There's already a lot to love aboutSamsung's Galaxy Ring. Its convenient portable battery case means you don't have to think too hard about when to charge it. The design is comfortable to wear throughout the day and night, and Samsung's Energy Score feels like a step towards what could one day be a digital health coach.But there are ways Samsung could push things forward, either in a next-generation model or via software updates. A silent alarm, easier access to workout metrics and more gesture controls could make the Galaxy Ring better at its most important jobs: being a sleep and exercise companion.The smart ring market is growing increasingly competitive. Oura just launched the Oura Ring 4 in October, and the Consumer Electronics Show is just around the corner, where we're bound to see even more health-tracking rings debut. The International Data Corporation predicted in September that the smart ring category could grow by 88.4% in 2024, which would be a massive leap compared to other types of wearables such as smartwatches. That makes Samsung's approach to the smart ring space all the more important in the years to come.Read more: Smart Glasses Are Going to Work This Time, Google's Android President Tells CNET A silent alarm Upgrade your inbox Get cnet insider From talking fridges to iPhones, our experts are here to help make the world a little less complicated. The Galaxy Ring can already tell me how well (or how poorly) I slept last night. But, I want it to let me know when it's time to wake up. A silent, vibrating alarm would make the Galaxy Ring infinitely more useful in that regard. Ideally, I'd want two options: One that wakes me up at the optimal time in my sleep cycle and a manual option to set an alarm at a specific time. Health tech company Circular's smart ring does exactly that, and I'm hoping Samsung follows suit as it'd make the Galaxy Ring feel like a more complete package. Adding vibration capabilities would likely make the Galaxy Ring thicker and heavier than the current model. But if Samsung ever launches different tiers of its smart ring in various price ranges, much like it does with its phones, perhaps a pricier "pro" or "plus" version of the ring could have an alarm, while a sleeker cheaper version would be sold without it.Easier way to see metrics on Samsung phonesSmart rings, of course, don't have screens like smartwatches and fitness bands do. That means you need to check your phone after a workout to see metrics like heart rate and burned calories. But a smartphone maker like Samsung can do a better job of working around this by taking advantage of how its wearables work in conjunction with phones. For example, what if you could pin health metrics to the always-on display on Samsung's phone? That would make it easier to see progress during a workout at a glance.More gesture controls Using the double pinch gesture to dismiss an alarm. Lexy Savvides/CNETOne of the Galaxy Ring's most distinct capabilities is its gestures; you can take a picture or dismiss an alarm on your Samsung phone by double pinching your fingers. It might sound a little gimmicky -- and it is -- but I've found it surprisingly useful for silencing my alarm after groggily waking up from a nap.I'd love to see Samsung take this further. Media playback seems like another opportunity where gestures could be useful. I also like the idea of being able to customize what this gesture can do, such as answering or dismissing a phone call while wearing earbuds or starting and stopping a workout. Or what if Samsung added another gesture, like a single or triple pinch, so that you could choose more than one shortcut?It's unclear when or if Samsung will release new Galaxy Ring models every year as it does with phones and smartwatches. If it does, we likely won't hear more about it until the summer, which is when the company typically releases new wearable devices and foldable phones. But what is clear is that there's plenty of room for Samsung's tiny health tracker to evolve. Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Ring Gallery: Details Up Close See all photos

From solar-powered cars to floating cell towers in the sky, scores of companies are working on technologies designed to build a more sustainable future. Here's some of the most exciting green tech we'll be keeping an eye on in 2025.We start off with the Aptera, a super-efficient electric vehicle powered at least partly by solar power that has been working its way toward production for almost 20 years. I visited Aptera HQ in 2022, where I rode in some of the prototypes. The Aptera's aerodynamic shape is designed to maximize efficiency and make the most out of its onboard solar panels. Jesse OrrallThe company recently unveiled its production-intent model, where the results of all those prototypes and testing have come together.We are following companies like The Ocean Cleanup and The Searial Cleaners who make machines dedicated to cleaning up our shared natural spaces. Bebot cleaning the beach at Lake Tahoe Dillon Lopez/Owen Poole/Wes Ott/CNETThis year we also visited companies like Sceye and Verdagy, which are working on building out a more sustainable infrastructure. Verdagy aims to use its scalable, modular electrolyzer technology to bring down the cost of Green Hydrogen to make it competitive with fossil fuels. Inside Verdagy's green hydrogen pilot plant. Celso Bulgatti/CNETSceye is working on High-Altitude Platform Systems which use helium to lift them into the stratosphere where they can work like a geostationary satellite without needing a ride on a fuel-guzzling rocket. A view of Sceye's HAPS from inside the company's hangar in Roswell, NM. CNETTo see this green tech in action, check out the video in this article.

December 26, 202410 min readProbability Probably Doesn't ExistAll of statistics and much of science depends on probabilityan astonishing achievement, considering no ones really sure what it isBy David Spiegelhalter & Nature magazine Gail Shotlander/Getty ImagesLife is uncertain. None of us know what is going to happen. We know little of what has happened in the past, or is happening now outside our immediate experience. Uncertainty has been called the conscious awareness of ignorance be it of the weather tomorrow, the next Premier League champions, the climate in 2100 or the identity of our ancient ancestors.In daily life, we generally express uncertainty in words, saying an event could, might or is likely to happen (or have happened). But uncertain words can be treacherous. When, in 1961, the newly elected US president John F. Kennedy was informed about a CIA-sponsored plan to invade communist Cuba, he commissioned an appraisal from his military top brass. They concluded that the mission had a 30% chance of success that is, a 70% chance of failure. In the report that reached the president, this was rendered as a fair chance. The Bay of Pigs invasion went ahead, and was a fiasco. There are now established scales for converting words of uncertainty into rough numbers. Anyone in the UK intelligence community using the term likely, for example, should mean a chance of between 55% and 75% (see go.nature.com/3vhu5zc).Attempts to put numbers on chance and uncertainty take us into the mathematical realm of probability, which today is used confidently in any number of fields. Open any science journal, for example, and youll find papers liberally sprinkled with P values, confidence intervals and possibly Bayesian posterior distributions, all of which are dependent on probability.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.And yet, any numerical probability, I will argue whether in a scientific paper, as part of weather forecasts, predicting the outcome of a sports competition or quantifying a health risk is not an objective property of the world, but a construction based on personal or collective judgements and (often doubtful) assumptions. Furthermore, in most circumstances, it is not even estimating some underlying true quantity. Probability, indeed, can only rarely be said to exist at all.Chance interloperProbability was a relative latecomer to mathematics. Although people had been gambling with astragali (knucklebones) and dice for millennia, it was not until the French mathematicians Blaise Pascal and Pierre de Fermat started corresponding in the 1650s that any rigorous analysis was made of chance events. Like the release from a pent-up dam, probability has since flooded fields as diverse as finance, astronomy and law not to mention gambling.To get a handle on probabilitys slipperiness, consider how the concept is used in modern weather forecasts. Meteorologists make predictions of temperature, wind speed and quantity of rain, and often also the probability of rain say 70% for a given time and place. The first three can be compared with their true values; you can go out and measure them. But there is no true probability to compare the last with the forecasters assessment. There is no probability-ometer. It either rains or it doesnt.Whats more, as emphasized by the philosopher Ian Hacking, probability is Janus-faced: it handles both chance and ignorance. Imagine I flip a coin, and ask you the probability that it will come up heads. You happily say 5050, or half, or some other variant. I then flip the coin, take a quick peek, but cover it up, and ask: whats your probability its heads now?Note that I say your probability, not the probability. Most people are now hesitant to give an answer, before grudgingly repeating 5050. But the event has now happened, and there is no randomness left just your ignorance. The situation has flipped from aleatory uncertainty, about the future we cannot know, to epistemic uncertainty, about what we currently do not know. Numerical probability is used for both these situations.There is another lesson in here. Even if there is a statistical model for what should happen, this is always based on subjective assumptions in the case of a coin flip, that there are two equally likely outcomes. To demonstrate this to audiences, I sometimes use a two-headed coin, showing that even their initial opinion of 5050 was based on trusting me. This can be rash.Subjectivity and scienceMy argument is that any practical use of probability involves subjective judgements. This doesnt mean that I can put any old numbers on my thoughts I would be proved a poor probability assessor if I claimed with 99.9% certainty that I can fly off my roof, for example. The objective world comes into play when probabilities, and their underlying assumptions, are tested against reality (see How ignorant am I?); but that doesnt mean the probabilities themselves are objective.Some assumptions that people use to assess probabilities will have stronger justifications than others. If I have examined a coin carefully before it is flipped, and it lands on a hard surface and bounces chaotically, I will feel more justified with my 5050 judgement than if some shady character pulls out a coin and gives it a few desultory turns. But these same strictures apply anywhere that probabilities are used including in scientific contexts, in which we might be more naturally convinced of their supposed objectivity.Heres an example of genuine scientific, and public, importance. Soon after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the RECOVERY trials started to test therapies in people hospitalized with the disease in the United Kingdom. In one experiment, more than 6,000 people were randomly allocated to receive either the standard care given in the hospital they were in, or that care plus a dose of dexamethasone, an inexpensive steroid. Among those on mechanical ventilation, the age-adjusted daily mortality risk was 29% lower in the group allocated dexamethasone compared with the group that received only standard care (95% confidence interval of 1949%). The P value the calculated probability of observing such an extreme relative risk, assuming a null hypothesis of no underlying difference in risk can be calculated to be 0.0001, or 0.01%.This is all standard analysis. But the precise confidence level and P value rely on more than just assuming the null hypothesis. It also depends on all of the assumptions in the statistical model, such as the observations being independent: that there are no factors that cause people treated more closely in space and time to have more-similar outcomes. But there are many such factors, whether its the hospital in which people are being treated or changing care regimes. The precise value also relies on all of the participants in each group having the same underlying probability of surviving 28 days. This will differ for all sorts of reasons.None of these false assumptions necessarily mean that the analysis is flawed. In this case, the signal is so strong that a model allowing, say, the underlying risk to vary between participants will make little difference to the overall conclusions. If the results were more marginal, however, it would be appropriate to do extensive analysis of the models sensitivity to alternative assumptions.To exercise the much-quoted aphorism, all models are wrong, but some are useful. The dexamethasone analysis was particularly useful because its firm conclusion changed clinical practice and saved hundreds of thousands of lives. But the probabilities that the conclusion was based on were not true they were a product of subjective, if reasonable, assumptions and judgements.Down the rabbit holeBut are these numbers, then, our subjective, perhaps flawed estimates of some underlying true probability, an objective feature of the world?I will add the caveat here that I am not talking about the quantum world. At the sub-atomic level, the mathematics indicates that causeless events can happen with fixed probabilities (although at least one interpretation states that even those probabilities express a relationship with other objects or observers, rather than being intrinsic properties of quantum objects). But equally, it seems that this has negligible influence on everyday observable events in the macroscopic world.I can also avoid the centuries-old arguments about whether the world, at a non-quantum level, is essentially deterministic, and whether we have free will to influence the course of events. Whatever the answers, we would still need to define what an objective probability actually is.Many attempts have been made to do this over the years, but they all seem either flawed or limited. These include frequentist probability, an approach that defines the theoretical proportion of events that would be seen in infinitely many repetitions of essentially identical situations for example, repeating the same clinical trial in the same population with the same conditions over and over again, like Groundhog Day. This seems rather unrealistic. The UK statistician Ronald Fisher suggested thinking of a unique data set as a sample from a hypothetical infinite population, but this seems to be more of a thought experiment than an objective reality. Or theres the semi-mystical idea of propensity, that there is some true underlying tendency for a specific event to occur in a particular context, such as my having a heart attack in the next ten years. This seems practically unverifiable.There is a limited range of well-controlled, repeatable situations of such immense complexity that, even if they are essentially deterministic, fit the frequentist paradigm by having a probability distribution with predictable properties in the long run. These include standard randomizing devices, such as roulette wheels, shuffled cards, spun coins, thrown dice and lottery balls, as well as pseudo-random number generators, which rely on non-linear, chaotic algorithms to give numbers that pass tests of randomness.In the natural world, we can throw in the workings of large collections of gas molecules which, even if following Newtonian physics, obey the laws of statistical mechanics; and genetics, in which the huge complexity of chromosomal selection and recombination gives rise to stable rates of inheritance. It might be reasonable in these limited circumstances to assume a pseudo-objective probability the probability, rather than a (subjective) probability.In every other situation in which probabilities are used, however from broad swathes of science to sports, economics, weather, climate, risk analysis, catastrophe models and so on it does not make sense to think of our judgements as being estimates of true probabilities. These are just situations in which we can attempt to express our personal or collective uncertainty in terms of probabilities, on the basis of our knowledge and judgement.Matters of judgementThis all just raises more questions. How do we define subjective probability? And why are the laws of probability reasonable, if they are based on stuff we essentially make up? This has been discussed in the academic literature for almost a century, again with no universally agreed outcome.One of the first attempts was made in 1926 by the mathematician Frank Ramsey at the University of Cambridge, UK. He ranks as the person in history I would most like to meet. He was a genius whose work in probability, mathematics and economics is still considered fundamental. He worked only in the mornings, devoting his after-hours to a wife and a lover, playing tennis, drinking and enjoying exuberant parties while laughing like a hippopotamus (he was a big man, weighing in at 108 kilograms). He died in 1930 aged just 26, probably, according to his biographer Cheryl Misak, from contracting leptospirosis after swimming in the River Cam.Ramsey showed that all the laws of probability could be derived from expressed preferences for specific gambles. Outcomes have assigned utilities, and the value of gambling on something is summarized by its expected utility, which itself is governed by subjective numbers expressing partial belief that is, our personal probabilities. This interpretation does, however, require an extra specification of these utility values. More recently, its been shown that the laws of probability can be derived simply by acting in such a way as to maximize your expected performance when using a proper scoring rule, such as the one shown in the quiz How ignorant am I?.Attempts to define probability are often rather ambiguous. In his 19412 paper The Applications of Probability to Cryptography, for example, Alan Turing uses the working definition that the probability of an event on certain evidence is the proportion of cases in which that event may be expected to happen given that evidence. This acknowledges that practical probabilities will be based on expectations human judgements. But by cases, does Turing mean instances of the same observation, or of the same judgements?The latter has something in common with frequentist definition of objective probability, just with the class of repeated similar observations replaced by a class of repeated similar subjective judgements. In this view, if the probability of rain is judged to be 70%, this places it in the set of occasions in which the forecaster assigns a 70% probability. The event itself is expected to occur in 70% of such occasions. This is probably my favourite definition. But the ambiguity of probability is starkly demonstrated by the fact that, after nearly four centuries, there are many people who wont agree with me on that.Pragmatic approachWhen I was a student in the 1970s, my mentor, statistician Adrian Smith, was translating the Italian actuary Bruno de Finettis Theory of Probability. De Finetti had developed ideas of subjective probability at around the same time as Ramsey, but entirely independently. (They were very different characters: in contrast to Ramseys staunch socialism, in his youth de Finetti was an enthusiastic supporter of Italian dictator Benito Mussolinis style of fascism, although he later changed his mind.) That book begins with the provocative statement: probability does not exist, an idea that has had a profound influence on my thinking over the past 50 years.In practice, however, we perhaps dont have to decide whether objective chances really exist in the everyday non-quantum world. We can instead take a pragmatic approach. Rather ironically, de Finetti himself provided the most persuasive argument for this approach in his 1931 work on exchangeability, which resulted in a famous theorem that bears his name. A sequence of events is judged to be exchangeable if our subjective probability for each sequence is unaffected by the order of our observations. De Finetti brilliantly proved that this assumption is mathematically equivalent to acting as if the events are independent, each with some true underlying chance of occurring, and that our uncertainty about that unknown chance is expressed by a subjective, epistemic probability distribution. This is remarkable: it shows that, starting from a specific, but purely subjective, expression of convictions, we should act as if events were driven by objective chances.It is extraordinary that such an important body of work, underlying all of statistical science and much other scientific and economic activity, has arisen from such an elusive idea. And so I will conclude with my own aphorism. In our everyday world, probability probably does not exist but it is often useful to act as if it does.This article is reproduced with permission and was first published on December 16, 2024.

December 26, 20246 min readAre Octopuses Too Smart to Be Farmed?A planned octopus farm is facing opposition. Heres whyBy Rachel Blaser & The Conversation US Day octopus (Octopus cyanea) in mid-water, Hawaii. David Fleetham/Alamy Stock PhotoThe following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation, an online publication covering the latest research.We named him Squirt not because he was the smallest of the 16 cuttlefish in the pool, but because anyone with the audacity to scoop him into a separate tank to study him was likely to get soaked. Squirt had notoriously accurate aim.As a comparative psychologist, Im used to assaults from my experimental subjects. Ive been stung by bees, pinched by crayfish and battered by indignant pigeons. But, somehow, with Squirt it felt different. As he eyed us with his W-shaped pupils, he seemed clearly to be plotting against us.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.Of course, Im being anthropomorphic. Science does not yet have the tools to confirm whether cuttlefish have emotional states, or whether they are capable of conscious experience, much less sinister plots. But theres undeniably something special about cephalopods the class of ocean-dwelling invertebrates that includes cuttlefish, squid and octopus.As researchers learn more about cehpalopods cognitive skills, there are calls to treat them in ways better aligned with their level of intelligence. California and Washington state both approved bans on octopus farming in 2024. Hawaii is considering similar action, and a ban on farming octopus or importing farmed octopus meat has been introduced in Congress. A planned octopus farm in Spains Canary Islands is attracting opposition from scientists and animal welfare advocates.Critics offer many arguments against raising octopuses for food, including possible releases of waste, antibiotics or pathogens from aquaculture facilities. But as a psychologist, I see intelligence as the most intriguing part of the equation. Just how smart are cephalopods, really? After all, its legal to farm chickens and cows. Is an octopus smarter than, say, a turkey?A big, diverse groupCephalopods are a broad class of mollusks that includes the coleoids cuttlefish, octopus and squid as well as the chambered nautilus. Coleoids range in size from adult squid only a few millimeters long (Idiosepius) to the largest living invertebrates, the giant squid (Architeuthis) and colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis) which can grow to over 40 feet in length and weigh over 1,000 pounds.Some of these species live alone in the nearly featureless darkness of the deep ocean; others live socially on active, sunny coral reefs. Many are skilled hunters, but some feed passively on floating debris. Because of this enormous diversity, the size and complexity of cephalopod brains and behaviors also varies tremendously.Almost everything thats known about cephalopod cognition comes from intensive study of just a few species. When considering the welfare of a designated species of captive octopus, its important to be careful about using data collected from a distant evolutionary relative.Can we even measure alien intelligence?Intelligence is fiendishly hard to define and measure, even in humans. The challenge grows exponentially in studying animals with sensory, motivational and problem-solving skills that differ profoundly from ours.Historically, researchers have tended to focus on whether animals think like humans, ignoring the abilities that animals may have that humans lack. To avoid this problem, scientists have tried to find more objective measures of cognitive abilities.One option is a relative measure of brain to body size. The best-studied species of octopus, Octopus vulgaris, has about 500 million neurons; thats relatively large for its small body size and similar to a starling, rabbit or turkey.More accurate measures may include the size, neuron count or surface area of specific brain structures thought to be important for learning. While this is useful in mammals, the nervous system of an octopus is built completely differently.Over half of the neurons in Octopus vulgaris, about 300 million, are not in the brain at all, but distributed in mini-brains, or ganglia, in the arms. Within the central brain, most of the remaining neurons are dedicated to visual processing, leaving less than a quarter of its neurons for other processes such as learning and memory.In other species of octopus, the general structure is similar, but complexity varies. Wrinkles and folds in the brain increase its surface area and may enhance neural connections and communication. Some species of octopus, notably those living in reef habitats, have more wrinkled brains than those living in the deep sea, suggesting that these species may possess a higher degree of intelligence.Holding out for a better snackBecause brain structure is not a foolproof measure of intelligence, behavioral tests may provide better evidence. One of the highly complex behaviors that many cephalopods show is visual camouflage. They can open and close tiny sacs just below their skin that contain colored pigments and reflectors, revealing specific colors. Octopus vulgaris has up to 150,000 chromatophores, or pigment sacs, in a single square inch of skin.Like many cephalopods, the common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) is thought to be colorblind. But it can use its excellent vision to produce a dizzying array of patterns across its body as camouflage. The Australian giant cuttlefish, Sepia apama, uses its chromatophores to communicate, creating patterns that attract mates and warn off aggressors. This ability can also come in handy for hunting; many cephalopods are ambush predators that blend into the background or even lure their prey.The hallmark of intelligent behavior, however, is learning and memory and there is plenty of evidence that some octopuses and cuttlefish learn in a way that is comparable to learning in vertebrates. The common cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), as well as the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) and the day octopus (Octopus cyanea), can all form simple associations, such as learning which image on a screen predicts that food will appear.Some cephalopods may be capable of more complicated forms of learning, such as reversal learninglearning to flexibly adjust behavior when different stimuli signal reward. They may also be able to inhibit impulsive responses. In a 2021 study that gave common cuttlefish a choice between a less desirable but immediate snack of crab and a preferred treat of live shrimp after a delay, many of the cuttlefish chose to wait for the shrimp.A new frontier for animal welfareConsidering whats known about their brain structures, sensory systems and learning capacity, it appears that cephalopods as a group may be similar in intelligence to vertebrates as a group. Since many societies have animal welfare standards for mice, rats, chickens and other vertebrates, logic would suggest that theres an equal case for regulations enforcing humane treatment of cephalopods.Such rules generally specify that when a species is held in captivity, its housing conditions should support the animals welfare and natural behavior. This view has led some U.S. states to outlaw confined cages for egg-laying hens and crates too narrow for pregnant sows to turn around.Animal welfare regulations say little about invertebrates, but guidelines for the care and use of captive cephalopods have started to appear over the past decade. In 2010, the European Union required considering ethical issues when using cephalopods for research. And in 2015, AAALAC International, an international accreditation organization for ethical animal research, and the Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations promoted guidelines for the care and use of cephalopods in research. The U.S. National Institutes of Health is currently considering similar guidelines.The alien minds of octopuses and their relatives are fascinating, not the least because they provide a mirror through which we can reflect on more familiar forms of intelligence. Deciding which species deserve moral consideration requires selecting criteria, such as neuron count or learning capacity, to inform those choices.Once these criteria are set, it may be well to also consider how they apply to the rodents, birds and fish that occupy more familiar roles in our lives.This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

December 26, 20242 min readWWII Sugar Rationing Gave Kids a Lifelong Health BoostInfants who experienced rationing had a meaningfully lower risk of diabetes and hypertension decades laterBy Saima S. Iqbal edited by Sarah Lewin Frasier Lydia Whitmore/Getty ImagesFor several years after World War II ended, the British government continued to ration certain foodstuffs, including eggs, dairy products and sugar. This not only popularized resourceful recipes such as the vinegar-based Wacky cake; it also kept the average diet within what we now recognize as modern guidelines for daily sugar consumption. Now a study shows this restriction conferred lifelong health benefits on people who were infants during rationing.Scientists have long wondered how sugar affects the developing body and brain. But observational studies of families who consume less or more sugar can struggle to disentangle diets effects from those of related factors such as income or geographic location. This type of experiment helps to remove some of that noise, says Juliana Cohen, a nutrition researcher at Merrimack College and the Harvard School of Public Health, who was not involved in the work.The study authors used the medical database U.K. BioBank to compare disease incidence in about 60,000 people born in the years before or after sugar rationing ended in September 1953. The transition sharply altered sugar intake without affecting other dietary factorsrationing of other ingredients ended on different datesallowing the researchers to probe the effects of reduced sugar within the developmentally crucial first 1,000 days of life.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.Infants conceived in the years before sugar rationing ended had a 35 percent lower risk of diabetes and a 20 percent lower risk of hypertension in their 50s and 60s compared with those conceived after, the team reported in Science. For ration-era kids who ultimately did develop these conditions, onset was four and two years later, respectively. The longer a person lived under rationing, the greater the benefit they sawbut the strongest effects came while in utero and past the first six months of life, when babies begin eating solid foods.Many mechanisms could explain the results, says lead author Tadeja Gračner, an economist at the University of Southern California. People who consume excessive sugar might gain an unhealthy amount of weight or develop diabetes during pregnancy, putting their children at risk for obesity and insulin resistance. High sugar intake could also prompt a growing fetus to express different genes to similar effect. And children raised on sugary diets may simply come to prefer sweeter foods; in a separate study, Gračners team found that people exposed to rationing consumed less daily added sugar as adults than those who werent.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that kids younger than two avoid added sugar and that everyone else keep their daily intake to less than 10 percent of their total calories. But todays American toddlers average far more (nearly six teaspoons of added sugar a day), and many pregnant people consume triple the recommended amount for adults. Cohen notes dietary change is difficult because our nutritional environment isnt set up to support ityet any reduction helps, and theres no need to avoid sugar entirely.Its all about moderation, Gračner says. A birthday cake, candy, a cookie here and therethese are all treats we need to enjoy.

After the hustle and bustle of the holidays and all that gift shopping, you certainly need a rest, but we'd suggest saving that for after you've scrolled the best after-Christmas sales. If phrases like deep discounts, holiday sales, and markdowns, get your heart racing (in a good way), read on for more of these clearance deals that are clearing out the old (i.e. last season's furniture and decor) to make way for the New Year.The time of year between unwrapping all of your presents and taking down yourChristmas trees is prime time for swooping in on the deluge of clearance items hitting the extra % off section (and were not talking the expected deals on TVs, earbuds, and heated mugs left over from the pre-holiday rush). Waiting for the best after-Christmas sales is the real pro move for anyone hunting for Cyber Week-worthy discounts. Theres somethinga little less stressful about holiday shopping when you arent up against shipping deadlines, not to mention how guilt-free shopping for yourself can be after checking off all of your gifts.So, whether youre looking for atruly late, last-minute holiday gift (again, this is a judgment-free zone! Time is an illusion!), or youre finally ready to buy thatrobot vacuum youve been thinking about since last year, weve got you. Frommattresses and holiday decor tofurniture andbedding, we pulled together the retailers offering some great post-Christmas deals to end the holiday season on a high note.Our Top Picks:Best Mattress Deal: Signature Design by Ashley Chime mattressBest Entertaining Deal: East Fork Glass Colorblock Serving Spoon SetBest Rug Deal: Ruggable Iris Apfel Flutterby RugBest Furniture Deal: Yaheetech Upholstered Accent Barrel ChairBest Home Decor Deal: Obakki Amour VaseBest Bedding Deal: Bed Threads 100% French Flax Linen Sheet SetAmazon: Up to 55% OffAmazon is undoubtedly one of our top destinations for all things home at low prices. During the post-Christmas sale period, you can score up to 55% off in Amazons daily deals section, including quality furniture picks like Amazon mattresses. The top-reviewed Signature Design by Ashley Chime mattress features a gel memory foam top and 680 individually wrapped coils to mold to your body.Signature Design by Ashley Chime 12" Medium Firm Memory Foam MattressChristopher Knight Home Aidan SofaRuggable: 20% Off SitewideTurn to Ruggables end of year sale for some of the best prices on luxe area rugs (many of which are AD-approved!). From December 26 through January 5, take 20% off everything sitewide with coupon code EOY24.Ruggable x AD Selene Rug by Jessica JubelirerRuggable Iris Apfel Flutterby RugAnthropologie: Up to 40% OffWe could dedicate a whole story to everything we love at Anthropologie right now, but to save all of us time well just cut to the chase. Get this: Sale items are an extra 40% off right now and we highly recommend the brand's modern room divider screen and nightstand.Scarlett Rattan Room Divider ScreenNora NightstandWalmart: Up to 65% OffWhile Walmart had a steep Black Friday sale, this mega-retailer has tons of great deals worth shopping after Christmas. Case in point: This chic accent chair and dining table set. Score deals up to 65% off in Walmarts flash deals section.Segmart 5-Piece Dining Table SetYaheetech Upholstered Accent Barrel ChairEast Fork: Up to 40% OffStock up on home goods like some of our favorite serveware and dinnerware during East Forks holiday sale. Starting December 26, take up to 40% off select seconds products.East Fork Glass Colorblock Serving Spoon SetThe Mug by East ForkBurrow: Up to 20% Off Seating and MoreIf your sofa situation could use a refresh, nows the time to shop Burrows end of year sale. From December 20 to January 2, take 20% off seating, 15% off everything else sitewide, and up to 70% off clearance items.Burrow Range 2-Piece SofaBurrow Chorus BedBed Threads: Over 35% Off Bedding BundlesYou can never go wrong with a good pair of sheetsespecially when theyre at a near 35%-off markdown. Nab this discount on bedding bundles at Bed Threads (a favorite of AD cover star Troye Sivan) from December 26 through January 12. Plus, get 20% off almost everything else sitewide and a free gift with orders over $250.Bed Threads 100% French Flax Linen Sheet SetBed Threads 100% French Flax Linen Duvet CoverPottery Barn: Up to 50% OffPottery Barns End of Season sale is chock full of holiday goodies and cozy finds. And if youre ready to put the sparkles and snowflakes behind you, there are plenty of spring and summer-friendly deals to be had.Everywhere Velvet PoufPottery Barn Dream Modular Sofa Chaise SectionalWayfair: Up to 60% OffYou know it, you love it, Wayfair needs no introduction. Their End of Year Clearance sale is a bargain hunters dream, with a variety of finds on sale. Grab a few of our Cyber Monday picks, stock up on cozy essentials like heaters and fireplaces, invest in bedroom furniture, or splurge on that accent piece you've had your eye on. Happy hunting.Staub Ceramics 3-piece Rectangular Baking Dish SetWayfair Sleep 12" Plush Hybrid MattressInterior Define: 20% Off SitewideRaise your hand if youve been lusting after one of Interior Defines custom-made sofas or elegant lights. Well great news for all the fanboys and girls out there, Interior Define is offering 30% off some of their most popular items, including already-made furniture. We predict something velvet in your futureInterior Define Lennox LoveseatJasper DaybedBrooklinen: Up to 40% OffAt this point, we all know what Brooklinen is all about. Youve seen its chic bedding on you Instagram grid, and you may even own a sheet set of your own (good choice). Nows the time to stock up on bedding, since Brooklinens end-of-season sale focuses on Last Call items. Shop discounts up to 40% off on bedding bundles and more.Brooklinen Organic Cotton Sheet BundleBrooklinen Luxe Sateen Sheet BundleObakki: 30% Off SitewideOn the hunt for handmade home decor at a discount? From blankets to bowls, artisan-focused brand Obakkis entire selection of ethically made pieces are up to 30% off sitewide. Obakki works with over a thousand artisans in 70 countries and has a foundation that supports clean water initiatives.Obakki Amour VaseObakki Citta CushionCasper: Up to 30% Off EverythingYou deserve some good rest after the hectic holiday season. Casper is ready to help you hit the hay with some very good deals. Score up to 30% off items like bedding and furniture and up to 50% off clearance mattress, including the Snow Hybrid and Nova Hybrid.Casper Dream Max Hybrid

As the year draws to a close, we find ourselves reminiscing on the most clever design ideas that emerged in 2024. Its no surprise that many of these memorable interiors spawned from decorator show houses, where once-blank slates present an opportunity for participating designers to experiment with new patterns, materials, and sources of inspirationall without client input. The results are a bounty of smartly imaginative moments. Read on for 11 creative design ideas we clocked this season.Curtaining this and thatBedroom by Cusp Interiors at the San Francisco Decorator ShowcaseR. Brad Knipstein PhotographyDraperyused to great effect secluding the shower in designer Benjamin Vandivers en suite bathroom at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House New York, as well as in the enveloping canopy bed in Veere Grenney Associates courtyard bedroom at Wow!housemade an especially dramatic impact in the DuoA Room for Two bedroom at the San Francisco Decorator Showcase. A passage from the 1955 Crockett Johnson book Harold and the Purple Crayon inspired Ashi Waliany, principal and founder of Cusp Interiors, to conjure a cozy sleeping nook with curtains.I interpreted his bedroom as a place where Harold felt safe and secure, and wanted to create that feeling wherethe beds were situated, says Waliany. One side of the curtains, framing the room-within-a-room nook like a theater stage, was a lush bordeaux-hue velvet from Kerry Joyce. The other side was a classic taupe and gray ticking stripe from Perennials, a fabric that also wraps the walls within the sleeping quarters. There was a practical reason Waliany opted for her centerpiece design feature too: There were multiple doorways and off-center windows that influenced the setup of the beds being toe to toe and pushed all the way to the wall. To create a strong visual separation, I utilized the drapery.Craving contrast? Add a recessed nicheLounge by Sara Story at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm BeachNickolas SargentAt the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach, AD100 designer Sara Story brought to life the Shangri-La lounge, an oasis of cacti and sculptural furniture that paid homage to Mexican architect Luis Barragns penchant for texture and color blocking. In the midst was this cabinet by Reynold Rodriguez from the Charles Burnand Gallery, which sat in an undulating niche. It created such a unique focal point, almost like a wink, she says of one the interiors many clever design ideas. Rodriguezs curio, crafted from sculpted and molded plaster, sat on a base of hurricane-felled mahogany, and Story loved how it offered a strong juxtaposition to the rooms patterns and vivid hues. The curves of the cabinet echoed those in the sofa andPercival Lafer chairs, she explains. It was important to me to have all of these contrasting elements but keep a sense of balance.Embracing the fifth wallVenus Drawing Room by Kate Figler Interiors at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House DallasNICK SARGENTA Study in Serenity by Robert Frank Interiors at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House DallasNICK SARGENTAs weve stated before: Ceilings can, and should, dazzle. Inside the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas, AD PRO Directory firm Robert Frank Interiors reimagined the acoustical-tile-grid ceilings by building out a new architectural tray ceiling with a custom perimeter frieze in a vintage motif, adding a dramatic flourish to the salon. Meanwhile, fellow Dallas show house designer and AD PRO Directory talent Kate Figler Interiors originally planned to tent the ceiling of her drawing room, but code restrictions prohibited it. We pivoted to coving and lacquering it with Benjamin Moores Coastal Cottage, Figler tells AD PRO. We love how the light now shimmers off its surface, and that the whole look references the soft pinks seen inside of a seashell.An emergence of floral plasterworkPrimary bedroom by Landed Interiors at the Brooklyn Heights Designer ShowhousePhoto: Brett WoodInspiration struck Lynn Kloythanomsup, of Landed Interiors, as she drove through the Cotswolds daydreaming of the Regency plasterwork of English manors and Wedgwood Jasperware. When she returned home and scored the primary bedroom at the Brooklyn Heights Designer Showhouse, the designer collaborated with Brooklyn-based plaster artists Arkada Plus to create an ornamental plaster field of flowers climbing up the walls. Layered atop a coating of Hay, a soft honey yellow by Farrow & Ball, the bucolic wall treatment is transportive.Elsewhere, Abigail Kahan featured plaster flowers ascending the wall of a bedroom at Holiday House Hamptons, but in a soothing tone-on-tone palette. And at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas, AD PRO Directory talent Creative Tonic Design partnered with Segreto Finishes to incorporate intricate flora and fauna plasterwork on the island and ceiling in the show homes kitchen. Segreto even surprised me with the scale and depth of the lemons hanging off the ceiling, principal Courtnay Tartt Elias says.A closer look at countertopsKitchen by Ingui Architecture and BIA Interiors on the ground floor at the Brooklyn Heights Designer ShowhousePhoto: Tori Sikkema PhotographyThe difference is in the details, as proven by the decorative edge profiles that had us taking a second look at this years designer show houses. There was the triple bullnose edge on the Verde Alpi marble atop of the kitchen island of the Brooklyn Heights Designer Showhouse, which kitchen designers Ingui Architecture and BIA Interiors contrasted with the flat-edge Cipolloino Apuana marble of the main countertops. And in the jewel box kitchen in the San Francisco Decorator Showcase, AD PRO Directory firm K Interiors enlisted Fox Marble to fabricate the edge of the counters from DaVinci Marble to mimic the carved hood detail, adding an element of romance to the kitchen.Ingenious storage solutionsGuest suite by Lark + Palm at the San Francisco Decorator ShowcaseJohn Merkl PhotographyA rounded wall in Lark + Palms guest suite at the San Francisco Decorator Showcase afforded the Sausalito-based AD PRO Directory studio the opportunity to brighten the corner with a striking oak desk and bookshelves. Considering it was a petite bedroom, founding principals Ansley Majit and Stephanie Waskins knew that the wall needed to make a statement as bold as the one behind the adjacent twin beds.We wanted to create the feeling of a classic writing table with a contemporary spin, which is why we decided to float the pieces rather than add bracketing or legs. Wrapping them around the wall was a given, but we spent a lot of time poring over the details of the drawer placement and the steps of the beading detail, says Majit. Custom-designed by Lark + Palm, fabricated by Di Build, and adorned with Nest Studio hardware, the desk and shelves were bolstered by a bespoke chair that nodded to the screen-like headboard and angles on the bed wall. The corner served as a reflection of the whole room, adds Majit, a combination of masculine and feminine, contemporary and traditional.Dual-function dining roomsThe Timeless Dining Room by AD PRO Directory firm Kim Scodro Interiors at Kips Bay Decorator Show House DallasNICK SARGENTThe dining half of Kim Scodro Interiors room.NICK SARGENTFor those who lament that their dining room only gets used a few times a year, consider a dining lounge. In the Brooklyn Heights Designer Showhouse, Rinehardt Miller Interiors created a custom 14-foot tufted velvet banquette against one wall of the dining room. One side has a table and two chairs, while the other has a cocktail table for more informal bites. In the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Dallas, AD PRO Directory practice Kim Scodro Interiors turned the assigned room, which was a long narrow space with a walkway that leads to a salon, into two spaces in one: a festive area to have drinks and relax before stepping into the other half of the room for an intimate dinner with friends, Scodro tells AD PRO. Hickory Chair created unique custom furniture, like a rufous-tone armless sofa with detailed box pleats in the cocktail area. Scodro was inspired by a Cecil Beaton 1948 Vogue magazine cover depicting beautifully adorned women prepping for a glamorous evening.Wall-to-wall carpet is backBedroom by Patrick Mele at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House New YorkNick SargentLarge swaths of carpeting can often give a room the air of a time capsule, but Connecticut-based AD100 designer Patrick Meles On a Clear Day bedroom at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House New York radiated elegance. The star of the space was Meles wall-to-wall carpet for Aronson Floor Covering emblazoned with soft blue botanicalsa pattern that continues to the canopy beds interior fabric, courtesy of Schumacher. More painterly than retro, the carpet was backdropped by sleek white surrounds made in partnership with Bories & Shearron Architecture in a room that celebrated artistic collaboration, the beauty of nature, and the timeless glamour of classical, modern design, says Mele.Cathedral-like coves take over the bathPrimary bathroom by Michaelis Boyd and House of Rohl at Wow!houseJames McDonaldBathroom by Marsh & Clark Design at the San Francisco Decorator ShowcasePaul DyerLike Marsh & Clark Designs minimalist A Vaulted Jewel bathroom at the San Francisco Decorator Showcase, New YorkandLondonbased practice Michaelis Boyd took cues from soaring churches for its House of Rohl primary bathroom at Wow!house. But constructing that dome, notes Michaelis Boyd partner Christina Gregoriou, was every bit as pragmatic as it was eye-catching. A canvas for the centerpiece Victoria + AlbertTaizu bathtub, it enchants bathers with a wondrous hand-painted mural by French artist Claire Basler.Using a dome eliminates harsh edges, which allows the mural to flow without obstructions and adds to the harmony and tranquility found within a sanctuary, says Gregoriou. Fashioned out of plywood, the arched cove was then filled and painted, ready for the base layer for Claire to build up her color palette upon. We carefully selected tones to blend into the neighboring natural plaster wall covering. The use of greens within the mural reflects the rainforest marble vanity unit, dark green wall tiles, and powder room wall paint.Going for goldThe Cipango Room by Jan Showers + AssociatesNICK SARGENTA little dose of gold went a long way in show house interiors this year. Take the bedroom at the Holiday House Hamptons, in which AD PRO Directory talent Spruce Interior turned to small-batch artisan Sarkos for their handpainted Cosmos wallpaper in a custom colorway, bringing a dreamy celestial feel to the room. And more was more when it came to gold at the Kips Bay Decorator Showhouse Dallas for honorary chair Jan Showers. To create the feeling of a cozy lounge within a club, the designer selected a burnished gold-painted de Gournay wallpaper and carried the gold all the way to the moldings and trim by Casci Plaster, the ceilings, and the drapery. A pair of burnished gold leaf mirrors hung in the European style adds to the drama.Fresh garden featuresArroyo Vista Garden by Studio Pappaterra at the Pasadena Showcase House of DesignPeter Christiansen ValliAs soon as local landscape architect Elisa Read Pappaterra and her team visited the Pasadena Showcase House of Designs Arroyo Vista Garden, they were taken by the walled patio with an antiquefountain reminiscent of Tudor royalty, she recalls. But it was chipped, leaky, and in disrepair, so it was clear that they wouldnt be able to make the two-tiered, cast-stone beauty into the bubbling, exuberant water fountain it originally was. Buoyed by the garden soirees magnified on Bridgerton, they turned to the head gardener at Hampton Court Palace outside London for advice on how best to restore the structure.The solution? Planting a slew of hardy succulents that mimic water, including echeveria, string of bananas, and sweet alyssum, which, from a distance, looked like churning froth glistening in the sunlight, points out Read Pappaterra. Eager to pair the heritage fountain with an active water feature that would attract wildlife, Studio Pappaterra inverted a large concrete planter that called to mind the formal shape of the Hampton Court Palaces Pond Gardens, built a reservoir underground, and installed a pump to recirculate the water. A ceiling medallion in a metallicmatching hue gave the fountain a finished look, adds Read Pappaterra, and provided a shallow pool that serves as a birdbath.APPLY NOWGrow your business with the AD PRO DirectoryArrow

Droptini put it this way: Outdoor lights? Turn them off by Epiphany to avoid the HOA stink-eye. Principal designer with Niche Interiors Jennifer Jones wholeheartedly agrees, saying: I implore you to take your Christmas decor down during the first week of January. Nothing drives this designer crazier than seeing icicle lights, oversized ornaments, and inflatable snowmen in my neighbors yards in February! Bonus points for also taking down the Christmas tree in your front window at the same time.When is the best time to take down Christmas decorations? In the end, its up to youWhen it comes to taking down Christmas decorations, etiquette meets art in this timeless saying: Let the sparkle linger as long as it brings you joy, but when the Twelfth Night falls, let simplicity restore the scene, says noted etiquette consultant Lisa Mirza Grotts, AKA the Golden Rules Gal.But Grotts also allows for some wiggle room when it comes to holiday interior design, adding: While traditionally decorations come down on Twelfth Night, [not all] etiquette rules were created equal. Modern grace allows for flexibility. Whether youre keeping them up for warmth through winters chill or tidying up to embrace a fresh new year.Real wreaths and garlands, like Christmas trees, make for a more time sensitive holiday decor removal schedule as they will begin to droop and drop leaves.Photo: Pretti/Getty ImagesAnd dont let taking down the Christmas decorations add undue stress into your life, says therapist Braquelle Murphy, MS, LCPC. You can be attached to Christmas decor, especially the pieces that have been passed down. They can bring up a sense of joy, happiness, and nostalgia [and] it can be hard to take down Christmas decorations from a psychological perspective. So, dont rush it if youre just not ready.On the other hand, Murphy adds: Removing the holiday decor can bring a sense of closure for some. They can feel a definitive shift that shows that the holidays are over and its time to return to normal everyday life. It can also feel good to remove some clutter and have a fresh start.Ellen Flowers of the Perennial Style sums it up nicely: Whether its the social norm or simply when the holiday cheer fades, the perfect time to take down your decorations is when it feels right for you and your home.From our sources design perspective. just be sure to shut things down outside by the second week of January, in the name of good taste.

Image: Nintendo Life2024. It was a bit of an odd one for Switch, with the impending announcement of Nintendo's follow-up console. It never materialised, but its shadow has been looming over the entire year. Still, if there hasn't been an absolute avalanche of games to dig into!Nintendo had many first-party releases some weird and surprising, others long-time-coming remakes or new series entries but it's also been an outstanding year for smaller, independent games. And with the sheer variety, there's bound to be many some you've missed.Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube789kWatch on YouTube So, put aside your Balatros and your Zeldas and make some room on your SD card, we're bringing you a list of the games presented in alphabetical order that came out on Switch in 2024 that we think have flown under the radar.Angel at Dusk (Switch eShop)Publisher: Sanuk / Developer: AkiragoyaRelease Date: 7th Nov 2024 (USA) / 7th Nov 2024 (UK/EU)Angel at Dusk is wonderful, weird, and built on a foundation of deep understanding of the genre, and an intelligence and self-awareness that elevates its potential to delight.Not all will take to its theme, but it presents a deeply authentic hardcore bullet hell experience, a dazzling wit, and a suite of game systems that are a joy to explore.And the fact it welcomes a wide range of players to an authentic shmup? Its one 2024s most enticing genre contributions.Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure (Switch eShop)Publisher: Furniture & Mattress / Developer: Furniture & MattressRelease Date: 25th Jul 2024 (USA) / 25th Jul 2024 (UK/EU)Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure dares to be different, and it succeeds with aplomb. By interweaving a heartwarming and inclusive story with addictive gameplay, Furniture & Mattress teaches us that puzzle games can be more than just a vehicle for making the cogs in your brain turn.If youre looking for pure puzzling, then the game wont be for you, but a simple story and simple gameplay loop are both elevated to new heights because of the thought and care thats gone into them.Berserk Boy (Switch eShop)Publisher: BERSERKBOY GAMES / Developer: BERSERKBOY GAMESRelease Date: 6th Mar 2024 (USA) / 6th Mar 2024 (UK/EU)Its very reasonable price tag isnt the main selling point of Berserk Boy. Rather, its a very competently made indie action adventure that has the feel of a 16-bit title, powered by the oomph of current-day consoles. Its far more arcadey than both Mega Man and Gunvolt; faster, and altogether more interesting owing to its multiple character forms and deft stage design. Its hub world is easily navigable, and the upgrade shop, Metroidvania backtracking, and prisoner liberating side-missions encourage players to squeeze the most from the experience.Even when it's borrowing from other genres, Berserk Boy regularly shows up larger development studios with its creativity, and comes easy to recommend to 2D action enthusiasts.Beyond Galaxyland (Switch eShop)Publisher: United Label / Developer: Sam EnrightRelease Date: 24th Sep 2024 (USA) / 24th Sep 2024 (UK/EU)Beyond Galaxyland is a well-written, artistically diverse space adventure which mixes several different flavours of RPG with puzzling and semi-open exploration. The story is filled with well-rounded characters and emotional narrative payoffs and, as much as Enright's galactic adventure is a collection of stylistic and mechanical homages, it doesn't feel like a patchwork of fan service.For all its influences and adherence to specific genre execution, Dougs journey through multiple worlds is still very much its own thing.Bloomtown: A Different Story (Switch eShop)Publisher: Twin Sails / Developer: Different Sense GamesRelease Date: 24th Sep 2024 (USA) / 24th Sep 2024 (UK/EU)Despite a few minor issues, Bloomtown: A Different Story is a game thatll stick with you long after you put it down. The blend of comforting and creepy is masterful, and the game presents a surprising amount of challenge in places.With everything from boss fights and puzzles to intricate crafting and skill-building, theres a lot to get excited about here. Bloomtown was clearly made with a lot of love and attention to detail, and its the perfect pick for anyone who enjoys rich stories paired with riddles and tricky, turn-based combat.Can of Wormholes (Switch eShop)Publisher: Munted Finger / Developer: Munted FingerRelease Date: 29th Aug 2024 (USA) / 29th Aug 2024 (UK/EU)Wiggling onto Switch from solo dev Munted Finger, Can of Wormholes dares to open that proverbial can and launch squiggly bird food straight at a wonderful array of cross-dimensional puzzles. The variety is seriously impressive. Challenges are grouped in sort of wormy spaceships, and hopping between ships a meta-puzzle in its own right introduces new concepts alongside new visual themes. But even within each ship, the range of logical tests is impressive, with new ideas stacked on top of each other continuously.With ingenious puzzles, a high level of difficulty, and an educational hint system, be careful or this will have you hooked.Carpathian Night Starring Bela Lugosi (Switch eShop)Publisher: Tezcatek / Developer: TezcatekRelease Date: 14th Nov 2024 (USA) / 14th Nov 2024 (UK/EU)Although Carpathian Night is certainly basic in some respects, it really nails the classic Castlevania feel with its gameplay, and we were impressed with the length of the stages themselves. Granted, skilled players could get through the game in as little as an hour or two, but the variety along with the surprising level of depth from the unlockable abilities makes this an experience begging to be replayed. Heck, we'd start over just to listen to the excellent music.Iconic Dracula actor Bela Lugosi's inclusion is extremely limited and feels like a wasted opportunity, but otherwise this is a great little homage to gaming's most famous series of vampire killers.Cavern of Dreams (Switch eShop)Publisher: Super Rare Games / Developer: Bynine StudiosRelease Date: 29th Feb 2024 (USA) / 29th Feb 2024 (UK/EU)We can't say that players raised on the likes of Super Mario Odyssey and other modern platformers will respond the same way, but if you dream in 64-bit and your formative 3D games featured visible polygons, you won't regret exploring Cavern of Dreams.Bynine Studios gets in, delivers its payload of fairytale platforming feels with a hint of darkness, and gets out smartish. If you're a Banjo fan looking to recapture that sense of wonder you first experienced exploring Grunty's Lair, this is probably the closest you'll get without time travel or memory wipes.Crypt Custodian (Switch eShop)Publisher: Top Hat Studios / Developer: Kyle ThompsonRelease Date: 27th Aug 2024 (USA) / 27th Aug 2024 (UK/EU)Crypt Custodian is a pretty traditional Metroidvania elevated by its fantastic world, aesthetic, characters, and soundtrack, with solid combat and a lot of build flexibility.These aspects all help alleviate some visual clutter issues and frame rate hiccups, ensuring that Crypt Custodian shouldn't end up lost in the eShop bargain bin like so many other Metroidvanias.El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron HD Remaster (Switch eShop)Publisher: Crim / Developer: CrimRelease Date: 28th Apr 2024 (USA) / 28th Apr 2024 (UK/EU)Yes, El Shaddai did get a rerelease in 2024. April was a long time ago. Hence why it's here.Even over a decade after its original release, El Shaddai feels genuinely more creative and interesting than a lot of the titles it would consider bedfellows today. It shares a place with the likes of ICO, Nier, and Panzer Dragoon in its arcane design and historically inspired symbolism. Elsewhere, it borrows from the likes of Okami and Mizuguchis Rez for its abstract, acid-trip beauty.Though not without problems, El Shaddai is, more than anything, a game of many moments. Its certainly one of the most intriguing titles in the action-adventure, hack-and-slash genre, and deserves the attention this time around that it never achieved on its original release.Grapple Dogs: Cosmic Canines (Switch eShop)Publisher: Super Rare Originals / Developer: Medallion GamesRelease Date: 12th Sep 2024 (USA) / 12th Sep 2024 (UK/EU)Grapple Dogs: Cosmic Canines is everything fans could hope for in a sequel, as it improves upon every aspect that made the first Grapple Dog so great.Strong level design, a fantastic soundtrack, high gameplay variety, and lots of replayability make this perfect for anyone looking for an excellent, pure platformer to add to their Switch library. It's the most fun platformer weve played in quite a while.Inkulinati (Switch eShop)Publisher: Daedalic Entertainment / Developer: Yaza GamesRelease Date: 22nd Feb 2024 (USA) / 22nd Feb 2024 (UK/EU)It might not be the best strategy game on the Switch, but few in the genre are quite as entertaining as Inkulinati. In fact, none of them let you use a creatures butt quite as frequently or as effectively.The absurd humour doesnt stop the game from offering some unique tactical options, even if it errs on the easy side for our liking. If you're looking for something different, then you absolutely cannot go wrong with this one.Megaton Musashi W: Wired (Switch eShop)Publisher: Level-5 / Developer: Level-5Release Date: 25th Apr 2024 (USA) / 25th Apr 2024 (UK/EU)Megaton Musashi W: Wired proves to be a strong return to form for Level-5, offering up an addictive mech-battling action experience that feels like the most slept-on release of the year.Its heartfelt story, dumb-but-fun combat missions, and in-depth character progression offer up an experience thats tough to put down, even if some elementslike the lacklustre onlinedrag it down a bit.If youre at all a fan of action RPGs or that distinct Level-5 charm you can find in all the beloved companys games, Megaton Musashi W deserves your attention as soon as possible.Mission in Snowdriftland (Switch eShop)Publisher: tons of bits / Developer: tons of bitsRelease Date: 29th Nov 2024 (USA) / 29th Nov 2024 (UK/EU)Originally sponsored by Nintendo back when it was released as a flash game in 2006, Mission in Snowdriftland came to Switch in December this year, but may have slipped under your radar.This really is a perfect holiday platformer, with 24 short levels (like an advent calendar), cute visuals, and retro charm. Static screenshots give off a Flash vibe which may be offputting, but this is a charming and challenging little platform game with some fun narrative wrapping that displays affection for gaming's classics.Given its unique place in Nintendo history, it's well worth checking out, even if you save it for next year. Mission in Snowdriftland returns, a perfect winter traditionPaper Trail (Switch eShop)Publisher: Newfangled Games / Developer: Newfangled GamesRelease Date: 21st May 2024 (USA) / 21st May 2024 (UK/EU)Paper Trail is one of the finest puzzle games you can buy for the Switch. The storybook narrative, compelling visuals, and cleverly designed conundrums, all come together to make for a chill and enjoyable experience that you shouldn't miss, and you'd do well to keep an eye on what Newfangled Games does next.Anyone looking for a low-stakes yet sufficiently challenging new addition to their puzzle library, please make sure you unfold Paper Trail on Switch.Toree's Panic Pack (Switch eShop)Publisher: Diplodocus Games / Developer: SiactroRelease Date: 19th Jul 2024 (USA) / 19th Jul 2024 (UK/EU)Some of the stages in this collection dont feel quite as refined as those found in Toree 3D or Toree 2, and the games arcade-like nature means it wont hold your attention for hours and hours on end, but what Torees Panic Pack sets out to do, it achieves with ease.Its a fun and fast 3D platformer with surprising replayability (i.e. a Toree game), a rock-bottom price of entry, and a heaping barrelful of charm to fall in love with.Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon- (Switch)Publisher: Aniplex / Developer: Type-MoonRelease Date: 26th Jun 2024 (USA) / 26th Jun 2024 (UK/EU)For as many creative liberties as it takes in remaking Type-Moons first-ever visual novel, Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon- exhibits a respect for the source material that borders on reverence.It feels as though every bit of the game has been carefully and lovingly crafted for the purpose of creating the definitive version of Tsukihime one in which the shocking narrative developments hit harder, the action sequences are even more exhilarating, and the core story of life, death, and love is all the more bewitching.For fans of the original, its not only a dream remake, but a triumphant affirmation to the rest of the world that, yes, we really have been missing out on something special for all this time.Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.Have we missed one of your favourite games? Seen something that's caught your eye? Share your favourite hidden gems from 2024 in the comments, and spread the holiday cheer!What was your hidden Switch gem of choice for 2024? (72 votes)Arranger: A Role-Puzzling Adventure (Switch eShop)6%Angel at Dusk (Switch eShop)4%Berserk Boy (Switch eShop)1%Beyond Galaxyland (Switch eShop)1%Bloomtown: A Different Story (Switch eShop)8%Can of Wormholes (Switch eShop) 0%Carpathian Night Starring Bela Lugosi (Switch eShop)3%Cavern of Dreams (Switch eShop)6%Crypt Custodian (Switch eShop)19%El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron HD Remaster (Switch eShop)8%Grapple Dogs: Cosmic Canines (Switch eShop) 0%Inkulinati (Switch eShop)6%Megaton Musashi W: Wired (Switch eShop)4%Mission in Snowdriftland (Switch eShop)6%Paper Trail (Switch eShop)3%Toree's Panic Pack (Switch eShop)1%Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon- (Switch)3%Something else (comment below!)21%You can also check out our Games We Missed series for reader recommendations of games we weren't able to review. Episode IX - The Misseds of TimeRelated GamesSee AlsoShare:21 Alana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022, and while RPGs are her first love, Nintendo is a close second. She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies, characters, and stories. She also wishes she was a Sega air pirate. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...Related ArticlesPSA: Switch 2 Is Getting Revealed In The Next 100 DaysSet your AlarmosToby Fox Shares Another Development Update On Deltarune Chapter 3, 4 & 5"Progress has still been steady"Multiple Cartoon Network Games Have Been Removed From The Switch eShopMerry Christmas!Random: Mario Galaxy Returns Next Year In "The Biggest Super Mario Odyssey Mod Yet"Mario's Wii adventure is back

For the past few years, TechCrunch has looked back at some of the worst, badly handled data breaches and security incidents in the hope maybe! other corporate giants would take heed and avoid making some of the same calamities of yesteryear. To absolutely nobodys surprise, here we are again this year listing much of the same bad behavior from an entirely new class of companies.23andMe blamed users for its massive data breachLast year, genetic testing giant 23andMe lost the genetic and ancestry data on close to 7 million customers, thanks to a data breach that saw hackers brute-force access to thousands of accounts to scrape data on millions more. 23andMe belatedly rolled out multi-factor authentication, a security feature that could have prevented the account hacks.Within days of the new year, 23andMe took to deflecting the blame for the massive data theft onto the victims, claiming that its users did not sufficiently secure their accounts. Lawyers representing the group of hundreds of 23andMe users who sued the company following the hack said the finger-pointing was nonsensical. U.K. and Canadian authorities soon after announced a joint investigation into 23andMes data breach last year.23andMe later in the year laid off 40% of its staff as the beleaguered company faces an uncertain financial future as does the companys vast bank of its customers genetic data.Change Healthcare took months to confirm hackers stole most of Americas health dataChange Healthcare is a healthcare tech company few had heard about until this February when a cyberattack forced the company to shut down its entire network, prompting immediate and widespread outages across the United States and grinding much of the U.S. healthcare system to a halt. Change, owned by health insurance giant UnitedHealth Group, handles billing and insurance for thousands of healthcare providers and medical practices across the U.S., processing somewhere between one-third and half of all U.S. healthcare transactions each year.The companys handling of the hack caused by a breach of a basic user account with a lack of multi-factor authentication was criticized by Americans who couldnt get their medications filled or hospital stays approved; affected healthcare providers who were going broke as a result of the cyberattack, and lawmakers who grilled the companys chief executive about the hack during a May congressional hearing. Change Healthcare paid the hackers a ransom of $22 million which the feds have long warned only helps cybercriminals profit from cyberattacks only to have to pony up a fresh ransom to ask another hacking group to delete its stolen data.In the end, it took until October some seven months later to reveal that 100 million-plus people had their private health information stolen in the cyberattack. Granted, it must have taken a while, since it was by all accounts the biggest healthcare data breach of the year, if not ever.Synnovis hack disrupted U.K. healthcare services for monthsThe NHS suffered months of disruption this year after Synnovis, a London-based provider of pathology services, was hit by a ransomware attack in June. The attack, claimed by the Qilin ransomware group, left patients in south-east London unable to get blood tests from their doctors for more than three months, and led to the cancellation of thousands of outpatient appointments and more than 1,700 surgical procedures.In light of the attack, which experts say could have been prevented if two-factor authentication had been in place, Unite, the U.K.s leading trade union, announced that Synnovis staff will strike for five days in December. Unite said the incident had an alarming impact on staff who have been forced to work additional hours and without access to essential computer systems for months while the attack has been dealt with.It remains unknown how many patients are affected by the incident. The Qilin ransomware group claims to have leaked 400 gigabytes of sensitive data allegedly stolen from Synnovis, including patient names, health system registration numbers, and descriptions of blood tests.Snowflake customer hacks snowballed into major data breachesCloud computing giant Snowflake found itself this year at the center of a series of mass hacks targeting its corporate customers, like AT&T, Ticketmaster and Santander Bank. The hackers, who were later criminally charged with the intrusions, broke in using login details stolen by malware found on the computers of employees at companies that rely on Snowflake. Because of Snowflakes lack of mandated use of multi-factor security, the hackers were able to break into and steal vast banks of data stored by hundreds of Snowflake customers and hold the data for ransom.Snowflake, for its part, said little about the incidents at the time, but conceded that the breaches were caused by a targeted campaign directed at users with single-factor authentication. Snowflake later rolled out multi-factor-by-default to its customers with the hope of avoiding a repeat incident.Columbus, Ohio sued a security researcher for truthfully reporting on a ransomware attackWhen the city of Columbus, Ohio reported a cyberattack over the summer, the citys mayor Andrew Ginther moved to reassure concerned residents that stolen city data was either encrypted or corrupted, and that it was unusable to the hackers who stole it. All the while, a security researcher who tracks data breaches on the the dark web for his job found evidence that the ransomware crew did in fact have access to residents data at least half a million people including their Social Security numbers and drivers licenses, as well as arrest records, information on minors, and survivors of domestic violence. The researcher alerted journalists to the data trove.The city successfully obtained an injunction against the researcher from sharing evidence that he found of the breach, a move seen as an effort by the city to silence the security researcher than remediate the breach. The city later dropped its lawsuit.Salt Typhoon hacked phone and internet providers, thanks to a U.S. backdoor lawA 30-year-old backdoor law came back to bite this year after hackers, dubbed Salt Typhoon one of several China-backed hacking groups laying the digital groundwork for a possible conflict with the United States were discovered in the networks of some of the largest U.S. phone and internet companies. The hackers were found accessing the real-time calls, messages and communications metadata of senior U.S. politicians and high-ranking officials, including presidential candidates.The hackers reportedly broke into some of the companies wiretap systems, which the telcos were required to set up following the passing of the law, dubbed CALEA, in 1994. Now, thanks to the ongoing access to these systems and the data that telecom companies store on Americans the U.S. government is now advising U.S. citizens and senior Americans to use end-to-end encrypted messaging apps so that nobody, not even the Chinese hackers, can access their private communications.MoneyGram, the U.S. money transfer giant with more than 50 million customers, was hit by hackers in September. The company confirmed the incident more than a week later after customers experienced days of unexplained outages, disclosing only an unspecified cybersecurity issue. MoneyGram didnt say whether customer data had been taken, but the U.K.s data protection watchdog told TechCrunch in late September that it had received a data breach report from the U.S.-based company, indicating that customer data had been stolen.Weeks later, MoneyGram admitted that hackers had swiped customer data during the cyberattack, including Social Security numbers and government identification documents, as well as transaction information, such as dates and the amounts of each transaction. The company admitted that the hackers also stole criminal investigation information on a limited number of customers. MoneyGram still hasnt said how many customers had data stolen, or how many customers it had directly notified.Hot Topic stays mum after 57 million customer records spill onlineWith 57 million customers affected, the October breach of U.S. retail giant Hot Topic goes down as one of the largest-ever breaches of retail data. However, despite the massive scale of the breach, Hot Topic has not publicly confirmed the incident, nor has it alerted customers or state offices of attorneys general about the data breach. The retailer also ignored TechCrunchs multiple requests for comment.Breach notification site Have I Been Pwned, which obtained a copy of the breached data, alerted close to 57 million affected customers that the stolen data includes their email addresses, physical addresses, phone numbers, purchases, their gender, and date of birth. The data also included partial credit card data, including credit card type, expiry dates, and the last four digits of the card number.