See at ESPN Watch La Liga soccer in the US from $11 a month ESPN Plus See at ESPN See more details See at ExpressVPN Best VPN for streaming ExpressVPN See at ExpressVPN See more details See at Premier Sports Watch La Liga in the UK from 8 Premier Sports See at Premier Sports See more details See at TSN Carries La Liga matches live TSN Plus See at TSN See more details See at BeIn Sports Watch La Liga games from AU$15 per month BeIn Sports See at BeIn Sports See more details Table of Contents Rayo Vallecano welcome city rivals Real Madrid to the Estadio de Vallecas on Saturday in what looks set to be a key La Liga clash.With league leaders Barcelona playing tomorrow, Carlo Ancelotti's Real side have the opportunity to move to the top of La Liga with a victory.Los Blancos have however been widely inconsistent in recent weeks and have an historically poor record at Rayo's home ground.Rayo Vallecano take on Real Madrid at the Estadio de Vallecas on Saturday, Dec. 14. Kickoff is set for9 p.m. CET local time, making it a3 p.m. ET and 12 p.m. PT start in the US, a 8 p.m. GMT start in the UK and a 7 a.m. AEDTSunday kickoff in Australia.Below, we'll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game as it happens, wherever you are in the world. Jude Bellingham scored the winner in Real Madrid's 2-3 away victory over Atalanta in the Champions League in midweek. Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images How to watch Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid in the US without cableThis match is available to stream in the US via ESPN Plus, which has live English and Spanish-language broadcast rights for La Liga in the States. ESPN Plus ESPN's standalone streaming service costs $11 a month or $110 for an annual subscription.Read our ESPN Plus review. See at ESPN How to watch La Liga from anywhere with a VPNIf you find yourself unable to view La Liga matches locally, you may need a different way to watch the games -- that's where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it's also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins. With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors' Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this. Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you're streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions. James Martin/CNET 2024 Latest Tests DNS leaks detected, 25% speed loss in 2024 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands ExpressVPN isour current best VPN pickfor people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It's normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you'll get three months free and save 49%. That's the equivalent of $6.67 a month with codeSPECIALDEAL, which should be automatically applied.Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. 82% off with 24mo plan (+6 free months) See at ExpressVPN Livestream Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid in the UK Premier Sports will be showing a minimum of five live matches per week from Spain's top league on its Premier Sports 1 and 2 channels, as well as its dedicated La Liga platform. This game will be shown exclusively live on Premier Sports Player and La Liga TV. Premier Sports A subscription to just Premier Sports' dedicated La Liga channel costs 8 a month.You can also get the channel via a full subscription to Premier Sports, giving you access to all of the networks' channels, which have the UK broadcast rights to Scottish Premiership matches, BKT United Rugby Championship and Investec Champions Cup rugby, plus NHL and Nascar.A full Premier Sports subscription costs 10 per month for Sky and Virgin TV customers. You can also get Premier Sports through Amazon Prime Video as an add-on for 15 a month. See at Premier Sports Livestream Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid in Canada TSN is the rights holder for live coverage of La Liga matches in the region, with select fixtures being shown on its linear channels and a wider selection of games being shown on its TSN Plus streaming platform. This match is set to be shown on TSN Plus. TSN TSN Plus is a direct-streaming service that costs CA$8 a month and also offers coverage of PGA Tour Live golf, NFL games, F1, NASCAR and the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments. See at TSN Livestream Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid in Australia Footy fans down under can watch La Liga fixtures live on BeIn Sports, which holds the live broadcast rights in Australia for Spanish top-flight matches. This match is set to be shown on BeIn Sports 2. BeIn Sports BeIn Sports is available in Australia for AU$15 a month or a yearly commitment of AU$130. See at BeIn Sports Quick tips for streaming La Liga using a VPNWith four variables at play -- your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN -- your experience and success when streaming La Liga matches may vary.If you don't see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the "search for city or country" option.If you're having trouble getting the game after you've turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs -- like Roku -- don't have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you'll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you're using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network's sports app, you'll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.Remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you're using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommendBrave.

OpinionDecember 13, 20245 min readNeuroaesthetics Reveals How the Arts Help with Dementia and TraumaAesthetic experiences can improve health and well-being at any stage of lifeBy Susan Magsamen Robert Kneschke/Alamy Stock PhotoMany of us do not have to look much farther than our family, circle of friends, or co-workers to know someone who has been touched by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or a neurological disorder such as Alzheimers disease. And that doesnt even take into account the acute daily stress, sometimes reaching toxic levels, that we all experience.In fact, one in four people will be affected by a mental health issue or a psychological disorder at some point in their lives, anxiety and depression being the most common. Neurological conditions are the leading cause of poor health and disability across the globe, with cognition disabilities affecting approximately 14 percent of the U.S. population.Fortunately, just as our brains and bodies respond negatively to trauma, stress and disease, so do they also respondin a positive senseto the arts and aesthetic experiences. Over the last 30 years, advances in technology have allowed scientists to noninvasively get inside our heads, allowing them to prove what artists and lovers of art have known intuitively for millennia: we are wired for art.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.The late evolutionary biologist Edward O. Wilson placed our desire to create and commemorate our lives through artistic expression as far back as the time when humans were first beginning to harness fire. He believed that what could have begun as restorative gatherings around a nightly fire grew into the creation of stories, songs, dance, myths and cave drawings, bonding us to one another like nothing else. Over the ensuing millennia, those gatherings around the fire have evolved into the incredibly diverse array of cultures that span our globe.Recent research as well as insights into humankinds artistic past have led to a new scientific discipline known as neuroaesthetics, so named by neuroscientist Semir Zeki in the late 1990s. Neuroaesthetics is the study of how the arts and aesthetic experiences measurably changes our brains, body and behavior and how this knowledge translates into practices that advance health, well-being, learning and flourishing. The discipline functions at the intersection of the arts, health, medicine, the sciences and technology, and is highly interdisciplinary.In 2023 Ivy Ross, chief design officer for consumer devices at Google, and I published Your Brain on Art. Now in its 11th printing, the book is the culmination of four years of writing and interviewing more than 120 researchers, artists, community organizers and others with the goal of bringing to the public information about the power of neuroaesthetics. We wanted to share that the arts are accessible, immediate, and affordable, and, importantly, that a talent or gift for any type of art is not required to reap significant benefits from engaging with the arts. Working on an art project for just 45 minutes, regardless of your skill, can decrease stress and has been shown to reduce cortisol levels in up to 75 percent of people.One of the books chapters focuses exclusively on restoring mental health through the use of neuroaesthetic principles and goes into detail on the brain mechanisms for processing stress and trauma, chronicling how a traumatic event may trigger PTSD. Dutch psychiatrist Bessel van der Kolk used fMRI scans to show how the Brocas area of the brain (one of the regions responsible for language and speech) shuts down in response to a traumatic experience, making it very difficult or impossible for the person experiencing the episode to talk about it. The arts interventions can help people who have experienced trauma make sense of what has happened to them and enables them to restore their ability to share their memories with less emotional dysregulation.One such interventional program is named Creative Forces, co-developed by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs and state-supported art agencies. Creative Forces launched in 2010 as an intensive, month-long program of what is called creative arts therapy for service members with traumatic brain injury and PTSD.Among the creative arts therapies offered, the program includes mask-making, an ancient art form that has proven to be an effective form of art therapy. In these projects, service members make masks that represent aspects of an experience they wish to explore, allowing them to externalize their thoughts in a nonjudgmental setting. The finished masks depict a wide range of feelings, from symbolically depicting deceased friends, to the representation of battle wounds and even patriotic icons. Making these pieces of art has enabled service members to open up to their families, speak about their experiences, diminish the occurrences of flashbacks and restore a sense of control to be able to process their darkest, most horrific memories and not let those remembrances take over their current lives.Another arts-related therapy involves dance, which can yield significant benefits to physical and mental well-being, even for a person at risk for or diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease. In one study, researchers looked at the effects of 11 different types of physical activity, including cycling and swimming, but found that only dance lowered older adult participants risk of dementia. The researchers noted that the benefits may stem from the fact that dancing involves both music, which stimulates the brains reward centers, and movement, which activates its sensory and motor circuits.They also observed that dance combines mental effort and social interaction. Unlike other types of movements, dance involves the entire body and requires the brain to coordinate all muscle groups at once to engage in a particular sequence of movements. Dance can make a particular difference in the lives of those with movement disorders. One example is the Mark Morris Dance Companys Dance for PD program, a global initiative that invites people with Parkinsons and their families to participate in free virtual or in-person dance classes. Neuroaesthetics research findings in more than 40 peer-reviewed journal publications have shown how dance can help people with Parkinsons improve their gait, mood, sleep and cognition.Singing, playing and listening to music also help people with dementia improve cognition and quality of life. For those in the early-to-mid stages of dementia, taking part in the arts and aesthetic experiences can reduce agitation and other behavioral issues.Since 2020, the number of scientific articles on neuroaesthetic research has marked a steady increasefrom 700 papers in 2020 to 900 three years later, according to data compiled at the University of Pennsylvania.[KS3] And there is increasing recognition for neuroaesthetics. I worked with the Aspen Institute and a diverse group of researchers and practitioners to launch the NeuroArts Blueprint in 2021 to build awareness of the field and expand research and funding for it.Ultimately, the arts offer transformative benefits accessible to everyone, regardless of skill. By embracing an aesthetic mindsetimbued with curiosity, sensory awareness and playfulnesseach of us can experience the profound effects of the arts and aesthetics on our well-being. These practices are as important as exercise, sleep and good nutrition.This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views expressed by the author or authors are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

Epic signs deal "to make Fortnite and Epic Games Store more accessible on millions of Android devices""Players will be able to easily download Fortnite, as well as third party games in the future."Image credit: Epic Games News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Dec. 14, 2024 Epic Games has signed a deal with European telecommunications company Telefnica to pre-install the Epic Games Store on all its new Android devices.This means that new Android Telefnica customers in Spain, Spanish-speaking Latam, Germany, and the UK will have access to Epic Games' suite of games right out of the box in a move to "make Fortnite and the Epic Games Store more accessible on millions of Telefnica Android devices".To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Lego Fortnite Odyssey: Storm Chasers update trailer.Watch on YouTube"Players will now be able to more easily download Fortnite, Fall Guys and Rocket League Sideswipe as well as third party games in the future," Epic said. "This is just the beginning, and over the next year the companies plan to expand the partnership and bring more benefits to mobile players across the Telefnica network."Epic said this new "strategic alliance" will provide Android players with "a more competitive ecosystem [...] empowering them with a choice beyond the conventional app marketplaces". It follows Apple's decision back in August 2020 to boot Fortnite from the App Store after Epic deliberately circumvent contractually mandated App Store payment mechanisms within the game, kicking off Epic boss Tim Sweeney's public war with Apple in US courts."Thanks to our partnership with Telefnica, players will now be able to access the Epic Games Store, Fortnite and soon games from third party developers directly on their Android device," said Michael Modon, senior director of growth partnerships for Epic Games. "We look forward to expanding our collaboration with Telefnica to bring even more benefits to players."Earlier this week, Epic Games confirmed it would continue to support Fortnite Festival, the game's Rock Band-style mode developed by Harmonix, for the forseeable future.

Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island review - a repetitive if inoffensive offering of the godsMythbusting.Image credit: Eurogamer/Whitethorn Games Review by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Dec. 13, 2024 A gentle cadence and quirky characters can't counter Mythwrecked's repetitiveness, making this more Greek tragedy than odyssey.As I drag on another hoodie and fight the urge to put on the heating, the soft sands and sun-bleached stones of Ambrosia Island are undeniably appealing. So, too, is Mythwrecked's promise of a wholesome, frictionless adventure - as we haul ourselves towards 2024's finishing line, I can't imagine anything more delightful than losing a few hours exploring a lush, tropical island.Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island reviewDeveloper: Polygon TreehousePublisher: Whitehorn GamesPlatform: Played on PCAvailability: Out now on PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, and Xbox Series X/S and Xbox OneIf you go in with that mindset, knowing that Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is an uncomplicated, unhurried game that unfolds gently over ten-ish hours, then I don't suppose there's much to be offended by. You're Alex, a young woman shipwrecked on an island paradise where a gaggle of Greek gods are dealing with collective memory loss and friendship fallouts. Your job is to jog the former and foster the latter by scouring the island for lost mementoes to help your new pals remember who they are and why they loved each other in the first place.The gods, reskinned in contemporary personas that will delight and irk in equal measure, are initially wary but open up as you converse and do favours for them, as well as uncover clues about their lives before you got there. Every potential pal is unlocked in precisely the same way (chat, do favours, get mementoes, chat more, do more favours, get more mementoes), which means that from as early as a half-hour in, you're done - Mythwrecked won't have any more surprises for you.Watch on YouTubeAnd look, I get it. Maybe this is exactly what you're looking for. Maybe you're a little burnt out on the AAA grind and are seeking a game that's gentle and predictable in precisely this way. Maybe you love the back-and-forth of fetch quests and treasure hunts across the petite Ambrosia. All of this is true of me, too, but ultimately, there's a fine line between predictable and boring, and Mythwrecked sadly falls just on the wrong side of it for me.As pretty as it is, the world of Ambrosia is curiously forgettable. You're either stomping along the sand or stamping across non-descript grey stone, and although each god has their unique style and personality represented in their immediate surroundings, the world around them embodies little of it. This means no beach feels particularly different from the next, and no part of the citadel looks distinct either. Your journey from point A to B will inevitably be frustrated by a Greek pot that, to my chagrin, we cannot break, or be blocked entirely by the weird placement of a barrel or a dead-end. For the home of gods, it's all surprisingly pedestrian, tricky to traverse, and well, dull. Image credit: Eurogamer/Whitethorn GamesThere is a fast-travel system, though. Kinda. While you can't instantly zip back and forth between places at a whim, there are nine magical doors across the island which will always transport you back to the shrine in the middle of the map near your home - a trick that Polygon Treehouse's debut game Roki pulled off to great effect when used in a point and click puzzle context. Your home itself is quite pointless as a space, mind, and I never bothered with it after I realised I couldn't do anything there but sleep. But I do appreciate the return of these magic doors, though, especially when I'm trying to find a god or complete a favour at a particular time of day.That's right - there's a dynamic day/night cycle. Some gods are only available to chat at certain times, and some favours can only be completed during set windows, too. Unlike Animal Crossing, though, you don't have to leave IRL and come back (or sneakily change the time on your device). Across the isle are about eleventy gazillion benches where you can sit and change the time to whatever you want which makes the whole cycle-thing a little redundant. Image credit: Eurogamer/Whitethorn GamesThat's the problem here. While I appreciate these quality of life touches, they make much of Mythwrecked's mechanics unnecessary. You can also trade Ambrosia fruit, but just like the day/night cycle that can be overruled at almost any moment well, there's almost no point to it. Firstly, the fruit grows everywhere; all greedy gods need do is step outside and grab one, ffs. Nonetheless, the story requires you to gather it up and use it to barter with the gods for anything from keys to cassettes to plots of land where you can grow even more Ambrosia fruit. This could've been an interesting wrinkle, but there's so much of the stuff (check out the map image below - all those yellow dots are a fruit I've yet to collect!) I bought every item I could the moment they unlocked, and still didn't run out. And I finished the game with 350+ of the bloody things left over. Image credit: Eurogamer/Whitethorn GamesCollecting mementoes and completing favours is strikingly simplistic, too. There's a fair bit of to-ing and fro-ing - this is not a game that respects your time - and I did find the piecemeal way the chores were doled out irritating towards the end, as often you'll complete a set of favours in one area only to be sent back there five minutes later for something else. Trying to work out which hidden memento belongs to whom is neat, though - I never went to the Oracle for guidance; working it out for myself was much more rewarding, especially when Alex is on the hunt for several gods simultaneously. Chasing the proximity signals was a cool mini-puzzle feature, too - I never tired of that satisfying beep as you got nearer and nearer to your prize.The more you play, though, the less engaging it all feels. While Mythwrecked's cast is diverse, its world is not, with very little to make each area feel unique or worth exploring. The fixed camera that you're not allowed to manipulate is always getting in the way, too, sometimes creating unforced errors as you enter and exit shrine doorways. There are teeny steps Alex can't (read: won't) climb. Interactions with the gods are twee at best and cringey at worst, and even if you completely suspend reality, the relationships Alex rapidly forges with each individual god feel forced and saccharin rather than meaningful, not least because each character's vocal emote is grossly over-used. There's always a trickle of excitement as you collect enough seals to unlock a new area, but even that ends up being disappointing; the puzzles you complete to open the doors are uninspired to the point of insulting. Image credit: Eurogamer/Whitethorn GamesMythwrecked: Ambrosia Island accessibility optionsYou can't tweak the difficulty, but as this is one of the simplest things you'll ever play, that doesn't really matter here. You can, however, switch sprint from hold to toggle, remove vibration and camera shake, and autoplay dialogue - well, text; there is no real dialogue - at your preferred speed. You can't change the size or font of your subtitles.There are so many ways a little tweak here or there could have elevated the adventure. The mosaics we uncover for Aphrodite - what if they were all different, perhaps telling their own stories? The string lights we power for Zeus and Hades - could they have been different colours, maybe revealing hitherto hidden secrets when lit? What if the ghosts heard things as they roamed the island at night? The Lighthouse we call home and spruce up with home decor both scavenged and saved for - couldn't we at least have been able to decorate our own home on our own? As it stands, the stuff you find is auto-magically added whether you want it or not. You cannot remove or reposition anything. You can't change the colours or add your own little touch. There's absolutely no agency here, yet so much squandered opportunity.If you've been looking for a simple, low-stress adventure to settle down with the kids this Christmas, then Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island is as good a punt as any other, not least because it's entirely without swears, sex, or violence. Beyond that, though, with its overly simple puzzling, uninspired environments, and repetitive fetch quests, I'm sorry to say I'm not entirely sure who else Mythwrecked is for.A copy of Mythwrecked: Ambrosia Island was provided for review by publisher Whitethorn Games.

You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you're reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games hereFortnite has released thousands of cosmetic items over the past seven years, and some of them have become quite rare. A couple of cosmetics havent returned in more than 2,000 days, while more than 100 of them were last seen four or more years ago. On Friday night, several rare cosmetics returned, and some of them were last available in 2021.If youve been looking to obtain some Fortnite items that havent been out for a while, here is your chance!The return of rare cosmetics in FortniteEpic Games brought many rare cosmetics back with the last reset of the Item Shop. Nine of them were last seen a year ago or longer, while the shop also contains Christmas-themed cosmetics that were last available in December 2023. This shop has certainly been one of the best in recent weeks, especially for those looking to get a rare emote.Out West Fortnite emote was last seen nearly three years ago before its return. Image by VideoGamerAt the moment, you can purchase three emotes that were last seen 1,000 or more days ago. Here is an entire list of all the rare Fortnite cosmetics that returned on Friday and were last available 365 or more days ago:Ride Along emote 373 daysRing It On emote 373 daysHoliday Hydrant back bling 373 daysMy World emote 378 daysRocket Rodeo emote 509 daysCozy Holidays wrap 705 daysOut West emote 1,021 daysJabba Switchway emote 1,216 daysPull Up emote -1,251 daysWith the Winterfest 2024 event around the corner, we expect the Fortnite developer to bring back even more rare cosmetics over the next two weeks. Furthermore, the event will likely feature several free cosmetics, allowing us to expand our collection of skins without spending V-Bucks. FortnitePlatform(s):Android, iOS, macOS, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/XGenre(s):Action, Massively Multiplayer, Shooter9VideoGamerSubscribe to our newsletters!By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and may receive occasional deal communications; you can unsubscribe anytime.Share

Labyrinths seemed to have gone hand in hand with these vivid hues, for maximum kaleidoscopic effect. Among the most eye-catching (and irresistibly soft) were Dedars Jamu Jungle and Dj Vu Jamais, made all the more mesmerizing in flamingo pink. For a more subtle print on the eyes, S. Harriss Malay diffused a full spectrum of hues in an ethereal fabric.This fall, Maharam introduced Nova by Sander Lak, the latest in the design studios collaboration with the Sies Marjan fashion designer. I wanted to develop a pattern that captures our experience of color in a space and how color flows, grows, and moveslike starting to mix a pot of paint, says Lak.Woodland EmbarkingArborists had a field day in textiles this year, with stylized, chic tree designs sprouting up throughout 2024. Take Sahcos Art Decoesque forest Sariska print, which features a meandering path of tiny geometric trees and metallic touches. Artes vibrant Riverbank jacquard wall covering, inspired by the glamour of mid-century Japan, took a more pastoral turn. Taking cues from Art Nouveau, the equally exuberant Sheltering Pond mural by Aux Abris drew from Shelter Islands woodland escapes.Dedars Il Giardino In Una Stanza felt nearly magical with its ultra-subtle imagery of bamboo, birds, and insects, achieved through varying piles in the jacquard velvet, while House of Hackneys Trees Please print similarly felt straight out of a storybook. For fauna with a modern but versatile feel, Larsen debuted a stunning leaf-like printed fabric in upholstery and drapery weight. The design promises to be a chic and trusty alternative to the ubiquitous palm print.Stamp of ApprovalWhile many brands channeled classic prints from India, others put twists on stamped motifs, ranging from delicate florals to bold geometrics. Abstract highlights include Fermoies flowing repeat, Ruffle, which comes in 17 colorways, as well as Raptus & Wrights Pablos Polka, available at Studio Four NYC through the UK brands US exclusive with Lucy Rose Design. And inspired by founder Cara Georges great aunt who lived across the pond, textile studio Otea launched this fall with chic offeringsmany of which emulate block printsinformed by folk art, architectural antiquity, flora, fauna, and more.Maison Venu, Schuyler Samperton Textiles, Peter Dunham Textiles, and Nina Campbell were among the slew of brands packing pops of color through printed petals. We love how this style deliberately embraces the imperfections of hand-made craftlines and prints may not match precisely, and colors may not be distributed evenly, but that only adds to the appeal.Dialing Up the CharmA certifiable mark of a personality-driven interior? A novelty print, of course. This years irresistible motifs were far-flung in nature, but shared one idea: They piled on the charm! Take Nina Campbells recent designs for Osborne & Little, a.k.a. the Dallimore collection, which takes its name from pioneering English botanist William Dallimore. Its Tudeley fabric was especially jubilant with its potted plants detailed in myriad shades. More funky than dainty, the print feels fresh and akin to the blooms of contemporary artists like Jonas Wood.

15 Blender free scripts By Semy on December 13, 2024 Add-ons Semy created a pack of 15 useful Blender scripts, randing from keyframe and collection manipulation to mesh conversion and generation.A gift for our Blender Nation community!We made 15 Blender mini scripts and gave them totally for free. They will save you hours of tedious work inside the Blender.Get the scripts here.Here is the video of what is inside:And don't worry you don't have to have any experience with scripting or Python. I explained everything in the video.What is inside? Clear Visibility Keyframes In Collection Sequential Object Keyframer Sort Collections and Objects Alphabetically Sort Selected Collection Alphabetically Remove Empty Collections Apply Transforms To Collection Rename Objects With Prefix Suffix Toggle Collection Visibility Move Objects To Origin Convert Curve Objects To Meshes Batch Rename Objects By Type Select Objects By Material Align Selected To Active Batch Apply Modifiers To Selected Objects Generate LOD Models Have fun and share the to 3D

Three hundred twenty-four. That was the score Mary Louis was given by an AI-powered tenant screening tool. The software, SafeRent, didnt explain in its 11-page report how the score was calculated or how it weighed various factors. It didnt say what the score actually signified. It just displayed Louiss number and determined it was too low. In a box next to the result, the report read: Score recommendation: DECLINE.Louis, who works as a security guard, had applied for an apartment in an eastern Massachusetts suburb. At the time she toured the unit, the management company said she shouldnt have a problem having her application accepted. Though she had a low credit score and some credit card debt, she had a stellar reference from her landlord of 17 years, who said she consistently paid her rent on time. She would also be using a voucher for low-income renters, guaranteeing the management company would receive at least some portion of the monthly rent in government payments. Her son, also named on the voucher, had a high credit score, indicating he could serve as a backstop against missed payments.But in May 2021, more than two months after she applied for the apartment, the management company emailed Louis to let her know that a computer program had rejected her application. She needed to have a score of at least 443 for her application to be accepted. There was no further explanation and no way to appeal the decision.Mary, we regret to inform you that the third party service we utilize to screen all prospective tenants has denied your tenancy, the email read. Unfortunately, the services SafeRent tenancy score was lower than is permissible under our tenancy standards.A tenant suesLouis was left to rent a more expensive apartment. Management there didnt score her algorithmically. But, she learned, her experience with SafeRent wasnt unique. She was one of a class of more than 400 Black and Hispanic tenants in Massachusetts who use housing vouchers and said their rental applications were rejected because of their SafeRent score.In 2022, they came together to sue the company under the Fair Housing Act, claiming SafeRent discriminated against them. Louis and the other named plaintiff, Monica Douglas, alleged the companys algorithm disproportionately scored Black and Hispanic renters who use housing vouchers lower than white applicants. They alleged the software inaccurately weighed irrelevant account information about whether theyd be good tenants credit scores, non-housing related debt but did not factor in that theyd be using a housing voucher. Studies have shown that Black and Hispanic rental applicants are more likely to have lower credit scores and use housing vouchers than white applicants.It was a waste of time waiting to get a decline, Louis said. I knew my credit wasnt good. But the AI doesnt know my behavior it knew I fell behind on paying my credit card but it didnt know I always pay my rent.Two years have passed since the group first sued SafeRent so long that Louis says she has moved on with her life and all but forgotten about the lawsuit, though she was one of only two named plaintiffs. But her actions may still protect other renters who make use of similar housing programs, known as Section 8 vouchers for their place in the US federal legal code, from losing out on housing because of an algorithmically determined score.SafeRent has settled with Louis and Douglas. In addition to making a $2.3m payment, the company has agreed to stop using a scoring system or make any kind of recommendation when it came to prospective tenants who used housing vouchers for five years. Though SafeRent legally admitted no wrongdoing, it is rare for a tech company to accept changes to its core products as part of a settlement; the more common result of such agreements would be a financial agreement.While SafeRent continues to believe the SRS Scores comply with all applicable laws, litigation is time-consuming and expensive, Yazmin Lopez, a spokesperson for the company, said in a statement. It became increasingly clear that defending the SRS Score in this case would divert time and resources SafeRent can better use to serve its core mission of giving housing providers the tools they need to screen applicants.Your new AI landlordTenant-screening systems like SafeRent are often used as a way to avoid engaging directly with applicants and pass the blame for a denial to a computer system, said Todd Kaplan, one of the attorneys representing Louis and the class of plaintiffs who sued the company.The property management company told Louis the software alone decided to reject her, but the SafeRent report indicated it was the management company that set the threshold for how high someone needed to score to have their application accepted.The AI doesnt know my behavior it knew I fell behind on paying my credit card but it didnt know I always pay my rentStill, even for people involved in the application process, the workings of the algorithm are opaque. The property manager who showed Louis the apartment said she couldnt see why Louis would have any problems renting the apartment.Theyre putting in a bunch of information and SafeRent is coming up with their own scoring system, Kaplan said. It makes it harder for people to predict how SafeRent is going to view them. Not just for the tenants who are applying, even the landlords dont know the ins and outs of SafeRent score.As part of Louiss settlement with SafeRent, which was approved on 20 November, the company can no longer use a scoring system or recommend whether to accept or decline a tenant if theyre using a housing voucher. If the company does come up with a new scoring system, it is obligated to have it independently validated by a third-party fair housing organization.Removing the thumbs-up, thumbs-down determination really allows the tenant to say: Im a great tenant, said Kaplan. It makes it a much more individualized determination.skip past newsletter promotionSign up to TechScapeFree weekly newsletterA weekly dive in to how technology is shaping our livesPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.after newsletter promotionAI spreads to foundational parts of lifeNearly all of the 92 million people who are considered low-income in the US have been exposed to AI decision-making in fundamental parts of life such as employment, housing, medicine, schooling or government assistance, according to a new report about the harms of AI by attorney Kevin de Liban, who represented low-income people as part of the Legal Aid Society. The founder of a new AI justice organization called TechTonic Justice, De Liban first started investigating these systems in 2016 when he was approached by patients with disabilities in Arkansas who suddenly stopped getting as many hours of state-funded in-home care because of automated decision-making that cut human input. In one instance, the states Medicaid dispensation relied on a program that determined a patient did not have any problems with his foot because it had been amputated.This made me realize we shouldnt defer to [AI systems] as a sort of supremely rational way of making decisions, De Liban said. He said these systems make various assumptions based on junk statistical science that produce what he refers to as absurdities.In 2018, after De Liban sued the Arkansas department of human services on behalf of these patients over the departments decision-making process, the state legislature ruled the agency could no longer automate the determination of patients allotments of in-home care. De Libans was an early victory in the fight against the harms caused by algorithmic decision-making, though its use nationwide persists in other arenas such as employment.Few regulations curb AIs proliferation despite flawsLaws limiting the use of AI, especially in making consequential decisions that can affect a persons quality of life, are few, as are avenues of accountability for people harmed by automated decisions.A survey conducted by Consumer Reports, released in July, found that a majority of Americans were uncomfortable about the use of AI and algorithmic decision-making technology around major life moments as it relates to housing, employment, and healthcare. Respondents said they were uneasy not knowing what information AI systems used to assess them.Unlike in Louiss case, people are often not notified when an algorithm is used to make a decision about their lives, making it difficult to appeal or challenge those decisions.The existing laws that we have can be useful, but theyre limited in what they can get you, De Liban said. The market forces dont work when it comes to poor people. All the incentive is in basically producing more bad technology, and theres no incentive for companies to produce low-income people good options.Federal regulators under Joe Biden have made several attempts to catch up with the quickly evolving AI industry. The president issued an executive order that included a framework intended, in part, to address national security and discrimination-related risks in AI systems. However, Donald Trump has made promises to undo that work and slash regulations, including Bidens executive order on AI.That may make lawsuits like Louiss a more important avenue for AI accountability than ever. Already, the lawsuit garnered the interest of the US Department of Justice and Department of Housing and Urban Development both of which handle discriminatory housing policies that affect protected classes.To the extent that this is a landmark case, it has a potential to provide a roadmap for how to look at these cases and encourage other challenges, Kaplan said.Still, keeping these companies accountable in the absence of regulation will be difficult, De Liban said. Lawsuits take time and money, and the companies may find a way to build workarounds or similar products for people not covered by class action lawsuits. You cant bring these types of cases every day, he said.

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