The statue sold out within hours (Shift Up/JND Studios) The director behind Stellar Blade has become one of the wealthiest people in Korea, but it’s not for the reason you might think. Stellar Blade is one of last year’s best action games and for South Korean studio Shift Up, it was their breakthrough moment in the West. The action game sold over one million copies, following its launch on PlayStation 5 in April, and a PC version is set to be released in June 2025. Shift Up chairman and founder, Kim Hyung-tae, has subsequently become one of the richest people in Korea, but it isn’t because of Stellar Blade. As reported by Forbes, Kim Hyung-tae’s net worth is $725 million (£546 million) as of April 14, 2025, which puts him at number 46 on Korea’s rich list. The founder’s net worth ballooned in July last year, when Shift Up became a public company and received an initial offering of $320 million (£241 million). This made Kim Hyung-tae a billionaire, as the largest shareholder of the $3 billion company. Since then, Shift Up’s shares have fallen more than a third and Kim’s overall net worth has shrunk to $725 million, but it’s still enough to make his debut on the rich list. You’d have to be pretty rich to afford these (Shift Up/JND Studios) Shift Up’s biggest success is mobile title Goddess Of Victory: Nikke, which was released on Android and iOS in 2022 and PC a year later. According to the studio’s financial report for 2024, the free-to-play game accounted for 69.6% of the studio’s total revenue, generating $105.4 million. This number was actually down 7% over the previous year, but the studio is planning to launch Goddess Of Victory: Nikke in China in 2025, so that will likely give it a major shot in the arm. In comparison, royalties from Stellar Blade amounted to $43.2 million in 2024. More Trending Shift Up has showcased its wealth through a new $2,400 (£1,800) statue of Stellar Blade protagonist EVE. Created by JND Studios, the statue weighs 8.4kg and has already sold out after pre-orders went live on April 18. Along with EVE, there are separate statues of the equally improbably proportioned Tachy and Adam’s drone. The bundle with all three statues costs a whopping $3,899 (£2,935). Is there going to be a Stellar Blade 2? Stellar Blade is set to launch on PC in June 2025, alongside a DLC crossover with Goddess Of Victory: Nikke. This comes after Stellar Blade’s first major DLC, a collaboration with NieR: Automata, which launched last year. Shift Up has already announced plans for a sequel but nothing has been officially revealed, so it will likely be a few years away yet. That may well mean it ends up being a PlayStation 6 title. A sequel is coming (Sony Interactive Entertainment) Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. GameCentral Sign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy

The streaming device competition gained a new entrant just a few months ago when the Google 4K TV Streamer debuted, replacing the relatively shortlived Chromecast with Google TV dongle. Google pitched the TV Streamer as a big improvement over the Chromecast, and so far that seems to be right on the money. The Google TV Streamer is also right for the money during Amazon’s limited-time 21% off deal that drops the price lower than ever to just $79. The only discouraging words to greet the Google 4K TV Streamer when it dropped last September were that it was twice the price of the $50 Chromecast dongle. But the superiority of the TV Streamer’s performance and features soon quieted the naysayers, and with this sale the TV Streamer’s price is moving back into the neighborhood of the Chromecast. See at Amazon So Long, Streaming Stick While the Chromecast with Google TV was a decent performer, it was just a no-frills streaming stick, and Google decided it was time to up its streaming game. The TV Streamer is a low-profile oblong box, 6 inches in width by 3 in depth, looking a little bit like a slightly larger Apple Magic Mouse. Unlike the Chromecast stick, the TV Streamer has an Ethernet port for hardwiring to the internet and an HDMI 2.1 port for connecting to the screen. (Hardwiring via the Ethernet port is optional, since the TV Streamer also has a very capable built-in Wi-Fi connection.) The upgrade over the Chromecast shows up the most in the speed department — the TV Streamer is 22% faster than the stick, bringing it into the same neck of the streaming woods with the Roku Ultra and Apple TV 4K. It’s also fast enough for cloud gaming with the Steam Link and GeForce Now apps, and has Bluetooth 5.1 connectivity for wireless headphones and other gaming peripherals. Apps By the Thousands Once you’re unboxed and set up, the clean and intuitive Android OS interface screen is your place to find the thousands and thousands of apps that the Google TV Streamer can run. The included voice-accessible remote can also control your TV and many peripherals, and it can also be made to ring if you’ve misplaced it. Once you pick your first streaming session with the TV Streamer, the 4K HDR picture will really make you happy you upgraded from that streaming stick. Deploy the Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound features and you’ll get the full experience of the Google TV Streamer, and for a price that’s now just slightly higher than the Chromecast stick. This Amazon limited-time deal offering the all-time low price of just $79 on the Google 4K TV Streamer is a great chance for you to upgrade from the Chromecast or any other no-frills streaming stick. Move up into the 4K HDR streaming world at a great price before this deal ends. See at Amazon

Spaces for Wellness: Integrating Fitness into Everyday EnvironmentsPresented by:Save this picture!© Yohei SasakuraAs cities continue to grow and daily realities shift rapidly, people are turning to new and evolving ways to maintain their well-being. While promoting active lifestyles has long been a focus for many planners and architects, through pedestrian- and bike-friendly cities, parks, and fitness or sports centers, recent times have shown that these publicly valued facilities are not always accessible. A clear solution has emerged in recent years, accelerated by the global pandemic in 2020. Both homes and workplaces have begun to adapt their interior spaces, incorporating designated areas and equipment to support physical activity and provide opportunities for movement during the day.Staying physically active doesn't require much and can be achieved through a multitude of creative and resourceful approaches. Whether it's a traditional home gym, smaller equipment and design interventions, or simply a cleared area, any pre-planned open space can function as an exercise zone. On average, 30 sq ft (2.7 sqm) is the minimum space needed to move comfortably without equipment, while a slightly larger 100 sq ft (9.2 sqm) is recommended for a machine-based setup.The following examples are categorized according to the design and spatial solutions implemented in each case. TheTraditional Home Gym refers to a dedicated space that replicates the setup of a conventional gym within the home. Installation describes a more creative approach to incorporating physical activity, often tailored to the specific needs and interests of the inhabitants. Lastly, Flexible Open Space refers to an adaptable area in the home or office that can serve multiple purposes, including exercise. Related Article Tips for Home Gym Design: Fostering Physical and Mental Well-Being in Interiors Traditional Home GymLee House / Eduardo Glycerio + Studio MK27 - Marcio Kogan"The front veranda is delimited by a foyer in the façade, revealing two wooden boxes divided by the social area. The kitchen opens to the living room, encrusted in one of the boxes that hold the utility areas. The bar opens out to the social area and is contained in the box that holds the bedroom as well. At the end of the corridor of the bedrooms, which can also be accessed from the outside of the house, there is a spa delimited by external walls and composed of a gym room, a sauna, and a small outdoor pool encircled by the deck." Save this picture!The Barn / Carney Logan Burke Architects"The 2400-square-foot new-build, finished this past summer, actually serves three purposes: besides needing a guest house for the family's many visitors, the homeowners wanted a dedicated workout area for her ("I exercise outside whenever I can, but needed something with views to use in bad weather," she says.) and, for him, an expansive first-floor garage with a ceramic checkerboard tile floor."Save this picture!Villa G / GAAP studio associati"The garden has been projected respecting the existing rocks and the important tree species sited in the plot. Inside the garden take place a pedestrian ringway that surrounds the villa and that slowly reveals different layers of the garden: a playground area, a vegetable garden, and a relaxation area."Save this picture!The Sports Pavilion / Horomystudio"The architects were faced with the task of designing a complete sports facility within an existing suburban landscape and limited space. The basement containing locker rooms and weight benches, the ground floor with cardio-vascular machines, and the first floor accommodating a yoga gym - constitute the necessary building area requirements."Save this picture!InstallationIn Suspension / NatureHumaine"The client wants to transform the last two levels of a building to create living spaces for her two athletically inclined children, who are now grown adults. The primary goal is to create a shared living space in which all utilitarian functions are shared but which still allows each person to have privacy. The architectural concept consists of removing the floor currently separating the two levels to create a wide-open space in which two large boxes appear to float in mid-air. This configuration creates three gaps, each being two floors high; the centre gap becomes a physical exercise room with a pair of gymnastics rings."Save this picture!Skate Park House / LEVEL Architects"They wanted both a skateboard park and a piano rehearsal room to reflect their own individual interests. The sliding glass panels of the first floor open up onto this enclosed area and allow for the workshop and studio to expand outwards. The studio has a skateboard bowl embedded into the floor with multiple angles for plenty of different interactions."Save this picture!Court House / KOIZUMISEKKEI"For this house project, we've tried to create a new relationship between the indoor basketball court and the living house. The layout arrangement of this house is inspired by typical gymnasium layouts, where we have the indoor basketball court planned in the center core space of the house, with rooms located on opposite sides of the court."Save this picture!Urban Man Cave / Inhouse Brand Architects"Inhouse Brand Architects has converted the unused lounge area of a Cape Town residence into an industrial-inspired dream pad for the family's lucky teenage boy and his friends. Taking into account the youngster's various interests such as skating, surfing, and socialising, the Inhouse team aimed to create a trendy, multifunctional space."Save this picture!House in Tsukawaki / Horibe Associates"The client, who spends his days off travelling to mountains in various regions for rock climbing, is a professional-level boulderer who is also qualified as an instructor. We were asked to design a serious climbing wall that could also be used as the client's training room. The bouldering room is adjacent to the living room and offers enjoyment both to the person training and to family members watching him while they spend time together in the same space."Save this picture!Inteltion Office / Onion"In terms of design, the problem of office syndrome is Onion's concern. Spending hours working in the same bodily posture is unhealthy, whether with a computer or a pencil. Onion's proposal is the design for good health, promoted by the office for the employees. The arrangement of stretching tools is the design of Inteltion Office. These tools are organised by areas, ranging from easy to difficult exercises, namely "finger walk", "arm wheel", "spinning chairs", and most difficult of all "monkey bars"."Save this picture!Flexible Open SpaceGarden Studio Gym in North London / EASTWEST ARCHITECTURE"The brief was to create a workout studio in the rear garden of our client's house as there was no gym in the local área of Walthamstow Village. Our restrictions were quite demanding, as we had to work on the permitted development regulations and a small footprint within the garden. The permitted development only allows a certain roof height. To get around this, we lowered the ground floor as there is no local or national policy on digging down –now we have plenty of height for skipping and jumping."Save this picture!Biombombastic / elii"Firstly, an open space is configured, and the whole programme is grouped and arranged around an L-shaped band on two sides. This band includes access to the household, the outer façade windows, a folding bed, the storage space, a complete kitchen, a fold-down auxiliary table, access to the bathroom, and the washing machine. It optimises the spatial distribution and compacts all the functions so that everyday activities can benefit from as much space as possible, all the while adapting to the geometry of the apartment."TKSTYLE Office / JACKY.W DESIGN"Through breaking the routines and bringing a 'home' into the workspace, JACKY.W DESIGN created an open and multifunctional living experience space for the fashion brand TKSTYLE BOUTIQUE. The designers gave full play to the structure and height (8 meters) of the original space, and ingeniously integrated functional areas for working, reception, fitness, and conference, etc., into the two-story space without rigid partitions. There are windows in each wall, which ensure sufficient natural light to penetrate the space, thereby resulting in a bright and airy environment."Save this picture!This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: Building Wellbeing: Designing Spaces for Healing, presented in collaboration with the Hushoffice. With its line of A-class pods Hushoffice helps create acoustically balanced workplaces that offer great environment for collaboration and focus, foster employee wellbeing, and accommodate the needs of neurodiverse staff, as well as employees with motor impairments.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.Editor's Note: This article was originally published on March 31, 2020. Image gallerySee allShow less About this authorPaula PintosAuthor••• Cite: Paula Pintos. "Spaces for Wellness: Integrating Fitness into Everyday Environments" 18 Apr 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/936042/13-design-solutions-to-organize-your-workout-at-home&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save想阅读文章的中文版本吗?居家锻炼的13个室内空间是否 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

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In 2002, divers in Lake Huron were swimming among the shipwrecks in the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The sanctuary protects the remains of almost 100 ships that met their demise when trying to navigate through “shipwreck alley.”The divers saw the usual sunken schooner. The overturned steamer. The remains of the tugboat. But there was something else. There appeared to be a massive sinkhole near Middle Island, about a mile off the coast of Michigan.Scientists sent down a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to get closer to the crater. They soon realized they were looking at an ancient sinkhole, and in the coming years, they would learn there were many others in the Great Lakes.As technology has enabled researchers to get deeper into the sinkholes, scientists have discovered they are time capsules that offer a glimpse into what life was like billions of years ago.Studying Underwater SinkholesUnderneath Lake Huron is an ancient basin that formed 400 million years ago with dolomite, gypsum, and limestone. Over time, these bedrocks have shifted, cracked, and formed corrosion that created caves. Eventually, the cave ceilings collapsed and left behind sinkholes.Depending on the depth, the sinkholes may be light-penetrating. These are typically found closer to shore. Light cannot penetrate some sinkholes further away from shore, like the Middle Island Sinkhole.“The way I would describe them is unique, otherworldly,” says Steven A. Ruberg, a research physical scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab in Ann Arbor, Michigan.If a person looked at the camera footage from a ROV, Ruberg says they would first notice the water becoming a little cloudy as the vehicle descended deeper into the lake. This is because the water in the sinkhole is heavier than the freshwater, and the interaction between the two makes it appear like a hazy cloud.As the ROV went lower, the camera might see craters or raised ridges. About 70 feet down, the rover would see purple clumps along the lakebed formed by cyanobacteria, a microorganism that thrives in habitats like sinkholes that are high in sulfate and low in oxygen. The cyanobacteria live alongside chemosynthetic bacteria, which are white in appearance.The two microorganisms have developed a day-shift, night-shift type of swap. Whereas the cyanobacteria photosynthesize and seek light during the day, the chemosynthetic bacteria are into sulfur and mobilize after dark. “On a daily basis, the purple cyanos will rise up to get the light. At night, the white chemosynthetic ones will rise up,” Ruberg says.These microorganisms have fascinated scientists because of what Ruberg calls the “symbiotic relationship.” But they have also intrigued researchers by serving as a living time capsule and offering a glimpse into what life was like billions of years ago.Life Without OxygenSinkholes like the Middle Island one don’t have oxygen. Neither did Earth 2.5 billion years ago at the start of the Proterozoic period.“The early Earth would have had sulfur and salt, of course, but zero oxygen in the water because the atmosphere didn’t have oxygen in it,” Ruberg says.Scholars studying sinkholes suggest that oxygenation may have occurred as Earth’s rotation slowed. In a 2021 study in Nature Geoscience, researchers considered the purple cyanobacteria in the Middle Island sinkhole and suggested that as Earth began spinning more slowly, photosynthesizing cyanobacteria released more oxygen.Billions of years ago, a typical day may have been only six hours long. That was less time for the purple cyanobacteria to commute to the surface for photosynthesis. Over time, Earth’s rotation slowed, days grew longer, and the cyanobacteria gave off more oxygen. The increased oxygen changed the atmosphere and set the stage for Earth to evolve into life as we know it.The unique terrain and chemistry of sinkholes may give us clues to early Earth conditions. (Image Courtesy of Tane Casserley/NOAA)Sinkholes Help Us Understand EarthSinkholes are changing how scientists understand Earth, but there is a lot more they would like to know about the sinkholes themselves. In order to do so, scientists need to have a better sense of where they are located in the Great Lakes. A seafloor mapping initiative began in 2019, and scientists are using multibeam sonars to map the U.S. coastlines and the Great Lakes.So far, only 15 percent of the lake beds have been mapped, which means there could be sinkholes in Lake Michigan or Lake Superior that are unknown to scientists. Further studying the sinkholes could help scientists better understand Earth’s evolution, and Ruberg says they can also help researchers better predict the lakes.Predicting the lakes involves understanding circulation, which is helpful for search and rescue crews trying to locate missing vessels or people. In the event of an oil spill or other man-made disaster, understanding circulation can help determine how the pollutants might spread. Predicting the lakes can also involve seasonal changes in water levels, which tell scientists how much water is coming into the system and what to expect.“Getting a handle on that is helpful in understanding the ecology and the biology. It helps you better understand the food web and make better decisions about the ecosystem,” Ruberg says. Article SourcesOur writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:The Nature Education Knowledge Project. Rock, Water, Microbes: Underwater Sinkholes in Lake Huron are Habitats for Ancient Microbial LifeNature Geoscience. Possible link between Earth’s rotation rate and oxygenationEmilie Lucchesi has written for some of the country's largest newspapers, including The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri and an MA from DePaul University. She also holds a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Illinois-Chicago with an emphasis on media framing, message construction and stigma communication. Emilie has authored three nonfiction books. Her third, A Light in the Dark: Surviving More Than Ted Bundy, releases October 3, 2023, from Chicago Review Press and is co-authored with survivor Kathy Kleiner Rubin.

Coryphellina rubrolineata is a common aeolid species known for its stinging cells found both during the day and at night. CREDIT: Cedric van den Berg. Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Sea slugs don’t shy away from the fish, crabs, sea turtles, or even other sea slugs that might want to take a bite out of them. Instead, the brightest and most patterned sea slugs are more active during the day. The sun’s rays are critical in enhancing the slug’s ability to ward off predators with its flamboyant appearance. The findings are detailed in a study published April 15 in the Journal of Animal Ecology. A team from the University of Queensland in Australia analyzed sea slug coloration across 45 eastern Australian species. Poisonous animals like some nudibranchs–aka sea slugs–and poisonous dart frogs have evolved very vivid hues.  A panel of dorsal shots of all 45 species of sea slugs that we examined in the study. CREDIT: Cedric van den Berg “Sea slugs use bright, contrasting colour patterns to send messages to potential predators like ‘Don’t eat me, I’m poisonous,’” study co-author and visual ecologist Cedric van den Berg said in a statement.  Goniobranchus collingwoodi, another commonly encountered species that can be found during both day and night. CREDIT: Louise Forster. The team used special cameras and software to simulate what the sea slugs would look like to a potential predator. They focused on finding any shared properties in color patterns among sea slug species, which directly correlate with daytime activity. The researchers then used sophisticated statistical methods to combine close to 160 different varieties of color patterns into one single fingerprint. This fingerprint captured the difference in appearance of species more active during the day or night.  They found that sea slugs use bold visual signals like brightly colored spots, thick stripes, or enhanced body outlines to advertise that they are equipped with stinging cells, chemicals, or other defenses. And daylight is linked to making those signals stronger. Goniobranchus splendidus, a commonly encountered daytime-active species with bold patterning and known chemical defences. Credit: Cedric van den Berg “These tactics are strongly linked to being active during daytime when there’s enough light for these signals to function,” van den Berg said. “It makes sense for these species to avoid the risky and potentially costly experience of being nibbled on or even ingested by a predator whether they are toxic or not. Their bold appearance also educates predators by being distinct from other animals while also increasing the chances of being remembered.” Marionia sp is a nocturnal species that can be found moving around the soft corals it likely feeds on and mimics almost perfectly. CREDIT: Cedric van den Berg. According to the team, the more nocturnal sea slug species don’t need to evolve bright colors and patterns aimed at signaling to potential predators. Nocturnal sea slug predators are less likely to use their vision to hunt overnight, when the senses of touch and smell are more important. The team hopes that this new research will lead to more work on understanding how defensive coloration evolved in marine species.

Humans Ancient horse hunts challenge ideas of ‘modern’ human behavior Sophisticated social and mental capacities date back at least 300,000 years Communal hunting of horses in Europe 300,000 years ago required sophisticated planning and coordination. David Palumbo By Bruce Bower 50 seconds ago On a bright, late-summer day in north-central Europe around 300,000 years ago, a team of perhaps a couple dozen hunters got into their assigned positions for a big kill. Little did they know that remnants of this lethal event would someday contribute to a scientific rethink about the social and intellectual complexity of Stone Age life. Some of the hunters ascended a ridge where they gazed across a vast, marshy grassland below. Trees dotted the landscape and bordered a braided stream leading to a nearby lake. Sign up for our newsletter We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

Nature, Published online: 16 April 2025; doi:10.1038/s41586-025-08980-6Mitochondrial metabolism sustains DNMT3A-R882-mutant clonal haematopoiesis

A rare 'smiley face' triple conjunction is coming to Earth's morning skies on April 25, when Venus, Saturn and the crescent moon form a celestial smirk near the horizon.