Your Friday lineup of the best Apple gear deals and accessories for them all is now ready to go. We are tracking solid $220 price drops on a couple different 24GB M4 and M4 Pro MacBook Pro configurations alongside massive deals on M3 MacBook Air models at up to $550 off the original prices. From there its over to Amazon Renewed Premium iPhone 15 Pro Max units at up to $766 off joined by some affordable Find My accessories a wallet tracker card and leather Find My wallet down at $25.All of that and more awaits below in todays 9to5Toys Lunch Break.You can score a 24GB M4 Pro MacBook Pro for the same price as the M4 1TB today, now $220 offAs part of the ongoing Amazon Big Spring Sale, the deals on Apples M4 series MacBook Pro models have been flying with pricing still kicking off from $1,399, or $200 off, on the base model. But we wanted to touch down this morning to highlight a couple of the 24GB models that are now sitting at $220 off the going rates to match the lowest prices of the year. This includes an upgraded 1TB M4 model, but youll want to head below for more details as you can also score an M4 Pro variant at the same price right now.Deciding between the M4 and M4 Pro MacBook Pro model largely comes down to price for most folks. Its really a matter of deciding whether or not you really need the extra M4 Pro horsepower and if youre really willing to spend the cash on one. Everyone wants the extra M4 Pro power cause why not? but if you dont really need it you really dont need to spend the cash on it.Then it comes down to deciding your configuration do you need 24GB of RAM? An upgraded SSD? There a couple of notable deals to scope out today if you do.Firstly, Amazon is offering the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro upgraded with 24GB of RAM and a 1TB internal SSD down at $1,779 shipped. Thats $220 off the regular $1,999 list price and on par with the lowest price we have tracked this year.But how much do you value that 1TB of storage here?Amazon is also offering the more powerful 14-inch M4 Pro MacBook Pro with 24GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD down at the same $1,779 shipped list price right now.Now theres nothing particular new about this decision as both of these models carry the same $1,999 list price from Apple. But it certainly begs the question how much do you need the double storage action?For me its an easy answer go for the horsepower on the M4 Pro all the way and stick a portable SSD in there, no questions asked. For some it might not be so easy. I do know folks that seriously value the upgraded storage I often times tell them they are wrong and dont, but hey, to each their own.Either way we are looking at a match of the lowest prices we have tracked this year on these models and a great chance to score $220 off the list price on a shiny new M4 series MacBook Pro.Score $766 off an unlocked 1TB iPhone 15 Pro Max today (Amazon Renewed Premium, 1-year warranty)As part of the now live Big Spring Sale, Amazons Renewed Premium program is offering a giant price drop on the 1TB iPhone 15 Pro Max. This device fetched $1,599 at this time last year and you can now score an unlocked unit on Amazon from $832.99 shipped. Thats $766 off the original price and the lowest price we can find from a refurbishment program as reputable as Amazons that also delivers a solid 1-year warranty. This is the lowest price we have tracked from Amazon on this configuration. Details below.Its certainly no iPhone 16, but scoring an unlocked iPhone 16 Pro Max with the upgraded 1TB of storage is going to cost you a whole lot more than this it fetches the same $1,599 this model used to go for. The series 16 devices did make some notable upgrades to the camera array, not to mention adding the new Camera Control button along the edge of the bezel, but if you ask me, anyone looking to score a serious deal on an iPhone right now ought to consider the Amazon Renewed Premium program and should very much be looking towards either the 15 Pro or 15 Pro Max.If you dont care about the latest and greatest, a device from a few generations back is just fine. But the 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, as we have highlighted previously, are the only two models outside of the series 16 handsets that support Apple Intelligence and who knows what other features will get introduced down the line the older device wont be able to handle.As for the Amazon Renewed Premium units, they are, in our experience, among the best refurbs in the renewed iPhone business and include a full 1-year warranty.Amazon now clearing out 24GB 15-inch M3 MacBook Airs at a $1,349 low ($550 off the original price)The M4 MacBook Air has now arrived and we are tracking some straight up $50 price drops across just about every configuration already. But if you can make the still quite capable M3 model work for you, we just spotted a particularly notable deal on an upgraded 15-inch model. Amazon is now offering the 24GB 15-inch MacBook Air with the 512GB SSD in all four colorways down at $1,349 shipped thats as much as $550 off the original price of this configuration. Details below.The configuration is question here saw an official price drop of sorts last fall when Apple shuffled its RAM options up a notch the 8GB model is gone in favor of a 16GB configuration without raising the price. This effectively dropped the official MSRP of every model down $200.This machine carried an $1,899 list price before last October before the 24GB 15-inch Air dropped to $1,699 todays deal, which is a new Amazon all-time low, is $550 under the original price and $350 under the price it landed at after the RAM bump.But how does this stack up to the new M4 MacBook Air? They did receive a nice price drop on top of the same RAM upgrade after all.A 15-inch M4 MacBook Air with the same specs as the model featured above fetches a $1,599 list price at Apple and is now on sale at Amazon for $1,549, so youre still saving $250 with the M3 model here.But just keep in mind, a 24GB 13-inch M4 model carries a list price at $1,399 and you can score one right now at the same $1,349 shipped as the 15-incher detailed above.So a better a question might be, how much do you value the 15-inch display? You can score the brand new 13-inch with the same RAM and SSD capacity at the same price right now.All 4 colors of Apples new M4 MacBook Air are $50 off at Amazon, or up to $450 off with tradeNow even lower: Apples 24GB M4 Pro Mac mini just dropped again to new all-time low at $200 off, more from $529Update: Hello! Amazon just knocked another $50 off the M4 Pro Mac mini to deliver a new all-time low at $1,199 shipped. Regularly $1,399, you can now score the upgraded machine with the M4 Pro chip, 24GB of RAM, and the 512GB SSD at $200 off this is the best Amazon price we have ever tracked and the lowest all-time.Apples iPad mini 7 now $100 off for Amazons Big Spring Sale, deals from $399AirPods Pro 2 back to one of the best prices this year at $170, AirPods 4 just returned to $100 Amazon low (Reg. up to $249)Ankers rechargeable SmartTrack E30 wallet card with Apple Find My back at just $24 (30% off)Todays accessories and charging deals:Apples latest AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation drop back to Amazon 2025 low at $149 today, base set at $100The AirPods Pro 2 deal down at $170 is still live, and we still have the base model AirPods 4 sitting at the $100 low, but the elevated AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation are getting in on the Amazon Big Spring Sale today too. Regularly $179, Amazon is now offering Apples latest AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation down back down at $148.99 shipped this is matching our previous mention and the lowest price we have tracked this year there.While we did catch a short-lived offer on the ANC AirPods 4 ahead of Christmas last year at the $139 Amazon all-time low, todays deal is otherwise on par with the best we have seen otherwise. There have also been some extremely fleeting, almost spammy, offers from less than desirable online retailers for less, but just about no one had a chance to scoop them up and Im not sure you would have even wanted too anyway I didnt.Apples AirPods Pro 2 remain the gold standard in Apple in-ear listening experiences if you ask me (and million of others) they were after all one of the most popular products among 9to5Toys readers last year despite the newer AirPods 4 hitting the market last fall, and were featured in our 9to5Toys Favorite Things of 2024 feature for this reason.That said, the AirPods 4 are a less pricey endeavor and one that we came away quite impressed with after getting hands-on last year Hands-on with AirPods 4: better in every way.Joining the active noise cancelation, Siri hands- and voice-free interactions, Voice Isolation, and Personalized Spatial Audio tech, they land with a redesigned earbud form-factor featuring a refined contour, shorter stem, and quick-press controls for music or calls alongside a case that is the smallest in the industry with wireless chargingSamsungs Smart Monitors now up to $300 off for Big Spring Sale, deals start from $180Ankers new display-equipped 25K mAh power bank with dual USB-C cables and new wall charger hit all-time low pricingJourney debuts new steel Apple Find My water bottle with wireless charging, built-in MagSafe stand, and a 15% launch dealESRs latest Geo iPad Pencil with Find My is more than $100 less than Apple Pencil Pro, now down at $25.50As part of the ongoing Amazon Big Spring Sale and all of the notable Eve smart home deals we are tracking, we are now highlighting a notable offer on Eve Energy the brands Matter-equipped smart plugs. While the single unit listing has dropped from $40 down to$29.95 with free shipping for Prime members or in orders over $35, you can also score the 2-pack down at $54.95 shipped from the usual $75 right now as well.Clearly the $30 single is less cash out of pocket today, but if you can put two of these more premium smart plugs to good use, the per unit price on the 2-pack at $55 is better. The 2-pack is also now matching the lowest price we have tracked on Amazon to deliver some of the better smart plugs in the game that work across just about any smart home platform youre on.These are the latest Matter models whether youre whole setup is a HomeKit one, or you have some family members on Android, or you use Alexa and Google Assistant gear, the Eve Energy is good to go:Eve Energy is equipped with future-proof Matter technology, enabling you to connect it to several platforms. Let the whole family access your home easily and securely no matter if they use an iPhone, Android device or call upon Alexa, Siri or Google Assistant.They feature Thread network technology for a robust smart home; enhances the stability and reach of your Thread network, alongside offering remote smart control over the electronics you have plugged into them 100% Privacy: No Eve cloud, no registration, no tracking. Local communication without cloud dependency.More of the Eve Big Spring Sale deals to scope out:All-new Nintendo Today! app now live on iOS and Android, reveals the rumored Switch 2 C buttonAdd 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? 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For over a decade, a star system on the verge of unleashing a deadly gamma ray burst appeared to have its guns trained on Earth.The so-called "Death Star," which is also famed for looking like a glowing pinwheel, has caused a lot of lost sleep among astronomers. But now they and the entire planet may finally breathe a sigh of relief.In a recent study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, a team of researchers at the Keck Observatory in Hawai'i took a closer look at the system, Wolf-Rayet 104, confirming that its unique appearance is the result of its two constituent stars dancing around each other as they each give off a mesmerizing wind of luminous gases.But surprisingly, the astronomers also found that the orientation of the stars' orbits isn't what it was long assumed to be with the optimistic upshot that, when it does explode, the Earth won't be caught in the crossfire. Hooray!"When I started this project, I thought the main focus would be the colliding winds and a face-on orbit was a given," study author Grant Hill of Keck Observatory said in a statement. "Instead, I found something very unexpected. The orbit is tilted at least 30 or 40 degrees out of the plane of the sky."WR 104's primary star is known as a Wolf-Rayet, a type of uber-hot and extraordinarily massive star typically 25 or more times as massive as our own Sun that's quickly dying.In a dramatic prelude to their impending demise, Wolf-Rayets rapidly cast off their outer layers, which get swept up by the star's powerful wind. In WR 104's case, the Wolf-Rayet's wind collides with the wind of its orbital companion, an even more massive star, creating a pinwheel of swirling dust that glows in the infrared spectrum, the astronomers found.The spectacle is soon doomed to end in a supernova, tragically. Wolf-Rayets have lifespans only in the hundreds of thousands of years, opening the possibility that the gamma ray burst it would unleash upon exploding could barrage our planet with deadly radiation in the not-so-distant on a cosmic scale, at least future.It looks like Earth will be spared this fate. Yet the mysteries of the "Death Star" abound. How does this star appear to face us, even though the poles of its axis don't, can't yet be explained."This is such a great example of how with astronomy we often begin a study and the universe surprises us with mysteries we didn't expect," Hill said in the statement. "In this case, WR 104 is not done surprising us yet."More on astronomy: Get Ready to Watch This Star ExplodeShare This Article

Character.AI, the controversial chatbot startup embroiled in two separate lawsuits concerning the welfare of minor users, just rolled out a new "Parental Insights" feature that the company claims will give parents a deeper glimpse into how their kids are using the chatbot platform.In a blog post on Tuesday, the youth-beloved Character.AI characterized the feature as an "initial step" towards developing robust safety and parental control tools. Let's hope so: this tool appears to be absurdly easy for teens to bypass, and it's unclear how much "insight" it will really offer parents.The feature is pretty simple. An underage Character.AI user can switch on Parental Insights by heading to their account "preferences" tab. There, they're prompted to enter one or several emails belonging to parents and guardians, who will receive a weekly email that updates them on their child's "daily average time spent on the platform across both web and mobile"; a list of the "top characters their teen interacted with most frequently during the week"; and the amount of "time spent with each Character," which Character.AI says will give "parents insight into engagement patterns."On its face, there are some limited situations where these emailed updates could be helpful. Character.AI executives have previously claimed that its average user spends about two hours a day on the platform; that's a lot of time, especially for a teen, and it could be legitimately enlightening for a parent or guardian of an active Character.AI user to see how often their kid is really engaging with the site's bots. It's also true that Character.AI has hosted tons of openly nefarious, violent, sexually suggestive, and otherwise dangerous bots that might raise more obvious alarm bells with parents, so a list of "top characters" could prove useful there.Right out of the gate, however, there are enforcability red flags starting with the fact that users control the Parental Insights on-switch themselves.According to Character.AI, parents and guardians will receive notifications sent to their emails if a teen turns the controls off (we tested this, and it worked.)But it's wildly easy to make new Character.AI accounts all you really need is a working email address. And while testing Parental Insights on both web and mobile, we found that we were not immediately notified when our "teen" a decoy minor account we created signed out of the platform and signed into a new, Parental Insights-free account. (On that note, the existing Character.AI age-gating process is limited to simply asking new users to self-report accurate birthdays upon sign-up. Needless to say, kidson the internet have always known they can just lie byinputting anolder birthday.)Over on the r/CharacterAI subreddit, users were doubtful of Parental Insights' efficacy."I sure hope it's only for people with their parents' email or who set their age as a minor," wrote one commenter."Good thing my parents don't know what Character.AI is," added another.What's more, though Parental Insights is designed to show parents how much time minor users are spending on the platform and which bots they're spending that time with, Character.AI has made it clear that it won't be sharing thecontentof teens' interactions in its Insights updates."Enter your parent's email to share your AI journey they'll get weekly stats about your activity," reads the notice that crops up on the screen when a minor goes to switch on Parental Insights. It then provides the disclaimer: "your chat content will stay private."That detail feels significant, given that Character.AI bots' outward-facing personas often don't provide much, if any, insight into the nature of the conversations that users are having with them.In the very active r/CharacterAI subreddit, users have shared stories about turning to bots based on innocuous cartoon characters or even inanimate objects for emotionally and psychologically intimate conversations only for the chatbots to suddenly make sexual overtures, even when unprompted and when the user expressly tries to avoid a sexual interaction. The site's characters are also known to suddenly employ bizarre tactics to develop a sense of closeness with users, like sharing alleged secrets or disclosing made-up mental health woes, which could stand to transform the nature of a user's relationship with even the most anodyne character.In other words, thoughsomeCharacter.AI bots are obviously concerning, they're broadly unpredictable, and a bot's surface-level appearance and description may not necessarily reveal the reality of a user's relationship with it and in fact, could even work to obscure the depth and weight of that relationship. (This is a theme in both lawsuits, which detail multiple minors carrying on explicit conversations about self-harm and suicide, in addition to romantically and sexually intimate relationships, with seemingly innocuous characters based on anime, TV, and real-life celebrities.)Of course, there's a lot of nuance here, and we're not saying that parents should be getting transcripts of their kids' Character.AI interactions. In the case that a minor ishaving intimate conversations with bots sharing secrets or insecurities, engaging sexually, treating a bot like a journal or a therapist it would likely be embarrassing, or even destructive or dangerous, for a parent or other adult to look over their shoulder. But this raises other, larger questions about whether unpredictable Character.AI bots are a reliably safe container for young people to engage in simulated intimacy and emotional support. (Multiple experts have told us they don't think so.)On the one hand, it's good to see Character.AI start to make good on some of its promises to enact safety-oriented change. The company declined to provide us with a statement for this story, but its chief product officer, Erin Teague, toldAxiosthat the new feature "encourages parents to have an open dialogue with their children about how they use the app."Still, Character.AI which has always been open to users 13 and over has repeatedly declined to explain what process, if any, it ever took to determine that its platform was safe for kids that young to begin with, and has continued to be reactive in the face of its many controversies.There was something else that felt notable about the update, too. When we were asked by email to approve our fake teen's Parental Insights request, the message we received noted that, by agreeing to use the parental control tool, we were also agreeing to the Character.AI terms of use and privacy policy. These policies allow for the collection of minor users' data, including the content of their interactions with chatbots, and the subsequent use of that data for future AI training."Click 'Agree' below to start getting these updates," read the email. "This also confirms you're their parent/guardian and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy."We asked Character.AI for clarification on whether a parent opting in to Parental Insights means they also acquiesce to the collection of their kids' interactions with Character.AI, and the use of those interactions to further fuel the company's AI models. We also asked whether Character.AI is planning to allow minors to opt out of such data collection in the future. We didn't hear back.More on Character.AI: Did Google Test an Experimental AI on Kids, With Tragic Results?Share This Article

Theres a lot that goes into crafting the perfect movie title. Weve celebrated (and made fun of) plenty of notable titles at this very website over the years, cheering for the most evocative and creative and jeering at the dumbest. Choosing a great title is an important part of the filmmaking process maybe even the most important, since itll be the audiences first impression of the whole thing even before they see what its about and whos in it and whether or not it has a post-credits scene at the end.There are some titles so iconic it would be tough to use them a second time. Theres a reason theres only one Citizen Kane out there, and no ones made another movie called The Dark Knight (yet). When a movie sticks in the mind, its partially because of the title, and great movies tend to hold on to their titles so tightly its difficult to reuse them. Still, there are so many movies out there that it would be impossible for all of them to be called completely different things. In fact, there are a lot of movies even famous ones that share the exact same title with a completely different movie.This is where we run into trouble while scrolling absentmindedly on the apps late at night. A movie we think we recognize catches our eye, but when we start watching it it turns out to be something much different, just with the same title. Its a testament, really, to the versatility of language that the same word or phrase could be used to refer to such disparate stories. 1980s action creature features share the same name as modern documentaries, just as indie director debuts and rowdy studio sports comedies can be easily mixed up for the same reason. Theres even a famous director who copied the title of his own movie. So nice they used it twice. (Or three times or five!)12 Pairs of Wildly Different Movies With the Exact Same TitleYou'll be very confused if you get any of these movies mixed up.Gallery Credit: Emma StefanskyREAD MORE: 15 Actors Who Hated Their Own TV ShowsGet our free mobile appThe Worst Mockbuster Ripoffs of Beloved Animated MoviesWe can't in good conscience recommend any of these terrible cartoon mockbusters.Gallery Credit: Emma Stefansky

This is a 100% Remote - Full Time position for Freelancers only.About Us:We are a premium perfume and cosmetics brand, handcrafted in Switzerland, with a strong presence in the DACH market and expanding internationally. As we go public, we are looking for a highly motivated, execution-driven marketing leader to drive our growth and brand impact across multiple channels.About the Role:As a Freelancer-Remote Graphic Designer, you will be responsible for designing, maintaining, and optimizing visual assets for websites, marketing materials, social media, and digital campaigns. You will collaborate closely with designers, developers, content creators, and marketing professionals to ensure a cohesive and high-quality brand identity for our clients. This role requires a strong eye for design, creativity, and the ability to adapt to various brand guidelines.Key Responsibilities:Graphic Design & Branding Develop and maintain high-quality visual content for websites, social media, email campaigns, and other marketing materials. Ensure all designs align with the branding and identity of client. Create digital assets including banners, infographics, product images, and advertisements.UI/UX Design Create visually appealing and user-friendly designs for web pages and landing pages. Develop wireframes, prototypes, and design mockups for website updates and new features. Ensure designs are mobile-friendly and adhere to modern web standards.Collaboration & Communication Work closely with marketing teams to design promotional graphics for digital campaigns. Collaborate with developers to ensure proper implementation of design elements. Provide creative direction and input on branding and visual strategies.Optimization & Performance Optimize images and graphics for maximum efficiency and fast loading speeds. Conduct A/B testing on visual elements to improve engagement and conversion rates. Continuously research and implement the latest design trends and best practices.Troubleshooting & Adjustments Identify and resolve design-related issues as needed. Revise and update designs based on feedback from stakeholders.Required Skills & Qualifications:Experience 3+ years of experience in graphic design, preferably in digital marketing or ecommerce. Experience working with multiple brands or within an agency setting is a plus.Technical Skills: Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, XD). Experience with Figma, Sketch, or other UI/UX design tools. Knowledge of web design principles, typography, and colour theory. Basic knowledge of HTML & CSS is a plus.Soft Skills Strong creative thinking and problem-solving abilities. Excellent attention to detail and ability to follow brand guidelines. Strong communication and teamwork skills. Ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines in a remote setting.Work Environment & Expectations: Remote Work: full time, Starting 8:00 am CET Work Schedule: flexible schedule with deliverables-based accountability. Collaboration Tools: Slack, Asana, Notion, Google Workspace, and Figma. Performance Reviews: Monthly check-ins and performance assessments based on deliverables and quality.Apply NowLet's start your dream job Apply now

Submitted by WA Contents3XN-designed Sydney Fish Market reaches a major milestone with a 200-metre-long floating canopy Australia Architecture News - Mar 28, 2025 - 14:38 html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"Danish architecture firm 3XN has shared an update for its new fish market in Sydney, Australia. The new Sydney Fish Market has achieved a significant milestone with the final roof panel installed.The roof is the most iconic feature of the market, consisting of 594 timber beams and 400 aluminum pyramidal cassettes that create its scaly appearance.The Sydney Fish Market is designed in collaboration with local architect BVN, GXN Innovation, and landscape architecture office Aspect Studios, and public art consultant WallnerWeiss.Image MultiplexAiming to revitalise Sydneys Blackwattle Bay, the 80,000-square-metre project features a broad roof structure made of timber and aluminium hovers over the building, uniting different functions with one graceful gesture and bolstering the buildings iconic presence along the harbour.At a ceremony held at the site, NSW Premier Chris Minns, Minister for Lands and Property Steve Kamper, and NSW Regional Director Daniel Murphy at Multiplex celebrated the milestone: "It is incredibly exciting to have reached this stage in the build and start work on finishes. Were on the home stretch now and getting closer to being able to set foot in the new Sydney Fish Market, which will be an icon for Sydney and a destination for all," said Kamper.The underlying functional requirements establish the rippling structure, which ascends and descends in accordance with the program beneath. Besides design, the roof features four main attributes related to efficiency and sustainability: shading, daylighting, ventilation, rainwater harvesting, and the potential for solar energy generation.Image Multiplex"A hub for locals and tourists"According to 3XN founding partner Kim Herforth Nielsen, the traditional market "is the social hub of cities around the world and we want this one to be as important an icon for Sydney.""The new fish market preserves the intimacy and flexibility of open-air stalls united under a single sweeping canopy that characterises its iconic form.""In other cities around the world, wholesale fish markets are closed to the public because of the risks posed by industrial machinery and processes," said 3XN."Maintaining the visual connection between the public areas and wholesale or wharf operations was a key strategy posed by 3XN. In the new building, the ground floor hosts all the functions traditionally associated with fish markets the landing and loading of fish, the wholesale market, and the auction hall," the firm added.This milestone represents a pivotal moment in the project, as focus now turns from structural work to internal finishes, moving the building one step closer to completion.The new Sydney Fish Market will provide a lively combination of retail, dining, and community areas, featuring a fresh seafood market, restaurants, and a seafood school. With the new market, a vibrant center will emerge for residents and visitors alike, honoring Sydneys status as an international seafood destination.Image Sara VitaThe new Sydney Fish Market is crucial for transforming Blackwattle Bay, facilitating a connected waterfront promenade from Rozelle Bay to Woolloomooloo, 1,100 homes on the former fish market site, and over 6,000 square metres of public space, enhancing pedestrian and cycling connections.3XN released first visuals for the Sydney Fish Market in 2018. The firm received an approval for the Sydney Fish Market in 2020.3XN founding partner Kim Herforth Nielsen said that "this building will be many things when it is done: a working fish market, an amenity for the city, a cultural destination, an urban connector, and an inspiring icon along the world-renowned Sydney Harbour.""The natural value of the waters edge should not be underestimated and should be accessible to everyone," he added.Image Sara Vita3XN recently completed a new sports arena in Munich's Olympic Park, Germany. In addition, 3XN GXN together with landscape architect DETBL won a competition to design the Coastal Nature and Sport Fishing complex in Assens, Denmark.The project is expected to be completed in 2025.The top image in the article Multiplex.> via 3XN

The company has shifted away from smaller form factor phones as it eyes even bigger models.

A partial solar eclipse on March 29 will be visible from parts of North America. Here's how to safely view the cosmic event, even if you can't be there in person.

March 28, 20258 min readIn a Sky Full of Satellites, Astronomers Find Creative Ways to Observe the StarsSwarms of satellites launched by SpaceX and other companies are disrupting astronomical observations. Here's how scientists are copingBy Alexandra Witze & Nature magazine Satellite streaks appear in a photograph taken above the Pinnacles in Nambung National Park, Western Australia. Joshua RozellsIn the next few months, from its perch atop a mountain in Chile, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory will begin surveying the cosmos with the largest camera ever built. Every three nights, it will produce a map of the entire southern sky filled with stars, galaxies, asteroids and supernovae and swarms of bright satellites ruining some of the view.Astronomers didnt worry much about satellites photobombing Rubins images when they started drawing up plans for the observatory more than two decades ago. But as the space around Earth becomes increasingly congested, researchers are having to find fresh ways to cope or else lose precious data from Rubin and hundreds of other observatories.The number of working satellites has soared in the past five years to around 11,000, mostly because of constellations of orbiters that provide Internet connectivity around the globe (see Satellite surge). Just one company, SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, has more than 7,000 operational Starlink satellites, all launched since 2019; OneWeb, a space communications company in London, has more than 630 satellites in its constellation. On paper, tens to hundreds of thousands more are planned from a variety of companies and nations, although probably not all of these will be launched.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.Satellites play a crucial part in connecting people, including bringing Internet to remote communities and emergency responders. But the rising number can be a problem for scientists because the satellites interfere with ground-based astronomical observations, by creating bright streaks on images and electromagnetic interference with radio telescopes. The satellite boom also poses other threats, including adding pollution to the atmosphere.NatureWhen the first Starlinks launched, some astronomers warned of existential threats to their discipline. Now, researchers in astronomy and other fields are working with satellite companies to help quantify and mitigate the impacts on science and society. There is growing interest in collaborating and finding solutions together, says Giuliana Rotola, a space-policy researcher at the SantAnna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa, Italy.Timing things rightThe first step to reduce satellite interference is knowing when and where a satellite will pass above an observatory. The aim is to minimize the surprise, says Mike Peel, an astronomer at Imperial College London.Before the launch of Starlinks, astronomers had no centralized reference for tracking satellites. Now, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) has a virtual Centre for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference (CPS), which serves as an information hub and to which researchers, including Peel and Rotola, volunteer their time.One of the centres tools, called SatChecker, draws on a public database of satellite orbits, fed by information from observers and companies that track objects in space. Astronomers can use SatChecker to confirm what satellite is passing overhead during their observations. The tool isnt perfect; atmospheric drag and intentional manoeuvring can affect a satellites position, and the public database doesnt always reflect the latest information. For instance, the BlueWalker 3 satellite from telecommunications firm AST SpaceMobile in Midland, Texas, launched in 2022 and was sometimes brighter than most stars; yet uncertainty of its position was so great at times that astronomers had difficulty predicting whether it would be in their field of view for their night-time observations.Starlink satellites leave streaks in a 2019 image taken by a 4-meter telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile.CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/DECam DELVE SurveyTools such as SatChecker help telescope operators to avoid problems by allowing them to target a different part of the sky when a satellite passes overhead or by simply pausing observations as it flies by. It would aid astronomers if SatChecker had even more accurate information about satellite positions, but there are constraints on improving the system. SatChecker data come from the US Space Force, which draws on a global network of sensors that tracks objects in orbit and issues updates on satellite locations as often as several times a day. The frequency of these updates is limited by factors such as how often a sensor can observe an object and whether the sensor can distinguish what its looking at.Currently, satellite streaks are a relatively minor issue for telescope operators. But the problem will grow as satellite numbers continue to increase drastically, meaning more observation time will be lost, and this issue will be magnified for Rubin.Fixing the streaksRubin, which cost US$810 million to build, is a unique case because it scans large swathes of the sky frequently meaning it can detect rapidly changing phenomena such as incoming asteroids or cosmic explosions. Astronomers dont want to be fooled by passing satellites, as happened in 2017 when researchers spotted what they thought was a -ray burst high-energy flashes of light from a distant galaxy but turned out to be sunlight reflecting off a piece of space junk.Rubins powerful camera, coupled with its 8.4-metre telescope, will take about 1,000 nightly exposures of the sky, each about 45 times the area of the full Moon. Thats more wide-field pictures of the sky than any optical observatory has ever taken. Simulations suggest that if satellite numbers in low Earth orbit rise to around 40,000 over the 10 years of Rubins survey a not-impossible forecast then at least 10% of its images, and the majority of those taken during twilight, will contain a satellite trail.SpaceX took early steps to try to mitigate the problem. Working with Rubin astronomers, the company tested changes to the design and positions of Starlinks to try to keep their brightness beneath a target threshold. Amazon, the retail and technology giant based in Seattle, Washington, is also testing mitigations on prototype satellites for its planned Kuiper constellation. Such changes reduce, but dont eliminate, the problem.To limit satellite interference, Rubin astronomers are creating observation schedules to help researchers avoid certain parts of the sky (for example, near the horizon) and at certain times (such as around twilight). For when they cant avoid the satellites, Rubin researchers have incorporated steps into their data-processing pipeline to detect and remove satellite streaks. All these changes mean less time doing science and more time processing data, but they need to be done, astronomers say. We are really looking forward to getting data from Rubin and seeing how it turns out, Peel says.For other observatories, the IAU CPS is working on tools to help astronomers identify and correct satellite streaks in their data. One is a new database of crowdsourced observations of satellite brightnesses called SCORE, which is currently being beta tested and is planned for wider release in the coming months. This will help scientists to work backwards they might see something puzzling in their past observations and be able to work it out, Peel says.The database is definitely a very valuable tool because its one of few that have data freely available, says Marco Langbroek, a space-tracking specialist at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands. As a beta tester, Langbroek has added a number of entries to SCORE, including measurements of a NASA solar sail that changes in brightness as it tumbles through space. Going forwards, he says, SCORE will be most useful if a lot of astronomers contribute high-quality observations to the database, thereby building up a resource over time.Tuning things outAstronomers who work in the radio portion of the electromagnetic spectrum face extra challenges when it comes to satellites.Big radio telescopes are typically located in remote regions, to be as far as possible from mobile-phone masts and other technological infrastructure that leak radio emissions. But satellites cant be avoided. If signals are coming from the sky, theyre always there, says Federico Di Vruno, an astronomer at the Square Kilometre Array Observatory in Jodrell Bank, UK, and co-director of the IAU CPS.When satellites transmit signals, the electromagnetic interference can overwhelm faint radio signals coming from the cosmos. One solution is to re-direct or temporarily turn off satellite transmissions. The US National Radio Astronomy Observatory and SpaceX have been working on ways to accomplish this, and the company now momentarily redirects or disables transmissions when Starlinks pass above sensitive telescopes including the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia. The method requires voluntary buy-in by all partners, plus a lot of data sharing and intensive programming by the companies and by the astronomers, but it does reduce interference. It has been successful enough that small group of radio astronomers visited China last month to discuss the strategy with satellite operators and scientists there.An image made from multiple exposures shows streaks from Starlink satellites, the International Space Station and other satellites over a site in Wales.Max AlexanderBut as soon as one solution is found, fresh challenges appear. One is the rise of direct-to-cell satellites, which function like mobile-phone towers in space and can transmit to areas on the ground that otherwise dont have coverage. Optical astronomers worry about these because they are physically large and therefore bright, and they are a big problem for radio astronomers because direct-to-cell transmissions are extremely powerful. If one of those hits a radio observatory, the telescope might be blind for a little bit, Di Vruno says. So astronomers and satellite operators are discussing how they can share information about these as well, to avoid each other when a satellite passes over an observatory.Another emerging challenge is unintended emissions which happen when satellites leak radiation in wavelengths far outside the bands typically used for transmissions and other tasks. Early tests for the Square Kilometre Array radio telescopes, which are under construction in Australia and South Africa, discovered such leakage coming from Starlinks and other satellites.Many of these unintended emissions are at the low frequencies that are used in some studies including those of the early Universe. So far, astronomers havent come up with a good solution, other than scheduling telescopes to not record data when a satellite passes through the part of the sky being observed. In the future, it is possible that authorities such as the International Telecommunication Union might be able to issue regulations on this, as it already does for other shared uses of the electromagnetic spectrum.Cleaning up the atmosphereAstronomers arent the only researchers concerned about the impacts of satellite constellations. In the past few years, a growing number of atmospheric scientists have been warning that these fleets will pollute Earths upper atmosphere during launches and then when their orbits decline and they burn up. Researchers are just starting to get to grips with the scope of this pollution, says Connor Barker, an atmospheric chemist at University College London (UCL).The point of satellite constellations is to have lots of satellites in orbit, but refreshing them when new technology comes along means that the pace of launches and re-entries will accelerate. In February alone, an average of four Starlink satellites a day re-entered the atmosphere and burned up.Each re-entry adds chemicals to the upper atmosphere. In a 2023 study, researchers reported that measurements made during high-altitude aeroplane flights detected more than 20 chemical elements in Earths upper atmosphere that probably came from satellite re-entries, including aluminium, copper and lead. Other work has found that satellite constellations contributed around 40% of many types of carbon emission from the space industry in 2022, including black carbon particles and carbon dioxide that could contribute to warming the atmosphere. Its not yet clear how much this warms the planet or contributes to other environmental problems. Some early analyses suggest that satellite launches could contribute a small but measurable amount of ozone destruction.There are no regulations on satellite atmospheric pollution. Barker and his colleagues at UCL say a good first step towards a solution is to get better estimates of the scope of the problem. They have been building an emissions inventory for rocket launches and satellite re-entries, carefully tallying up the contaminants involved and estimating the altitudes at which they enter the atmosphere. Even though this is currently a relatively small industry thats having a relatively small impact on the atmosphere, we should still be aware of it, says Eloise Marais, an atmospheric chemist at UCL.Researchers are trying to raise the profile of these and other concerns linked to satellite fleets. Some of these issues were discussed in February in Vienna, at a meeting of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. It was the first time that the committee formally discussed the impacts of satellite constellations on astronomy.No major actions were taken, as expected for these early discussions. But now all of the member states know of dark and quiet skies, Di Vruno says. That in itself, he says, is a success.This article is reproduced with permission and was first published on March 18, 2025.

March 28, 20255 min readSafe, Cheap and Non-Invasive: Ultrasound Could Treat Cancer, Psychiatric Disorders and MoreA bioengineer highlights the potential of low-intensity ultrasound for multiple uses, from enhanced drug delivery to the brain to combating cancerBy Rachel Nuwer edited by Gary Stix Naeblys/Getty Images.If you are a parent, then you probably first laid eyes on your child through an ultrasound procedurethe technology that uses high-frequency sound waves to view soft tissue. It is undeniably one of the most popular imaging tools. But its uses now extend far beyond just prenatal care.One of the best examples is low-intensity focused ultrasound, or LIFU, which delivers sound at lower energetic intensities than traditional ultrasound. It is quickly emerging as a safe, low cost and non-invasive approach for a range of treatments. Researchers are most excited about three promising uses for LIFU that are currently being studied: getting drugs past the blood-brain barrier, improving treatment for some cancers and addressing certain psychiatric conditions.Scientific American talked to Elisa Konofagou, a biomedical engineer at Columbia University, about promising current research and the direction the field is headed. Konofagou designs ultrasound-based technologies for better image and signal processing, and she also specializes in measuring changes to tissues that have been subjected to therapeutic ultrasound. She frequently collaborates with physicians to conduct clinical investigations and to translate the technologies she develops in her lab to real-world settings.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.[An edited transcript of the interview follows.]When did scientists begin to realize that low-intensity focused ultrasound had potential for a broader range of health applications? Theres a paper in Science from 1923 where scientists used focused ultrasound waves to destroy bacteria and red blood cells in frogs. So they knew that there was something happening with ultrasound and biological tissues. By the 1930s, they had started to try to treat nerves with therapeutic ultrasound, and in the 1950s, the brain.What attracted you to the field and made you want to dedicate your career to studying this? The fact that its completely non-invasive, and the fact that you can actually focus it down to a millimeter-size region. It's almost like science fiction to me, because usually if you want to treat somewhere deep in the body, you will have to perform surgery. In this case, you're able to go into a very small region deep in an organ without surgery. This includes the brain. Its a bit difficult to fathom, but LIFU does go through the skull.Your lab is studying how LIFU can be used to get drugs past the blood-brain barrier. Can you tell me more about that work? Some of our work focuses on temporarily opening the blood-brain barrier, a structure that is almost like a filter in the brain and doesnt allow drug molecules to go through. We are partnering with drug companies that have products that arent as efficacious as they are expected to be because theyre stopped by the blood-brain barrier. We have these small micro-bubbles that we inject into the bloodstream. Theyre designed to resonate at the frequencies of ultrasound. We use them in combination with LIFU to mechanically engage the blood vessels at the blood-brain barrier. This relaxes the vessels so the drugs can go through.Were trying to apply this method for Alzheimers treatment, for example. Others have opened the blood-brain barrier to allow an antibody that is aimed to reduce beta amyloid, the plaques that form in the brains of people with the disease, with the objective to increase both the dose of the antibody and the volume of the brain that receives treatment. It was found that the volume of beta amyloid reduces with the volume of opening, and thus the dose of the antibody received. But even without an antibody treatment, our group has found that opening the blood-brain barrier with focused ultrasound alone induces an intrinsic immune response in the brain that reduces beta amyloid and tau. So there are multiple avenues to harness ultrasound for Alzheimers that are worth investigating further.Ive heard that a similar approach can also be used for more targeted cancer treatments? Yes, thats also a very interesting aspect of how you can use LIFU. Very similar to the way that drugs for Alzheimers, Parkinsons and other neurodegenerative diseases do not penetrate the brain in a sufficient therapeutic dose, cancer drugs cant adequately reach tumors in the brain.Our group was the first, for example, to apply LIFU for opening the blood-brain barrier and delivering drugs for the treatment of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Gliomas, a rare type of brain tumor that is 100 percent lethal within a year in pediatric patients. We treated six patients aged six to 17 years old in a soon-to-be-published safety study.The patients were initially debilitated because of the tumors occurrence in the area of their brains responsible for mobility. Although we werent able to demonstrate tumor control, we were able to show that the patients exhibited higher ease and comfort with movement immediately after treatment. This is important, because it improves quality of life for these patients. Theyre able to feed themselves, play on their iPad and hug their family members. Were starting a second study next month pairing LIFU with a generic drug to determine whether this combination results in better tumor control.Are you familiar with much of the psychiatric work thats going on with LIFU? Yes, the psychiatric applications seem even more like science fiction! You just have ultrasound reaching into the brainso no bubbles, no drugs, just sound itself. The ultrasound activates neurons and other types of brain cells such as microglia and astrocytes, which are basically there to keep the brain healthy. The cells respond to these mechanical waves, and their connectivity changes. In very layman terms, the ultrasound rewires the brain temporarily. More research is needed on how this works, but we think the rewiring helps by either stimulating or inhibiting brain circuits, which are known to have beneficial effects in treating such conditions.Some psychiatric disorders seem to respond to this. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is the one we know of that responds the most. Some people are also looking at anxiety disorders by focusing the ultrasound on the amygdala. .Weve also seen that, by opening the blood-brain barrier, you can stimulate the brain itself and have whats called neuromodulatory consequences. Were looking at this for treating depression and pain sensation. Our lab is also looking at using LIFU to treat pain by peripheral nerve stimulation outside the brain and spinal cord. Instead of treating the brain, you treat the region of the nerve that causes the pain sensation. Working with neurosurgeons at Columbia, weve shown that LIFU can relieve pain in carpal tunnel syndrome patients for a few days. Were also working with people with neuropathy and nerve tumors.Aside from the fact that this technology is non-invasive, what are some of the other advantages for patients? It is very portable. This means we can take the treatment to the patient, as opposed to taking the patient to the treatment. This is a big advantage especially for elderly patients and those with Alzheimer's. Being portable also means its much less costly, because you dont have to have technicians who maintain it.In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges for moving the field forward? The biggest challenge is convincing the FDA that LIFU is safe, and then getting practitioners to use it more readily. The good news is that high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has been approved and gotten reimbursement in the U.S. for treating prostate cancer and essential tremors. [HIFU uses higher energy levels to destroy targeted tissue, like tumor cells.] LIFU just stimulates tissue so its safer than HIFU, which ablates tissue. But its newer, so we need to get the FDA to embrace it.Where do you hope the field will be going forward with LIFU? In the future, I think hospitals will have a therapeutic ultrasound suite where you can get treatment for whatever application you needwhether its facilitating and increasing a drug dose in the targeted area, or treating mood and psychiatric disorders.