• Leaked Switch 2 Renders Grant A 360-Degree Look At The Console
    www.gamespot.com
    Among a multitude of a Nintendo Switch 2 leaks and third-party accessory marketing, yet another leak has emerged. This time, the supposed leak shows a full 3D render of the console and its Joy-Cons.Tech and phone website 91mobiles, in collaboration with OnLeaks, published the renders. They depict a black handheld console, which looks similar to the Switch, albeit larger than either the OLED or original models. With the Joy-Cons attached, 91mobiles published the following dimensions: 271 x 116.4 x 31.4mm (10.67 x 4.58 x 1.24 inches). The stated screen size is 8.4 inches.These dimensions match prior calculations based on Genki's Switch 2 mock-up, made to promote the company's line of accessories. Genki further claimed the system will launch in April and clarified that it does not know the system's internals; representatives only claimed knowledge of the physical body and features like magnetic controllers.Continue Reading at GameSpot
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  • What to Expect From Overwatch 2 in 2025
    gamerant.com
    Overwatch 2 is entering its third year of life following its release in August 2022. In 2024, the game saw a significant overhaul of its Competitive system, and new heroes like Hazard, Juno, and Venture joined the roster. Going into 2025, Overwatch 2 will continue innovating and experimenting as one of the best free-to-play shooters on the market.
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  • Naruto: Kishimoto Reveals Why Naruto Never Became A Jonin
    gamerant.com
    Naruto Uzumaki is one of the most influential characters in all manga, and fans have come to love him for being a symbol of guts, hard work, and a will to never give up. Naruto set a lofty ambition for himself right at the beginning of the series, but, much to the surprise of everyone, ended up accomplishing it by the end.
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  • Critical Role Postpones Campaign 3 Climax Due to Los Angeles Fires
    gamerant.com
    Critical Role is skipping this weeks episode of Campaign 3, as the fires in Los Angeles have directly impacted the cast, crew, and community of the Dungeons and Dragons actual play stream. Though Critical Role hopes to get back to the show on January 16, players should be patient in case the situation demands the conclusion to the Dungeons and Dragons story to be delayed further.
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  • Elden Ring player refuses to let its toughest boss rest until Nightreign is out
    www.polygon.com
    While the rest of us wait for Elden Ring Nightreign to come out, YouTuber chickensandwich420 has pledged to spend every day until then fighting one of the hardest bosses without taking a single hit.A few days after FromSoftware announced the multiplayer spin-off at The Game Awards in December, chickensandwich420 set their sights on Messmer, a brutal snake-man introduced in the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. Its already one of the harder fights in an especially hard expansion, but chickensandwich420 committed to taking him down flawlessly. Not only are they doing it on new game plus seven (read: nightmare difficulty), theyre doing it with a different weapon every day.The catch is that FromSoft didnt give Nightreign a release date more specific than 2025, which means chickensandwich420 might be doing this for a while. But were also talking about the same person who spent 117 days dueling a boss in the original game until the expansion was released. They know what they signed up for.Theyre currently on day 25 and taking suggestions for what weapon to use in the comments. On day 10 last month, someone made them do the fight with a sword that is supposed to suck until you solve a puzzle with it. That video is a solid minute longer than the rest as chickensandwich420 chips away Messmers health with what is essentially a rock. It could be worse: Eventually, someone is going to suggest fighting him with a bouquet.Chickensandwich420 said in their day 1 video that if Nightreign isnt out by June, they will swap to other FromSoft games. Messmer is tough, but there are certainly worse bosses out there, and I dont expect chickensandwich420 to make the challenge any easier. History has taught us that FromSoft challenge runners dont give up and definitely dont lower the stakes.
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  • All Gas Station locations in Fortnite
    www.polygon.com
    Gas stations are useful locations in Fortnite youre bound to find a vehicle nearby, plus you can refuel and repair your car.Make your way to the nearest Burd gas station and hop into a vehicle to quickly move around the map. Traveling in a vehicle also provides you with some easy experience by completing quests and milestones. There arent a ton of gas stations around the map, but there is at one nearby in each section of the map.Heres where every gas station is located in Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 1 and how to refuel your vehicle.All Gas Station locations in FortniteThere are a total of six gas stations in Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 1. Check out the map above to see where every gas station is located. Or for more more exact location of each gas station and its immediate environment, check out the image gallery below:North of Pumped PowerNorth of Twinkle TerraceSouth of Brutal Boxcars and Lost LakeNorth of the Shining Span bridgeAt the Burd point of interestNorthwest of the flower fields and to the northeast of Masked MeadowsHow to refuel your car in FortniteFortnite players of old may remember having to pump their own gas to refuel their car, but refueling has been made a little easier.To refuel your car, drive your car onto one of the raised platforms beside one of the gas pumps. Additionally, your car will be steadily repaired. However, be careful as other players can still explode the gas pumps!
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  • Pick up the Nerf Needler for its lowest price ever
    www.polygon.com
    There are few video game weapons as immediately recognizable as Halos Needler. Made to commemorate the launch of Halo Infinite, the Nerf dart-launching version of the Needler is currently on sale for its lowest price ever on Amazon, allowing you to pick up this iconic Covenant weapon for just $67.18 (was $99.99).The Nerf Needler is a stunning recreation of the in-game weapon, complete with accent lighting on the spikes and muzzle that activates when the toy is fired or placed on its included display stand. This motorized blaster features a 10-dart capacity, but just note that youll need a whopping six AA batteries (not included) to keep it powered.Just like the Nerf recreations of the Bulldog Shotgun and MA40 Assault Rifle, the Needler also comes packaged with a code that can be redeemed for cosmetic items in Halo Infinite. In this case, earning you an Epic Nameplate bearing the likeness of your new purchase.
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  • Samsung's The Frame TV Is up to $1,000 Off Right Now
    lifehacker.com
    We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.The Consumer Electronics Show (CES), is in full swing, displaying some exciting tech products you'll be able to have in your hands over the next year and beyondbut don't forget that this is also one of the best times to shop for last year's flagship models. After the announcement of a Pro version of The Frame TV, the 2024 versions dropped in price. The 43-inch The Frame from 2024 is on sale for $797.99 (originally $997.99), the lowest price it has been, according to price tracking tools. The bigger sizes are also discounted, going up to $1,000 off for the 85-inch class. Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 43-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $797.99 at Amazon $997.99 Save $200.00 Get Deal Get Deal $797.99 at Amazon $997.99 Save $200.00 Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 50-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $897.99 at Amazon $1,297.99 Save $400.00 Get Deal Get Deal $897.99 at Amazon $1,297.99 Save $400.00 Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 55-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $997.99 at Amazon $1,497.99 Save $500.00 Get Deal Get Deal $997.99 at Amazon $1,497.99 Save $500.00 Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 65-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $1,597.99 at Amazon $1,997.99 Save $400.00 Get Deal Get Deal $1,597.99 at Amazon $1,997.99 Save $400.00 Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 75-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $1,997.99 at Amazon $2,997.99 Save $1,000.00 Get Deal Get Deal $1,997.99 at Amazon $2,997.99 Save $1,000.00 Display Technology: QLED, Resolution: 4K, Refresh Rate: 120 Hz, Special Feature: Built-In Speaker. 85-inch The Frame QLED 4K LS03D $3,297.99 at Amazon $4,297.99 Save $1,000.00 Get Deal Get Deal $3,297.99 at Amazon $4,297.99 Save $1,000.00 SEE 3 MORE Samsungs The Frame smart TVs have come a long way since their 2017 release. Launched to appeal to the crowd that wants a big TV but doesnt want that TV to dominate their decor, its main feature is an anti-reflection matte display that took the framed artwork aspect to new levelsand with 4K picture quality. As the name implies, the allure of this TV is that it can double as a digital art frame, with its anti-glare matte display and customizable frame.I first saw the 2022 version up close when it was released, admittedly having been fooled by my brother into thinking it was an actual painting (it really does look like one). The matte screen does a good job of making the TV seem like a painting, and it's great for bright rooms that might otherwise get a lot of glare from the screen. That version had an "average" review from PCMag due mainly to poor contrast and its price. However, the new 2024 version is the latest generation of this series and has notable improvements.You'll get an improved refresh rate of 120Hz, the same QLED display, and 4K resolution with a Quantum 4K processor. You can buy frames separately to your taste, and even design them with a Harry Potter theme, like this guy on TikTok did.
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  • Youre Probably Checking Your 401(k) Too Often
    lifehacker.com
    The start of a new calendar year is the perfect time to take a look at your retirement savings and make sure you're on track. That being said, there is such a thing as being a little too vigilant. You might be the type of saver who gets antsy to open up your retirement accounts to assess the damage after every little bit of financial news. But I implore you, no matter the news: Stop looking at your 401k so much. Whenever theres alarming news about the stock market, or inflation, or unemployment, it's certainly natural to obsess over how your retirement savings are faring, but donteven if the balance is listed clearly on the dashboard of your banking app. Just ignore it. Heres why.Unless you're of retirement age, your 401(k) is for laterJim Keenehan, a senior consultant with AFS 401(k) Retirement Services, LLC, has been a financial adviser for years. He advises you to stop thinking of your 401(k) as money in the bank. Instead, think about it as a way for you to be able to provide yourself with a paycheck in retirement, he says. You stop working, your paychecks stop coming, and you can fall back on money you put away through a plan with your employer. Its money for later. What the balance looks like right now doesnt matter, unless you are currently at or very near retirement age.Thats hard to remember when you know a drop in the stock market means a dip in your balances. Its only natural to want to repeatedlyrush to check on the extent of the damage, particularly in times of economic turmoil. But doing so, Keenehan says, is only to your detriment. That can be a fun thing to do when the stock market is doing well and your investments are doing well, he concedes. However, the stock market doesnt always go up. And whether its up or down today, youre in it for the long haul.How often should you check your 401k?Keenehan said there are other reasons you might check your 401k beyond seeking the thrill of the balance going up or anticipating the crush of it going down, like changing how much youre contributing or updating your beneficiary.Thats fineyou should certainly allocate your investments, but once you've done that, you should do your best to forget about it, unless life changes (and not market volatility) prompt you to change your plans. Otherwise? Do it annually, Keenehan said. In fact, to the best of your ability, only go in and change things around annually too, and do so with the assistance of a financial advisor if you can.What can you do to feel better and stop checking your 401k?Keenehan warns against driving yourself mad by focusing on your day-to-day balance. Instead, take back a measure of control by looking at the big picture of your finances. Once again, seek out a financial advisor, or check with your employer to see if they offer access to one who can answer your questions. (If theyre offering a 401k plan, they should.)Sit down with a fiduciary financial advisor. Fiduciary is a key word there because that means that financial advisor is going to be acting in that persons best interest, he says. A lot of times people are looking headlines about the stock market crashingthats really meant for shock value. Theyre trying to get people to click on the links and they want eyeballs on the screen. Thats not intended to be advice that anybody should be acting on in their retirement accounts.Put simply, dont make financial decisions based on an article or a social media post or a gut feeling. Sit down with an advisor who has the knowledge and experience to make sense of fluctuating markets and who can guide you a little more calmly. Do this once per year. Otherwise, stop logging in.
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  • What People Are Getting Wrong This Week: 'The Telepathy Tapes'
    lifehacker.com
    The most downloaded podcast on Spotify is no longer The Joe Rogan Experience. Rogans long-running show has been overtaken by The Telepathy Tapes, a new, 10-part documentary series that aims to explore the supernatural abilities of non-speakers with autisma subject a lot of people are getting very wrong.Created and hosted by mainstream documentarian Ty Dickens, The Telepathy Tapes is a professionally produced, serious-seeming podcast that claims non-verbal people with autism are telepathic, can see the future, and can talk to the dead. They all meet each other in a telepathic chat room called The Hill, too. Basically, ifThe Telepathy Tapes is correct, everything we know about the mind and reality itself is incorrect.Im the opposite of convinced. Despite its captivating production, sincere interviews, and experts with advanced degrees, everything presented in The Telepathy Tapes has a non-supernatural explanation. Nothing here is even new: its all slightly spun versions of claims that were debunked over 100 years ago.Explaining the extraordinary claims of The Telepathy TapesThe structure of The Telepathy Tapes is telling. It begins with the relatively "modest" claim that non speakers with autism can tell what people are thinking, even if they can't communicate it in traditional ways. The podcast seems to honor listener skepticism by acknowledging how "out there" its claims are, and it saves its more esoteric claimsa "telepathic chat room" where non speakers gather, communication through lucid dreaming, etc.for later episodes, when presumably a baseline of belief has been established in listeners. Much of episode one, "Unveiling the Hidden World of Telepathic Communication in a Silenced Community," consists of descriptions and recording of scientific-seeming tests where non speakers seemingly read the minds of others, and the podcast's more extreme claims are built on these foundations. It feels designed to convincethere's a skeptical member of the podcast crew whose mind is changed, and there's even video evidence on the podcast's site (behind a paywall) so you can judge for yourself. But The Telepathy Tapes leaves an important piece of information out of its first, trust-establishing, episode: all of the non speakers' communications are being facilitated, usually by the person whose mind is supposedly being read. A brief history of facilitated communicationFacilitated communication (FC), also known as supported typing, is a technique which claims to allow non-verbal people to communicate. The theory is that non speakers lack the fine motor skills to speak, write, or point, but if they are supported by another person who steadies their hands or holds their elbows, they can point at or type, the letters they want and thus communicate. Proponents liken the technique to a person with wobbly ankles using a cane to help them walk. Something like facilitated communication began in Europe in the 1960s and Australia in the 1970s, but it wasn't until 1989 that educator Douglas Biklen brought FC into the United States. Biklen and other early FC researchers tried the techniques with people with cerebral palsy, head injuries, Down syndrome, and autism, and reported extraordinary results: people previously thought of as unable to communicate at all were able to speak to their parents for the first time. Some wrote poetry, went to college, and gave TedX Talks. The scientific community was dubious, but not the mass media, which aired pieces like this: But along with these uplifting stories came numerous allegations of sexual abuse, and the thus the necessity to prove the veracity of Facilitated Communications in court. The first such case was heard in 1990 in Australia and involved a 28-year-old woman who had severe disabilities. "Carla" was removed from her home by state authorities after messages obtained through FC indicated she was being sexually abused. Carla's parents' defense team conducted double-blind tests that demonstrated that the only meaningful responses obtained through FC were when the facilitator knew the questions being asked of Carla, ending the case. The rest of the FC abuse cases resolved in much the same way. The scientific community thoroughly debunked the claims of FC proponents, and FC disappeared from mainstream view. Until The Telepathy Tapes. The videos provided by The Telepathy Tapes demonstrate the shortcomings of facilitated communication. Below is an image of a non speaker and guide using Spelling to Communicate, aka The Rapid Prompting Method or Spelling, a more recent variation of FC where the facilitators don't touch the subject. Many of the subjects in The Telepathy Tapes are spellers. Credit: The Telepathy Tapes - Fair Use RPM involves pointing to letters "to form words on a letter board, typing device, and/or by handwriting." One of its prime rules is the facilitator doesn't touch the non verbal person. But as you can see in the image above, the communicator holds the letter board, which allows the facilitator to move to the board to provide the "communication," but that's only one way facilitators could be guiding their partners' responses.To be fair, in episode 8 of The Telepathy Tapes, Dickens discusses the controversy around FC, but frames it in terms of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association suppressing spelling because of "outdated research, stigmas, and the long held belief that non speakers just aren't competent," leaving out the fact that no scientific study of spelling (or any other FC technique) has ever passed a double-blind study, a bar you have to clear long before you start talking about telepathy. As the ASHA puts it: "There is no research showing that RPM is effective in producing independent communication. Indeed, there is active resistance by RPM proponents to conducting research on the technique."The ideomotor reflex and Facilitated CommunicationMost claims of paranormal or psychic abilities are spread by conmen or magicians, but this doesn't seem to be the case for Facilitated Communications and spelling. I don't doubt that proponents of spelling believe it's real. I don't think facilitators are consciously guiding their subjects, and I don't think the parents are trying to trick anyone. But there's an explanation for all of this that doesn't involve the supernatural: the ideomotor reflex.The ideomotor reflex describes involuntary physical movements in response to ideas, thoughts, or expectations. Thinking about something can unconsciously trigger a physical action. This is why Ouija boards produce conversations with ghosts and how water dowsers can find underground springs. In Facilitated Communication, the facilitator is guiding the subject towards a specific response, even though they're not aware they're doing it. Anyone can be fooled by ideomotor effectintelligence and training doesn't make you immuneand realizing that you have been mistaken can be devastating. Watch this interview from 60 Minutes with a couple of smart, well-meaning facilitators to see what I mean: The kind of unconscious "cueing" that seems to explain FC can work even if the facilitator isn't guiding the subject's hands or touching them at all. People can pick up on subtle movements and give a desired response. So can horses. The strange case of Clever Hans, the horse who did mathIn the early twentieth century, mathematics teacher and amateur horse trainer Wilhelm von Osten announced that his horse, Hans, could do math. To demonstrate, Von Osten would ask things like, "If the eighth day of the month comes on a Tuesday, what is the date of the following Friday?" and Hans would answer by tapping his hoof eleven times. Clever Hans, the intelligent horse, drew crowds, but also skepticism, so a panel of professionals consisting of a veterinarian, a circus manager, a cavalry officer, a number of schoolteachers, and the director of the Berlin zoological gardens was convened to test the claims. The panel separated Hans from its trainer to ensure he wasn't cueing the animal. They performed tests without any spectators to make sure no one else was helping the horse cheat. They wrote the questions themselves, and made sure Hans couldn't see the answers, but even under these conditions, Hans could still correctly answer math questions. The panel initially concluded the that there was no trickery involved, but they passed the investigation on to psychologist Oskar Pfungst, who looked deeper. Pfungst's more rigorous tests showed Hans could only give correct answers when the questioner knew the answer and the horse could see the questioner. Clever Hans was a smart horse, but its seeming ability to do math was actually the result of reading the ideomotor movements of the questioner, whose body language would change unconsciously when the right answer was arrived at. (Unrelated sidenote: After Wilhelm von Osten died, Hans was drafted into World War I as a military horse and "killed in action in 1916 or was consumed by hungry soldiers.")I'm not comparing non speakers with autism to horses, but Facilitated Communications and Clever Hans' math skills fall apart at the same point: If the subject can't see, hear, or touch the facilitator, or the facilitator doesn't know the "correct answer," there is no meaningful result. In many cases in The Telepathy Tapes, the facilitator is the parent of a non speaking child, and unspoken communication between thema subtle guiding of the hand, a small change in posture, a change in breathing, etc.seems a more likely explanation than mind reading.The problem of testing for telepathy"Traditional" Facilitated Communication can be disproved relatively easily by showing the non speaker an image, then showing the facilitator a different image, as you can see here: But telepathy, as presented in The Telepathy Tapes, is "protected" from this kind of scrutiny. Because the mind that is supposedly being read is that of the facilitator, there's no way of presenting information that the facilitator doesn't know, and no way of separating the non speaker from the facilitator. The podcast even flips things upside down in a segment involving Uno cards. In this test, only the facilitator knows what Uno card has been chosen, but the subject guesses the right answer again and again. Instead of being seen as evidence that the communication must be from the facilitator because the subject hasn't seen the card, it's presented as evidence that the non-verbal subject is telepathic. In later episodes of the podcast, the claim is made that some of subjects can read everyone's mind. This should make it easy to test telepathic powershave a third party write down a number without showing it to anyone, then have the non speaker read their mind and facilitate the resultbut tests of this type aren't conducted in The Telepathy Tapes. Nor are there any test involving subjects who have more than one facilitator. I suspect this is because those tests would fail.The Telepathy Tapes does offer a preemptive explanation for tests of telepathy that don't work. It's a familiar argument for why supernatural effects can't be demonstrated in a laboratory: psychic abilities, by their nature, resist scientific experimentation. The vibe of skepticism upsets the psychic balance, or the disbelief of the experimenters is too upsetting to the psychic, so the power can only be demonstrated to people who believe in them. And no one can prove that isn't true, but it highlights the difference between an invisible force that is supported by research, like electricity, and one that isn't, like telepathy: Electricity doesn't care if you don't believe in it: Flip the switch and the lights will come on, whether you think they will or not.The problem with The Telepathy TapesPart of the argument of The Telepathy Tapes is that scientific skepticism is silencing the voices of non-verbal people. "Why should anyone deny the lived experience of parents who have found a connection to their children?" the podcast seems to ask. "These assertions carry the serious danger of undermining more empirically grounded modes of communication," explains Dr. Sham Singh, a psychiatrist at WINIT Clinic. "There are scientifically validated tools and techniques that let non speakers express their thoughts and emotions. These include augmentative and alternative communication devices and interventions based on behavioral science. To dismiss these in favor of unproven methods of telepathic communication risks undermining the progress that many individuals and their families have made with established methods."That's not the only problem with the podcast. Mainstream society is denying or discounting the abilities of handicapped people is nothing new, and some autistic people really do demonstrate remarkable talents in different areas, but imagining non-verbal people have mystical powers distorts their lived experiences too. "The deeper question such claims raise touches on how society perceives neurodiversity," explains Dr. Singh. "This fascination with telepathy can reflect a desire to ascribe unique, even mystical abilities to people with autism, which, though well-intentioned, may belittle their experiences. Rather than superpowers, we should focus efforts on supporting non speakers through accessible, evidence-based resources that help them interact with the world on their own terms."
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