, which can fluctuate based on temperature. // Related StoriesFor most collectors still using aging, yellowed SNES consoles, the effect is minor potentially causing only a slight change in audio pitch if the processor runs around 200 Hz faster than expected. However, the implications for emulation accuracy and speedrunning remain a topic of debate.A faster sound processor could save players a few frames each time a game loads audio or other data, potentially shaving fractions of a second off long speedruns and putting longstanding records at risk. While Cecil doubts the effect is significant enough to impact records, variations between consoles could complicate the development of emulation tools striving for perfect accuracy.Research into the phenomenon is still in its early stages. As more SNES units are analyzed, researchers will likely gain a clearer understanding of its causes and effects. Additionally, uncovering more historical data could determine whether the console is gradually accelerating or if the SPC700 has always operated within these frequency variations due to its low-precision design.

Rumor mill: A recent rumor suggests that Samsung's ambitious 1.4nm node, known as SF1.4, may be scrapped entirely. This speculation comes from a trusted leaker, @Jukanlosreve, casting doubt on the future of the process. Samsung Foundry had originally planned for the SF1.4 node to enter high-volume manufacturing by 2027 alongside other specialized nodes like SF2A designed for automotive applications and SF2Z, the company's first to incorporate Backside Power Delivery Network (BSPDN) technology.Samsung's entry into the 1.4nm class with SF1.4 would have marked a significant technological leap, promising improved power efficiency and performance over previous generations an advancement particularly crucial for high-performance computing and AI applications. To gain a competitive edge, Samsung designed SF1.4 with a cost-effective approach aimed at reducing production costs, potentially helping it capture more market share.The potential setback is part of a broader series of challenges the company is facing.Samsung Foundry has struggled with subpar yields from its SF3 process, resulting in a delayed launch of the Exynos 2500. Additionally, the company has had to scale back parts of its older 5nm and 7nm nodes due to low demand. // Related StoriesDespite these setbacks, Samsung is reportedly continuing to develop the Exynos 2600 on its SF2 process and is working on AI chips for PFN. Furthermore, some of its 4nm nodes have received fresh orders from Chinese fabless companies affected by sanctions, according to Chosun.However, major industry players continue to favor competitors like TSMC and Intel over Samsung. The Korea Economic Daily notes that Samsung Foundry's market share of 8.2 percent pales in comparison to TSMC's dominant 67.1 percent, which could lead to a significant overhaul within the company. Furthermore, Business Post suggests that the Exynos department may be transferred to Samsung MX, giving it more control over future smartphone system-on-chip designs.Samsung's struggles in the semiconductor sector are compounded by broader challenges across its business divisions. The company recently reported a decline in market share across several key sectors, including smartphones and memory chips. Samsung's Mobile Division saw its market share drop to 28.3 percent in 2024, down from 30.1 percent in 2023, while its DRAM market share slipped to 41.5 percent from 42.2 percent.The company is also facing geopolitical risks and raw material price volatility, which further complicate its operations.In response to these challenges, Samsung is slashing its foundry investments for 2025 by more than half, reducing them to KRW 5 trillion ($3.5 billion), compared to KRW 10 trillion in 2024.

html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd" Table of ContentsTable of ContentsWhat are Fotos promises?Whats it like?Who uses Foto, and why?Prepare for intimidationAn app for everyone?Im not an Instagram hater, but the Meta-owned social app is going through a period of change that has turned more than a few people off, me included. In the wake of Instagrams alterations, one app has made some promises to photographers and creatives that are too enticing to ignore. Its called Foto, and after months of being in private beta, its now available to everyone on Android and iOS.Heres why you should try it out, why I like it, but also why it seriously intimidated me.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsInstagram isnt about photography anymore. Its about social clout, video, Reels, influencers, ads, and if my hidden DMs are anything to go by scammers selling fake watches. It has evolved a lot over time, and lost me when it took inspiration from apps I dont wish to use, like Snapchat and TikTok. Even the social aspect where I could quickly connect with friends has taken a backseat, and the algorithm doesnt promote them to me much anymore.RelatedI dont hate it, I just dont really use it. But I am aware some changes have prompted some far more visceral reactions, notably the switch to a forced 4:5 aspect ratio for everything, and a hard push for creatives to embrace video purely for the sake of the algorithm. Instagram is a business competing in a packed space so changes are inevitable over time, and what was once a platform for stills has become something else, which isnt for everyone. It means apps like Foto have a chance to come in and romance the disillusioned.Foto promises a chronological, ad-free, and un-cropped feed to post and enjoy photography. It is only for stills, and doesnt support video at all. According to a press release its also for people who, value the power of images to tell stories and bridge divides. Unlike other platforms, Foto doesnt emphasize follower counts or likes, reducing the social comparison that can come with traditional social media.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsFoto is very much the anti-Instagram, but will it be the next Instagram, at least for some? By shunning most of the features people associate with any social network, can it engage newcomers effectively enough to make them stick around? Apps like BeReal have tried to do the same, and while it has apparently found its niche after its 15-minutes of fame several years ago, it hasnt become the next anything, but rather its own thing. After the death of Twitter and the corruption of Instagram, Im looking for a new online home. Would I find it in Foto?The app is simple. Its a vertically scrolling feed of still photos, bereft of Like counts or buttons to share, but you can double-tap to add a heart if you like what you see. It takes effort (well, a screen tap) to see who posted the photo, and another tap to see the photographers profile and a Follow button. Its a gallery app, with far less emphasis on the artist than in most social apps, unless you go looking for them. Your personal feed is presented much like Instagram, but without any enforced formatting.Foto treats its users like adultsDiscovery is interesting. You can search for a username and filter photos by subject, but not search for your own interpretation of those keywords. For example, you can filter results to see Automotive photography, but not for photos of a specific brand or vehicle. Another striking difference youll immediately notice as you browse is a more lenient approach to censorship than Instagram. Photos with nudity are blurred until you tap on them to reveal the full image. It gives portrait and beauty photographers much more creative freedom, and I think it shows Foto treats its users like adults.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsFoto is still a very young platform, so who is already using it, and how do they rate the experience? I asked wildlife and nature photographer Lyndon Llanes, who shows his impressive portfolio of work on both Foto and Instagram, about it.Ive been doing photography for two years. Im still early on in my journey but photography soothes my soul. It is a passion and hobby for now but maybe itll becomes more, he told me by email.I like that the app is simpler than Instagram, he continued, and love that [the feed] is chronological. I dont feel like my exposure and reach rely on an algorithm, and that its for photography and stills. I did backflips when I realized I was not forced into a vertical crop.But what about the community, and how do people connect compared to Instagram?The engagement is different, its more photography based, LLanes said. Ive also noticed people read the photo descriptions, while on Instagram no-one reads them. People want to read the story behind the photo, and I dig that.Llanes says his intention is to build a community on Foto, but for now will continue to post to both it and Instagram, saying Instagram makes discovering and following people easier than Foto at the moment. Interestingly, he says Reddit is his top platform for engagement.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsIve been exploring Foto for about a week, but have only shared two photos of my own at this time. Why so few? There are two primary reasons. The first comes from thinking the here-and-now is the only thing that matters. If I took a photo last year, I wouldnt consider sharing it today, because most social media is driven by whats happening at this moment, and cares little about the past. Foto isnt like that, and itll take a while for my brain to get out of that habit.The other reason is intimidation. Not from a person or community, but because of the work thats being posted. Its almost all fantastic, and is clearly the work of people who take photos for a living or are very talented amateurs. I dont think I even fall into the second category, and know Im definitely not in the first. Even the photos Im most happy with look like the work of a toddler aimlessly pressing the shutter button on My First Camera next to the majority of photos I see on Foto.It means I dont feel like I can post, say, a cat photo. Or rather, I could post a cat photo, but it would have to be an utterly stunning, perfectly composed, superbly lit, and finely edited cat photo. Again, Im aware this feeling is also an overflow from other social media apps, where everything has to look perfect, and its not really the case. Im an adult and dont constantly need affirmation from strangers online, but at the same time I dont want to contribute somewhere I feel like a bit of an imposter.Andy Boxall / Digital TrendsI like the quiet, less intense environment over at Foto compared to Instagram, where I can consider and examine photos. I also appreciate the chance to make it a personal portfolio, in a way that Instagram once was, and the complete lack of videos moving around to distract me. Fotos ad-free promise means there is a subscription attached if you want advanced features or to support the team, but the free tier seems to be perfectly usable.Foto co-founder Micheal Howard said in an early interview he didnt want Foto to be a photographers water cooler, and that it was designed to be an app for everyone. He did admit the early adopters would probably be photographers, and this is definitely the case. But perhaps my (and your) cat photos are whats needed to bring casual photo enthusiasts onboard?Im going to stick around, and if youve been disillusioned by Instagram and Twitters transition into X like I have, then you may want to give it a try too. Ill see you there.Editors Recommendations

The cult classic erotic thriller Single White Female may soon get a remake with two of Hollywoods rising actresses. Jenna Ortega and Taylor Russell are both said to be in negotiations to star in and produce the remake of the 1992 film.Via The Hollywood Reporter, the project is being spearheaded by Elizabeth Gablers 3000 Pictures through Sony Pictures. The original film was based on John Lutzs novel SWF Seeks Same, and he co-wrote the screenplay with Don Roos for director Barbet Schroeder. Bridget Fonda starred in the movie as Allison, a young woman who needed a new roommate after her cheating ex-boyfriend was kicked out of her place. What she got was Hedra (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a possessive woman who insinuated herself into Allisons life and emulated her. As Hedras behavior turned erratic, she became a real danger to Allison and everyone she knew.Recommended VideosTheres nothing in the report that specifies whether Ortega or Russell will be playing the psycho roommate from Hell. However, the title of the film will probably have to change since both actresses are women of color. Unless of course the name Single White Female is retained simply for irony and brand recognition.Please enable Javascript to view this contentOf the two actresses, Ortega is arguably the bigger star after headlining Netflixs Wednesday and landing a leading role in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Ortega has a new movie coming out at the end of March called Death of a Unicorn, which cast her as the daughter of Paul Rudds character. After accidentally hitting a unicorn with their car, this father-daughter duo bring the creature with them to a retreat where all Hell breaks loose.Russell also had a leading role on a Netflix series with the 2018 reboot of Lost in Space. She went on to greater stardom after headlining Waves and starring alongside Dunes Timothee Chalamet in the cannibal romance drama Bones and All. Shes currently slated to star in Michael B. Jordans upcoming remake of The Thomas Crown Affair.

Makers of the popular social app tried to remedy the problem, but even the fix is causing drama.

Give me a hand A biohybrid robotic hand built using real human muscle cells A real bit of cyborg hardware highlights the technology's current limitations. Jacek Krywko Mar 15, 2025 9:00 am | 3 Credit: Andriy Onufriyenko Credit: Andriy Onufriyenko Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreBiohybrid robots work by combining biological components like muscles, plant material, and even fungi with non-biological materials. While we are pretty good at making the non-biological parts work, weve always had a problem with keeping the organic components alive and well. This is why machines driven by biological muscles have always been rather small and simpleup to a couple centimeters long and typically with only a single actuating joint.Scaling up biohybrid robots has been difficult due to the weak contractile force of lab-grown muscles, the risk of necrosis in thick muscle tissues, and the challenge of integrating biological actuators with artificial structures, says Shoji Takeuchi, a professor at the Tokyo University, Japan. Takeuchi led a research team that built a full-size, 18 centimeter-long biohybrid human-like hand with all five fingers driven by lab-grown human muscles.Keeping the muscles aliveOut of all the roadblocks that keep us from building large-scale biohybrid robots, necrosis has probably been the most difficult to overcome. Growing muscles in a lab usually means a liquid medium to supply nutrients and oxygen to muscle cells seeded on petri dishes or applied to gel scaffoldings. Since these cultured muscles are small and ideally flat, nutrients and oxygen from the medium can easily reach every cell in the growing culture.When we try to make the muscles thicker and therefore more powerful, cells buried deeper in those thicker structures are cut off from nutrients and oxygen, so they die, undergoing necrosis. In living organisms, this problem is solved by the vascular network. But building artificial vascular networks in lab-grown muscles is still something we cant do very well. So, Takeuchi and his team had to find their way around the necrosis problem. Their solution was sushi rolling.The team started by growing thin, flat muscle fibers arranged side by side on a petri dish. This gave all the cells access to nutrients and oxygen, so the muscles turned out robust and healthy. Once all the fibers were grown, Takeuchi and his colleagues rolled them into tubes called MuMuTAs (multiple muscle tissue actuators) like they were preparing sushi rolls. MuMuTAs were created by culturing thin muscle sheets and rolling them into cylindrical bundles to optimize contractility while maintaining oxygen diffusion, Takeuchi explains.Movement in the MuMuTAs was triggered by delivering electrical signals through electrodes attached at both ends. These muscle sushi rolls could bend or rotate, depending on which fibers were contracted. Their contractile force was regulated by modulating the applied voltage.Once the team made MuMuTAs work, they used five of them to actuate multi-jointed fingers in a robotic hand.Rock-paper-scissorsThe hand, suspended in a liquid medium, was 3D-printed out of plastic. Each finger had three joints and was actuated by a cable connected to a MuMuTA, five of which were located in the forearm. The MuMuTAs were installed in glass containers to limit the diffusion of the electric field, allowing each of them to be actuated separately. They were anchored to the plastic structure on the back end and connected to cables to drive the fingers at the front.By selectively contracting the MuMuTAs, the hand could do various gestures, like the ones used in the rock, paper, scissors game, or manipulate objects like a pipette. All this was possible because MuMuTAs were strong compared to typical lab-grown muscle systems, with each generating 8 mN of contractile force which is more or less enough to lift a small paperclip. On top of that, Takeuchis sushi rolling idea boosted the muscles longevity, since MuMuTAs could be unrolled after use to provide oxygen and nutrition to the cells.The team bumped into some limitations, though. The first issue was that the fingers could only actuate in one directionthe muscles driving them contracted in response to electrical signals, but they only returned to their original position due to the buoyancy of the material. (We mostly use a second set of muscles to return joints to their original position.) Takeuchi suggested one option to solve that would be using an elastic material in the joints, which would make the fingers bounce back faster. The other option he mentioned was adding five more antagonistic MuMuTAs to achieve bidirectional movementthe solution used by the real human hand.The second problem was that MuMuTAs and the entire hand they actuated couldnt work without the liquid suspension. To transition to a dry environment, future developments will need to incorporate artificial nutrient delivery systems and protective scaffolds to maintain tissue viability outside the liquid medium, Takeuchi says.But perhaps the most obvious issue with using biological muscles in robots remained unresolved: After making gestures and manipulating objects for about 10 minutes, the biohybrid hand got tired.Biohybrid robots gymThe team noticed the signs of fatigue in MuMuTAs when they were testing how much force the muscles would generate in response to higher voltages. When Takeuchi and his colleagues pushed the MuMuTAs really hard, they saw the contractile force the muscles could generate dropped after a handful of tests. Things went back to normal once the hand rested in its medium for about an hour. This happened even though the muscles grown in petri dishes never worked nearly as hard as they would if they ended up in an actual human being. So, overall, they were rather weak.The contractile force per unit area Takeuchi achieved in his lab-grown muscles was 0.7 mN per square millimeter, which is not bad compared to other lab-grown muscles. They looked quite feeble, however, compared to living muscles that could generate roughly 6 mN per square millimeter. Takeuchi thinks the solution could be the one we all should be using: exercising.Just like natural muscles, engineered muscles may benefit from exercise, where repeated contractions enhance endurance and contractile strength over time, Takeuchi suggests. Another option Takeuchis team proposed in the paper was using chemical growth factors, though. So, we can get them juiced to the gills instead.Takeuchis work on the biohybrid robotic hand is published in Science Robotics: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/scirobotics.adr5512Jacek KrywkoAssociate WriterJacek KrywkoAssociate Writer Jacek Krywko is a freelance science and technology writer who covers space exploration, artificial intelligence research, computer science, and all sorts of engineering wizardry. 3 Comments

2025-03-15T14:15:01Z Read in app Dr. Tim Spector's interest in nutrition research started with figuring out how he could eat healthier. ZOE This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? Ultra-processed foods are often marketed with misleading claims to seem healthier, a researcher says.Labels like 'low fat' and 'low calorie' can be a red flag that foods are full of additives.Being skeptical of health claims can help you get the most of out grocery shopping for a nutritious diet.Grocery shopping can be a minefield of faux health foods that are biting into your budget and damaging your long-term health.That's why, when Dr. Tim Spector is walking down the food aisle, he keeps his eyes peeled for red flags things that sound healthy, but are quite the opposite.Spector, a medical doctor and professor of epidemiology at King's College London, co-founded the science and nutrition company ZOE, which gives members nutrition advice, among other features.He took a particular interest in nutrition research after he had a mini-stroke in 2011. He was just 53, and felt pretty healthy, but he began to take a closer look at his eating habits."I said, 'I need to change what I'm doing and do massive research to work out what I should be eating, what I should be doing, health-wise to keep me living longer,'" Spector, co-founder of the science and nutrition company ZOE, told Business Insider.Now, he has made it his mission to help consumers spot "health halos" misleading advertising on ultra-processed foods making them seem nutritious when they can be detrimental to your health.Here are four red flags he looks for that can help you spot dubious claims at the grocery store, and how to stock your kitchen with healthier options instead.1. 'Low-fat' foods have extra additivesSpector said he steers clear of anything labeled "low-fat," which includes margarine and butter substitutes, yogurts, and other dairy.Low-fat products have a long history in the fad diet industry. The craze really took off in the 1980s because of concerns that saturated fat could worsen heart health and cholesterol levels. Companies selling low-fat substitutes for popular foods also cashed in on the myth that eating more dietary fat causes you to gain more body fat.The problem is, trimming the fat from a food has a major catch. Since fat brings flavor and texture to food, swapping it out means adding sugars, starches, and binding agent so the final product is still appetizing. Yogurts labeled "low-fat" lack heart-healthy benefits. wilatlak villette/Getty Images That's good news for manufacturers, who saved money by using lower-cost additives, but bad news for consumers, who are nowheart-healthy fats that naturally occur in foods, and eating more preservatives instead.The extra refined carbohydrates that are added in place of fats can wreck havoc on our health, raising the risk of heart disease and messing with metabolic health."Big food loved it because it was cheaper to have these sort of fat replacements than actually paying for the natural fat got in our diets," Spector said.If you're trying to watch your cholesterol levels, Spector said skip the low-fat products. Instead, he avoids cooking oils and spreads, and uses extra virgin olive oil, which offers a dose of beneficial fatty acids and polyphenols.He also buys full-fat butter, since emerging research suggests that the fat in dairy products can have a protective effect, potentially reducing risk of illness and promoting healthy aging.2. 'Low-calorie' can be misleadingLabeling products as low in calories is a marketing ploy which often signals a food is ultra-processed and loaded with additives, Spector said."It means they've tampered with it. They have probably taken out some sugar and added artificial sweeteners to disguise how much sugar is in there," Spector said.Many low- or no-calorie artificial sweeteners are no better for your health than sugar, according to a 2022 study. Many diet sodas contain low-calorie sweeteners that are just as unhealthy as sugar. bhofack2/Getty Images For example, consuming aspartame, the no-calorie sweetener used in many diet sodas, carriessame health risks as excess sugar, like higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. It may also cause you to eat more as the sweet taste prompts your body to expect a boost of energy that never arrives.Spector has another gripe with thecalorie labels can be off by as much as 20%."Calories are completely the wrong way to summarize a food. They're not accurate. They're not useful, as most people cannot follow a calorie-restricted diet or calorie count reliably," Spector said.3. 'Added vitamins' tend to be low-quality nutrition Many cereals and milks are labeled with "added vitamins," but that doesn't necessarily mean they are abundant in vitamins. Virojt Changyencham/Getty Images It's pretty common for food packages to declare "added vitamins" or "added minerals" from cereals to juice to milk.However, while getting an extra boost of vitamins and minerals in your food may seem like a bonus, it's another sneaky way to disguise processing, Spector said.Ultra-processed foods are designed to have a long shelf life, with a hyper-palatable flavor and texture, tempting you to keep eating. That manufacturing process strips out naturally-occurring nutrients like vitamins and minerals. By law, manufacturers have to add them back in, Spector explained.That's why Spector is not so impressed by foods advertised as "fortified" with vitamins and minerals.Vitamins and minerals are most effective in the form of whole foods, since they're in larger quantities and in higher-quality form, easier for the body to absorb and use than the manufactured, isolated version.4. Be wary of claims like 'immune-boosting' or 'gut healthy'Food manufacturers will often hype up the appeal of their products by adding very small amounts of ingredients with promising nutritional benefits, even if the doses aren't large enough to do much good. In the supplement world, this is called "fairy dusting.""You can claim immune health by adding a microscopic amount of zinc into it; gut health with a bit of manganese all sorts of nonsense," Spector saidMisleading health claims also includes labels that advertise added fiber, since you may not be getting an effective dose."Big food doesn't make money out of fiber. There's no big fiber lobby. It's just quiet cheap, and it's healthy. And of course, it fills you up. So you eat less of it," Spector said.The easiest way to navigate food labels is to check the actual quantities of ingredients and serving sizes, to make sure you're getting what you want, Spector said. Not all processed foods are created equal, since certain types of processing can retain the nutrients you want.Spector's approach to getting enough nutrients is to aim to eat 30 different plants per week, including things like nuts, seeds, spices, coffee, and even high-quality chocolate.