Applications are developed and installed, but few companies evaluate them for true usefulness. Think in terms of the abilityof an app to deliver tangible and optimized value to the end business.Some of the characteristics of tangible, optimized value for applications include:Is the application easy for people to use?Does the application perform consistently well, with a minimal need for maintenance?Is all the functionality that an application contains fully used?What measurable gains does the application provide to the business?Is the application scalable?Ive visited with IT departments and asked them about these application usefulness questions. I cant think of one of them that told me that they checked for usefulness beyond making sure that user friendliness and ease of navigation were present in app user interfaces. To a lesser degree, they looked at how many times an application needed to be fixed or maintained.Does Usefulness Really Matter?The Merriam Webster dictionary defines usefulness as: The quality of having utility and especially practical worth or applicability.Almost every new IT application that is deployed has utility, applicability and some practical worth, but is that all there should be to useful?Related:Here is a real-life example:A healthcare company has a very user-friendly web portal that delivers a self-service feature for customers. Customers fill out their names, phone numbers, email addresses, and physical addresses for identity verification and mail/credit card verification. But that app overlooks that there are rural and some urban customers who get their mail at a postal box, and not at their physical address. These customers need two address entries on the form. There is no way for these customers to work with the online app, and they have to call a human agent, because the app isnt able to handle the exception.There are other situations as well, like the financial analytics report that was supposed to test-drive all risk scenarios, with a drill-down into the details. Yet, that is only being partially used to get a top-level picture. Or there is the workflow automation in a warehouse that was supposed to deliver a 30% savings in human labor, but it's failing the business because the automation is incapable of addressing special handling requirements, and humans must jump in.Most CIOs have seen examples like these in their own companies. Unfortunately, the hard realities of heavy IT workloads make considering the idea of true application usefulness more aspirational than practical.Related:Despite this, however, there are several practical steps that organizations can take.Building Usefulness into Application DevelopmentTo improve application usefulness without incurring significantly more expense and work hours for IT and the user side of the business, here are five simple steps that can be taken to improve app usefulness:1. Understand the business for today and for the future. Its common practice in projects to define the business metrics that an application should deliver, and then to measure expectations against performance once the app is in production. This telltale production feedback gives insights as to how well an app is delivering the business value that was promised.Beyond metrics, however, you can create more business usefulness by ensuring that senior developers, business analysts and user project members are well versed in the particulars of the business for which the app is being developed. They not only should understand the business strategies and pain points for today, but also that they are projecting what the business strategies and pain points will be in the future.IT can accomplish two important things if it emphasizes business thinking during the application development process: That the app will be highly relevant and responsive to business needs today; and that the app will be constructed in a way that it can be extended or scaled for future anticipated needs that will prolong the apps useful life.Related:2. Learn from your help desk and your customer service center. The maintenance and enhancement tickets and requests coming into the IT help desk from users, and the feedback and customer surveys that front-facing customer service agents get, can inform IT and users about where the organizations pain points, and process failures are; and how new applications can eliminate these pain points.The idea is to bring help desk and customer service data into initial application design meetings so lessons learned can be incorporated into upfront application design. In this way, the risks of pain point and process failure repetitions can be lowered, and usefulness can be enhanced.3. Meet regularly with middle management. Middle managers are the movers of daily operations. They have their boots on the ground, they know the internals of the business, and they know where applications have failed them in the past. IT leaders should make it a point to meet with these managers often and to cultivate good working relationships. This builds a cooperative spirit and improves everyones working knowledge of the business and IT.4. Include training in project plans.Training should be projectized and redefined as a QA function. If the training is performed and users are then tested on how well they learned and can execute an apps total functionality, business value and app usefulness will increase.5. Stress workflow and app simplification in all development efforts. Workforce critical thinking and basic comprehension skills are declining, and businesses are feeling this. Its all the more reason to simplify applications and also the business processes that they enable.Applications are more rapidly adopted when users understand and feel confident using them. The sooner apps are adopted, the sooner that they can begin paying dividends to the business.

This story was originally published in October 2024. In March 2025, 23andMe filed for bankruptcy and announced its plans to facilitate a sale process to maximize the value of its business. MIT Technology Review'sHow Toseries helps you get things done. Things arent looking good for 23andMe. The consumer DNA testing company recently parted ways with all its board members but CEO Anne Wojcicki over her plans to take the company private. Its also still dealing with the fallout of a major security breach last October, which saw hackers access the personal data of around 5.5 million customers. 23andMes business is built on taking saliva samples from its customers. The DNA from those samples is processed and analyzed in its labs to produce personalized genetic reports detailing a users unique health and ancestry. The uncertainty swirling around the companys future and potential new ownership has prompted privacy campaigners to urge users to delete their data. Its not just you. If anyone in your family gave their DNA to 23&Me, for all of your sakes, close your/their account now, Meredith Whittaker, president of the encrypted messaging platform Signal, posted on X after the boards resignation. "Customers should consider current threats to their privacy as well as threats that may exist in the futuresome of which may be magnified if 23AndMe were sold to a new owner," says Jason Kelley, activism director at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "23AndMe has protections around this much of this. But a potential sale could put your data in the hands of a far less scrupulous company." A spokesperson for 23andMe said that the company has strong customer privacy protections in place, and does not share customer data with third parties without customers consent. "Our research program is opt-in, requiring customers to go through a separate, informed consent process before joining," they say. We are committed to protecting customer data and are consistently focused on maintaining the privacy of our customers. That will not change. Why deleting your account comes with a caveat Deleting your data from 23andMe is permanent and cannot be reversed. But some of that data will be retained to comply with the companys legal obligations, according to its privacy statement. That means 23andMe and its third-party genotyping laboratory will hang onto some of your genetic information, plus your date of birth and sexalongside data linked to your account deletion request, including your email address and deletion request identifier. When MIT Technology Review asked 23andMe about the nature of the genetic information it retains, it referred us to its privacy policy but didn't provide any other details. Any information youve previously provided and consented to being used in 23andMe research projects also cannot be removed from ongoing or completed studies, although it will not be used in any future ones. Beyond the laboratories that process the saliva samples, the company does not share customer information with anyone else unless the user has given permission for it to do so, the spokesperson says, including employers, insurance companies, law enforcement agencies, or any public databases. We treat law enforcement inquiries, such as a valid subpoena or court order, with the utmost seriousness. We use all legal measures to resist any and all requests in order to protect our customer's privacy, the spokesperson says. To date, we have successfully challenged these requests and have not released any information to law enforcement. For those who still want their data deleted, heres how you go about it. How to delete your data from 23andMe Log into your account and navigate to Settings. Under Settings, scroll to the section titled 23andMe data. Select View. You may be asked to enter your date of birth for extra security. In the next section, youll be asked which, if any, personal data youd like to download from the company (onto a personal, not public, computer). Once youre finished, scroll to the bottom and select Permanently delete data. You should then receive an email from 23andMe detailing its account deletion policy and requesting that you confirm your request. Once you confirm youd like your data to be deleted, the deletion will begin automatically and youll immediately lose access to your account. What about your genetic sample? When you set up your 23andMe account, youre given the option either to have your saliva sample securely destroyed or to have it stored for future testing. If youve previously opted to store your sample but now want to delete your 23andMe account, the company says, it will destroy the sample for you as part of the account deletion process. What if you want to keep your genetic data, just not on 23andMe? Even if you want your data taken off 23AndMe, there are reasons why you might still want to have it hosted on other DNA sitesfor genealogical research, for example. And some people like the idea of having their DNA results stored on more than one database in case something happens to any one company. This is where downloading your data comes into play. FamilyTreeDNA, MyHeritage, GEDmatch, and Living DNA are among the DNA testing companies that allow you to upload existing DNA results from other companies, although Ancestry and 23andMe dont accept uploads. How to download your raw genetic data Navigate directly to you.23andme.com/tools/data/. Click on your profile name on the top right-hand corner. Then select Resources from the menu. Select Browse raw genotyping data and then Download. Visit Account settings and click on View under 23andMe data. Enter your date of birth for security purposes. Tick the box indicating that you understand the limitations and risks associated with uploading your information to third-party sites and press Submit request. 23andMe warns its users that uploading their data to other services could put genetic data privacy at risk. For example, bad actors could use someone elses DNA data to create fake genetic profiles. They could use these profiles to match with a relative and access personal identifying information and specific DNA variantssuch as information about any disease risk variants you might carry, the spokesperson says, adding: This is one reason why we dont support uploading DNA to 23andMe at this time. Update: This article has been updated to reflect that when asked about the nature of the genetic information it retains, 23andMe referred us to its privacy policy but didn't provide any other details.

The only thing worse than being homeless in America is not being considered homeless in America, says Brian Goldstone, a journalist and ethnographer. Americas homelessness crisis extends far beyond what we see on the streets, and Goldstone wants us to pay attention to those who are hidden from public view. In his new book, There Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America, Goldstone examines the lives of families caught in extended-stay motels, sleeping in cars, or shuffling between precarious arrangements situations that often leave them uncounted in official homeless statistics despite housing instability. His reporting challenges the longstanding American narrative connecting homelessness with unemployment or an unwillingness to work.I spoke with Goldstone about the distinction between falling and being pushed into homelessness, the stigma attached to the homeless label, and his perspective on what meaningful solutions might require. Our conversation has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.You note that many people with unstable housing situations resist identifying as homeless. How does this reluctance to adopt the label affect both individuals experiences and our collective understanding of the housing crisis?There is absolutely a stigma attached to the term homeless and theres also a way in which HUDs prevailing definition of homelessness where only those who are sleeping on the streets or in homeless shelters count has filtered into the public narrative and the public imagination. The people Im writing about in my book belong to that public they themselves often dont recognize themselves as homeless when theyre doubling up with friends or sleeping in motels. Theyre often surprised to learn, for example, that their kids schools, and the Department of Education, do consider them homeless if theyre in those situations. These official metrics and official ways of conceptualizing the problem absolutely impact the people experiencing it on a psychological level.One person in my book, Celeste, her house burns down and when she finds she can basically secure no other apartment because an eviction has been filed against her, she and her son wind up at this extended stay hotel. At some point a social worker at her sons elementary school gave her this homeless resource list. But Celeste was like, Im not putting that homeless label on me and my kids. Part of it was this idea that she didnt want to speak something into existence, she didnt want to make this homeless category her identity. But in practical terms, she also ignored those resources until she was later diagnosed with cancer and she realizes that shes in this hotel trap thats virtually impossible to get out of.So there was that tension of refusing the [homeless] category, but then realizing she needs the category. We have a measure of poverty in America and a lot of people who fall under the poverty threshold dont want to necessarily think of themselves as impoverished, but that that definition and threshold is absolutely essential for determining and parceling out resources. Most of the reporting for your book was done before homelessness really blew up post-pandemic as a political issue in the US, with encampments and then the Supreme Court case. Tell me about your decision to not bring that more recent history into the book.I didnt know a pandemic was coming, but in retrospect, I think its really important to show that the emergency that we became more aware of during the pandemic when we saw how absolutely threadbare the social safety net was was already well on its way. The pandemic intensified rather than produced this housing catastrophe. As far as how all this relates to the encampment sweeps, the criminalization of homelessness, the war on unhoused people that has been unleashed and given the green light by the Grants Pass decision, I tried to not draw a clear line of demarcation between the kind of homelessness that has become the object of those sorts of crackdowns, and the more invisible or hidden population that Im writing about, which are largely working families. By and large these tents on the street are like the tip of the iceberg, and thats the most extreme edge of homelessness in America. A lot of the people Im writing about in the book are like whats under the water surface. But its important to say that this is all one giant iceberg. The more extreme and acute this emergency gets, the more visible it becomes, because it simply pushes up to the surface. But until we address whats under that surface or or out of view, that visibility will continue. There just wont be enough places for it to hide, so to speak.Other countries have for-profit housing systems but dont experience our level of homelessness. Based on your reporting, do you see a way forward that could maintain aspects of our current system while meaningfully addressing homelessness, or does the solution require more fundamental change?I hesitate to enter directly into debates over market-rate housing and zoning reform and tenant rights and rent control. My own view is that we need everything like that, and nothing on its own is going to be sufficient. The only thing that might truly be sufficient is a massive investment at every level of government in social housing. I think that we can only convince ourselves that these kinds of half measures are adequate when we have narrowed the scope, magnitude and nature of the crisis. I dont think that a few tiny homes here or a couple of permanent supportive housing units over there are anywhere close to what we need to truly address the magnitude and severity of this problem. But it doesnt mean that we dont also need those things. So yes, something fundamental has to change in how we approach housing in America. Some of your characters developed a fairly cynical view of the homeless services industry, and we have a new Republican administration casting doubt on the idea of more subsidies to help. Certainly reading your book one could see a little bit how that might be true. What is your own view now? I think the current system is very much working within the constraints that have been imposed on this world of homeless services, and in many cases theyre doing the best they can with what they have. Homeless service providers have been told to prioritize those who according to certain scholars and experts on this issue are most at immediate risk of dying on the street and so theyre trying to ration out scarce resources. I think the problem is not the system itself. Its what has shaped that system. You focused a lot in your book on extended stay hotels and motels which are these last-resort options where people pay a lot of money for pretty poor quality conditions, receive none of the traditional tenant protections, and are often not counted as officially homeless when staying there, even as they cant afford to go anywhere else. They exist in such a gray area of our housing conversation. How are you thinking about these places today?For the thousands and thousands of families and individuals living at these extended stay hotels, which are effectively for-profit homeless shelters, theyre places where the casualties of Americas housing crisis have been consigned and then people find it almost impossible to leave. The way I think about them often is like the only thing worse than being homeless in America is not being considered homeless in America. The only thing worse than being a low-income tenant in America is not even having the privilege of being considered a tenant. I think the people living in these hotels are at once the most vulnerable renters in America and the most vulnerable homeless people in America. And I know it sounds paradoxical that those two things can coexist, but I think thats what makes these places so important for us to reckon with.You write that families arent falling into homelessness, theyre being pushed. Who or what is doing this pushing, and how does that change how we think about addressing the problem?Theres this language of falling into homelessness, which almost makes it seem like someone tripped, or like theyve been struck by a natural disaster. That theres something, unavoidable, beyond their control, beyond anyones control, and it just kind of happened to them. I argue in my book that the immense wealth accumulating in cities across America, and the revitalization of urban space, isnt just sort of existing alongside this deprivation and precarity, but that its actively producing it. And so when I talk about people being pushed into homelessness and this kind of insecurity, Im really trying to insist on that causal relationship. You highlight the working homeless throughout your book people who have jobs yet still lack stable housing. How does this reality challenge the longstanding American narrative that connects homelessness with unemployment or unwillingness to work?Many people in this country, especially those who are not experiencing this precarity themselves, have needed to believe a story about poverty and homelessness that says if people just work harder, if they just get a job, they will be okay. Yet in some cases, certain jobs can actually make it even more likely that homelessness will be waiting for you and I think thats really, really hard for us to come to terms with. What was so shocking to me is just seeing people work and work and work and work some more and work some more after that and its never enough. Its never enough to secure their most basic material needs, housing being the most essential, arguably, among them. That reality is not new, that didnt just happen in the last few years, but the scale is new. People across the political spectrum almost need to believe certain things about homelessness because acknowledging the reality calls into question too many of the fundamental assumptions that we in the United States hold dear, like the necessity for hard work. And Im saying that hard work is not enough in this country.See More:

The second Trump administration has shown remarkable aggression in abruptly canceling hundreds of millions of dollars in research grants at elite universities in an effort to force them to make major policy changes in line with the presidents politics.Trump officials revoked $400 million in research funding to Columbia University (illegally, per experts). Theyve also paused $175 million in funds to the University of Pennsylvania.Thats likely just the start. Theyve threatened dozens of other schools. And the National Institutes for Health (NIH) is also trying to change its research funding formula in a way that would hit elite universities particularly hard.The administrations demands on these schools include cracking down on protesters of Israels war in Gaza, disallowing trans women athletes from womens sports teams, and ending the practice of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in admissions and campus life. For Columbia, Trump officials even demanded the Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African studies department be taken out of the hands of its current leadership a threat to academic freedom from the state.All this fits into a larger strategy. Right-wingers have increasingly come to believe that elite universities are one of the main incubators of woke cultural progressivism; that, by advancing left-wing ideas about various issues and socializing young Americans into believing them, they help progressives dominate the culture. Winning the culture war, they believe, requires a more aggressive attack on elite universities to hurt them, and to coerce them into being more sympathetic to the right.And Trump officials believe the tens of billions of dollars in research funding the federal government provides to academic institutions gives them leverage to make this happen.They are apparently correct in this belief. On Friday, Columbia agreed to give in to various demands Trump officials had made, including giving campus police new powers to arrest student protesters and taking its Middle Eastern studies department away from its current leadership. (Trump officials have not yet said theyll restore the revoked $400 million.)All this comes at a cost to the nation. One key reason Republican presidents havent tried anything like this before: This research funding is largely for scientific and medical research, generally not for woke or political stuff. Until recently, there was bipartisan agreement that such research funds shouldnt be used to play political games. Now, though, its being used as a weapon in the rights war against the left.I think that putting the universities into contraction, into a recession, into declining budgets, into a greater competitive market pressure, would discipline them, conservative activist Christopher Rufo said recently. He wanted to threaten federal funding to universities, he said, to put them in an existential terror. Which is exactly whats happening. How elite universities came to rely on federal funding and how conservatives realized this was leverageAs World War II made the US a global superpower and the Cold War pitted it against the Soviet Union, the federal government provided a huge commitment of research funds to try to make the US the global leader in science and technology. Much of that funding went to higher education institutions, funding for labs, experiments, and other studies from university-affiliated researchers. (Student loans, meanwhile, became another hugely important source of federal funds to universities.)For nearly as long, elite universities have drawn the ire of conservatives who have argued that theyre poisoning the minds of Americas youth with their far-left ways, while being intolerant toward the right. For instance, when protests over the Vietnam War and other social justice issues dominated campuses in the late 1960s and early 1970s, President Richard Nixon seethed in the Oval Office: The professors are the enemy. Professors are the enemy. Write that on the blackboard 100 times and never forget it. Though Nixons administration and state governments wanted new laws punishing universities, few of these measures passed and fewer were enforced, historian Ellen Schrecker has written. Further national controversies in which conservatives were angry about happenings at elite universities also tended to fizzle out.Over the past decade, though, elite universities have become increasingly central to the rights narrative about what ails America and conservatives have gotten more serious about trying to do something about it.Many on the right have spent much of the past decade seething about the Great Awokening the leftward move of the culture around race, gender, and sexuality in the mid-to-late 2010s. Incidents at colleges and universities involving the alleged mistreatment of conservatives or people with non-left views got attention in the national media, and similar controversies soon unfolded across American society.Influential voices on the right argued that wokeness was in large part created by elite universities. Rufo, for instance, argued that it was the evolution of a legal scholarship school known as critical race theory, and that to defeat it, conservatives needed to go after elite universities.The blogger Curtis Yarvin, meanwhile, had argued for years that progressives dominated the countrys culture because of the Cathedral elite academic and media institutions that, in his telling, set the bounds of acceptable political discourse and distort reality to fit their preferred ideological frames. Such explanations like these seemed to ring true to those on the right frustrated by the leftward cultural shift. It named a specific enemy that could be fought against, as part of a strategy for gaining cultural power for the right.So by 2021, then-Senate candidate (and Yale Law School alum) JD Vance was arguing that conservatives have to honestly and aggressively attack the universities in this country. So much of what drives truth and knowledge as we understand it in this country, Vance said, is fundamentally determined by universities who are very hostile to the right. Why, he asked, had conservatives accepted that state of affairs? Wasnt it time to do something about it?Why the second Trump administration finally went through with trying to defund universitiesThe idea of pulling federal research funding from universities due to excessive wokeness was kicking around during the first Trump administration. Trump even signed an executive order that he claimed would do this back in 2019. But this turned out to be mostly toothless. The appetite to punish universities was not yet so strong to make it really happen.In the early 2020s, though, the rights backlash against academia intensified further, due to new controversies.The second Trump administration is far more willing to bend and blatantly break the law, to try and get what they want.Part of this was specifically a backlash against the medical establishment. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the rights distrust of scientists and public health experts deepened, due to vaccine skepticism and other controversies. So putting medical research funding at risk no longer seemed so unthinkable to them; indeed, it was arguably desirable.As secretary of the Department Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. now oversees much of this research spending through the NIH. Kennedy and his allies seem not just willing but downright eager to take a wrecking ball to the medical research status quo. ($250 million of the frozen $400 million in Columbia funds was NIH funding.)Meanwhile, a separate backlash began, in response to campus protests against Israels war in Gaza. Many students and faculty members supported the protests, but others including major donors opposed them, and argued Jewish students had become newly unsafe on campus. Trump took this up as a cause: His threats to Columbia came through his new Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism.A final reason this attack on universities is happening now is that the second Trump administration is far more willing to bend and blatantly break the law, to try and get what they want. The revocation of Columbias funds, analysts have said, is illegal. Cornell Law School professor Michael Dorf wrote that the federal government can cut off funding to punish civil rights violations, but only after a lengthy process. Instead, perhaps inspired by Elon Musks move fast and break the law approach, Trump officials just went ahead and did it.Wheres the pushback?All this seems to be working out quite well for the administration so far, as universities appear to be conceding to their demands. Some schools are being proactive: The University of California announced last week that it would drop mandatory diversity statements from its hiring process.And despite the seeming illegality of Trump revoking Columbias funds, the school didnt sue in court to try and stop it. Columbia instead opted to seek an agreement with Trump officials. Per the Wall Street Journals Douglas Belkin, the university feared that a court fight would simply spur Trumps team to find other legal avenues to take back those or other funds. (Columbia receives far more in federal funding that wasnt yet revoked.)So it seems that Trump officials and right-wing activists really did figure out how to effectively use federal funds as leverage to coerce universities. Such cuts would be devastating and universities deeply want to avoid them.But Belkins Columbia sources cited another reason for the schools concession: The schools leadership also believed there was considerable overlap between needed campus changes and Trumps demands.So university trustees and administrators, according to this reporting, believed the Gaza war protests had gone too far and needed to be reined in. At least in part, they were using Trumps demands as an excuse to make changes they wanted to make anyway.This is part of a broader dynamic, in which many elites formerly sympathetic to left causes or at least unwilling to fight them have turned against the left. Many progressives, meanwhile, seem exhausted and disillusioned, and are no longer fighting back with much fervor. It isnt the first Trump administration anymore, when social justice activists felt the arc of history was bending in their direction.The implications here are ominous. Trumps research funding extortion worked so well that he (and future Republican presidents) will surely be encouraged to use similar tactics again and again. Could a precondition for future federal funds be obeisance to the conservative agenda? How in the world can a situation where universities are so dependent on federal cash coexist with long-term academic freedom?See More:

TechPokemon TCG Destined Rivals: How to preorder new set after scalpers buy first waveThe Pokemon Trading Card Game's latest set, Destined Rivals, was instantly snapped up by scalpers and resellers yesterday, but we've been digging through retailers to find a way to preorderdailystarBookmarkShareTechByLloyd CoombesGaming Editor10:50, 25 MAR 2025BookmarkWill you choose good or evil?Pokemon Trading Card Game has "never been more popular in the UK", Peter Murphy, Senior Director of Marketing at The Pokemon Company International told us on Pokemon Day and it's fair to say that's the sentiment for anyone looking to jump on preorders for the latest set, Destined Rivals. Revealed yesterday, scalpers and resellers instantly swooped, meaning many of the products are already being sold on the secondary market at steep mark-ups. Before you console yourself with Pokemon TCG Pocket, fear not we've rounded up some of the best places to buy the set on this page so you can check back regularly. What is Pokemon TCG Destined Rivals? Ho-Oh will feature As is common with Pokemon TCG, Destined Rivals sees some of the Japanese sets merged for Western audiences. This time around, it's Heat Wave Arena and The Glory of Team Rocket. The set will include the following when it launches on May 30: Over 240 cards Over 85 Trainers Pokmon, including over 45 Team Rockets Pokmon More than 15 Pokmon ex More than 20 Trainer cards More than 45 Pokmon and Trainer cards with special illustrations "Pokmon Trainers, be on high alert! The nefarious Team Rocket is setting its latest plan into motion, and heroic Trainers are racing to stop it. Join forces with the likes of Cynthia and Garchomp ex, Ethan and Ho-Oh ex, or Arven and Mabosstiff ex Or reconsider your loyalties and fight alongside Team Rockets Pokmon like Mewtwo exunder the command of Giovanni!" the set's website description reads. "Choose a side, assemble your allies, and battle boldly in the Pokmon TCG: Scarlet & VioletDestined Rivals expansion!" The set will come in Booster Packs, Booster Boxes, Elite Trainer Boxes (and the Pokemon Center Exclusive ones), Boost Bundles and more. How to preorder Pokemon's TCG game is even more popular than it was when it first came to the UK (Image: Getty Images) Sadly, it's not easy to get your hands on the Destined Rivals set for now, but there will be more opportunities ahead of its launch at the end of May. We've rounded up a series of retailer links below that should help you out be sure to bookmark this page and check back regularly. You can also order directly from The Pokemon Center, but we've seen it go down for maintenance after the initial rush. As a result, we'd be wary in case the same happens again. Why is the set so popular? Ready for Cynthia's Garchomp ex? All Pokemon TCG sets are popular, but Destined Rivals' inclusion of Team Rocket Pokemon seems to have made the community very excited. Across the set, there's Team Rocket's Mewtwo ex, Cynthia's Garchomp ex, and Ethan's Ho-Oh ex which are likely to be big chase cards for collectors. For more on Pokemon products, be sure to check out all we know about LEGO Pokemon a match made in heaven. For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters. Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.More On

When your doorbell rings, are you still getting up and opening the door open to see whos there? That could lead to results ranging from annoying door-to-door salespeople to potentially dangerous fake solicitors and scam artists. If you put off getting a video doorbell because they were expensive or hard to install, heres a little update for you: The Blink Video Doorbell can be installed wirelessly in just minutes, and its only $33 during a limited-time deal at Amazon, down from $59 (45% off).See at AmazonThis is the most recent iteration of the Blink, with 1080p hi-res daytime video and infrared night vision so you get a clear look at whos at your door without having to open it, and 2-way audio so you can let them know youre coming or tell them to buzz off. Motion detection gives you the alert that someones approaching before they reach the door.This version of the Blink can be hardwired so it rings through your existing doorbell chime, or it can be set up wirelessly with alerts coming to your smartphone or other Alexa-enabled device. This 45% off Amazon deal brings the Blinks price down from $60 nearly all the way back to its Black Friday pricing.Great Deal Gets Even BetterAmazons also giving you a chance to knock down that $33 price on the Blink Video Doorbell even more, with up to 20% off if you have any devices to trade in. If you have an older Blink or other video doorbell, this is a great chance to upgrade and save money at the same time.See at AmazonIf you opt for the wireless installation, youll go from unboxing to active monitoring in mere minutes. When unwired, the Blink runs on two AA batteries (included), and the battery life is exceptional. Sign up for a free 30-day trial of the Blink Subscription Plan to use the Blink to its full capacity, with the ability to save or share video clips in the cloud. Amazons Sync Module 2 and a USB drive (sold separately) will also allow you to save video clips taken by the Blink, and with the Sync Module 2 or a hardwired installation, you can simply ask Alexa to answer the door for you.Answer From AnywhereWith the Blink app on your smartphone or an Alexa-enabled screen like an Echo or Fire, you can receive alerts set off by the doorbell or the motion detector, and also see live images from the Blinks camera wherever you are, with a horizontal range of 135 degrees and vertical range of 80 degrees. You can also answer the door and speak to whoevers there through your smartphone or Alexa-enabled device.Opening your door blindly whenever the doorbell rings just isnt worth the risk, and the days of expensive video doorbells requiring complicated installation are long gone. The Blink Video Doorbell has the motion detection, quality video, and connectivity options you need to keep your home safe, and its only $33 at Amazon right now.See at Amazon

By Matt Novak Published March 25, 2025 | Comments (0) | Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in a photo released by the U.S. military on March 20, 2025. Photo: DVIDS / U.S. Air Force Senior Airman Madelyn Keech The editor-in-chief of the Atlantic revealed Monday that he had been in a Signal group chat with top defense officials as they discussed plans for strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen. Jeffrey Goldberg writes that he was mistakenly added to the chat, which included Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Vice President JD Vance, among others. And all of the pearl-clutching from Republicans for years about the sanctity of protecting classified data really rings hollow right about now. Whatever you think of Hillary Clinton and the decisions she made in her campaign for president against Trump in 2016, this really does seem like her moment to shine. Clinton shared the Atlantic story on Monday with the words you have got to be kidding me. Trump was asked about the breach during a press conference on Monday and insisted it was the first time he was hearing about it. Trump asked about his Cabinet officials including Jeffrey Goldberg on a secret war plan Signal exchange: I dont know anything about it. Im not a big fan of the Atlantic. To me, its a magazine thats going out of business. Its not much of a magazine, but I know nothing about it. [image or embed] Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona.bsky.social) March 24, 2025 at 11:48 AM Republicans acted like Clintons email server was the most important thing in the world in 2016, including Marco Rubio, the guy whos now Donald Trumps Secretary of State. Hegseth himself was extremely distressed by Clintons handling of classified data back in 2016. Apparently the standard operating procedure inside the Clinton Secretary of State Office was to send emails that couldnt otherwise be printed to the maid to print them out of a secure area or from a secure area and then hand them off, Hegseth told Fox News before the 2016 election.Any security professional, military, government or otherwise, would be fired on the spot for this type of conduct and criminally prosecuted for being so reckless with this kind of information, Hegseth continued. The fact that she wouldnt be held accountable for this, I think blows the mind of anyone whos held our nations secrets dear, whos had a top secret clearance like I have and others who know that even one hiccup causes a problem, let alone a standard procedure. Trump himself said in 2016 that he would prosecute anyone who mishandled classified information, claiming that no one will be above the law. Even elected Democrats got in on the fun, ridiculing the past statements of some members of the group chat like Tulsi Gabbard. Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota shared a screenshot of Gabbard from less than two weeks ago. Circling back on this [image or embed] Senator Tina Smith (@smith.senate.gov) March 24, 2025 at 12:09 PM Unfortunately, hypocrisy doesnt really seem to matter much during the Trump era. Its an odd place to be for those of us old enough to remember late 20th and early 21st century politics. Hypocrisy was something that could sink your political career. A Republican hiring an undocumented maid? Devastating in 2010. The Daily Shows entire premise in the first decade of this century was look at these politicians being hypocritical. But those times are long gone. And it doesnt matter if Trump or anybody else in his government isnt adhering to the standards they set in years gone by. All that matter is the exercise of power. And thats what were going to be living with for as long as Trump and his goons get to run this country.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By Lucas Ropek Published March 24, 2025 By Matt Novak Published March 21, 2025 By Matt Novak Published February 18, 2025 By Matt Novak Published February 13, 2025 By Matt Novak Published February 11, 2025 By Matt Novak Published January 30, 2025

Designing Inclusive Cities: The Role of Universal Design in Creating Accessible Urban AtmospheresPresented by:Save this picture!Azatlyk, Central Square of Naberezhnye Chelny / DROM. Image Dmitry ChebanenkoContemporary cities are vibrant, complex, and constantly evolving. Above all, they are ever-changing, mutable, and diverse. What transformative changes are occurring, and where are they leading us? Urbanization continues to gain momentum in many regions of the world, generating visible and structural transformations. As this unfolds, data on the evolution of its configuration and the challenges we encounter begin to emerge. According to the World Bank, the urban population will continue to trend upward, with 90% of new urban residents concentrated in Africa and Asia. This growth raises essential questions: How can we consolidate a design approach that ensures equitable access to spaces, resources, and services? How can we make emerging and consolidated metropolises more inclusive and accessible?The configuration of many cities often creates barriers that hinder the participation of all people in their dynamics, as if there were fissures in the urban atmosphere that affect cohesion and inclusion. The rapid growth of the older adult population and the fact that over half of all people with disabilities reside in urban areas further emphasizes this reality. By 2050, the number of people aged 65 and over will double the number of those under five and almost equal the number under 12.Save this picture!Urban atmospheres, as a whole, form a web of interdependent connections. Each element contributes to a system that must continuously integrate into a cohesive model, extending from the crosswalk to a building's rooftop. From the door to the next point in the urban chain, alongside sidewalks and building interiors, forms a cohesive wholea city that, in response to ongoing demographic and social changes, requires new design strategies to foster accessibility and inclusion. Could the system become fragmented in the short and long term if it doesn't account for people's diversity?Save this picture!Going Beyond the Standard Adult ModelBy the middle of the 20th century, Le Corbusier conceived his anthropometric prototype, the Modulor. However, some points of view have challenged this model's representation of the human scale, arguing that it reflects a young adult, healthy man. Rather than challenging Le Corbusier's vision, this is an example of how, on a societal level, a universal vision that considers fundamental elements such as gender, physical conditions, and age, among others, had not been adopted to shape our environment.Incorporating more inclusive perspectives into design recognizes that the experience of space varies according to factors such as gender, age, physical abilities, and cognitive or emotional conditions. Cities that have adopted gender-responsive approaches to urbanism, for example, have identified ways to improve safety in public transportation, redistribute the use of shared spaces, and design environments that promote more significant equity in everyday life. Ultimately, a purely standardized perspective omits diverse experiences and needs that influence how we inhabit contemporary space. Cities have traditionally been designed based on a prototypical user, often overlooking how different bodies, identities, and lifestyles interact with the built environment. It is increasingly evident that there is no fully defined standard adult model.Save this picture!Integrating more inclusive approaches transforms how we conceive public space and urban infrastructure, rather than simply adapting regulations or complying with an agenda. From the furniture arrangement to the organization of urban routes, every design decision can expand or restrict accessibility and a sense of belonging. Creating urban environments that contemplate human diversity responds to a question of equity and enriches the urban experience, promoting more livable cities for all people.Save this picture!Designing "Age-Friendly" Multi-Generational CitiesConsidering different ages in urban planning is fundamental to creating environments that accompany the various stages of life. Children need safe and empowering public spaces for play and exploration, while adolescents need socialization areas beyond shopping mall consumption. For elders and people with disabilities, accessibility, adequate street furniture, and proximity to services are essential to maintaining autonomy. Initiatives that seek to rethink public space are increasingly common.Even aspects such as the speed at which we walk determine how we inhabit the city. This physical factor shows that, throughout our lives, our experience of public space and urban atmospheres changes, both because the environment evolves and because we inevitably age. At this intersection of circumstances, we can explore a high potential for innovation for our cities to find a multi-generational vision.Save this picture!Creating cities that respond to the needs of different age groups improves the quality of life and fosters interaction between generations, strengthening the social fabric. Building age-friendly cities is necessary if we want livable environments that offer a tangible quality of life, reflecting and connecting all life cycle stages in urban design.The global urban-demographic evolution, within the framework of an inclusive and universal design perspective, does not require discarding previous models but expanding them to respond to a more diverse and dynamic society. The city must stop being just a reflection of a standard and become a space capable of welcoming all its inhabitants in all their plurality. Cities can be challenging to manage, but it is precisely in this complexity that opportunities for new dynamics emerge, influenced by statistical fluctuations, massive displacements of people, and openness to new visions of the world. Ultimately, cities and the traces we leave in them stand as some of the most significant testimonies of human evolution in the built environment.Save this picture!This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: Atmosphere in Architecture and Perception of Space, proudly presented by Vitrocsa, the original minimalist windows since 1992.Vitrocsa created the original minimalist window systems, offering frameless solutions with the narrowest sightline barriers in the world. For over 30 years, we have pursued innovation and Swiss-made excellence to transform ambitious architectural visions into reality, enhancing atmospheres through light, transparency, and design.Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and architecture projects. We invite you to learn more about our ArchDaily Topics. And, as always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us.Image gallerySee allShow lessAbout this authorEnrique TovarAuthorCite: Enrique Tovar. "Designing Inclusive Cities: The Role of Universal Design in Creating Accessible Urban Atmospheres" 25 Mar 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1028012/designing-inclusive-cities-the-role-of-universal-design-in-creating-accessible-urban-atmospheres&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

Airship Hangar Replacement Construction / Smyk Fischer ArchitektenSave this picture! Annika FeussArchitects: Smyk Fischer ArchitektenAreaArea of this architecture projectArea:3784 mYearCompletion year of this architecture project Year: 2023 PhotographsPhotographs:Annika Feuss, Stefan Lamberty, WDLManufacturersBrands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers: Kalzip GmbH, W. u. J. Derix GmbH & Co. More SpecsLess SpecsSave this picture!Text description provided by the architects. The construction of an airship hangar is already an exceptional undertaking, presenting a range of challenges. However, designing the hangar in line with sustainability principles adds a layer of complexity, as it is not only the home for the airship "Theo" and other future airships, but also a multifunctional event hall for up to 1,500 people. Sustainability goals were clearly defined from the start, mandating the use of renewable and recyclable materials. As a result, the project achieved the DGNB Gold certification, the most important label for building sustainability in Germany.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Contemporary Reinterpretation - The airship hangar has long been a defining landmark and a crucial part of the history of Mlheim an der Ruhr. The new hangar directly reflects the distinctive shape of its predecessors, but with a modern touch. The outer design features a fully recyclable aluminum facade. The fine vertical lines of the standing seam facade accentuate the building's shape, creating various interplays of light and shadow throughout the day. Function and aesthetics merge into a sculptural, almost abstract work of architecture.Save this picture!The homogenous shape of the building is interrupted by a strip of windows on the west side. The glass gap adds a sense of lightness and transparency while offering expansive views of the airfield and the tower. The warm wooden construction inside contrasts with the cool exterior, emphasizing the interior's welcoming atmosphere. The fully enclosed east side of the hangar comes into its own when the gates are opened. The massive gates, weighing 72 tons each, glide open like a theater curtain, creating an imposing ensemble when open. Each door spans 400 m, and four 60 kW motors provide the torque to move them in just three minutes, offering a dramatic frame for the airship's arrival or departure.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Innovation as an Expression of Responsibility - Measuring 90 x 42 meters, the hangar's size is comparable to a football field. Its highest point reaches 26 meters, with a gross volume of 71,000 m. Beyond its impressive dimensions, the hangar showcases technical and structural innovations. Notably, wood was used as the main material for the supporting structure and connections. The structure comprises 557 tons of wood from German forests, arranged in a timber frame design. The 15 two-hinged frames span 42 meters. The truss girders were constructed using pure timber connections. Connecting panels made of laminated veneer lumber were used, joined with hardwood dowels. The roof structure, made of large-format laminated timber panels, serves both as structural reinforcement and provides sound and thermal insulation.Save this picture!Circular Building and CO2 Savings - The original foundations were crushed and recycled on-site to serve as the base for the new hangar floor. The new visible floor slab is made from recycled concrete slabs from a nearby construction site, minimizing transportation emissions. Through careful material selection and reuse, 156 tons of CO2 were saved. This project seamlessly combines engineering, architecture, and sustainability. It represents the fusion of innovation and ecological responsibility, setting a benchmark for the region.Save this picture!Project gallerySee allShow lessAbout this officeMaterialsMaterials and TagsPublished on March 25, 2025Cite: "Airship Hangar Replacement Construction / Smyk Fischer Architekten" 25 Mar 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1028263/airship-hangar-replacement-construction-smyk-fischer-architekten&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

Crashing the Boys Club: Women Entering Cybersecurity Through Non-Traditional PathsBy John P. Mello Jr.March 25, 2025 5:00 AM PT ADVERTISEMENTB2B Online Chicago Get in the GameGreat teams win with great plays. At B2B Online Chicago, youll get the strategies top eCommerce and digital marketing pros are using to drive growth. Dont sit on the sidelines - get in the game. Use code B2BCHI25PARTNER for 20% off. Although many women take the traditional IT route into cybersecurity, a large portion (37%) have entered cyber from non-IT or military positions, according to a survey released Friday by ISC2, the organization that maintains and administers the Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) certification exam.The organization reported that a significantly higher percentage of women than men who participated in the same study have leveraged education, professional development, self-initiated experience opportunities, and apprenticeships to pursue their careers.The report also noted that 56% of women respondents said their organizations are already changing their hiring requirements to bring in more people from non-cybersecurity backgrounds. This is illustrative of employer efforts globally to widen the potential cybersecurity talent pool without compromising standards, the report maintained.This is something that we currently observe not only in cybersecurity but in tech roles in general, said ydrn Vitait, business unit manager for Monitum, a software-as-a-service company specializing in smart security solutions with offices in Sweden and Lithuania, and a co-founder of Women Go Tech, an NGO that focuses on empowering women in the tech industry.First of all, women who had previously built careers in different sectors have more diverse backgrounds, stronger problem-solving skills, and advanced pattern recognition skills, she told TechNewsWorld.Another key advantage here is transferable skills, she continued. Such women can work in dynamic environments, where not only knowledge but traits such as curiosity, problem-solving, creativity, and other aspects matter.From our experience in re- and up-skilling programs, we have seen adult women in their thirties to forties deciding to shift from non-tech to tech, and they do it exceptionally successfully, she added.Non-IT Backgrounds Open Cybersecurity DoorsThomas Vick, a technology hiring and consulting expert at Robert Half, a global staffing and recruiting firm, explained that hiring individuals with non-IT backgrounds can often bring diverse perspectives and problem-solving approaches shaped by their unique experiences.For example, there is a growing demand for interpersonal and management skills in IT roles, underscoring the importance of understanding and integrating business methodologies into technological development, he told TechNewsWorld.Professionals with strong communication, critical thinking, and project management experience can often enhance an IT teams effectiveness, he added. Their varied experiences often lead to creative solutions and a more holistic understanding of the work being done.Alyson Laderman, CEO of Akylade, a provider of cybersecurity certifications with offices in Florida, pointed out that it can be difficult for women to gain IT experience because it, too, is a male-dominated field.The problem is worse now because of shrinking opportunities, she added. Theres not as many of those entry-level-type IT positions to get into to be able to start there and then move up to cyber, she told TechNewsWorld. So I think what youre seeing is a shift in the workforce in general, both in terms of gender, but also in terms of opportunity as to IT being a feeder into cybersecurity. Teresa Rothaar, a governance, risk, and compliance analyst with Keeper Security, a password management and online storage company in Chicago, noted that the climate for women in cybersecurity has been showing signs of improvement over the past few years. However, it still faces substantial challenges, she told TechNewsWorld. Significant work still needs to be done to ensure equal opportunities and a supportive environment for women in this industry.Ongoing challenges to womens advancement in cybersecurity include significant underrepresentation, as women remain notably outnumbered in cybersecurity roles despite efforts to close the gap, and men continue to dominate the field, particularly in leadership and technical positions, she said.The workplace culture in many cybersecurity environments can be unwelcoming to women, with issues such as gender bias, lack of recognition, and sometimes a hostile work environment hindering their progress and retention in the field, she continued.Gender pay gaps persist in cybersecurity, with women often earning less than their male counterparts for similar roles, a disparity that is particularly pronounced in tech fields, she added. Women in cybersecurity also face barriers to career advancement, including fewer opportunities for promotions and leadership roles, as well as a lack of support for continuing education and professional development.Education as Pathway Into CyberThe ISC2 report also noted that alongside the strong percentage of candidates leveraging IT experience to get into cybersecurity, advanced education was a significant pathway into these roles, although more so for women than men.Nearly a quarter (24%) of women respondents said they came in with a cybersecurity-related undergraduate degree (compared to 18% of men), and 23% of women (18% of men) entered a cybersecurity role with an undergraduate degree in a field not directly linked to cybersecurity.In addition, 18% of women respondents (12% of men) noted that they held an advanced degree a postgraduate qualification such as a masters or a doctorate in a cybersecurity-related subject before taking up a cybersecurity role. For non-cybersecurity advanced degrees, 16% of women respondents (11% of men) held these qualifications before entering the cybersecurity workforce. Men get hired on potential. Women get hired on proven ability, Laderman argued. Women are almost required to get that higher education, get more experience, to be able to show that they are of the same value of what typically men would be potentially capable of doing.Its clearly not a fair standard, but its something I myself have been through, she added.Vitait noted that women in her organizations programs also tend to have higher education levels and many certificates in various subjects. Unfortunately, this is a consequence of lower self-esteem and willingness to boost confidence and employability with hard knowledge, she said.Women also tend to apply later in the process of a career shift, she continued. They want to build a knowledge base and prove it via formal and informal education. Only later do they apply for the roles usually when they meet 80% to 90% of the requirements. Men tend to apply to the roles much earlier and learn on the go.Value of Cybersecurity CertificationsAnother finding by the ISC2 report was that beyond career and formal education, women place a significant emphasis on certifications and professional development to support their efforts when securing and furthering a cybersecurity career path. Holding a cybersecurity certification before entering their first job in cybersecurity was cited by 18% of women respondents and 16% of men.Because cybersecurity is a relatively new field, certifications are a great way for professionals to transition into it from another field, said Julia Toothacre, a career strategist, coach, and owner of Ride The Tide Collective, a career coaching company based in Claremont, Calif.Mid-career professionals who have experience in another area might benefit from various certifications to increase their chances of getting hired, she told TechNewsWorld. I dont think there is a gendered perspective when it comes to certifications. Its really based on a combination of experience and education, which will vary between everyone male or female. Rob Rashotte, vice president of global training and technical field enablement at Fortinet, a provider of firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, endpoint security, and antivirus programs in Sunnyvale, Calif., added that reexamining and revising education and training requirements for cybersecurity roles is a great place to start to address the existing workforce shortage in the domain.Many organizations are still likely overlooking solid candidates, he told TechNewsWorld. While many companies have diversity hiring goals, we arent seeing hiring numbers increase significantly among women, minorities, and veterans.According to Fortinets 2024 Global Cybersecurity Skills Gap Report, despite 91% of respondents saying they prefer to hire candidates with technical certifications, 71% of organizations require potential new hires to hold a four-year degree. Organizations should be identifying candidates who possess the right soft skills and then using certifications to help them gain cybersecurity-specific knowledge, Rashotte maintained.He added, According to the report, most leaders are open to this approach, with 89% of respondents saying they would pay for an employee to obtain a certification.John P. Mello Jr. has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, IT issues, privacy, e-commerce, social media, artificial intelligence, big data and consumer electronics. He has written and edited for numerous publications, including the Boston Business Journal, the Boston Phoenix, Megapixel.Net and Government Security News. Email John.Leave a CommentClick here to cancel reply. Please sign in to post or reply to a comment. New users create a free account.Related StoriesMore by John P. Mello Jr.view allMore in Women In Tech