This article first appeared in The Checkup,MIT Technology Reviewsweekly biotech newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday, and read articles like this first,sign up here. Later today, around 10 minutes after this email lands in your inbox, Ill be holding my four-year-old daughter tight as she receives her booster dose of the MMR vaccine. This shot should protect her from a trio of nasty infectionsinfections that can lead to meningitis, blindness, and hearing loss. I feel lucky to be offered it. This year marks the 50-year anniversary of an ambitious global childhood vaccination program. The Expanded Programme on Immunization was launched by the World Health Organization in 1974 with the goal of getting lifesaving vaccines to all the children on the planet. Vaccines are estimated to have averted 154 million deaths since the launch of the EPI. That number includes 146 million children under the age of five. Vaccination efforts are estimated to have reduced infant mortality by 40%, and to have contributed an extra 10 billion years of healthy life among the global population. Childhood vaccination is a success story. But concerns around vaccines endure. Especially, it seems, among the individuals Donald Trump has picked as his choices to lead US health agencies from January. This week, lets take a look at their claims, and where the evidence really stands on childhood vaccines. WHO, along with health agencies around the world, recommends a suite of vaccinations for babies and young children. Some, such as the BCG vaccine, which offers some protection against tuberculosis, are recommended from birth. Others, like the vaccines for pertussis, diphtheria, tetanus, and whooping cough, which are often administered in a single shot, are introduced at eight weeks. Other vaccinations and booster doses follow. The idea is to protect babies as soon as possible, says Kaja Abbas of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the UK and Nagasaki University in Japan. The full vaccine schedule will depend on what infections pose the greatest risks and will vary by country. In the US, the recommended schedule is determined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and individual states can opt to set vaccine mandates or allow various exemptions. Some scientists are concerned about how these rules might change in January, when Donald Trump makes his return to the White House. Trump has already listed his picks for top government officials, including those meant to lead the countrys health agencies. These individuals must be confirmed by the Senate before they can assume these roles, but it appears that Trump intends to surround himself with vaccine skeptics. For starters, Trump has selected Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy, who has long been a prominent anti-vaxxer, has a track record of spreading false information about vaccines. In 2005, he published an error-laden article in Salon and Rolling Stone linking thimerosalan antifungal preservative that was previously used in vaccines but phased out in the US by 2001to neurological disorders in children. (That article was eventually deleted in 2011. I regret we didnt move on this more quickly, as evidence continued to emerge debunking the vaccines and autism link, wrote Joan Walsh, Salons editor at large at the time.) Kennedy hasnt let up since. In 2015, he made outrageous comments about childhood vaccinations at a screening of a film that linked thimerosal to autism. They get the shot, that night they have a fever of a hundred and three, they go to sleep, and three months later their brain is gone, Kennedy said, as reported by the Sacramento Bee. This is a holocaust, what this is doing to our country. Aaron Siri, the lawyer who has been helping Kennedy pick health officials for the upcoming Trump administration, has petitioned the government to pause the distribution of multiple vaccines and to revoke approval of the polio vaccine entirely. And Dave Weldon, Trumps pick to direct the CDC, also has a history of vaccine skepticism. He has championed the disproven link between thimerosal and autism. These arguments arent new. The MMR vaccine in particular has been subject to debate, controversy, and conspiracy theories for decades. All the way back in 1998, a British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, published a paper suggesting a link between the vaccine and autism in children. The study has since been debunkedmultiple times overand Wakefield was found to have unethically subjected children to invasive and unnecessary procedures. The paper was retracted 12 years after it was published, and the UKs General Medical Council found Wakefield guilty of serious professional misconduct. He was struck off the medical register and is no longer allowed to practice medicine in the UK. (He continues to peddle false information, though, and directed the 2016 film Vaxxed, which Weldon appeared in.) So its remarkable that his study still seems to be affecting public opinion. A recent Pew Research Center survey suggests that four in 10 US adults worry that not all vaccines are necessary, and while most Americans think the benefits outweigh any risks, some are still concerned about side effects. Views among Republicans in particular seem to have shifted over the years. In 2019, 82% supported school-based vaccine requirements. That figure dropped to 70% in 2023. The problem is that we need more than 70% of children to be vaccinated to reach herd immunitythe level needed to protect communities. For a super-contagious infection like measles, 95% of the population needs to be vaccinated, according to WHO. If [coverage drops to] 80%, we should expect outbreaks, says Abbas. And thats exactly what is happening. In 2023, only 83% of children got their first dose of a measles vaccine through routine health services. Nearly 35 million children are thought to have either partial protection from the disease or none at all. And over the last five years, there have been measles outbreaks in 103 countries. Polio vaccinesthe ones whose approval Siri sought to revokehave also played a vital role in protecting children, in this case from a devastating infection that can cause paralysis. People were so afraid of polio in the 30s, 40s, and 50s here in the United States, says William Moss, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland. When the trial results of [the first] vaccine were announced in the United States, people were dancing in the streets. That vaccine was licensed in the US in 1955. By 1994, polio was considered eliminated in North and South America. Today, wild forms of the virus have been eradicated in all but two countries. But the polio vaccine story is not straightforward. There are two types of polio vaccine: an injected type that includes a dead form of the virus, and an oral version that includes live virus. This virus can be shed in feces, and in places with poor sanitation, it can spread. It can also undergo genetic changes to create a form of the virus that can cause paralysis. Although this is rare, it does happenand today there are more cases of vaccine-derived polio than wild-type polio. It is worth noting that since 2000, more than 10 billion doses of the oral polio vaccine have been administered to almost 3 billion children. It is estimated that more than 13 million cases of polio have been prevented through these efforts. But there have been just under 760 cases of vaccine-derived polio. We could prevent these cases by switching to the injected vaccine, which wealthy countries have already done. But thats not easy in countries with fewer resources and those trying to reach children in remote rural areas or war zones. Even the MMR vaccine is not entirely risk-free. Some people will experience minor side effects, and severe allergic reactions, while rare, can occur. And neither vaccine offers 100% protection against disease. No vaccine does. Even if you vaccinate 100% [of the population], I dont think well be able to attain herd immunity for polio, says Abbas. Its important to acknowledge these limitations. While there are some small risks, though, they are far outweighed by the millions of lives being saved. [People] often underestimate the risk of the disease and overestimate the risk of the vaccine, says Moss. In some ways, vaccines have become a victim of their own success. Most of todays parents fortunately have never seen the tragedy caused by vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles encephalitis, congenital rubella syndrome, and individuals crippled by polio, says Kimberly Thompson, president of Kid Risk, a nonprofit that conducts research on health risks to children. With some individuals benefiting from the propagation of scary messages about vaccines and the proliferation of social media providing reinforcement, its no surprise that fears may endure. But most Americans recognize the benefits of vaccines and choose to get their children immunized, she adds. Now, that is a sentiment I can relate to. Now read the rest of The Checkup Read more from MIT Technology Review's archive A couple of years ago, the polio virus was detected in wastewater in London, where I live. I immediately got my daughter (who was only one year old then!) vaccinated. Measles outbreaks continue to spring up in places where vaccination rates drop. Researchers hope that searching for traces of the virus in wastewater could help them develop early warning systems. Last year, the researchers whose work paved the way for the development of mRNA vaccines were awarded the Nobel Prize. Now, scientists are hoping to use the same technology to treat and vaccinate against a host of diseases. Most vaccines work by priming the immune system to respond to a pathogen. Scientists are also working on inverse vaccines that teach the immune system to stand down. They might help treat autoimmune disorders. From around the web A person in the US is the first in the country to have become severely ill after being infected with the bird flu virus, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shared on December 18. The case was confirmed on December 13. The person was exposed to sick and dead birds in backyard flocks in Louisiana. (CDC) Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, declared a state of emergency as the bird flu virus moved from the Central Valley to Southern California dairy herds. Since August, 645 herds have been reported to be infected with the virus. (LA Times) Pharmacy benefit managers control access to prescription drugs for most Americans. These middlemen were paid billions of dollars by drug companies to allow the free flow of opioids during the USs deadly addiction epidemic, an investigation has revealed. (New York Times) Weight-loss drugs like Ozempic have emerged as blockbuster medicines over the past couple of years. Were learning that they may have benefits beyond weight loss. Might they also protect organ function or treat kidney disease? (Nature Medicine) Doctors and scientists have been attempting head transplants on animals for decades. Can they do it in people? Watch this delightful cartoon to learn more about the early head transplant attempts. (Aeon)

Learn more about our teams work on Here!Robert Zemeckis Here is based on a unique concept a film told from a single perspective with a locked-off camera, telling the stories that happen on that same patch of land as it changes across the ages!As the main VFX partner, our VFX, Technology, and Virtual Production teams all worked together to help realise the award-winning directors ambitious vision for this one-of-a-kind film. In a series of recent interviews, our very own Alexander Seaman, one of the talented DNEG VFX Supervisors on the film alongside Johnny Gibson and Daniel Elophe, has been sharing details on the work our amazing global teams delivered on the film.Speaking with Creative Bloq, Alexander said, What seemed to be a very straightforward project became extremely difficult and creatively challenging. The story is the paramount driver of the movie. Its not a car chase film where youre trying to wow the audience; instead, youre really trying to emote and give visual effects a creative platform to sell the emotion of the story.Read on for a closer look at our work!Era-Spanning CG EnvironmentsTasked with creating photorealistic CG environments that evolve and change through history, our VFX team captured everything from the construction of buildings to the changing of seasons. This also included a four-minute, continuous, fully CG shot that takes the viewer back in time to the age of the dinosaurs, covering the meteor extinction, Ice Age, thaw, and passing of time up to the modern era! To bring this shot to life, the team crafted complex CG environment builds, creature animation and multiple FX sims.Alexander told Creative Bloq, In terms of each individual component, the dinosaur shot wasnt anything that we hadnt done before at DNEG, so there wasnt any aspect that seemed particularly complex on paper. But, trying to tell a story, that spans over 100,000 years, in one 6,000 frame shot and telling different stories from the same view without being able to move the camera so its almost like the world moves through the camera rather than the camera moves through the world the logistics of that made it very difficult from a design perspective to come up with a narrative that had the beats and pace that were required.Innovative New SolutionsThroughout Here, eight different storylines are taking place, happening not chronologically but constantly and often transitioning between each other within the same frame!When our crew was presented with the challenge of bringing Robert Zemeckis vision to life for these transitions, our Technology team developed an exciting, first of its kind AI morphing tool to seamlessly blend and morph the house interior set for transitions from one time period to another!Speaking with Creative Bloq, Martine Bertrand (Senior Researcher, AI), shared, Visual Effects Supervisor Johnny Gibson reached out to me and said, We have these transitions and theyll allow you to move from one era to another and lots of those transitions happen inside the living room. We want to do something new.With this prompt in mind, Martine and our Technology team started investigating solutions. Looking into Latent Diffusion Models (LDMs), Martine had the idea to take pre-trained LDMs, trained on millions of images, and teach them to understand the semantics of Heres world. Pulling apart the model, she exploited that latent space that acts as an abstract representation of the image, and used a GAN to generate intermediate shapes that stay semantically relevant to the current transition.Then, using Google films, she experimented with interpolating between the two rooms which resulted in this twirly, melty, weird kind of in-betweenness. She continued, I thought OK, thats not semantically meaningful, but it is melting and maybe I can now apply a clean-up pass with the generative approach on top of that and maybe that will make it melty and semantically meaningful. And it did!The final challenge was to get this new, script-like tool into Nuke for our artists to use. Commending the efforts of our Technology team to Creative Bloq, she said, They worked together for weeks to build that tool and make it so that it would do what the artists wanted it to do. We found that in a day you could generate hundreds of different transitions, and that was something that was impossible to do before, and you could select the ones that you are most interested in and then use this alongside other, more traditional approaches (like dissolves) and combine this all together to create a very novel and interesting transition thats just a few seconds in the movie!Virtual ProductionOn the Virtual Production side, our DNEG 360 team, alongside our friends at Dimension Studio, set up a flat LED volume that allowed the exterior environments to be seen through the on-set window. Creating the content for the volume in Unreal Engine, the assets included 85 RealTime environments, a dynamic weather system and a library of foliage and classic cars!Discussing the use of the wall in one particularly beneficial moment a scene where the front door is opened and snow blows inside the films overall VFX Supervisor Kevin Baillie, shared with Animation Magazine: One of the reasons that the special effects team was able to nail it is because we could see on the LED wall through the window how fierce the storm was. We could match that by dialing the amount of snow that was coming in through the door to support that in a way that everything visually made sense. That is very difficult to do if you just have a blue screen instead of the window, which leads to a lot of guesswork.Sharing his thoughts on bringing the film to life as a whole, Alexander told Creative Bloq, I think that one of our key abilities at DNEG is that we are able to take a brief and complement it with additional ideas and additional designs. Its not so much about whose idea made it into the movie, but its more about collaborating with everyone to get the best out of each other and getting the best and most attractive ideas onto the screen.Want a closer look at our work? Watch our VFX Breakdown!Here is available to buy or rent now!

Sling TVhas raised the price of its base packages by $6. The change went into effect on Friday and is the first price increase for thelive TV streaming servicein nearly two years. In March 2023, the streamerincreased prices in select marketsby $5.The Sling Orange and Sling Blue plans are now $46 a month; the Sling Orange-and-Blue tier has jumped to $61 per month. Each plan offers a suite of live channels such as ESPN, Bravo and TBS, with 35 channels for the Orange subscription, 43 for Blue and 68 for the combo package."These increases are industry-wide -- other leading streaming providers have had increases throughout 2024," the company's website states. "Despite this, Sling continues to be the most affordable option with offerings more than twenty dollars less per month versus other providers."The price increase followsDirecTV's bid to acquire the servicein September and the company'srenewal of distribution dealswith The Walt Disney Company, which includes ESPN, ABC, FX, Freeform, Hulu and Disney Plus. Sling TV is the latest streaming service to raise its prices in 2024. Max, Peacock and Paramount Plus all hiked their prices over the summer.Disneyimplemented a price hike for ESPN, Hulu and Disney Plus in October.To soften the price hike blow, Sling TV added five new games to its free Arcade feature: Pac-Man, Trivia Crack, Dots, Wordleful and Haunted Castle are now playable for subscribers. The company also has a separate, free platform calledSling Freestream, which lets you watch a lineup of live and on-demand content.

We first saw the $519 Droyd Furyat Toy Fair 2023 before its release. My then-10-year-old daughter took it for a quick spin around the show floor and promptly requested a sample, which brings us to this review.The Droyd Fury is an ATV designed for kids aged 6 and up but rugged enough to carry an adult. It is compact (40 x 24 x 24 inches), making it easy to fit through doorways or into the back of our SUV.The build quality is as durable as expected for a product designed for children. The top of the unit is primarily plastic, but the metal frame underneath gives it that solid feel and provides a sturdy lifting spot.Droyd Fury ATV Specifications Manufacturer: DroydModel: FuryPrice: $519Motor/Type: 36V 500W chain drive, 2WD Top Speed: 15 mphBattery: 36 Volt Lithium-ion UL Certified Ride Modes: 2Estimated Travel Distance: 8-10 milesHill climb: n/aWeight: 90 lbsPayload Supported: 150 lbsTire type: Pneumatic tubelessBrake Type: Disc brakes Though it might feel small for 8 to 10-year-olds, they'll have no trouble zipping around as long as they are under the 150-pound limit. Although it can support the weight of two small kids, that is not its intended use. I also recommend wearing a helmet when riding. The Fury arrived securely packed and about 80 percent assembled. The instructions were straightforward, and the Fury was ready to roll in about 10 minutes. It arrived with some charge, so we did a quick test to ensure everything worked before plugging it back in. Reaching a full charge when fully drained takes about 6-8 hours. Joseph KaminskiFor a more realistic feel, the Fury features a key ignition for starting it and a separate parental key for adjusting the top speed. Young riders can get the Fury moving with a traditional twist throttle. Parents can also use the key to lock the Fury to a maximum speed of 10 mph or unlock it for a maximum top speed of 15 mph. In addition, the front and rear lights illuminate from fender to fender, making the Fury visible in low light. These can be turned on and off with a button on the handlebars. With front and rear disc brakes, we found the vehicle's stopping ability should be safe and reliable in most weather conditions. The Fury is equipped with fat knobby tires that offer good traction while offroading along with a front and rear suspension, perfect for adventurous people. Joseph KaminskiAside from me (as I'm well over the weight limit), everyone in my household -- my daughter, son, and partner -- took it for a spin. My partner's reaction was that "it was cool as fcuk," and my daughter loved it, though my teenage son tried to act cool despite being too big for it. Depending on the rider's size, the Fury can travel between 8 and 10 miles on a full charge, providing approximately 45 minutes to 1 hour of riding time. Joseph KaminskiThe Droyd Fury is perfect for encouraging kids to enjoy the outdoors from an early age. It's especially ideal for families where parents or older siblings ride ATVs, ensuring no one gets left behind. Its compact size makes it convenient to transport, especially if you have an SUV, making it a great trip companion.

The age of social media has ushered in an abundance of annual food and drink trends, from tart cherry juice-based sleepy girl mocktails to cheese-covered pickles (known aswait for it"chickles"). While these are often creative, visually compelling, and yes, (sometimes) delicious, they're often concocted out of boredom or with the sole intention of going viral. And they succeed. As we bid adieu to another year and another arsenal of wacky flavor amalgamations, we chatted with six world-famous chefs to get their predictions of the type of cuisine we should expect beyond the Instagram feed and in restaurant kitchens. We also asked what cuisines and ingredients they hope to see more of, since trends tend to be short-lived and unpredictable (much like the fate of TikTok, but we digress). This story is part of The Year Ahead, CNET's look at how the world will continue to evolve starting in 2022 and beyond. Here are their responses, as well as a tip from us to get a head start and turn these predictions into realities.Carla Hall Carla Hall/Facebook2025 culinary trend prediction: Upgrade your inbox Get cnet insider From talking fridges to iPhones, our experts are here to help make the world a little less complicated. "If you're new to cooking, my advice is simple: Spice up your life. Experimentation can be your trend. Take what seems like a basic meal, like a perfectly roasted chicken, your favorite vegetable and rice pilaf, and then try different spice combinations. You'll be amazed at how it transforms a dish. And if you want to get really 'trendy,' try using AI to suggest spice blends from various places and cultures. It's a fun way to explore the world through your taste buds and build your pantry."2025 trend she hopes to see:"For 2025, I hope to see food as a bridge to cultural understanding, with a growing appreciation for the diversity and depth within African cuisines. It's time we delve into the distinct culinary traditions across the continent rather than viewing Africa itself as a monolith and certainly its cuisine....Each region offers unique ingredients, techniques and stories that deserve the spotlight."Pro tip: For custom, global spice blends, start with one of these 10 rubs that you can apply to proteins and vegetables before throwing them on the grill or into the oven.Marcus Samuelsson Marcus Samuelsson/Facebook2025 culinary trend prediction:"Climate change has an impact on all of us. I want to see us eat more grains and local vegetables in season. Maybe African grains like teff, fonio and millet that you now find in some sections of Whole Foods, but I want it to be more mainstream."2025 trend he hopes to see:"The next place exposed [or frequent] travelers, especially young people, will go is to a continent [instead of just a city]. Going to places like Senegal, Morocco, Ethiopia, Egypt, South Africa, Ghanayou see more of it. Traveling changes and transforms, but what Africa has is an impact on pop culture. Food will be next. I've already started to see jollof rice battles."Pro tip: We can all do more to lessen our carbon imprint, especially when it comes to eating. Consider what everyday practices may be detrimental to the environment and how you can limit or eliminate them altogether.Maneet Chauhuan Maneet Chauhan/Facebook2025 culinary trend prediction:"I'm thinking the love for island and Caribbean food will continue in 2025, with dishes like conch salad, Bahamian fish stew, and Bahamian peas and rice!"2025 cooking trend she hopes to see:"I'm hoping island and Caribbean foods get some love in 2025 -- it's time! I really love the beautiful amalgamation of flavors that island cuisine brings. Each island uses its own local, fresh seafood and puts its own signature on it, and it's amazing."Pro tip: While amateur cooks can certainly invest in island-inspired hot sauces, curries and spices, a trip to the Caribbean will satisfy any sudden craving for these bold and unique flavors. Check out these money-saving summer travel tips (which can be applied year-round) to plan that dream trip to the Bahamas and beyond.Dominique Roy Eleven Madison Park2025 culinary trend prediction:"I anticipate a continued rise in the popularity of plant-based and vegetarian cuisine, as more diners seek healthier and sustainable options. I also think that specific ingredients like seaweed, ancient grains and fermented foods will likely keep gaining in popularity."2025 trend he hopes to see:"I hope to see a greater recognition of global plant-based cuisines, especially those from regions that deserve more attention. There is amazing plant-forward food around the world that is underrated. I feel strongly that dishes that celebrate bold spices and diverse cooking techniques can inspire chefs and home cooks alike."Pro tip: If the idea of preparing delicious vegan and vegetarian dishes intimidates you, rely on one one of our best vegan meal delivery services for 2024 to jump start your foray into plant-forward cooking and inspire future meals.Geoffrey Zakarian Geoffrey Zakarian/Facebook2025 culinary trend prediction:"I'm not a trend predictor because the word trend refers to things that will be around this year. What I see is a very deliberate march towards real food and nothing processed at all."2025 trend he hopes to see:"The Middle East has always played second fiddle to Italy. They are both tremendous cuisines and, together, the healthiest on the planet."Pro tip: A clay tagine makes a wonderful investment to low-and-slow cook stews, braises and soups. It's also one of seven cooking tools from around the world that our editors have tested and recommended.Daniel Boulud Born inSaint-Pierre-de-Chandieu, Daniel Boulud would love to see French country cooking trend in 2025. Restaurant Daniel2025 culinary trend prediction:"I think the big culinary trend in 2025 will be pickling."2025 trend he hopes to see:"I would love to see French country cooking trend in 2025."Pro tip: Pickling will require a jar of sorts to allow flavors to meld, transform and preserve. Check out our complete guide to canning to enjoy farm-fresh produce, with or without tang, year-round.

OpinionDecember 20, 20245 min readThis Years Nobel Prizes Are a Warning about AIUnless we pursue AI carefully, the Nobel committee will one day give a Peace Prize to the people cleaning up its terrible consequences, just as it did with nuclear physicsBy Y Cooper A man wheels his bicycle thorough Hiroshima, Japan, days after the city was leveled by an atomic bomb blast. The view here is looking west-northwest, about 550 feet from where the bomb landed on August 6, 1945. Keystone/Getty ImagesThe awards ceremony for the Nobel prizes took place in December this year, celebrating both work relating to artificial intelligence and efforts by the group Nihon Hidankyo to end nuclear war.It was a striking juxtaposition, one not lost on me, a mathematician studying how deep learning works. In the first half of the 20th century, the Nobel Committees awarded prizes in physics and chemistry for discoveries that uncovered the structure of atoms. This work also enabled the development and subsequent deployment of nuclear weapons. Decades later the Nobel committees awarded this years Peace Prize for work trying to counteract one way nuclear science ended up being used.There are parallels between the development of nuclear weapons from basic physics research, and the risks posed by applications of AI emerging from work that began as fundamental research in computer science. These include the incoming Trump administrations push for Manhattan Projects for AI, as well as a wider spectrum of societal risks, including misinformation, job displacement, and surveillance.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.I am concerned that my colleagues and I are insufficiently connected to the effects our work could have. Will the Nobel Committees be awarding a Peace Prize in the next century to the people cleaning up the mess AI scientists leave behind? I am determined that we not repeat the nuclear weapons story.About 80 years ago hundreds of the worlds top scientists joined the Manhattan Project in a race to build an atomic weapon before the Nazis did. Yet after the German bomb effort stopped in 1944 and even after Germany surrendered the next year, the work in Los Alamos continued without pause.Even when the Nazi threat had ended, only one Manhattan Project scientistJoseph Rotblatleft the project. Looking back, Rotblat explained: You get yourself involved in a certain way and forget that you are a human being. It becomes an addiction and you just go on for the sake of producing a gadget, without thinking about the consequences. And then, having done this, you find some justification for having produced it. Not the other way around.The U.S. military carried out the first nuclear test soon after. Then U.S. leaders authorized the twin bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9. The bombs killed hundreds of thousands of Japanese civilians, some immediately. Others died years and even decades later from the effects of radiation poisoning.Though Rotblats words were written decades ago, they are an eerily accurate description of the prevailing ethos in AI research today.I first began to see parallels between nuclear weapons and artificial intelligence while working at Princetons Institute for Advanced Study, where the haunting closing scene of Christopher Nolans film Oppenheimer was set. Having made some progress in understanding the mathematical innards of artificial neural networks, I was also beginning to have concerns about the eventual social implications of my work. On a colleagues suggestion I went to talk to the then director of the institute, physicist Robbert Dijkgraaf.He suggested I look to J. Robert Oppenheimers life story for guidance. I read one biography, then another. I tried to guess what Dijkgraaf had in mind, but I didnt see anything appealing in Oppenheimers path, and by the time I finished the third biography the only thing that was clear to me was that I did not want my own life to mirror his. I did not want to reach the end of my life with a burden like Oppenheimers weighing on me.Oppenheimer is often quoted as saying that when scientists see something that is technically sweet, [they] go ahead and do it. In fact, Geoff Hinton, one of the winners of the 2024 Nobel prize in physics, has referenced this. This is not universally true. The preeminent woman physicist of the time, Lise Meitner, was asked to join the Manhattan project. Despite being Jewish and having narrowly escaped the Nazi occupation, she flatly refused, saying, I will have nothing to do with a bomb!Rotblat, too, provides another model for how scientists can navigate the challenge of exercising talent without losing sight of values. After the war he returned to physics, focusing on medical uses of radiation. He also became a leader in the nuclear antiproliferation movement through the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, a group that he co-founded in 1957. In 1995, he and his colleagues were recognized with a Nobel Peace Prize for this work.Now, as then, there are thoughtful, grounded individuals who stand out in the development of AI. Taking a stance evocative of Rotblat, Ed Newton-Rex resigned last year from his position leading the music generation team at Stability AI, over the companys insistence on creating generative AI models trained on copyrighted data without paying for that use. This year, Suchir Balaji resigned as a researcher at OpenAI over similar concerns.In an echo of Meitners refusal to work on military applications of her discoveries, at a 2018 internal company town hall, Meredith Whittaker voiced worker concerns about Project Maven, a Department of Defense contract to develop AI to power military drone targeting and surveillance. Eventually, workers succeeded in pressuring Google, where 2024 Nobel physics prize laurate Demis Hassabis works, to drop the project.There are many ways in which society influences how scientists work. A direct one is financial; collectively we choose what research to fund, and individually we choose which products coming out of that research we pay for.An indirect but very effective one is prestige. Most scientists care about their legacy. When we look back on the nuclear erawhen we choose, for instance, to make a movie about Oppenheimer, among other scientists of that agewe send a signal to scientists today about what we value. When the Nobel Prize Committees choose which people among those working on AI today to reward with Nobel Prizes, they set a powerful incentive for the AI researchers of today and tomorrow.It is too late to change the events of the 20th century, but we can hope for better outcomes for AI. We can start by looking past those in machine learning focused on rapid development of capabilities, instead following the lead of those like Newton-Rex and Whittaker, who insist on engaging with the context of their work and who have the capacity not only to evaluate but also respond to changing circumstances. Paying attention to what scientists like them are saying will provide the best hope for positive scientific development, now and into the future.As a society, we have the choice of whom to elevate, emulate and hold up as role models for the next generation. As the nuclear era teaches us, right now is the time to carefully evaluate what applications of scientific discovery, and whom among todays scientists, reflect the values not of the world in which we currently live, but the one which we hope to inhabit.This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views expressed by the author or authors are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

Reappraising Shadow the Hedgehog, one of 2005's biggest misfiresThe Ultimate Life Form endures.Image credit: Sega Feature by Paul Cecchini Contributor Published on Dec. 20, 2024 The day was 8th March 2005. The event: the inaugural Walk of Game celebration, in which gaming icons Mario, Link, Sonic and Master Chief were recognised for their contributions to the industry. Sonic even got a nice trailer showcasing his most glorious exploits since his inception in 1991.As the video wrapped up, no one could have predicted what happened next. Shots of classic 2D Sonic were suddenly riddled with bullet holes. The screen, full of happy memories, was shattered, revealing a morose Shadow the Hedgehog and this hog was packing heat. The footage that followed featured Shadow running, jumping and bouncing around environments similar to previous 3D Sonic games, with one not-so-subtle new feature: guns. Laser guns, machine guns, pistols, you name it. And Shadow wasn't afraid to use them to blow the game's alien enemies away. No, this wasn't an April Fool's joke, a hallucination or a mod by an angry prepubescent wishing their colourful cartoon mascot would grow up and start handling his problems like an adult. This was a legitimate Sonic Team-developed game in the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise featuring firearms, and it was coming that holiday season - whether we liked it or not.Watch on YouTubeI vividly remember the myriad questions that ran through my teenage mind on first seeing the trailer. Why did this game exist? Who signed off on this utterly pants idea? A solo Shadow game wasn't far-fetched by any means - his surge in popularity after his debut in Sonic Adventure 2 was undeniable. But why take the Sonic series down the same dark, edgy road other franchises like Jak and Daxter and Prince of Persia had already trodden?To answer those questions meant looking at the paradigm shift the video game industry was undergoing at the time. Dark, brooding anti-heroes were all the rage in the early-to-mid 2000s. Colourful mascot platformers had been unceremoniously shoved off their pedestal as the dominant gaming genre by first- and third-person shooters - perhaps most notably by the Halo series. US gamers in particular were flocking to the genre in droves, and it was to that group that scenario writer and director Takashi Iizuka sought to appeal to with Shadow. At the same time, Iizuka made it clear that the game's mission was to expand the Sonic franchise for a more mature audience without alienating the existing fanbase. Unfortunately, things didn't quite pan out as Iizuka envisioned. Image credit: Fandom/SegaThe story opens with an amnesiac Shadow wandering the city outskirts, struggling to remember the secrets to his past that have eluded him since first being awakened in Sonic Adventure 2. As luck would have it, the one person who can answer his questions appears right in front of him at that exact moment: the evil alien Black Doom, who claims to have ties to Shadow and will divulge what he knows if Shadow gathers the Chaos Emeralds for him. The thing is, Black Doom is also trying to conquer the planet with his alien forces known as the Black Arms, leaving Shadow with a huge moral quandary on his hands.That's where arguably the most interesting aspect of the game comes into play: Shadow's morality system. Does he fight for the planet and fend off the alien invaders, side with the Black Arms in their conquest, or barrel ahead without paying heed to the conflict at all? Each level allows players to decide for themselves. In the opening stage Westopolis, for instance, you can gun down the soldiers repelling the alien invasion, save the city by taking out the aliens, or remain neutral and simply race to the end of the level. Your chosen path dictates which level you tackle next. It's up to the player to determine whether they want to go pure hero, pure villain, stay neutral, or bounce around like a morally confused pinball depending on their mood. Magazine adverts for Shadow the Hedgehog also played up the game's morality system. | Image credit: MobyGamesEventually, you'll reach one of the game's ten initial endings, ranging from Shadow decimating the planet's military, beating up Black Doom, deciding to take over the world himself, or a variety of paths in between. All in all, there are a whopping 326 different pathways you can take to clear the game. While only the most hardcore fans are likely to try, you have to admire Sonic Team's dedication.However, the story doesn't stop there. While you're free to play through the game once and call it quits, it's only by unlocking all ten initial endings that the final story becomes available. There is a canon ending, and - spoiler alert - at the end of the day, Shadow's a brave-hearted hero. Well, anti-brave-hearted hero, anyway. You won't see Sonic shooting an alien in the face with a machine gun anytime soon.Speaking of, let's delve deeper into its weapons-based combat. At its most basic, Shadow the Hedgehog plays like the 3D Sonic titles that preceded it; Shadow can run, jump, home in on enemies, and even engage in fisticuffs when his hands are free. Unlike previous Sonic games, however, upon defeating an enemy, Shadow can commandeer their weapons for his own use, including a wide variety of guns, swords, hammers, spears and grenade launchers. Players who recoil at the thought of using weapons in a Sonic game can finish the adventure without ever touching them, though they are significantly more effective at clearing out enemies than your standard homing attack - undoubtedly an intentional move by the developers to encourage their use. It's easy to argue that the ultimate lifeform using a weapon is as redundant as Sonic driving a car - to say nothing of the silliness of the concept - but from a gameplay perspective, the implementation is competent enough. Image credit: IGN/SegaThe game's edginess goes beyond firearms, though. Keeping with the more mature tone, the developers allowed the characters to drop their filters and belt out some salty language. You're not going to hear the characters you've known and loved for years dropping F-bombs (though the game did initially feature some stronger language, according to Shadow's voice actor Jason Griffith), but there is mild profanity throughout, mostly by Shadow himself. Of course, it's debatable whether it makes the game edgier or simply more meme-able. The alien enemies also bleed when hit, though their blood was changed from red to green to keep the game's rating down. It's relatively tame compared to many games in this day and age, but it was still certainly jarring to see in a Sonic the Hedgehog game nonetheless.So, then comes the million-dollar question. Taking everything into consideration, is Shadow the Hedgehog a good game?As someone who grew up with Sonic from the very beginning and was completely taken aback when Shadow's solo title was announced, it's... fine. Like, surprisingly fine. Was it a dumb idea? Absolutely. Was it a blatant attempt at cashing in on the dark and edgy game craze? Almost certainly. Was it executed decently despite all this? I personally lean toward yes, but 'decent' is about the highest praise I can give it.Plenty of Sonic games are still widely discussed by the community and greater internet decades after release, for better or worse. Sonic 06. Unleashed. Colours. Beyond the occasional meme, Shadow isn't one of them. Even Sonic Team itself tend to gloss over the game; the only legal way to play it is by purchasing a used copy for sixth generation consoles, and official references that aren't outright mocking it are rare to non-existent.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Watch on YouTubeThat's part of what makes the recently-released Sonic X Shadow Generations, and the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 film, so significant. For the first time since Shadow the Hedgehog, Sonic Team is taking a deep dive back into the character's rich but troubled history as part of its broader Year of Shadow celebration. We even get to witness the unexpected return of Black Doom, undoubtedly a past version of the character brought about via the game's time travel shenanigans.Just as Shadow must once again confront his ugly past, so too is Sonic Team bravely acknowledging one of its biggest misfires in the hopes it can find something worth salvaging. While I doubt the new Shadow-centric story campaign is going to retroactively sway public opinion in favor of his original solo outing, it is nevertheless a potent reminder that, despite its laughable concept and numerous shortcomings, Shadow the Hedgehog did have some cool ideas.

Hi-Fi Rush sequel being considered "positively" but Tango Gameworks considering "various opportunities""I want to cherish this IP."Image credit: Bethesda Softworks News by Ed Nightingale Deputy News Editor Published on Dec. 20, 2024 A sequel to Hi-Fi Rush is being considered "positively" but studio Tango Gameworks is "considering various opportunities" before fully committing.In a new interview with IGN, studio head Colin Mack, Hi-Fi Rush director John Johanas, and Hi-Fi Rush project manager Kazuaki Egashira discussed the future of the franchise.After Microsoft closed Tango Gameworks it was acquired by Krafton. At the time of the acquisition a sequel to rhythm action game Hi-Fi Rush had begun, but Mack has now clarified the studio is considering its options.Hi-Fi Rush | Official Gameplay Deep Dive TrailerWatch on YouTube"We are considering a sequel positively," said Mack. "We are not yet at the stage where we can say specifically, 'This is what we're going to do'.""Many of our staff have a lot of love for [Hi-Fi Rush], so we feel like we have options," added Johanas. "We're currently at the stage of considering various opportunities."Johanas stated many members of the development team have a "strong attachment" to Hi-Fi Rush, adding: "Not only the game but also the characters and the world are beloved by us, so I want to cherish this IP."However he believes it's "important to try new things", which is seemingly a philosophy that itself led to the development of Hi-Fi Rush - a clear change in tone for the studio following The Evil Within.Indeed, Egashira said creating new experiences is "in the DNA of Tango Gameworks"."Hi-Fi Rush became popular as a new IP, but if Hi-Fi Rush were to stay the same forever, it would eventually become outdated," he said. "I think Tango Gameworks is about taking on new challenges. I hope to continue to work in a way that puts developers at the centre, without losing our passion."As previously reported, Krafton head of corporate development Maria Park stated a build for a Hi-Fi Rush sequel was about six months old ahead of the studio acquisition."[Tango] want to make sure [it] surpasses the expectations of the existing fans," said Park. "For instance, some of the feedback about Hi-Fi Rush was that some people felt it was [just] going through factories, so now they want to give a more open world type of experience. I don't think it's going to be completely open world, but a more dynamic environment [that] you play in. Also, having more advanced technology applied to the rhythm action so that it feels more synchronised."

Tencent pulls directors from Epic's executive board following antitrust "scrutiny" from US Justice DeptUS agency "expressed concerns" about potential antitrust conflicts.Image credit: Epic Games News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Dec. 20, 2024 Tencent has pulled two directors from Epic Games' board following an antitrust investigation by the US Justice Department.The government agency "expressed concerns" that Tencent had directors sitting on Epic's board when it's also the parent company of competitor Riot.To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Is Sony buying FromSoftware's parent company the next big games industry acquisition?Watch on YouTubeIn a statement, the department said that by being simultaneously on two competing companies' executive boards, Tencent was violating Section 8 of the Clayton Act, a US law designed to protect consumers from potentially harmful business practices."Scrutiny around interlocking directorates continues to be an enforcement priority for the Antitrust Division," said the department's deputy director of civil enforcement, Miriam R. Vishio."Due to the hard work of our tremendous staff, our increased enforcement around Section 8 over the last few years has achieved substantial results and become part of our fabric."We recently learned that Ubisoft was continuing its talks with Chinese giant Tencent over a possible buyout deal that would take the Assassin's Creed maker private.

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 hereIt has been a mixed year for Destiny 2. Players have been frustrated with the state of the game throughout the majority of 2024, and issues with the Dawning have exasperated the community even more as the year wraps up. Now the community is sounding alarm bells that Destiny 2 is dying because of a dangerously low player count. While players are understandably worried about the future of D2, there is a lot to anticipate from both the series and Bungie next year. Its expected that the spin-off, Destiny Rising, will come out within the next 12-months, meanwhile, there will be playtests for Marathon next year, too. Both Destiny Rising and Marathon are exciting prospects for 2025, but a lot of Bungie fans are less optimistic about the future of Destiny 2. Destiny 2 reaches record-breaking low player count On the official DestinyTheGame subreddit, players are worried about the future of Destiny 2 because of its low player count. On December 19th, OP kristijan1001 pointed out that, on Steam, the game reached a dismal low of 12,379. The player count grew back up to 19,128 a few hours later, and its important to note that this is for Steam only, so it does not to take into consideration total player count including PlayStation and Xbox. However, the OP also includes charts from activeplayer.io that show the game has dropped 50% from 2023. There is concern that This is dangerously low number for a game that use to be around 80k constantly, and there is a real worry that D2 will drop below 10k before next release. The OP also points out that there are like no people to LFG anymore for some activities making you screwed. Unfortunately, many of the replies agree with the OPs worries that the game is dying with the interest just not there anymore from players. One of the top comments blames Bungie for continuously making the same mistakes over and over. One of the comments says Destiny is gonna get the post avengers endgame effect, while another laments the magic of Destinys universe is gone. While doom and gloom is understandable, Bungie has outlined their roadmap for early 2025 as well as Year 11. Revenant Act 3 is set to start early in the new year, and it will be accompanied by several big buffs and nerfs, as well as the addition of a new dungeon in February. Hopefully D2 can return to its former glory next year, but, right now, players are not optimistic. Therefore, its up to Bungie to prove players wrong in the best way possible. For more Destiny 2, check out our guide to thebest Legendary weaponsalong with thebest weapons for PvP.Destiny 2Platform(s):Google Stadia, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Web, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/XGenre(s):Action, Adventure, First Person, Massively Multiplayer, Shooter8VideoGamerSubscribe to our newsletters!By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and may receive occasional deal communications; you can unsubscribe anytime.Share