Developer Neople has announced that a new update for its action RPG The First Berserker: Khazan will be out on April 22. The update, available for free on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, focuses on general improvements to the UI/UX, as well as adjustments to the game’s balance. One of the biggest changes players will notice with the update is the fact that gear that cannot be sold can now no longer be used as material for the game’s augmentation system. Various types of jars, weapons part of the Hero Set, and the Fallen Star set can also no longer be dismantled into materials. With the update, when players can unlock or upgrade a Phantom, they will now start getting notifications about it. The position for Phantom level EXP has also been changed to become more intuitive. You can check out the complete list of changes brought about by the update in the patch notes below. This will be the second update released for The First Berserker: Khazan since its release. A previous one, released last month, brought with it a host of balance changes to the game. Check out our coverage of the update for more details. The First Berserker: Khazan is available on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Check out our review for more details. The First Berserker: Khazan Patch Notes: Balance Adjustments Phantom Growth Improvements Phantom growth speed now increases proportionally to the number of unlocked Phantoms. Phantoms now grow faster than before. More strategic and diverse choices in Phantom selection are available. Elemental Damage Adjustment Elemental damage and status effects from map elements are now affected by the character’s attribute resistance. For example, map elements like poison swamplands (Poison), fire AOE (Fire), or stones of chaos (Chaos) are affected by the character’s attribute resistance stats. Skill Point Gain Improvements Skill points can now be acquired more smoothly, regardless of play proficiency or style. Weapon Mastery Level Adjustment: Weapon mastery levels are adjusted to align more closely with progression. Weapon Mastery EXP Adjustment (Brink Dodge): Slight increase in EXP gained upon performing a brink dodge. Players familiar with weapons or relying on brink dodges can now also obtain more skill points. System Changes Gear System Gear that cannot be sold can no longer be selected as material in the gear augmentation system. The following gear can no longer be dismantled as materials: Jars Blank Jar, Happy Jar, Glinting Jar, Smitten Jar, Stunned Jar, Tormented Jar, Dizzy Jar, Calavera Jar, Cutie Jar, Bewildered Jar, Panicked Jar, Sleepy Jar, Burning Jar, Vibin Jar, The Most Special Jar Hero Set Hero’s Dual Wield, Hero’s Spear, Hero’s Greatsword, Hero’s Helm, Hero’s Wristguards, Hero’s Pauldrons, Hero’s Leggings, Hero’s Combat Boots Fallen Star Set Fallen Star’s Resolve, Fallen Star’s Mark, Fallen Star’s Scar, Fallen Star’s Tattered Clothing, Fallen Star’s Shackles Phantom System A notification display has been added when there is a Phantom that can be unlocked or upgraded. Phantom System guide has been improved. The location of Phantom level EXP has been adjusted to a more intuitive position. Description of Phantom level is added to the loading screen. A system message will appear the first time you enter the Phantom system. Visuals have been improved when unlocking, accompanying, or awakening a Phantom. Emphasis is added to the first sentence in the settings text on the left of the Phantom system. Khazan’s Memories 1 . The guidance for Khazan’s Memories has been improved. A notification will appear if Khazan’s Memories are complete or if you can upgrade with Vengeance Points. When Khazan’s Memories are completed, a checkmark appears at the bottom right of its icon. After completing Khazan’s Memories, entering the UI will update the status and grant all Vengeance Points. 2 . A tutorial has been added for the first entry of Khazan’s Memories. 3 . Reset function is added for Khazan’s Memories upgrade. Achievements The conditions for the “Standing Alone” achievement are now based on the current playthrough. For example, you can earn the achievement as long as you don’t summon the Spirit of Advocacy during your second playthrough—even if you summoned it in your first. The summon history of the Spirit of Advocacy will be reset with this patch. After the patch, clearing the final boss without summoning the Spirit of Advocacy will grant the “Standing Alone” achievement. If you’ve already completed the third playthrough, defeating the final boss again will grant the achievement. Camera System Lock-On Target is set more consistently. A new Lock-On option has been added to ‘Settings – Accessibility.’ You can now select the sight option according to your preference. Craft A Main tab has been added to the Set List in Set Crafting. Sets are sorted into tabs according to the weapon included in the set. Sets without weapons are sorted into the “Other” tab. A notification will now appear when a new recipe is added. The source of special ingredients will now appear in a description format. The number of consumable items storable in the storage will now appear. Storage count is added separately. UI/UX Improvements 1. Localized subtitles have been added to the bottom of each region’s cutscenes. When starting a main mission in a region for the first time, the localized region name will appear below the English name according to your language settings. However, region names in the cutscenes will remain in English. 2. Region names will now appear on the save data in the Load menu. In the “Main Menu – Load” screen, mission names and region names will now be displayed together in the save data. Mission Progress and Goal Display Detailed mission progress has been added to the main menu. Even during combat, you can check detailed mission progress in the main menu through the following displays. Soulstone: Shows the number collected and the number required to complete the mission. Danjin’s Jars: Shows the number collected and the number required to complete the mission. Please note that the number of Danjin’s Jars will show after clearing the side mission “Jar Enthusiasts.” Lost Lacrima: Shows the total number of Lost Lacrima. Spirit of Advocacy Upgrade Notifications Upgrade notifications for the Spirit of Advocacy are now more visible. When interacting with Daphrona, a notification will appear in the “Spirit of Advocacy Upgrade” menu. If there is a Spirit of Advocacy that can be upgraded, a notification will appear in the upgrade UI. The number of owned Lacrima of Circulation will appear in yellow on the screen. An upgrade reset function has been added for the Spirit of Advocacy. This function will not display if the Spirit of Advocacy has not been upgraded. If it has been upgraded, you can select Reset Upgrade to open the “Reset Spirit of Advocacy Upgrade” window and reset any upgrades.  Blade Nexus Notifications Updates in “Phantom Abilities” and “Khazan’s Memories” are now more visible in the Blade Nexus menu. Phantom Abilities If there is a Phantom that can be unlocked or awakened, a notification will appear in both the Phantom Ability and Blade Nexus menus. Khazan’s Memories If there is a region where you have completed Khazan’s Memories, a notification will appear in both the Khazan’s Memories and Blade Nexus menus. Danjin’s Jars Vibration and sound effects when approaching a Danjin’s Jar have been enhanced. Visual effects have been added to make Danjin’s Jars more noticeable. World Map The world map now shows detailed mission progress. Cleared missions will now show with a checkmark on the bottom right of the mission icon. Consumables UI & Shortcut Improvements 1. Consumables categories have been refined. The consumable info window now shows the item’s category instead of just “Consumable” in the bottom-left corner. Consumables are classified into 8 categories. Lantern, Special, Recovery, Lacrima, Cleanse, Upgrade Effects, Throwable, Sell 2 . When replacing a consumable already assigned to a hotkey with a consumable assigned to another hotkey slot, the two items will swap positions. 3. The names of items already assigned to hotkey are displayed on the Register Hotkey screen. 4. Cannot store lanterns in storage Lanterns currently assigned to a hotkey slot can no longer be stored in the storage. However, other functions such as auto-store or retrieve remain available. 5. Major consumable acquisition notifications have been improved. When acquiring Tear Summon Stone and Primeval Regression Orb for the first time, both the name and description will appear on screen. After the first acquisition, only the item name will appear on screen when you acquire the item. 6. The shortcut key to adjust item quantity has been changed. Increase/decrease keys have changed from arrow keys to A/D keys. This applies to all quantity selection screens, including purchase menu, storing and retrieving from storage, selling and purchasing consumables, and discarding. Gear Window 1. “By Performance” has been added to the gear sorting menu. When sorting gear by performance, each gear type is sorted based on the following criteria. Weapon: Total Attack DMG Armor: Total Defense Necklace: Max Stamina Ring: Max Health 2. Equip Skills feature has been added to the gear window. If a skill is activated through a fixed or set attributes, it can now be equipped directly from the gear window. Only Spirit skills with selectable commands can be equipped. All sub-skills must be learned first. 3. Skill descriptions and videos are now available in the gear window’s tooltip. Skill descriptions and videos will now appear in the attribute info window when it has the “Learn Skill” attribute. 4 . The visibility of owned set gear icons has been improved. If you own the same set as the currently displayed gears, their icons will be highlighted in white. This applies to gears in both your inventory and storage. 5. Some of the text in the gear window has been changed. “Compare Gear” and “Gear Info” have been changed to “Info Window”. “Help” has been changed to “Attribute Info” . Skill Tree An icon indicating when a learned skill is currently unusable has been added. In the skill detail window, “Unlock Requirements” has been changed to “Activation Conditions.” HUD An option has been added to display Khazan’s Health and Stamina as numbers in the combat HUD. When this option is enabled, Health and Stamina are displayed above the gauge in the format “Current / Max.” QoL Enhancements Daphrona’s Codex Attribute weakness information has been added to Daphrona’s Codex. Each monster’s attribute defense is now displayed as an icon in Daphrona’s Codex. Effectiveness is displayed in four levels: Effective, Slightly Effective, Normal, and Immune. Attribute weakness include Fire, Water, Lightning, Earth, and Poison. Controls Khazan’s Memories can now be controlled with the mouse and D-PAD. Other Improvements Ozma’s Diary is now available in the Crevice from your second playthrough. It is now possible to change the game difficulty from Easy to Normal. (However, the difficulty level cannot be changed during the final mission or in the ending area while playing.) Error Fixes These are major bug fixes from this update that directly affect gameplay. Common Fixed an issue where the achievements “The Hidden Laboratory” and “Undying Loyalty” could not be obtained Fixed an issue where achievements with multiple conditions could not be completed if you relaunch the game after completing some of the conditions. Fixed an issue where the ground would sink after interacting with Danjin’s Jar in certain areas. Fixed an issue where you could not exit outside if you fell off a certain terrain during the main mission “Palemion” Fixed an issue where if you activate all the tombstones during the main mission “Rephalan” and then proceed with another mission, the tombstones would be reset and you would be unable to use the Spirit of Advocacy Fixed an issue where elite enemies in certain locations could not destroy obstacles during the main mission “Nadin” Fixed an issue where the boss would get stuck in the terrain when using a specific skill during the side mission “Unrequited Love” Fixed an issue where the boss would not come down from the wall during the side mission “Escaping the Linon Mine” Fixed an issue where you could not return to the original area after moving through the boss area’s Blade Nexus during the side mission “Transcendental Sword” Fixed an issue where Khazan’s javelin would be blocked by a transparent wall when thrown in Embars Fixed an issue where the elevator in Embars would not operate in certain situations Fixed an issue where the “Ghost Hammer” item hanging from the ceiling of the Skoffa Cave would not drop Fixed the appearance of a door in a specific location in Vitalon to display normally Fixed an issue where the chandelier in the Great Temple would float in the air after being knocked down if you entered and returned from the Crevice Fixed an issue where you would be allowed to move to an unopened staircase upon moving to the Crevice after killing the Blade Phantom Fixed an issue where the boss’ health gauge was displayed in a space where a boss fight was not in progress Fixed an issue where Trokka would get stuck outside the map in certain situations during the boss fight Fixed an issue where Elamein could not attack through barriers during the boss fight Fixed an issue where, even if Maluca’s stamina gauge was depleted, Brutal Attack was not used and Maluca attacked immediately during the boss fight Fixed an issue where throwing the “Concentrated Poison Aura” item at Hismar while it is in the air during the boss battle would cause it to fall and take damage Fixed an issue where running would be canceled immediately in certain situations while Khazan was running Fixed an issue where skills unlocked through equipment set effects would not activate in certain situations Fixed an issue where, if maximum health was reduced when comparing equipment, the “Health” option would appear to not be applied Fixed an issue where you could obtain infinite gold and Lacrima by dismantling high-grade equipment and then crafting low-grade equipment Fixed an issue where the amount of stamina consumed per tick was affected by the “Dodge Stamina Cost Decrease” option effect in certain situations Fixed an issue where the charging speed increase effect of the “Overwhelm” and “Heavy Pressure” skills was not applied if the Greatsword skill “Indomitable” was not acquired Fixed an issue where, after acquiring the “Brutal Attack: Phantom” skill, the Phantom Form transformation effect is maintained and damage increases abnormally when the skill is activated in a specific situation Fixed an issue where you could not attack in Phantom Form until you recovered your stamina when you entered Phantom Form with all your stamina exhausted Fixed an issue where the item sorting function would not work when the focus (cursor) was on an item stored in the storage while using the storage Fixed an issue where if you purchase the “Coward’s Lantern” item multiple times, you cannot take the lantern out of the storage and a new item notification keeps appearing Fixed an issue where you could not move to the Blade Nexus when moving to the Crevice after interacting with the Blade Nexus in front of the Blade Phantom in the online demo or after defeating the Blade Phantom in the main game Fixed an issue where the game could not be played if you chose to continue with the latest data without updating in the Physical Edition Fixed an issue where if the game is terminated or crashes during loading, it returns to the previous mission and the number of clears accumulates, making it impossible to proceed with subsequent missions Fixed an issue where combat-related HUDs were not displayed properly on the screen Fixed an issue where lag occurred when slowly manipulating the camera with a controller PC Fixed an issue where settings could not be changed after the client was abnormally terminated on the PC Fixed an issue where the Xbox layout was displayed when using a PS DualSense controller on PC PS Fixed an issue where controller key inputs would occasionally not be recognized on PS5 Improvements Improved frame drop issue that occurs during certain patterns of Rangkus during the boss fight Improved the issue of characters being pushed back when hit by certain attacks near Viper during the boss fight Improved so that you cannot climb rope bridge railings while running in certain missions Increased the health of support characters in some missions Optimized some objects that cause frame drops during the main mission “Imperial Palace” Improved floating stones to move more naturally during the main mission “Imperial Palace” Improved to give a greater attack opportunity upon successfully attacking a specific pattern in Phase 2 of the final boss fight Improved the issue where cinematic cutscenes appear unnaturally when changing phases during the final boss fight Improved so that Phantom Form can still be activated while exhausted Improved the issue where the spear skill “Shadow Reversal” would restrain the target for an excessively long time Improved the duration of the staggered state upon destroying parts of the elite dragonkin Double-Edged Butcher enemy Lowered the difficulty of completing the Codex for the Pell Los Guardian Knight and Pell Los Trooper enemies Improved so that the damage taken by the Red-Eyed Boulder Bat enemy is not reduced, even when its outer shell is enhanced Improved the issue of some areas displaying in dark colors in the later stages of the game Improved the issue where the Ashen Wolf gear displayed abnormally in some cinematics Improved visual and sound effects for portals moving to the Crevice Improved visual effects when executing elite enemies in some missions Improved visual effects that appear during the buff of the spear skill “Moonlight Stance” Improved sound effects when hitting an enemy in the Frenzy state with a combo attack Improved so that Soulstones can be designated as lock-on targets

Sunscreen, Clothing and Caves May Have Given Modern Humans an Edge Over Neanderthals When Earth’s Magnetic Field Wandered A new study suggests the extinction of Neanderthals nearly coincided with a shift in Earth’s magnetic field that let more radiation reach the ground. Our species might have adapted more easily A reconstruction of a Neanderthal man in the Natural History Museum, Vienna. A new study suggests Neanderthals could not adapt to a period of increased radiation as well as early modern humans did. Jakub Hałun via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY-SA 4.0 One of the most enduring questions in anthropology is why Neanderthals, our closest extinct human relatives, completely disappeared around 40,000 years ago. Possible theories include climate change, resource competition and the dilution of Neanderthals’ genes through interbreeding with modern humans’ ancestors. Now, new research suggests early Homo sapiens may have had an edge on their cousins thanks to their use of sun protection—namely, natural sunscreen, tailored clothes and caves—during a period of unusually strong solar and cosmic radiation. The research is detailed in a study published last week in the journal Science Advances. Earth’s moving interior generates our planet’s magnetic field, an invisible shield that helps protect us and our atmosphere from harmful energy coming from space. This magnetic field has a north and south orientation, which currently roughly aligns with Earth’s North and South poles. Those are the sites where the field is the strongest, which is why auroras are usually visible at more extreme latitudes. Sometimes, however, the magnetic field’s poles wander from the planet’s geographic poles in what scientists call geomagnetic excursions, according to a statement. Occasionally, the magnetic field’s north and south poles swap completely—a natural phenomenon that has taken place about 180 times in Earth’s history. The most recent geomagnetic excursion, called the Laschamps excursion, occurred around 41,000 years ago—just before Neanderthals went extinct. To investigate this event for the new study, an international team of researchers reconstructed Earth’s upper atmosphere and nearby space during the Laschamps excursion using a 3D computer model. By combining this with models of the space plasma around Earth and our planet’s auroras, the team suggests that during the Laschamps excursion, Earth’s magnetic field overall was only 10 percent as strong as its current level. This allowed the north magnetic pole to wander over Europe, making aurora visible across the continent. It also let more cosmic radiation reach the ground. A diagram of the Laschamps excursion. At this time, auroras—depicted here by gradients of green and yellow—could be seen from most of the globe. Agnit Mukhopadhyay, University of Michigan “During the Laschamps event, the magnetic poles shifted away from true north,” lead author Agnit Mukhopadhyay, a climate and space scientist at the University of Michigan, tells BBC Science Focus’ Hatty Willmoth. “This movement, coupled with a notable weakening of the magnetic field, resulted in an expanded auroral zone and increased atmospheric penetration by energetic particles, such as solar energetic particles and cosmic radiation.” Both of those particles represent ionizing radiation, which can be harmful to human health. Interestingly, the Laschamps excursion coincided with notable developments for our ancestors and early relatives. According to the statement, some evidence suggests Homo sapiens started producing custom clothing, spending more time in caves and increasing their use of a mineral called ochre at that time. “There have been some experimental tests that show it [ochre] has sunscreen-like properties. It’s a pretty effective sunscreen, and there are also ethnographic populations that have used it primarily for that purpose,” Raven Garvey, a co-author of the study and an anthropologist at the University of Michigan, says in the statement. “So, while archaeologists cannot directly observe the behaviors of peoples who lived over 40,000 years ago, we can hypothesize that the increased use of ochre may have been, in part, for its sun-protective properties,” Garvey adds to BBC Science Focus. Environmental changes caused by the weaker magnetic field “may have driven adaptive behaviors in human populations, such as the increased use of protective clothing and ochre for UV shielding,” as Mukhopadhyay tells New Scientist’s James Woodford. But as early modern humans made these lifestyle changes, Neanderthals ultimately disappeared. The team speculates these differences may have contributed to Homo sapiens outliving Neanderthals, who don’t seem to be associated with the same developments. Not everyone agrees, however. “There’s definitely a rough overlap in terms of timing between the incursion of ancient modern humans into Europe and the Laschamps event,” says Amy Mosig Way, an archaeologist from the Australian Museum who was not involved in the study, to New Scientist. “But it’s probably a stretch to say modern humans had better sun protection in the form of tailored clothing than Neanderthals, and that this contributed to their ability to travel farther than Neanderthals and their subsequent dominance of Eurasia.” More broadly, the researchers suggest that our ancestors’ survival of a severely weakened magnetic sphere could hold implications for how we continue our search for extraterrestrial beings. “Many people say that a planet cannot sustain life without a strong magnetic field,” Mukhopadhyay says in the statement. “Looking at prehistoric Earth, and especially at events like this, helps us study exoplanetary physics from a very different vantage point. Life did exist back then. But it was a little bit different than it is today.” Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

Riot Games announced today that it has appointed Hoby Darling as its new president, succeeding CEO Dylan Jadeja.Read More

Roblox Corporation has introduced a new regional pricing tool for Roblox, one that allows makers of in-game experiences and items to automatically adjust the pricing of items purchased with the in-app currency known as "Robux" to better meet the purchasing power of different regions.Though the value of Robux themselves do not necessarily change when crossing international borders, the currency used to purchase Robux certainly does. "Regional Pricing offers users prices that are more reflective of their local economy, rather than paying the same price regardless of where they are," the company said in its announcement. "For example, without Regional Pricing, users in Vietnam or Brazil would pay the same price as users in the United States to access an experience’s economy.""With Regional Pricing enabled, prices are automatically optimized for each user’s local economy and updated periodically as Roblox’s virtual economy—and the global economy in the physical world—shifts."The invocation of Vietnam and Brazil's currencies can help developers calibrate their understanding of why items and experiences may appear to cost "fewer" Robux in other countries. In Brazil, one dollar is worth about 5.8 Brazilian real. These currency differences can make goods priced against the US dollar more expensive in these regions.Related:Image via Roblox Corporation.In the example shared by Roblox, an item priced at 199 Robux in the United States might cost 139 Robux in Brazil. That's a 30 percent decrease in price between the regions.Roblox Corporation wants 10 percent of global game spending going through RobloxRoblox Corporation boasted that the regional pricing move is part of its strategy to drive 10 percent of global spending on video games to take place on Roblox. And even though this may mean users in weaker dollar regions pay less money into Roblox for each individual purpose, feeling like their spending on Robux will take them further may drive them to spend more money on the platform, and hopefully with developers.If you're concerned about users from outside these regions using a VPN or technology to access cheaper prices, the company says not to worry. "Users using a VPN to access Roblox from a Brazilian IP address would not have access to Brazilian pricing," a Roblox spokesperson said. "Users who access Roblox from a VPN will be shown the default (highest) price for in-game items."Ensuring fairness and preventing misuse are our top priorities for this tool. By using a variety of signals to determine a user’s location, we are mitigating the ability of users to manually update their location to take advantage of lower prices. Users where we cannot confidently determine a true location will be shown the default global (highest) price for in-game items."Related:Of course Roblox faces a far bigger challenge in driving so much spending on its app: the public perception that the company has been slow to respond to what users and analysts say is a lackluster enforcement of safety regulations that put minors at risk of exposure to sexual abuse on the platform.Last November the developer rolled out new tools to help parents control what their children see and hear while playing Roblox. In March of 2025, CEO Dave Baszucki told the BBC in response to its investigation into child safety on Roblox that his message to parents would be "if you're not comfortable, don't let your kids be on Roblox.""That sounds a little counter-intuitive, but I would always trust parents to make their own decisions."

Luke, Jamie, and Kimberly will join the rest of Nintendo’s Street Fighter amiibo lineup. | Image: Nintendo <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9am3smYMP6A">via YouTube</a> Nintendo’s soon-to-be-released amiibo just went up in price at Walmart, GameStop, and Best Buy in the US. The three retailers have increased the price of Street Fighter 6 amiibo from $29.99 to $39.99, while the new Legend of Zelda amiibo have gone from $19.99 to $29.99, as reported earlier by Nintendo Life. Nintendo’s upcoming amiibo, which include Street Fighter’s Luke, Jamie, and Kimberly, along with The Legend of Zelda’s Riju, Sidon, Yunobo, and Tulin, are set to arrive with the Switch 2 on June 5th. Though Nintendo announced last week that it isn’t increasing the price of the $449.99 console, that isn’t the case for its accessories. The Switch 2 Joy-Con, Pro Controller, and the Switch 2 camera all went up in price last week, around the same time some users started noticing the amiibo price hike at GameStop. Walmart and Best Buy only seem to have adjusted the prices on Monday. The Verge reached out to Nintendo with a request for more information, but didn’t immediately hear back. The Switch 2 and its amiibo will be available for preorder on April 24th.

As LLMs become more prominent in healthcare settings, ensuring that credible sources back their outputs is increasingly important. Although no LLMs are yet FDA-approved for clinical decision-making, top models such as GPT-4o, Claude, and MedPaLM have outperformed clinicians on standardized exams like the USMLE. These models are already being utilized in real-world scenarios, including mental health support and the diagnosis of rare diseases. However, their tendency to hallucinate—generating unverified or inaccurate statements—poses a serious risk, especially in medical contexts where misinformation can lead to harm. This issue has become a major concern for clinicians, with many citing a lack of trust and the inability to verify LLM responses as key barriers to adoption. Regulators, such as the FDA, have also emphasized the importance of transparency and accountability, underscoring the need for reliable source attribution in medical AI tools. Recent improvements, such as instruction fine-tuning and RAG, have enabled LLMs to generate sources when prompted. Yet, even when references are from legitimate websites, there is often little clarity on whether those sources truly support the model’s claims. Prior research has introduced datasets such as WebGPT, ExpertQA, and HAGRID to assess LLM source attribution; however, these rely heavily on manual evaluation, which is time-consuming and difficult to scale. Newer approaches utilize LLMs themselves to assess attribution quality, as demonstrated in works such as ALCE, AttributedQA, and FactScore. While tools like ChatGPT can assist in evaluating citation accuracy, studies reveal that such models still struggle to ensure reliable attribution in their outputs, highlighting the need for continued development in this area. Researchers from Stanford University and other institutions have developed SourceCheckup, an automated tool designed to evaluate the accuracy with which LLMs support their medical responses with relevant sources. Analyzing 800 questions and over 58,000 source-statement pairs, they found that 50%–90 % of LLM-generated answers were not fully supported by cited sources, with GPT-4 showing unsupported claims in about 30% of cases. Even LLMs with web access struggled to provide source-backed responses consistently. Validated by medical experts, SourceCheckup revealed significant gaps in the reliability of LLM-generated references, raising critical concerns about their readiness for use in clinical decision-making. The study evaluated the source attribution performance of several top-performing and open-source LLMs using a custom pipeline called SourceCheckup. The process involved generating 800 medical questions—half from Reddit’s r/AskDocs and half created by GPT-4o using MayoClinic texts—then assessing each LLM’s responses for factual accuracy and citation quality. Responses were broken down into verifiable statements, matched with cited sources, and scored using GPT-4 for support. The framework reported metrics, including URL validity and support, at both the statement and response levels. Medical experts validated all components, and the results were cross-verified using Claude Sonnet 3.5 to assess potential bias from GPT-4. The study presents a comprehensive evaluation of how well LLMs verify and cite medical sources, introducing a system called SourceCheckup. Human experts confirmed that the model-generated questions were relevant and answerable, and that parsed statements closely matched the original responses. In source verification, the model’s accuracy nearly matched that of expert doctors, with no statistically significant difference found between model and expert judgments. Claude Sonnet 3.5 and GPT-4o demonstrated comparable agreement with expert annotations, whereas open-source models such as Llama 2 and Meditron significantly underperformed, often failing to produce valid citation URLs. Even GPT-4o with RAG, though better than others due to its internet access, supported only 55% of its responses with reliable sources, with similar limitations observed across all models. The findings underscore persistent challenges in ensuring factual accuracy in LLM responses to open-ended medical queries. Many models, even those enhanced with retrieval, failed to consistently link claims to credible evidence, particularly for questions from community platforms like Reddit, which tend to be more ambiguous. Human evaluations and SourceCheckup assessments consistently revealed low response-level support rates, highlighting a gap between current model capabilities and the standards needed in clinical contexts. To improve trustworthiness, the study suggests models should be trained or fine-tuned explicitly for accurate citation and verification. Additionally, automated tools like SourceCleanup demonstrated promise in editing unsupported statements to improve factual grounding, offering a scalable path to enhance citation reliability in LLM outputs. Check out the Paper. Also, don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and join our Telegram Channel and LinkedIn Group. Don’t Forget to join our 90k+ ML SubReddit. Sana HassanSana Hassan, a consulting intern at Marktechpost and dual-degree student at IIT Madras, is passionate about applying technology and AI to address real-world challenges. With a keen interest in solving practical problems, he brings a fresh perspective to the intersection of AI and real-life solutions.Sana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Stanford Researchers Propose FramePack: A Compression-based AI Framework to Tackle Drifting and Forgetting in Long-Sequence Video Generation Using Efficient Context Management and SamplingSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/LLMs Can Be Misled by Surprising Data: Google DeepMind Introduces New Techniques to Predict and Reduce Unintended Knowledge ContaminationSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/LLMs Can Now Learn to Try Again: Researchers from Menlo Introduce ReZero, a Reinforcement Learning Framework That Rewards Query Retrying to Improve Search-Based Reasoning in RAG SystemsSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Model Context Protocol (MCP) vs Function Calling: A Deep Dive into AI Integration Architectures

Latest   Machine Learning A Practical Guide to Evaluating RAG Systems: Metrics That Matter 0 like April 21, 2025 Share this post Last Updated on April 21, 2025 by Editorial Team Author(s): Ajit Kumar Singh Originally published on Towards AI. Image by Author Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) revolutionizes how language models ground their answers in external data. By combining a retriever that fetches relevant information from a knowledge base and a generator that creates responses using that information, RAG systems enable more accurate and trustworthy outputs. But how do you evaluate a RAG system? How do you know if it’s retrieving the right context or generating reliable answers? This guide breaks it all down with practical metrics, worked examples, and actionable insights. RAG System Overview Two core components: Retriever: Pulls relevant chunks of information (context) from a vector database.Generator: Uses the context to generate a coherent, factual response. Each stage needs its own set of metrics for proper evaluation. Let’s explore them. The retriever is the first critical component in any RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) system. Its job? To fetch the most relevant and helpful pieces of information from a vector database in response to an input query. To assess how well it’s doing, we rely on three core metrics: Contextual PrecisionContextual RecallContextual Relevancy Let’s explore each one, starting with Contextual Precision. Contextual Precision measures whether the most relevant context nodes (document chunks) are ranked higher than irrelevant ones. It’s not just about what was retrieved, but how well it was ranked.A high Contextual… Read the full blog for free on Medium. Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming a sponsor. Published via Towards AI Towards AI - Medium Share this post

While My Hero Academia’s eighth and final season arrives later this year, we're not saying goodbye to Class 1-A or the world of Quirks. New movies and spin-offs from studio Bones and Toho Animation will hopefully continue to fill the void. The fourth original movie based on the shonen franchise, My Hero Academia: You’re Next arrived in theaters soon after author Kōhei Horikoshi published the manga’s final chapter. It quickly became the franchise’s highest-grossing movie and currently holds a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It may have taken a bit longer than most recent theatrical releases, but My Hero Academia: You’re Next has finally arrived on both Crunchyroll and Netflix. To celebrate, Crunchyroll is also offering limited time deals on all things My Hero Academia, from manga to figurines. PlayWhere to Stream My Hero Academia: You’re Next My Hero Academia: You're NextHoping to be the best hero, Izuku Midoriya confronts a villain who imitates the hero he's long admired.My Hero Academia: You’re Next is now streaming on Crunchyroll and U.S. Netflix. You’ll find both subbed and dubbed versions of the movie on each service. Here’s the full list of languages you’ll find on Crunchyroll, specifically: Subs: English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Castillian, Arabic, European Portuguese, PolishDubs: English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Italian, Russian, CastillianNetflix subscriptions start at $7.99/month. While Crunchyroll does offer a free tier, You’re Next is exclusive to Premium memberships, which start at $9.99/month. However, unlike Netflix, Crunchyroll does offer a seven-day free trial. Otherwise, you can rent the movie from digital marketplaces like Prime Video.Blu-ray Release My Hero Academia: You're Next [Blu-ray]$19.99 at AmazonMy Hero Academia: You're Next arrives on streaming several weeks after the movie released on Blu-ray. The physical release, which is notably similar in price to buying the movie on Prime Video, also includes two exclusive featurettes: "A Piece of Cake" and "Manners." Catch Up on My Hero AcademiaYou’re Next technically takes place during Season 7 of the My Hero Academia timeline. While you’ll need a Premium Crunchyroll membership to check out You’re Next and Vigilantes, you can watch all seven seasons of My Hero Academia for free with ads. The anime’s eighth and final season is planned to air this fall, and episodes will be simulcast on the anime streaming service. The My Hero Academia movie also arrives on streaming while a new MHA anime spin-off is airing. The prequel series My Hero Academia: Vigilantes is streaming exclusively on Crunchyroll, and three episodes have been released so far. Final Day of Crunchyroll's My Hero Academia SaleAs part of the MHA festivities, Crunchyroll has also discounted manga sets, figures, and anime Blu-rays. Deals available through the Crunchyroll Store end tonight. You can check out the full sale here. Of course, Amazon has price-matched or is now offering even deeper discounts, and who knows how long those will last. First 20 VolumesMy Hero Academia Box Set 1Baby Deku Mini BustKatsuki Bakugo Hero Costume 8 Inch PlushMy Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission [Blu-ray Steelbook]

Andor is finally returning for its second and final season on Disney+. When we last saw Cassian (Diego Luna), he had just started to help Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård) and the burgeoning rebellion, more so out of necessity and survival than a real desire to make change. But as we speed through the next several years of Cassian’s life, we’ll see him become the dedicated rebel we see in Rogue One. While we’re very excited to see the show return, Star Wars recently announced the full episode release schedule for season 2, and it’s a little different than what you might expect. Here’s what you need to know about when and where to watch Andor season 2. When Will Season 2 of Andor Be Available to Watch on Disney+? Typically, new episodes of Star Wars series will release 1-3 episodes for the premiere and then one episode weekly after that. Season 1 of Andor released the first three episodes at once, and then one episode weekly for the rest of the season. But with season 2, Andor is trying something different. Three new episodes will drop every week starting April 22. Each set of three episodes will represent a year of Cassian’s life leading up to the events of Rogue One. The release schedule is as follows: Episodes 1-3 will be available to watch on Tuesday April 22 at 6 p.m. PT/ 9 p.m. ET Episodes 4-6 will be available to watch on Tuesday April 29 at 6 p.m. PT/ 9 p.m. ET Episodes 7-9 will be available to watch on Tuesday May 6 at 6 p.m. PT/ 9 p.m. ET Episodes 10-12 will be available to watch on Tuesday May 13 at 6 p.m. PT / 9 p.m. ET Andor Season 1 Recap There’s a lot that happens over the course of Andor’s first season. Here’s everything you need to remember before watching season 2. Morlana One In 5 BBY, Cassian Andor is looking for his missing sister on the planet Morlana One. During an altercation with a pair of officers, he accidentally kills one and murders the other to cover his tracks. He flees the planet and tries to hide out on Ferrix, asking his adoptive mother Maarva (Fiona Shaw), and his friends Bix (Adria Arjona) and Brasso (Joplin Sibtain) to help cover for him if anyone comes asking. Morlana One’s security force Pre-Mor investigates, but the Chief Inspector wants to cover up the incident so that they don’t raise any flags with the Empire. Syril Karn (Kyle Soller), a deputy inspector, becomes obsessed with solving the case despite his supervisor’s wishes. He tracks Cassian’s ship to Ferrix and puts out a warrant for his arrest. When Karn and other officers arrive to arrest him, Cassian is able to escape with the help of Luthen Rael, who convinces Cassian to join his rebel network. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! The Aldhani Rebellion After fleeing Ferrix, Luthen takes Cassian to the planet Aldhani where a small group is planning to steal credits from an Imperial supply hub on the planet. Despite some mistrust in the group and a few casualties, the heist is ultimately successful. Vel (Faye Marsay) and Cassian are the only survivors, and Cassian flees with his cut after it’s all over. He stops by Ferrix to try and convince Maarva to escape with him, but she insists on staying and resisting the increasing Imperial occupation. Escaping Narkina 5 Leaving Maarva and his life on Ferrix behind, for now, Cassian hides out on the tropical planet Niamos. He’s living a fairly comfy life until he accidentally gets caught up in a group running from Stormtroopers and is unjustly arrested. Cassian is sentenced to six years on Narkina 5, a prison labor camp that we later discover is building parts for the Death Star. Cassian and the other prisoners soon discover that the Empire is extending sentences and forcing people to stay and work even after they’ve served their time. Not wanting to die in this prison, they work together to break out. Riot on Ferrix Cassian and Bix’s contact with Luthen unintentionally draws the attention of ISB agent Dedra Meero (Denise Gough) and her division. She is eager to take down the rebel cell known as Axis, and believes that Cassian is the key. Imperial officers kidnap and torture Bix to try and find his location. When that doesn’t work, they use Maarva’s death as a lure to try and pull him out. Luthen, Vel, and Cinta (Varada Sethu) also hope to use the funeral as cover to assassinate Cassian so that he can’t give up Luthen’s identity.  At the funeral, a recording of Maarva’s last words encourages the people to stand up to the Empire and fight back. Heeding her words, the people of Ferrix fight back and a riot breaks out in the streets. Cassian is able to use the chaos to free Bix, urging Brasso to take her somewhere safe off world. He then approaches Luthen, telling him that he can kill him if he wants, or he can take him into his operation. Luthen replies with a smile and Cassian officially joins the fold.

Credit: Majin Bu Many details of the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max have already leaked, but little has been shared about Apple’s expected color options. Today, leaker Majin Bu has posted that Sky Blue may be on its way. iPhone 17 Pro in Sky Blue could follow M4 MacBook Air debut Majin Bu writes on his website: sources close to the supply chain confirm that several iPhone 17 Pro prototypes have been made in various colors, with Sky Blue currently the frontrunner. In prototypes, it reportedly looks even more stunning than the much-loved Sierra Blue of the iPhone 13 Pro, with a brightness and refinement that make it irresistible. Unless Apple changes course at the last minute, this will be the star of the September 2025 launch event. Bu has reported several Apple leaks reliably, especially recently—though his track record isn’t perfect. Sky Blue coming to the iPhone 17 Pro would be especially interesting in the same year it debuted on the M4 MacBook Air. I can’t recall Apple launching a special color on the Mac then the iPhone in the same year. That said, if Sky Blue has proven a hit on the MacBook Air, new iPhones could provide the perfect opportunity to capitalize on that popularity. Apple typically offers the same few standard variants of gray with its iPhone Pro line, with a single color that changes out each year. Last year that color was Desert Titanium. I’d love to see the iPhone 17 Pro come in Sky Blue. But as Bu notes, it’s still perhaps too early to know with much certainty what Apple’s special color of the year will be. Would you buy an iPhone 17 Pro in Sky Blue? Let us know in the comments. Best iPhone accessories Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed.  FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.You’re 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. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel