CONTEXT has published a new report highlighting poor performance from 3D printer vendors in Q3 2024. The Market intelligence firms decision to call the additive manufacturing market chaotic marks a shift from the more positive tone of its 2025 3D printing forecast published last month.During the third quarter, the global additive manufacturing industry was characterized by weak financials, headcount reductions, leadership changes, CEO turnover, operational streamlining, and uncertain mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity.According to CONTEXTs data, this turbulence has translated to falling 3D printer shipments. Sales of Industrial ($100,000+) and Midrange ($20,000$100,000) systems reportedly fell by 24% and 8% YoY, respectively. Professional-grade machines costing between $2,500$20,000 also witnessed a decline of 1%. While entry-level 3D printers continued to buck this trend, with a 28% YoY rise, CONTEXT noted that this segment is cooling as shipments begin to slow.While the recent report addresses Q3, historically, Q4 has been a time when many deals are completed. When earnings season commences, and listed companies provide there full-year numbers a clearer picture should emerge, potentially shedding insight as to whether a shift in quarterly trends has taken place. One convincing explanation seems to relate to uncertainties driven by the US election, with capex delayed until 2025. Several other nations also held elections last year, further driving this trend.Anecdotal evidence from one manufacturer reports that anticipated contracts to supply defense customers did not emerge as expected due to the election year. However, additive manufacturing still benefits from the US Department of Defenses deep pockets. Efforts to restock depleting missile inventories and secure its domestic submarine supply chain are driving extensive investments in metal 3D printing.CONTEXTs VP Chris Connery emphasized that some rays of hope shone through during Q3 2024. Specifically, CONTEXTs data confirms that market leaders EOS, Nikon SLM Solutions, Eplus3D, and Renishaw reported YoY revenue growth in the quarter.Additionally, the 3D printing laser wars trend has seen vendors prioritize higher-priced systems with more lasers, meaning fewer sales do not necessarily translate to a lower return. Indeed, CONTEXTs data confirms that market leaders EOS, Nikon SLM Solutions, Eplus3D, and Renishaw reported YoY revenue growth in the quarter.Global 3D printer shipments by price class (note different scales). Image via CONTEXT.Failing fortunes for industrial 3D printersThe global drop for industrial 3D printer shipments saw yearly figures fall by 19% on a trailing twelve-month (TTM) basis. According to CONTEXT, this decline impacted almost all technologies and material types in this segment. Sales for both metal and polymer systems declined by 24% and 25%, respectively. Globally, industrial shipments fell in China (-37%), North America (-25%), and Western Europe (-13%).The industrial polymer 3D printer market again witnessed challenges relating to Vat Photopolymerisation systems, which experienced a 30% YoY drop in Q3. On a TTM, sales of this technology fell by 42%, while the segment as a whole witnessed a 29% TTM decline.The Vat Photopolymerisation market continues to be dominated by Chinese firm UnionTech, which mainly ships domestically, and US firm 3D Systems, which sells primarily to Western-based customers. In Q3, both companies experienced a sharp decline in shipments, citing reduced demand in the dental market as a major factor. Away from the resin market, polymer powder bed fusion and material extrusion system sales were both down by 15%, while material jetting shipments witnessed a 43% decline.UnionTech showcasing the RSPro1400 3D printer at AMUG 2024. Photo by UnionTech.Metal 3D printer shipments declineMetal 3D printer sales had witnessed solid performance until Q2 2024, when global YoY declines were reported. This continued in the third quarter. While binder jet sales were flat, shipments of all other metal additive manufactring technologies were down compared to the same period in 2023.LPBF systems accounted for 74% of new industrial metal 3D printers during this period, despite a 24% decline in shipments. Directed Energy Deposition (DED) systems, the second-largest technology in this segment, also witnessed an 18% drop in sales.Hangzhou-based Eplus3D reportedly shipped the most units globally this quarter, as it experienced a 41% YoY increase in sales. TRUMPF and Renishaw also witnessed shipment increases in Q3 2024. Notably, regional distinctions seemingly diminished during this period, as both Chinese and Western vendors reported a fall in sales. Previously, Chinese companies had dominated this market amid strong domestic demand. However, Q3 saw Chinese 3D printer shipments fall 26% YoY, with most of these metal 3D printer manufacturers witnessing significant drop-offs.CONTEXT pointed to Eplus3Ds shipments of its meter-tall LPBF 3D printer, one of the largest in the world,as a highlight for the entire industry. Nikon SLMs multi-laser NXG systems also continued to perform well, as the company retained the top spot in terms of global market share for the metal 3D printing sector.Industrial metal PBF 3D printer shipments and growth by vendor region. Image via CONTEXT.Mixed results for Midrange and Professional vendorsIn Q3 2024, reduced spending continued to impact the market for midrange 3D printers, contributing to an 8% decline in 3D printer shipments. While Stratasys retained its market share lead, the Yoav Zeif-led firm saw weak sales for its material extrusion systems. 3D Systems, a long-term stalwart in the 3D printing industry, continued to struggle as it fell to sixth place for sales in this price class.Chinese companies reportedly fared better than their Western counterparts. UnionTech, ZRapid Tech, and Flashforge performed well, as aggregate shipments from Chinese vendors increased 46% YoY, Companies from all other nations saw midrange sales fall by 24%. In particular, Flashorge experienced strong demand from the jewelry market for its WaxJet material jetting printers.Professional 3D printers witnessed a bounce back in Q3 2024, largely driven by the positive reception of Formlabs Form 4 and Form 4B, which launched in April 2024. Total professional system shipments were still down 1% YoY, and 20% on a TTM basis. However, thanks to the demand for Formlabs technology, shipments of Vat Photopolymerisation systems increased 26% YoY.On the other hand, sales of material extrusion 3D printers priced between $2,500 and $20,000 continued to feel the pinch, as customers increasingly adopt more affordable entry-level offerings. As such, 28% fewer professional FDM 3D printers were shipped in Q3 2024 than the previous year.Despite CONTEXTs claims that the entry-level market has slowed from its previous super-accelerated pace, sub-$2500 systems continued to perform well. Shipments grew 28% YoY, with a substantial 43% increase reported on a TTM basis.Creality continued to lead this price-class, despite experiencing slowed growth. Meanwhile, Bambu Lab and Flashforge experienced market-share gains.Formlabs Form 4 3D printer. Photo via Formlabs.Context reaffirms positive outlook for the future of 3D printingCONTEXT emphasized that 3D printing companies witnessed a turbulent end to 2024. Uncertainty swirls around Nano Dimensions acquisition of Markeofrged and Desktop Metal, amid boardroom changes and the removal of ardent consolidation-advocate Yoav Stern as CEO. BigRep and Prodways also witnessed leadership changes, as voxeljet was acquired by Anzu Partners. Nexa3D has also scaled back its operations, and Velo3D restructured to avoid bankruptcy.The investment landscape of 2024 saw many keep their powder dry but some high-profile backers, such as ex-Google CEOs support for Relativity Space, indicate investors see opportunity in the sector.According to Chris Connery, this market Chaos was further impacted by high interest rates and subsequently muted CapEx spending. As such, he expects full-year figures for 2024 to be close to the lows seen during the height of pandemic lockdowns in 2020, with at least 12% fewer Industrial printers shipped in 2024 than 2023. Global midrange 3D printer shipments are set to be down by 8% over the full year, while the entry-level segment will finish the year with a 30% YoY increase.Looking ahead, many players expect interest rates to fall this year, which many hope will accelerate CapEx spending by the second half of 2025. CONTEXT noted that this could lead to 14% full-year growth for Industrial 3D printer shipments. Meanwhile, midrange sales are expected to rise by 12%, with a 6% increase mooted for professional systems.For 2026, the market intelligence firm is forecasting double-digit YoY growth in all sectors. Whats more, YoY growth rates upwards of 30%40% are expected over the following five years.To put this in context, note that the market bounced back strongly coming out of Covid as vendors delivered against pent-up demand: between 2020 and 2021, Industrial 3D printer shipments were up 30% and those of Midrange systems increased by 26%, added Connery.However, the impact of a change in US government is yet to be determined: while the new administration is generally focused on accelerating business potential, sticky inflation and unknown import restrictions are tempering optimism.Who won the 2024 3D Printing Industry Awards?All the news from Formnext 2024.Subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletter to keep up with the latest 3D printing news.You can also follow us on X, like our Facebook page, and subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry Youtube channel to access more exclusive content.Featured image shows global 3D printer shipments by price class (note different scales). Image via CONTEXT.

You never forget your first Lynch. Mine was Dune (1984), that gorgeous, confounding mess of a film that somehow managed to be both a critical failure and a masterclass in architectural fever dreams. Years later, while poring over the works of Hans Poelzigthat mad genius of German ExpressionismI discovered something that made perfect sense: Lynch had borrowed heavily from Poelzigs subterranean Groes Schauspielhaus for the Emperors throne room. Of course he had. Who else but Lynch would look at a 1919 Berlin theater renovation and think, Yes, this is exactly what space feudalism should look like? The thing about Lynchs spaces is that they were never just settingsthey were characters themselves, brooding and breathing entities that seemed to exist independently of the stories they contained. Take Blue Velvet (1986), which I first experienced through an appropriately Lynchian act of teenage rebellion. I hid in the exit stairwell in the front of a theater at Baybrook Mall in Houston, waiting in that dark, smelly space while one audience filed out and another filed in, the coming attractions reels spinning above. When I finally emerged to take my seat, it felt like I had stepped through one of Lynchs own portalswhich, considering what I was about to witness, seemed perfectly appropriate.The seedy underbelly of Lumberton unfolded before me like a nightmare dollhouse, each room more suffocating than the last. In the apartment of Dorothy Vallens, who was played by Isabella Rossellini, shadows seemed to move of their own accord. And then theres The Slow Club, where Dorothy sang Blue Velvet under lights that rendered everything in hyperreal, oversaturated tonesa world more vivid than reality itselfand where Lynch performed his first great act of pop cultural alchemy, transforming tender Roy Orbison love songs like In Dreams into something menacing and strange, a trick he would repeat years later in Mulholland Drive (2001) when Rebekah del Rio sings Crying on a dimly lit stage.My introduction to Lynchs earlier work came through an equally strange confluence of pop culture. I first learned about Eraserhead (1977) through, of all things, a Rush music video. There it was, the movies poster, hanging in the background of their Tom Sawyer promo clip, like some sort of secret handshake between different forms of weird. It was fitting: Lynch had a way of seeping into the margins of mainstream culture, leaving his fingerprints in the most unexpected places. Lynch understood something fundamental about architecture that can elude even the best filmmakers: Spaces arent neutral containers for actiontheyre active participants in our psychodrama. The Brutalist geometries of Dunes Giedi Prime werent just set dressing; they were manifestations of the Harkonnens industrial evil, all sharp angles and steamy hardtop that seemed to want to hurt you just by looking at them. And what about Twin Peakss Red Room? Those curtains and chevron floors created a space that existed somewhere between a theater and a nightmare, a waiting room for the subconscious.I remember my freshman year of college, huddled around a TV set with friends, watching Twin Peaks unfold week after week. Angelo Badalamentis theme music, with its dark, reverb-soaked country-western tones, didnt just accompany the imagesit created the space, sonic architecture that seemed to extend the physical dimensions of the screen into something vast and unknowable. Thats what Lynch did better than anyone: He understood that space isnt just visual; its auditory, its emotional, its our subconscious. Its almost funny now to think about how Lynch approached interior design like a deranged architect. Every space in his films felt both meticulously planned and somehow wrong, as if theyd been designed by someone whod only heard about human habitation through an elaborate game of telephone or read plans though glasses with wrong prescriptions. The Palmer house in Twin Peaks, with a seemingly normal suburban layout, somehow managed to feel more disquieting than any haunted mansion. The way Lynch lit those spaces, and the way he moved his camera through them, was like watching architecture have a slow, deliberate nervous breakdown.And then there were the transitional spacesthe hallways, the curtained passages, the roads that seemed to lead nowhere and everywhere at once. Lost Highways endless dark roads, Mulhollands sinuous curves, even Eraserheads industrial wasteland corridorsthese werent just connections between places, they were liminal spaces where reality itself seemed to break down. Lynch understood that the scariest thing about any building isnt the room youre in, but the hallway leading to the room you cant see yet. Whats particularly remarkable about Lynchs architectural sensibility was how he managed to make even the most mundane spaces feel charged with potential energy. A coffee shop in Twin Peaks became a stage for cosmic drama, and New York, in a 1991 anti-littering ad for the Citys Department of Sanitation, became a haunted, rat-infested trash heap. A suburban street (and close-up shot of technicolor flowers in front of an iconic white fence) in Blue Velvet held secrets that would make Freud clutch his own overanalyzed pearls. He had this uncanny ability to take the familiarwhether it was a space, a pop song, or a slice of cherry pieand twist it just enough to make it deeply, profoundly unsettling. It wasnt about making things scaryit was about making them wrong in a way you couldnt quite put your finger on.Lynchs Expressionist sensibilities go far beyond that Poelzig-inspired throne room in Dune. You can see echoes of it everywhere, like in the distorted perspectives, the dramatic use of light and shadow, and the way architecture seems to reflect psychological states rather than physical reality. Watch The Elephant Man (1980), a nod to Carol Reeds monochrome dramas from the 1940s, and at the same time infused with a hoary mise en scne straight out of Charles Dickenss Bleak House (1853). Whatever the inspiration, Lynch wasnt just copying a stylehe was metabolizing it, processing it through his uniquely American optic to create something entirely new.Looking back at Lynchs body of work now, its clear that he wasnt just making films: He was one our best world-builders, architect and dream-maker rolled into one. Those gilded, Brutalist interiors of Dune, the tawdry bars of Blue Velvet, the iconic draped spaces of Twin Peakstheyre all rooms in the same vast, interconnected haunted house of the American psyche. Lynch wasnt just showing us these spaces; he was showing us how spaces shape us, haunt us, define us. He became, perhaps inadvertently, the master chronicler of late-modern Los Angeles. Though born in Montana, Lynch is undeniably one of Los Angeless own, his artistic DNA intertwined with the citys from his earliest works. His 1967 student film Six Men Getting Sick showed a passing flirtation with another SoCal talentthe conceptual artist John Baldessaribefore he developed his singular vision. He captured the citys essence not just in the fever dream of Mulholland Drive or the digital nightmare of Inland Empire, but in something as mundane as his daily weather reportsthose oddly comforting dispatches where hed announce the temperature and forecast with the same gravitas hed use for his surreal dream sequences. His spatial visions were so compelling that reality began to imitate them: Club Silencio in Paris, designed by Raphael Navot, sought to give form to Lynchs architectural nightmares, proving that his dreamscapes could breach the membrane between imagination and reality.Theres a bitter irony in learning that Lynch died of complications from emphysema while Los Angeles still sifts through the smoky, charred remains of the Palisades and Eaton fires. Its the kind of dark synchronicity that might have appeared in one of his filmsthe master conjurer of hazy dreams finally succumbing while his beloved city struggles to breathe. Perhaps thats the only way it could have ended for him. Lynch built his career on finding poetry in darkness, beauty in decay, meaning in confusion. He taught us that every exit might be an entrance, every ending a beginning, every silence pregnant with possibility. Silencio.Enrique Ramirez is a historian of art and architecture. He lives in Brooklyn.

This will be the first time the Super Bowl will be streamed at no cost. Here's why it's happening.

Taking a look back at this weeks news and headlines from Apple, including the iPhone Air leaks, new iPhone SE details, iPhone 15 special offers, AI headlines paused, Apple Cards new home, iCloud in 2025, and Tim Cooks inauguration seat.Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the many discussions around Apple in the last seven days. You can also read my weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes.Apple CEO Tim Cook delivers remarks before the start of an Apple event at Apple headquarters on ... [+] September 09, 2024 (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)Getty ImagesiPhone Air Design LeaksApples iPhone plans for 2025 include a new addition to the portfolio with an ultra-fashionable thin iPhone. Details on the presumptively named iPhone Air are coming out, with the biggest question addressed. How thin is thin?"But exactly how much thinner has just taken a new turn. A new report by Ming-Chi Kuo from TFI Securities, a hugely respected analyst, suggests that whats called the 2H25 ultra-thin iPhone, could be a phone with the thinnest part around 5.5mm, according to Kuo.(Forbes).MORE FOR YOUiPhone SE DetailsBefore the iPhone Airs potential launch in September, Apple will release the fifth mid-range iPhone SE. Its going to have a few of the bells and whistles of the current iPhone 16 family, but it needs to keep on both the cost and how much it might cannibalize the more expensive iPhones."The controls and ports on the right-hand side of the iPhone SE are clearly visible. A physical SIM card tray is at the lowest extreme. Above that are two volume buttons, and the traditional mute switch is above. This switch has been dropped from the main line of iPhones in favour of a programmable Action Button."(Forbes).iPhone 15 Special OffersUntil then, theres a new choice in the Apple Store for their next iPhone. The iPhone 15 family is showing up the Apple Refurb store. These generally offer a fifteen percent discount on the list price (usually enough to buy Apple Care and a refurb iPhone for the price of the same iPhone when new. The twist this time around is the Pro and Pro Max phones are available:"While Apples regular iPhones stay in the range for several years, if you want the Pro, you need to buy it in the 12 months after its released, and then its gone. However, Apple just brought the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, in some countries, on its refurbished site, at lower prices. Apple made this move unexpectedly early."(Forbes).Apple Addresses AI News IssuesApple has been facing increasing pressure to take action on the generative AI news alert Apple Intelligence has been providing (notably from the BBC). Part of the feature has been disabled and will return in a later release, others now come with a warning:"For now, Notification Summaries for the News and Entertainment category have been temporarily disabled, and Apple is working on improvements. Notification Summaries for news will return in a future software update. In the Settings app, when a user activates Notification Summaries, Apple has added a warning that this is a beta feature and that there could be errors."(MacRumors).Apple Card Looking For A New HomeThe partnership between Goldman achs and Apple to manage the Apple Card is currently up for renegotiation and Apple is looking at other financial institutions to take over the credit card."Apple is in talks with Barclays to replace Goldman Sachs as the tech giant's credit card partner, said two sources familiar with the matter, as the Wall Street giant steps back from its consumer finance ambitions. Credit card issuer Synchrony Financial is also in discussions with Apple about the card partnership, the first source said. Both sources declined to be identified discussing private talks."(Reuters).iCloud For 2025Apples iCloud service has drawn much ire for the paltry 5GB free tier, but Michael Burkhardt argues that the rest of theirs need to be re-organised to be fit for purpose in 2025:"nstead of introducing a new fourth lower end tier, why not just adjust how much storage everyone gets? After nearly ten years of the lower end 50GB and 200GB plans remaining at the prices they are today, I think its about time to change things up. After all, file sizes are only getting larger. 50GB is probably barely enough for most peoples iPhone backup at this point."(9to5Mac).And Finally...As the media circus gathers around the US Presidential inauguration, much is being made of the presence of Elon Muskc, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. Theres less noise over the attendance of Apple CEO Tim Cook, but many are keeping a close eye on any interaction of the major tech firms with the White House.The appearance from the tech titans comes as the industry has sought to warm relations with Trump following his victory last November, and despite frequent clashes during his first term in office. Many, including Cook, have traveled to Trumps Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where the president-elect and Musk have held a series of private meetings and dinners to discuss plans for the coming term."(Bloomberg).Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Dont forget to follow me so you dont miss any coverage in the future. Last weeks Apple Loop can be read here, or this weeks edition of Loops sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes.

LG has basically been the undisputed champion of OLED TV technology over the last decade-plus or so. From one year to the next, LG TVs continue to earn high praise for color accuracy, deep contrast levels, and excellent HDR performance. And, as luck would have it, one of LGs best TVs of 2023 is on sale today!Right now, when you purchase the LG 55-inch B3 Series OLED at Walmart, youll only wind up paying $800. The full MSRP on this model is $1,200.Powered by LGs a7 AI Processor Gen 6, the LG B3 Series delivers rich colors, inky black levels, phenomenal 4K upscaling, and top-shelf HDR performance. The WOLED screen also does a fantastic job at standing up to glare and ambient lighting, though the TV does look its best when viewed in a dark room (which is typical for an OLED TV).RelatedThe LG B3 Series is a great choice for gamers and sports fans, too, as this OLED has low input lag fast response times, and supports numerous gaming optimizations for both console and PC players. Plus, two of the TVs four HDMI ports are 2.1 certified, making them go-to options for a PS5 or Xbox.Running LGs webOS 23, the B3 Series offers a diverse array of streaming apps that load quickly and reliably. The TV even comes with LGs Magic Remote for point-and-click controls (standard remote controls can be used, too). Were not sure how long this sale is going to last, so today might be the last day to score this good of a deal on a 2023 top seller!Save $400 when you buy the LG 55-inch B3 Series OLED at Walmart, and be sure to check out our lists of the best TV deals, best LG TV deals and best OLED TV deals for even more markdowns on top tech.Editors Recommendations

Ouras smart ring measures heart health and can predict when you may be getting sick

He expanded the cinematic potential of television and inspired a generation of showrunners, including Sopranos creator David Chase.

an exquisite storyteller Hollywood mourns the loss of David Lynch What better way to honor the visionary director than with a watchfest of some of his greatest work? Jennifer Ouellette Jan 17, 2025 1:52 pm | 66 David Lynch played legendary director John Ford in Steven Spielberg's The Fabelmans (2023). Credit: Universal Pictures David Lynch played legendary director John Ford in Steven Spielberg's The Fabelmans (2023). Credit: Universal Pictures Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreVisionary filmmaker David Lynchwhose work spanned midnight movie staples like Eraserhead (1977), neo-noir psychological thrillers like Mulholland Drive (2001), and beyondhas died at 78. According to Deadline Hollywood, the director had to evacuate his home due to the LA wildfires. He had been diagnosed with severe emphysema a few years ago and rarely left his house due to COVID-19 fears. Following the evacuation, his health deteriorated, and he died at his daughter's house.It is with deep regret that we, his family, announce the passing of the man and the artist, David Lynch, the director's family said in a statement. We would appreciate some privacy at this time. Theres a big hole in the world now that hes no longer with us. But, as he would say, Keep your eye on the donut and not on the hole. Its a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.Reactions from Hollywood were swift and heartfelt. Kyle MacLachlan, who became a star when Lynch cast him as Paul Atreides in 1984's Dune, Blue Velvet (1986), and the TV series Twin Peaks, described the director as "the most authentically alive person I'd ever met":What I saw in him was an enigmatic and intuitive man with a creative ocean bursting inside him. He was in touch with something the rest of us wish we could get to... David was in tune with the universe and his own imagination on a level that seemed to be the best version of human. He was not interested in answers because he understood that questions are the drive that make us who we are. They are our breath... I will miss him more than the limits of my language can tell and my heart can bear. My world is that much fuller because I knew him and that much emptier now that he's gone.Lynch began making short films in the late 1960s and graduated from the American Film Institute in 1970. His first feature film was the cult classic Eraserhead, and that early success led to the critically acclaimed The Elephant Man in 1980. The verdict is more mixed on Lynch's adaptation of Dune; I personally found it unwatchable, but it has its diehard fans. It was a box office bomb (although still the director's highest-grossing film), and Lynch himself said in an interview last June that it "wasn't the film I wanted to make because I didn't have final say," adding, "I died a death. And it was all my fault for not knowing to put that in the contract.The success of Lynch's next film, Blue Velvet, helped assuage his disappointment, as did his move to television with the bizarrely surreal and influential series Twin Peakspart detective story, part soap opera, with dashes of sci-fi and horror. The series spawned a spin-off prequel movie, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992), and a 2017 revival series, Twin Peaks: The Return, that picks up the storyline 25 years later. Many other TV series were influenced by Lynch's show, including The X-Files, Lost, The Sopranos, Bates Motel, Fargo, Riverdale, Atlanta, and the animated series Gravity Falls.His final feature films were an LA-centric trilogyLost Highway (1997), Mulholland Drive, and Inland Empire (2006)and 1999's biographical road drama, The Straight Story, based on the true story of a man named Alvin Straight who drove across Iowa and Wisconsin on a lawn mower. It was acquired by Walt Disney Pictures and was Lynch's only G-rated film.A singular visionary dreamer Lynch launched Kyle MacLachlan's career when he cast him as Paul Atreides in 1984's Dune. Universal Pictures Lynch launched Kyle MacLachlan's career when he cast him as Paul Atreides in 1984's Dune. Universal Pictures One can never un-see a stripped-down Sting in a codpiece. Universal Pictures One can never un-see a stripped-down Sting in a codpiece. Universal Pictures Lynch launched Kyle MacLachlan's career when he cast him as Paul Atreides in 1984's Dune. Universal Pictures One can never un-see a stripped-down Sting in a codpiece. Universal Pictures The director's filmography also includes an assortment of short films, all bearing his eccentric stamp, including a surrealist short, Absurda, shown at Cannes in 2007, as well as Premonition Following an Evil Deed (NSFW YouTube link), Lynch's contribution to the 1995 anthology film Lumire and Company. All 41 featured directors used the original Cinmatographe camera invented by the Lumire brothers. Lynch was also an avid painter, cartoonist, and musician and directed several music videos for such artists as Moby and Nine Inch Nails. Until his death, he hosted quirky online "weather reports" and a web series, What Is David Lynch Working on Today? He even racked up the occasional acting credit.Lynch received an Honorary Oscar in 2000 for lifetime achievement at the Governors Awards after three prior nominations for The Elephant Man, Blue Velvet, and Mulholland Drive. Deadline's Pete Hammond called Lynch's speech "probably one of the shortest for any Oscar acceptance." Lynch briefly thanked the Academy, the other honorees, wished everyone a great night, then pointed to the statuette and said, "You have a very interesting figure. Good night." At Cannes, he won the Palme d'Or in 1990 for Wild at Heart and won Best Director in 2001 for Mulholland Drive.Naomi Watts, who played a dual role as doppelgngers Betty Elms and Diane Selwyn in Mulholland Drive, said that Lynch put her "on the map" as an actor by casting her. It wasnt just his art that impacted mehis wisdom, humor, and love gave me a special sense of belief in myself Id never accessed before," she said in a statement. "Every moment together felt charged with a presence Ive rarely seen or known. Probably because, yes, he seemed to live in an altered world, one that I feel beyond lucky to have been a small part of. And David invited all to glimpse into that world through his exquisite storytelling, which elevated cinema and inspired generations of filmmakers across the globe.""I loved Davids films, director Steven Spielberg said in a statement. Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive and Elephant Man defined him as a singular, visionary dreamer who directed films that felt handmade. I got to know David when he played John Ford in The Fabelmans.Here was one of my heroes, David Lynch, playing one of my heroes. It was surreal and seemed like a scene out of one of Davids own movies. The world is going to miss such an original and unique voice. His films have already stood the test of time and they always will.What better way to honor Lynch's passing than with a watchfest over the three-day weekend of our favorite Lynch creations?Eraserhead Credit: Libra Films How does one even begin to describe the surrealist oddity that is Lynch's first feature film? A young man named Henry (Jack Nance), living in a dank industrial neighborhood, finds out his girlfriend, Mary (Charlotte Stewart), is pregnant; when the baby is born, it is deformed with a snake-like face. Mary abandons them, and Henry, the reluctant father, begins experiencing strange visions about the Man in the Planet, a lady living in the radiator, and his own head popping off and being turned into erasers at a pencil factory.It's less a straightforward plot and more a collection of increasingly bizarre imagery. The finale combines sheer body horror with hints of sci-fi and the supernatural. Frankly, the film won't be to everyone's taste; at least one critic found the finale "unwatchable" when it was first released. But that boundary-pushing vision, plus Lynch's eerie black-and-white cinematography and ingenious sound design, combine to make it a cult favorite among film connoisseurs.The Elephant Man Credit: Paramount Pictures Lynch kept the black-and-white cinematography for his next film, The Elephant Man, which was much more mainstream than Eraserhead, although it also deals with physical deformityin this case, a tale loosely based on the late 19th-century life of John Merrick (John Hurt), a severely disfigured man with a skull so deformed that he would asphyxiate if he were to lie down. Merrick is forced to earn his keep as part of a Victorian freak show in London, where he is habitually abused and kept hooded by his "owner."Merrick is rescued by a surgeon named Frederick Treves (Anthony Hopkins), who learns that Merrick is quite intelligent and makes him a permanent hospital resident, but Merrick still encounters those who see him as a horror. His climactic cry, "I am not an animal! I am a human being! I am a man!" before collapsing, is a cinematic moment for the ages. Both Hopkins and Hurt give exquisite performances, with Hurt's portrayal being all the more impressive because he had to do so through elaborate prosthetics and makeup. (There is now an Oscar for Best Make-Up because of The Elephant Man.)Blue Velvet Credit: De Laurentiis Entertainment Group Blue Velvet combines classic Hitchcockian elements with Lynch's distinctive visual style and edgy sensibility. A young man named Jeffrey (MacLachlan) finds a severed human ear on a lawn while visiting his ailing father and gets drawn into a mystery involving a sexy lounge singer named Dorothy (Isabella Rossellini) and an abusive drug-huffing gangster named Frank (Dennis Hopper), who keeps Dorothy as a sex slave after kidnapping her young son. He will also only drink Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.It's a frequently violent, disturbing, and unnerving film with overt sadomasochistic themes, but it's also a quite brilliant ode to 1950s film noir that has a way of getting under your skin. The scene where Franks creepy associate Ben (Dean Stockwell) lip-syncs to Roy Orbisons In Dreams, while smearing lipstick on his face and kissing a restrained Jeffrey, is one that will linger well after the film's conclusion.Wild at Heart Credit: Samuel Goldwyn Company[1] Based on Barry Gifford's novel of the same name, Wild at Heart is Lynch's take on the star-crossed lovers-on-the-run trope, weaving elements from The Wizard of Oz and the songs of Elvis Presley into Lula's (Laura Dern) and Sailor's (Nicolas Cage) bloody rampage across the country. They are fleeing a private detective and a hitman, both hired by Lula's mother, who objects to their relationship. While the film polarized viewers and critics upon its release, it has since become a critical favorite.Just how violent is Wild at Heart? About 80 people walked out of a test screening during a graphic torture scene; 100 walked out during a second screening. Lynch realized the scene would kill his film, so he made some cuts to make it more palatable. He had to make further cuts to get a contractually obligated R-rating for the film's US release, using smoke to blur a moment where a character shoots off his own head with a shotgun. "But that was part of what Wild at Heart was really about," he later said. "Really insane and sick and twisted stuff going on." As for Gifford, he thought Lynch's adaptation of his book was "fantasticit's like a big, dark, musical comedy." If that's your jam, this is the film for you.Mulholland Drive Credit: Universal Pictures Mulholland Drive is arguably Lynch's masterpiece, widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. It's certainly a compelling and singular film, with double doppelgngers and a dream-like plot so convoluted and ambiguous that the director included a card with the original DVD release outlining 10 "clues" to unlock his psychological thriller. Other than that, he steadfastly refused to offer any insight over the ensuing years into how the film's events should be interpreted.The film opens with a woman (Laura Harring) nearly being shot by her chauffeur on the titular Mulholland Drive in Los Angeles, saved when another car crashes into them. Having lost her memory, she takes refuge in an apartment and is befriended by its tenant, aspiring actress Betty (Naomi Watts). The two set out to discover who the woman is and why she has so much cash and a blue key in her purse. There are decomposing corpses, a lesbian sex scene, a bungling hitman, a director being threatened by mobsters, Spanish crooners in a venue called Club Silence, and a heartbreaking finale. What does it all mean? Lynch is happy to let you speculate.Twin Peaks Credit: ABC If you're feeling super ambitious, the long weekend is the perfect opportunity to binge Twin Peaks. It begins with the discovery of a young woman's body on the beach, wrapped in plastichigh school homecoming queen Laura Palmer. FBI agent Dale Cooper (MacLachlan) comes to the quirky Pacific Northwest town to help solve the murder. It's the deftly drawn characterswho can forget the Log Lady (Catherine E. Coulson)?and quirky local touches that make the show unique. It's all anchored by MacLachlan's wide-eyed appreciation of the region's Douglas firs, good coffee, and cherry pieall dictated in great detail to his offscreen secretary, Diana.Sure, the acting is sometimes hilariously over the topwe're looking at you, Bobby (Dana Ashbrook)but that was par for the course in nighttime soaps of that decade. Twin Peaks takes creative risks that defied conventional industry wisdom at the time, and the first season's short eight-episode run is more typical of today's streaming model. (The second season had the full 22 episodes more typical of broadcast TV.) The unofficial third season, Twin Peaks: The Return, is even more strangely compelling, right down to the unforgettable finale.Jennifer OuelletteSenior WriterJennifer OuelletteSenior Writer Jennifer is a senior writer at Ars Technica with a particular focus on where science meets culture, covering everything from physics and related interdisciplinary topics to her favorite films and TV series. Jennifer lives in Baltimore with her spouse, physicist Sean M. Carroll, and their two cats, Ariel and Caliban. 66 Comments

Smoke rises during a fire at Vistra Energys Moss Landing battery storage facility in California on 17 JanuaryBloomberg / Getty ImagesA fire at the worlds largest battery storage plant in California destroyed 300 megawatts of energy storage, forced 1200 area residents to evacuate and released smoke plumes that could pose a health threat to humans and wildlife. The incident knocked out 2 per cent of Californias energy storage capacity, which the state relies on as part of its transition to use more renewable power and less fossil fuels.The fire started the afternoon of 16 January, burning through a concrete building full of lithium batteries at the Moss Landing Energy Storage Facility in Monterey county, California. Other buildings on the site, including more battery storage facilities and a natural gas plant, were not affected. By the morning of 17 January, local officials reported minimal flames and smoke. AdvertisementThis is really a lot more than a fire, its a wake-up call for this industry, said Glenn Church, a member of Monterey countys board of supervisors, during a press conference. If were going to be moving forward with sustainable energy, we need a safe battery system in place. After the press conference on the morning of 17 January, the blaze flared up again that afternoon, leading to an extension of the evacuation order.Because lithium fires burn at high temperatures and emit toxic substances such as hydrogen fluoride, firefighters let this type of blaze burn itself out rather than engaging with it directly. There have been no reports of injuries associated with the fire, and air monitor systems did not detect any signs of hydrogen fluoride. But the smoke plumes from the fire are likely to have contained heavy metals and PFAS, better known as forever chemicals, says Dustin Mulvaney at San Jose State University in California.Local officials are currently advising residents of Monterey county to stay indoors and keep their doors and windows closed. Inhaled heavy metals and PFAS could pose a health risk to area residents and farm workers. These substances could also impact wildlife such as the sea otters that live in the wetlands of the nearby Elkhorn Slough salt marsh, says Mulvaney. Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox.Sign up to newsletterThe destroyed building was one of two Moss Landing battery facilities owned by the Texas-based company Vistra Energy. Its facilities previously experienced less serious incidents that involved overheating batteries and malfunctions in the fire suppression system. But the facility that went up in flames this week has a water-based suppression system and it is unclear why it failed, said Vistra Energy officials during the press conference. They are still investigating the root cause of the fire.Despite this incident, utility-scale battery systems for electricity grids have experienced a 97 per cent drop in failures worldwide which are often fire-related between 2018 and 2023, according to a report by the Electric Power Research Institute, a non-profit organisation based in Washington DC.This massivedecrease has been observed in spite of the fact that deployments of utility-scale storage continue to increase at high rates, says Maria Chavez at the Union of Concerned Scientists. Battery storage systems are designed with multiple levels of safety features that aim to prevent and mitigate issues like fire risk unfortunately, accidents like the one at Moss Landing facility can still occur.California is also better prepared than most US states to respond to such incidents: it has a state law requiring local governments to develop emergency response plans with battery developers, says Mulvaney. He described the need to learn from events like this in designing future battery storage systems.But the loss of most or all of the 300-megawatt facility at Moss Landing will put a serious dent in Vistra Energys overall 750-megawatt on-site energy storage capacity, and Californias total 13,300-megawatt energy storage capacity.Moss Landing has been serving the states electricity grid by storing renewable energy and reducing dependence on fossil fuels such as natural gas plants, says Mulvaney. Reconstruction and building back battery capacity could take several years a big ask, considering California is already facing the need for extensive rebuilding elsewhere due to the Los Angeles wildfires.We cant have battery fires like this, says Mulvaney. We cant lose 300 megawatts of batteries overnight like this.Topics:

TikTok may go dark Sunday unless Biden ensures the ban won't be enforced.The Supreme Court upheld a law requiring TikTok's US operations to be sold by Jan. 19 or face a ban.Biden's administration doesn't plan to enforce the ban before Trump takes office.TikTok said Friday it will be forced to go dark on Sunday, the day the ban of the platform is set to take effect, unless the Biden administration takes further action to ensure it will not be enforced."The statements issued today by both the Biden White House and the Department of Justice have failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok's availability to over 170 million Americans," TikTok said in a statement posted on X."Unless the Biden Administration immediately provides a definitive statement to satisfy the most critical service providers assuring non-enforcement, unfortunately TikTok will be forced to go dark on January 19," the statement continued.The statementcame after the Supreme Court earlier on Friday upheld the law banningTikTok.The law, which was passed by Congress and signed by Biden last spring, required TikTok to be banned unless ByteDance, its China-based parent company, sells the app's US operations by January 19.The law specifically bans US app stores, like Apple's and Google's, from carrying or updating the app. Companies that violate the law could face fines of up to $5,000 per user who accesses TikTok.The Biden administration said this week it does not plan to enforce the ban given that it is set to set effect one day before President Joe Biden leaves office and President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in."President Biden's position on TikTok has been clear for months, including since Congress sent a bill in overwhelming, bipartisan fashion to the President's desk: TikTok should remain available to Americans, but simply under American ownership or other ownership that addresses the national security concerns identified by Congress in developing this law," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.The Justice Department issued a statement on Friday in support of the Supreme Court's decision, adding:"The next phase of this effort implementing and ensuring compliance with the law after it goes into effect on January 19 will be a process that plays out over time."Trump has said he does not support banning TikTok and will work on finding a solution.TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew in a video earlier on Friday thanked Trump for his commitment to working on saving the app.