Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) has said it is unlikely to equip its new US plant in Arizona with its most advanced chip technology ahead of its Taiwan factories, raising concerns about supply-chain hurdles for tech companies.Speaking at a university event in Taiwan, TSMC CEO and Chairman C.C. Wei attributed the delays at TSMCs Arizona factory to a combination of complex compliance requirements, local construction regulations, and extensive permitting processes, according to aReuters report.

If it feels like every piece of home tech is now smart, youre not far off. The smart home space has grown exponentially in the past few years to include speakers, cameras, locks, lights and even kitchen appliances. There are also different voice assistants and IoT standards to consider, all of which can make it confusing (to say the least) to build your smart home ecosystem from the ground up.Allow us at Engadget to help with that. Weve tested dozens of smart home gadgets over the years and continue to test the latest offerings to see which work well and are worth your money. We recommend, before you even dive in, to resist the urge to outfit your whole home in one go. Not only can this be quite expensive, but also we think its generally best to buy just one or two items first to see if you like them. You should also pick a preferred voice assistant and stick with it. If youre at the point where youre ready to invest in a few new IoT gadgets, below are the best smart home gadgets you can get right now, plus some advice on how to choose the right voice assistant for your needs. Best smart home gadgets: Smart speakers Best smart home gadgets: Smart displays Best smart home gadgets: Smart lights Best smart home gadgets: Security cameras Best smart home gadgets: IoT gear How to pick the right voice assistant before you buy While plenty of the best smart home devices are platform agnostic, there are some smart speakers and smart displays in particular that require you to choose your voice assistant. Currently, that means deciding if youll use the Google Assistant or Amazons Alexa on a regular basis (Ill address Siri in a moment.) Theyre both compatible with various smart home products from light bulbs to robot vacuums, but there are certain devices that work best with either Google or Amazon. Nest products, for example, are more compatible and have more functionality with Google-powered speakers and displays. They can still work with Amazon devices, but certain features might be disabled. The same holds true with Amazon products: They work better if theyre in the same ecosystem. Amazon Alexa So how do you choose between Alexa and Google Assistant? It really depends on your personal preferences. Do you listen to Audible, watch Prime Video and tend to do a lot of shopping on Amazon? Then you might lean toward an Alexa-powered smart home device. Google Assistant If you want a voice assistant thats great at answering questions, Google Assistant tends to be better than Alexa. Amazons helper, on the other hand, currently supports more smart home products. The companys smart speakers and displays also support the Zigbee smart home protocol, and some devices even have built-in smart home hubs. Both Google and Amazon devices can sync with your calendar, though Googles tend to work better with Google services. Plus, if you already have an Android phone, you might be more comfortable with Google Assistant anyway. Siri But what about Siri? Apples assistant supports voice commands as well, but it doesn't have as many compatible devices as Google or Amazon. The HomePod mini and the full-sized HomePod are the only Siri-compatible speakers on the market at the moment, too. That said, its not too hard to find Apple HomeKit-compatible gear as more third-party companies add support for it, but you currently have a smaller pool of devices to choose from.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/smart-home/best-smart-home-devices-154557162.html?src=rss

Vector FX, Painterly Brush enhancements, and Pantone colours are new additions to the CorelDRAW 2024.

Focal Utopia Main: you've seen the Diva towers, now see the dedicated in-studio monitors.

Arvada Police in Colorado have turned to AirTags to cut down on the number of cars being stolen in the city in the latest example of how useful the $30 devices are.Apple AirTags (right) and Tile Trackers (left) are being given away to Colorado residents who sign the contractFrom the moment AirTags were released in 2021, they were used to prevent car theft and they were also used by car thieves. Overall, though, Apple's trackers have revolutionized how stolen cars can be found, and found quickly.According to CBS Colorado, the success rate is such that on January 19, 2025, the Arvada Police Department held its first-ever giveaway event for members of the community to get free trackers. While the report specifies that they were given AirTags, footage actually shows a mixture of Apple and Tile trackers. Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Apple's reported development of an oxide LCD panel for the MacBook Air is another sign that the OLED MacBook Air is still a long way from becoming a reality.MacBook AirApple often updates the display technologies in its hardware, improving them in various ways as time rolls on. While OLED is considered to be what Apple is migrating towards across its product lines, it seems that the MacBook Air has a bit more of a wait ahead of it.According to sources of TheElec on Monday, Apple is starting the development of displays for the MacBook Air that uses oxide thin-film-transistor (TFT) technology. Rumor Score: Likely Continue Reading on AppleInsider | Discuss on our Forums

Capcom appears to be working on bringing Resident Evil 6 to modern consoles. A listing for the game has popped up on the website for ratings board ESRB, which is seemingly preparing the title for an Xbox Series X/S release. Much like its previous releases, Resident Evil 6 on Xbox Series X/S will be rated M (Mature), due to blood, gore, violence, language and themes. Curiously enough, there doesnt yet seem to be a PS5 listing (though it seems a given).Considering the fact that Capcom itself hasnt announced a current-gen release for Resident Evil 6, the new release is likely to be a similar affair as the 2016 release, where the game will get a resolution bump to get it in line with modern hardware, and potentially some remastered assets. The game will likely not be a ground-up remake in the vein of some of Capcoms recent releases, however.Resident Evil 6 was originally released on PS3 and Xbox 360 all the way back in 2012. Hoping to be a finale of sorts, the game features just about every protagonist the franchise has seen, bringing them together for a bombastic finish. Resident Evil 6 also has quite a bit of emphasis on its multiplayer elements, including co-op throughout the campaign, and even the ability for players to invade the campaigns of other players as special zombies.While financially successful, the game was critcised for its emphasis on action gameplay over its traditional survival horror roots. The game was also panned at the time for its inclusion of quick-time events, as well as a disjointed story that ended up spreading itself too thin. On the other hand, the core gameplay of Resident Evil 6 was praised, with many referring to it at the time as the best iteration of the foundations laid by Resident Evil 4.This current-gen listing for Resident Evil 6 also makes no mention of Resident Evil 4 or 5, both of which have only been released up to the PS4 and Xbox One consoles. A remake of Resident Evil 4, however, was the last major release in the franchise and quite successful, selling more than 9 million copies as of this month.For more details, check out our review of the Resident Evil 4 remake, which is available on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Also check out our thoughts on the future of the Resident Evil franchise.

If there is a leader in the aerospace industry, SpaceX is it. The companys Crew Dragon and Cargo Dragon spacecrafts are the current go-to vehicles to deliver astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station.NASA contracts awarded to SpaceX through 2030 alone are worth nearly $5 billion and include research and development for the Artemis mission to return astronauts to the Moon.Over the past decade, SpaceX has also emerged as a key vendor to the U.S. Department of Defense, seen most recently with a $733.5 million contract for projects such as launching defense satellite networks and contributing to other national security space objectives.As a human geographer, Im interested in how commercial space and defense companies affect the local communities where they conduct launches and tests.For instance, I spent more than two years in Kazakhstan researching the privatization of the Soviet space program and the beginning of a global commercial space industry.A mural of Elon Musk in Brownsville, Texas [Photo: Robert Kopack]Elon Musk and SpaceXs influencePolitically, SpaceX is an enormous boon to the United States.As a U.S.-based defense supplier and contractor, the companys technology has helped to nearly end an almost two-decade dependency on the Russian Federation for access to the International Space Station. Its billionaire CEO, Elon Musk, has even expressed plans to colonize Mars.Musks decision to spend $250 million helping Donald Trump win the 2024 presidential election is expected to lead to more support for SpaceX.In the new administration, Musk is poised to lead a newly created advisory agency called the Department of Government Efficiency, which could lead to benefits for his business and widen his space ambitions.Boca Chica, Texas, is home to SpaceXs flagship assembly and test installation, Starbase. Since 2021, I have been conducting research with environmental groups and multigenerational community members of Latino and Indigenous descent in south Texas who see space exploration as a landscape-altering industry that affects their well-being.After watching Starbases development proceed since 2014, locals there told me that there is much unseen and unsaid about what happens on the ground while an aerospace giant shoots for the stars.Breaking eggs to make an omeletStarbase is an industrial installation built by SpaceX to fabricate and test a number of the companys rocket types.The area around it is a unique and delicate ecosystem that includes estuaries and coastal grasslands, mud flats, and more, where falcons, hawks, ravens, gulls, and songbirds live.Since construction began, SpaceX engineers have had to drain water-logged soils, level them and pour concrete to support ground tracking stations, assembly buildings, engine test stands, a nearly 500-foot launch tower, and on-site fuel mixing and storage.In a lengthy response to local environmental groups claims of environmental abuses, the company maintains that it is dedicated to environmental stewardship.But developing rockets is a dangerous and messy business. Sites chosen for this kind of work are often, though not always, remote and highly secured installations.Fiery explosions on the ground or in the air arent unheard of over the past several years. Rocket tests in Scotland, China, and Japan have all ended in accidents.In April 2023, one of SpaceXs prototype Starship rockets exploded over the Gulf of Mexico shortly after liftoff.This is not the only time that a rocket has exploded at places where SpaceX operates.SpaceX runs a compact though growing operation at Boca Chica that has transformed the area. The hamlet was previously known as Kopernik Shores, and SpaceX purchased nearly all the approximately 35 ranch homes in the area. Some residents have reported pressure to sell their property for suboptimal prices following rumors that the county would use eminent domain to seize their residences.I spoke to Rebekah Hinojosa, a local activist and member of the Carrizo-Comecrudo Tribe of Texas, while researching in the area. To many locals, including Hinojosa, it seems like Musk is so well connected that SpaceX is insulated from public criticism.In a 2018 press conference, Musk said, Weve got a lot of land with no one around, and so if it blows up, its cool, referring to a rocket he planned to test at Starbase.Changes to the landscapeAn installation the size of Starbase cannot avoid disturbing the wildlife in the four distinct state and federal wildlife protection areas that surround it.If you walk through the protected areas you may see shrapnel, segments of rocket chassis and other random debris from any number of explosionsthat is, if someone else hasnt picked them up first.In December 2022, I visited a luxury campground near Starbase. It displayed various fragments of rocket debris, which they called memorabilia to the new space age, throughout the site.Within SpaceX, as well as NASA, the explosion of 2023 was celebrated as a crucial step in developing the Starship rocket. The event did produce valuable data on the rockets performanceit has done little to tarnish the companys reputation.There is tremendous support for SpaceX in Texas. The company has promised to drive high-tech industry jobs into a region ranked among the countrys poorest.SpaceX has created about 2,100 jobs. However, reporting shows that local and state politicians have seen more personal gains in their real estate holdings and campaign budgets than the regions economy has overall.A laboratory near the communityAt the end of the day, to develop a rocket, you need a place to test your design.Our local beach is the laboratory, local activist Hinojosa told me.Resident coalitions of Indigenous, Latino and Chicano people as well as conservation groups are suing the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Federal Aviation Administration and others to combat SpaceX.These groups argue that SpaceX misled state and federal regulators about Starbases operations. They claim SpaceX changed how frequently it planned to launch tests and built new facilities for several rocket types, which rendered the companys original environmental impact statement for the area inaccurate.Some key issues these groups are fighting against include a bid to expand Starbase into more protected areas. Another point of contention is the deluge system, which creates thousands of gallons of toxic wastewater to cool launch pads and rocket engines after testing.While the EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality have notified SpaceX about violations of the Clean Water Act, claimants in a recent lawsuit contend that these agencies have not held the company accountable for breaking the law. The company has denied any wrongdoing and refutes claims of environmental harms.As we have built up capacity to launch and developed new sites across the country, we have always been committed to public safety and mitigating impacts to the environment, a SpaceX statement reads. The list of measures we take just for operations in Texas is over 200 items long, including constant monitoring and sampling of the short and long-term health of local flora and fauna. The narrative that we operate free of, or in defiance of, environmental regulation is demonstrably false.So, what does the future hold? Many people from conservation agencies, activist groups, and Indigenous communities in Texas want the company out. Given the high public support for space exploration in the U.S. and the burgeoning friendship between Musk and Trump, a SpaceX evacuation from the area seems unlikely.While it may take difficult negotiations that require concessions from each party, I hope that somewhere there is a middle ground on which space exploration and environmental protections can coexist.This article was updated on January 17, 2024, to reflect the amount of money Elon Musk spent helping Donald Trump win the 2024 election as $250 million, and the correct speed of light.Robert A. Kopack is a faculty instructor of human geographies at the University of South Carolina.This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Since 1983, when President Ronald Reagan signed Martin Luther King Jr. Day into law, many Americans have observed the federal holiday to commemorate the life and legacy of the civil rights leader, Baptist minister, and theologian.MLK Day volunteers typically perform community service that continues Kings fight to end racial discrimination and economic injusticeto build the beloved community, as he often said.King does not fully explain the phrases meaning in his published writings, speeches, and sermons. Scholars Rufus Burrow Jr. and Lewis V. Baldwin, however, argue that the beloved community is Kings principal ethical goal, guiding the struggle against what he called the three evils of American society: racism, economic exploitation, and militarism.As a Baptist minister and theologian myself, I believe it is important to understand the origins of the concept of the beloved community, how King understood it, and how he worked to make it a reality.Older originsAlthough King popularized the beloved community, the phrase has roots in the thought of 19th-century American religious philosopher Josiah Royce.In 1913, toward the end of his long career, Royce published The Problem of Christianity. The book compiles lectures on the Christian religion, including the idea of the church and its mission, and coined the term beloved community. Based on his readings of the biblical gospels, as well as the writings of the apostle Paul, Royce argued that the beloved community was one where individuals are transformed by Gods love.In turn, members express that love as loyalty toward each otherfor example, the devoted love a member of the church would have toward the church as a whole.While Royce often identified the beloved community with the church, he extends the concept beyond the walls of Christianity. In any type of community, Royce argued, from clans to nations, there are individuals who express love and devotion not only to their own community, but who foster a sense of the community that includes all humankind.According to Royce, the ideal or beloved community is a universal communityone to which all human beings belong or will eventually belong at the end of time.Beloved diversityTwentieth-century pastor, philosopher, mystic, theologian, and civil rights leader Howard Thurman retrieved Royces idea of the beloved community and applied it to his life and work, most notably in his 1971 book The Search for Common Ground.Thurman first used the term in an unpublished and undated article: Desegregation, Integration, and the Beloved Community. Here, he argued that the beloved community cannot be achieved by sheer will or commanded by force. Rather, it begins with transformation in each persons human spirit. The seeds of the beloved community extend outward into society as each person assumes the responsibility of bringing it to pass.Thurman envisioned the beloved community as one that exemplifies harmonyharmony enriched by members diversity. It is a community wherein people from all racial, national, religious, and ethnic backgrounds are respected, and where their human dignity is affirmed. Thurman was convinced that beloved community was achievable because of the dedication he saw from activists during the struggle for racial integration.During his lifetime, Thurman sought to build this beloved community through his activism for racial justice. For example, he cofounded the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, an interracial and interfaith community in San Francisco, which he co-pastored from 1943 to 1953.Thurmans writings and activism deeply influenced King. Burrow argued that it is not entirely clear when and where King first learned the concept of beloved community. Yet King emphasized its importance in much of his writing and political action.Love and actionIn simplest terms, King defined the beloved community as a community transformed by love. Like Royce, he drew his understanding of love from the Bibles New Testament. In the original Greek, the Gospels use the word agape, which suggests Gods self-giving, unconditional love for humanityand, by extension, human beings self-giving, unconditional love for each other.According to Baldwin, however, Kings understanding of the beloved community is better understood against the backdrop of the Black church tradition. Raised in the Ebenezer Baptist Church of Atlanta, King learned lessons on the meaning of love from his parents, Rev. Martin Luther King Sr.Ebenezers pastor, who was also a leader in the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peopleand Alberta Christine Williams King.One of the distinctions in Kings thought is that he believed the beloved community could be achieved through nonviolent direct action, such as sit-ins, marches, and boycotts. In part, he was inspired by Thurman, who had embraced the nonviolence at the heart of Mahatma Gandhis resistance against the British in India. For King, nonviolence was the only viable means for achieving the United States of Americas redemption from the sin of racial segregation and white supremacy.For King, therefore, the beloved community was not merely a utopian vision of the future. He envisioned it as an obtainable ethical goal that all human beings must work collectively toward achieving.Only a refusal to hate or kill can put an end to the chain of violence in the world and lead us toward a community where men can live together without fear, King wrote in 1966. Our goal is to create a beloved community and this will require a qualitative change in our souls as well as a quantitative change in our lives.Searching for the beloved community todayKings idea of the beloved community has not only influenced people affiliated with the Christian tradition but also people from other faiths and none.For instance, scholars Elizabeth A. Johnson, bell hooks, and Joy James have reflected upon the meaning of the beloved community amid ongoing challenges such as global climate change, sexism, racism, and other forms of structural violence.People around the world continue to draw insight and inspiration from Kings thought, especially from his insistence that love is the most durable power to change the world for the better. Questions remain about whether his beloved community can be realized, or how. But I believe it is important to understand Kings ethical concept and its continuing influence on movements that seek an end to injustice.Jason Oliver Evans is a research associate and lecturer at the University of Virginia.This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.