Assassin's Creed Shadows' main story won't feature multiple endings, Ubisoft has confirmed.

After stepping in to restore TikTok in the U.S. and delaying a law that would effectively ban the app, Trump is looking for avenues to keep the popular platform afloat.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is exciting as it up the ante with heart-pounding action and dynamic storytelling. In this exclusive extended clip, Shadow, the enigmatic and powerful new antagonist, makes a daring prison escape, which sets the stage for an epic pursuit. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles reunite to face this extraordinary challenge that pushes Team Sonic beyond their limits. As their powers are outmatched in every way, the trio considers forming an unlikely alliance to protect their world from Shadows looming threat.The visual effects in this sequence are nothing less than spectacular; fast-paced action and intricate details blend together so that every moment is filled with intensity. The VFX was created by the industrys finest studios, which include ILM (VFX Supervisors: Hayden Landis, Rhys Claringbull), Fin Design + Effects (VFX Supervisor: Roy Malhi), Rising Sun Pictures, Rodeo FX, and Untold Studios. With Production VFX Supervisor Ged Wright and Production VFX Producer Paul Molles at the helm, visual effects enrich the films energy and thrill intensity.Higher stakes, faster speed, and electrifying visuals; this is what Sonic the Hedgehog 3 promises to be-one wild ride!The post Shadow Escapes Prison Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Extended Clip) appeared first on Vfxexpress.

Wwwind Studio has celebrated a remarkable year in 2024, showcasing exceptional creativity and growth. The studios latest showreel highlights its impressive body of work, spanning major films and captivating dramas, with each project reflecting Wwwinds signature innovation and attention to detail.This year has marked a significant milestone for the studio, as several of its projects have earned nominations and accolades at prestigious film and television awards. These recognitions stand as a testament to the dedication and talent of the Wwwind Studio team, who continue to deliver awe-inspiring visual effects across genres.The studio extends its gratitude to its partners and audiences for their unwavering trust and support, which fuels its relentless pursuit of excellence. As Wwwind Studio looks toward the future, it remains committed to embracing new challenges, pushing creative boundaries, and delivering groundbreaking work that captivates and inspires.The post Wwwind Studio VFX Showreel 2024 appeared first on Vfxexpress.

Data center buildersin California are using a shortcut in the states power plant regulations to construct facilities that use enormous amounts of energy with limited public input.A process originally intended to speed up approvals for emergency power plants for residents and oil drilling and refining is being used to greenlight diesel generators to supply backup power for large computer servers.More than 1 gigawatt of diesel-based energyenough to power at least 161,969 households for a yearhas been approved as emergency power for California data centers since 2017. Diesel is a fossil fuel that, when burned, contributes to climate change and emits carcinogens that pose health risks to those in nearby communities.Crews clear land to build Equinix data centers in San Jose, California. [Photo: Aaron Cant/Capital & Main]With artificial intelligence pushing energy demands ever higher, a business group representing tech companies last year lobbied the state Legislature to expand the Small Power Plant Exemption, which is administered by the California Energy Commission, from 100 megawatts to 150 megawatts a day. Though the effort failed, the quest for more energy to power data centers is intensifying.Currently no operating data center in the state uses more than 100 megawatts. A decade ago, a center of that scale would have been among the largest in the world. Now, however, companies inCaliforniaandnationwideare pursuing permits to construct facilities many times that size.Servers that drive AI use far more powerfulchipsthan they did in the past, as they sift through vast amounts of data simultaneously to train language models in advanced pattern recognition, the basis for generative AI.Annual global demand for data center capacity could grow from 60 to 219 gigawattsenough to power more than 35 million homesby 2030, according to an analysis from McKinsey. Data centers in California now consume more electricity than such centers in any state except Texas and Virginia.But as the infrastructure needs have grown, Silicon Valley companies are striving to avoid regulations they see as burdensome. The environmental fallout is only starting to come into focus: The Center for Biological Diversity filed alawsuitlast December against the Bay Area city of Pittsburg and a developer over fatal defects in the citys review of plans to build a 92 megawatt data center in an area that includes local wetlands.In terms of increasing the size of data centersthat increases the potential risks of everything, including the amount of water used [to cool servers], the amount of waste produced and the loads of pollution that go out, said Betsy Popken, executive director of the Human Rights Center at the UC Berkeley School of Law.Under the current rule, 11 of the 13 California data centers approved for the Small Power Plant Exemption are located in the Silicon Valley communities of Santa Clara and San Jose, some near homes and schools. They are among the largest in California.Accounting for the diesel generators and electricity they take from the state power gridmuch of it generated bynatural gasthe California Energy Commission estimated their total climate emissions will be roughly the equivalent of 284,390 gasoline-powered cars driven for a year.And although the data centers primarily rely on electricity from the states grid to power their servers, the use of diesel in emergencies could be at odds with the states renewable energy goals. California hopes to slash greenhouse gas emissions 40% below 1990 levels by 2030, and to phase out fossil fuels entirely by 2045.Weve asked [the California Energy Commission], can you look at cleaner alternatives, like requiring natural gas, backup batteries, things that emit less than diesel generators would? said Alan Abbs, the legislative officer of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. The commission has so far declined to do so.The Silicon Valley Leadership Group, an industry association that sponsored a bill last year to expand the exemption, said concerns about the diesel generators are overblown.Data centers run on grid power and have to rely on their backup sources less than 0.07% of the time, said Tim McCrae, the groups then-senior vice president of sustainable growth, in a legislative hearing last June. The group remains committed to finding solutions that expand data center capacity, a spokesperson said by email.Current regulations say power plants that use 50 megawatts or more for their operations must submit an application to the California Energy Commission that kick-starts a drawn-out approval process. The agency conducts outreach to the public, holds multiple evidentiary hearings and then votes on whether to approve a permit.But under the Small Power Plant Exemption, the responsibility instead falls on cities and counties to notify residents about planned data centers. Some residents say this has left them in the dark.On a plot of land the size of 13 football fields, across the street from homes in San Joses Santa Teresa neighborhood, the digital giant Equinix is now constructing three two-story office buildings to support servers using 99 megawatts of power. Companies such as Google or Meta would be able to rent server space in the buildings. Equinix declined to discuss its complex.Equinix received a small power plant exemption from the California Energy Commission in 2021, allowing its Great Oaks South Data Center to operate with 39 backup diesel generators. Nearby residents said the process was poorly publicized.They found a piece of land, they figured these people wont complain, and they took advantage of this neighborhood, said Mimi Patterson, who has lived in Santa Teresa with her family for 26 years.It wasnt until she called the city, Patterson said, that she learned about plans by Equinix and another company, China Mobile, to build several data centers within a mile of each other. PG&E also built a new substation to support the facilities.An environmental impact review completed by the California Energy Commission found that the diesel generators, operating for only 20 hours a year for maintenance and testing, would still emit as much pollution as 428 gas-powered cars driven for a year. Thats on top of what running the data center on grid power emits, equal to an additional 18,902 annual car trips.But the most immediate impact for local residents has been industrial noise from testing the generators, which happens from 10 minutes to an hour each week. If the center lost power, running the emergency generators could create as much noise as 45 locomotive engines, though they could be slightly muffled since they are housed in large steel structures.Recruiting neighbors to speak out was difficult, Patterson said, because few were aware how the facilities operate. Some incorrectly believed that the new data center would mean their home internet would run faster.Across the world, companies are rapidly proposing and erecting projects while lawmakers and the public remain mostly unaware of their environmental impact.The rise of huge data centers, the realization that this is a big issue, that maybe happened in the last year or two, said Iris Stewart-Frey, a professor of environmental studies and sciences at Santa Clara University who spokeat a Novemberconferencefocused on AI and the environment.Emerging research is showing alarming risks from backup diesel generators.Apaperpublished in December by researchers at UC Riverside and Caltech found that an increase in permits for diesel generators at data centers in Virginia since 2023 may have resulted in 14,000 asthma symptom cases and caused as much as $300 million in health care costs. By 2030 and accounting for impacts from fossil fuel-generated electricity and domestic chip manufacturing, the health burdens of data centers could amount to $20 billion by 2030, researchers found.Besides permitting requirements, there are few regulations on data centers in California or at the federal level, and companies dont have to report much. Abillintroduced in Congress last February to create voluntary reporting guidelines for data centers and other equipment did not advance in the House.In California, information about electricity consumption for data centers is collected by the California Energy Commission but is confidential. Some state legislators have tried to change that.This past summer, as lawmakers considered whether to advancelegislationto expand the Small Power Plant Exemption to 150 megawatts, the bills author, Sen. David Cortese (D-San Jose), rebuffed a proposed amendment to require that California Energy Commission publicize information about annual data center electricity use.Load usage we dont believe is a good indicator of what youre looking for, projecting power usage and power load on the entire state, Cortese said at a June 19 hearing of the Assembly Standing Committee on Utilities and Energy.Brendan Twohig, a representative from the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association, told lawmakers that much of the health risks of data centers could be avoided by using natural gasfuel cellsor batteries for backup power. A data center under construction by Microsoft in northern San Jose, for instance, will use natural gas generators instead of diesel.Cortese dismissed the idea, stating that diesel was necessary for continuous operation. He warned that if his bill did not advance, We fundamentally risk collapsing the California economy, in which tech has long been a key sector.But the bill stalled and never made it to a floor vote. Cortese didnt respond to a request for an interview.Meanwhile, the push for AI data centers is charging ahead. Proponents say the buildout can happen in a way that is not destructive for the climate.At aconferenceconvened by PG&E in November, the utility, the mayor of San Jose, Matt Mahan, and developer Ian Gillespie announced aspirations to build a 200 megawatt AI data center campus in downtown San Jose, which would route excess energy from the data servers to neighboring residential buildings for heat and hot water.The data centers could produce not only a lower-carbon community, but we actually help produce a tight-knit community,saidGillespie, the founder of Westbank Projects Corps., which hopes to develop the campus.The developer has submitted several rezoning applications to the city, according to a spokesperson for PG&E. No plans or applications have been sent to the city or the California Energy Commission for a data center, so its potential sources of energy are unclear. But Gillepsie emphasized that, for the next 30 years, were going to need fossil fuels. There is no way out of it, but we just have to know how to use it. Aaron Cant, Capital & MainThis piece was originally published by Capital & Main, which reports from California on economic, political, and social issues.

In the moment when her world shattered three years ago, Stephanie Mistre found her 15-year-old daughter, Marie, lifeless in the bedroom where she died by suicide.I went from light to darkness in a fraction of a second, Mistre said, describing the day in September 2021 that marked the start of her fight against TikTok, the Chinese-owned video app she blames for pushing her daughter toward despair.EDITORS NOTE This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. Helplines outside the U.S. can be found at www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts.Delving into her daughters phone after her death, Mistre discovered videos promoting suicide methods, tutorials, and comments encouraging users to go beyond mere suicide attempts. She said TikToks algorithm had repeatedly pushed such content to her daughter.It was brainwashing, said Mistre, who lives in Cassis, near Marseille, in the south of France. They normalized depression and self-harm, turning it into a twisted sense of belonging.Now Mistre and six other families are suing TikTok France, accusing the platform of failing to moderate harmful content and exposing children to life-threatening material. Out of the seven families, two experienced the loss of a child.Asked about the lawsuit, TikTok said its guidelines forbid any promotion of suicide and that it employs 40,000 trust and safety professionals worldwidehundreds of which are French-speaking moderatorsto remove dangerous posts. The company also said it refers users who search for suicide-related videos to mental health services.Before killing herself, Marie Le Tiec made several videos to explain her decision, citing various difficulties in her life, and quoted a song by the Louisiana-based emo rap group Suicideboys, who are popular on TikTok.Her mother also claims that her daughter was repeatedly bullied and harassed at school and online. In addition to the lawsuit, the 51-year-old mother and her husband have filed a complaint against five of Maries classmates and her previous high school.Above all, Mistre blames TikTok, saying that putting the app in the hands of an empathetic and sensitive teenager who does not know what is real from what is not is like a ticking bomb.Scientists have not established a clear link between social media and mental health problems or psychological harm, said Grgoire Borst, a professor of psychology and cognitive neuroscience at Paris-Cit University.Its very difficult to show clear cause and effect in this area, Borst said, citing a leading peer-reviewed study that found only 0.4% of the differences in teenagers well-being could be attributed to social media use.Additionally, Borst pointed out that no current studies suggest TikTok is any more harmful than rival apps such as Snapchat, X, Facebook, or Instagram.While most teens use social media without significant harm, the real risks, Borst said, lie with those already facing challenges such as bullying or family instability.When teenagers already feel bad about themselves and spend time exposed to distorted images or harmful social comparisons, it can worsen their mental state, Borst said.Lawyer Laure Boutron-Marmion, who represents the seven families suing TikTok, said their case is based on extensive evidence. The company can no longer hide behind the claim that its not their responsibility because they dont create the content, Boutron-Marmion said.The lawsuit alleges that TikToks algorithm is designed to trap vulnerable users in cycles of despair for profit and seeks reparations for the families.Their strategy is insidious, Mistre said. They hook children into depressive content to keep them on the platform, turning them into lucrative re-engagement products.Boutron-Marmion noted that TikToks Chinese version, Douyin, features much stricter content controls for young users. It includes a youth mode mandatory for users under 14 that restricts screen time to 40 minutes a day and offers only approved content.It proves they can moderate content when they choose to, Boutron-Marmion said. The absence of these safeguards here is telling.A report titled Children and Screens, commissioned by French President Emmanuel Macron in April and to which Borst contributed, concluded that certain algorithmic features should be considered addictive and banned from any app in France. The report also called for restricting social media access for minors under 15 in France. Neither measure has been adopted.TikTok, which faced being shut down in the U.S. until President Donald Trump suspended a ban on it, has also come under scrutiny globally.The U.S. has seen similar legal efforts by parents. One lawsuit in Los Angeles County accuses Meta and its platforms Instagram and Facebook, as well as Snapchat and TikTok, of designing defective products that cause serious injuries. The lawsuit lists three teens who died by suicide. In another complaint, two tribal nations accuse major social media companies, including YouTube owner Alphabet, of contributing to high rates of suicide among Native youths.Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologized to parents who had lost children while testifying last year in the U.S. Senate.In December, Australia enacted a groundbreaking law banning social media accounts for children under 16.In France, Boutron-Marmion expects TikTok Limited Technologies, the European Union subsidiary for ByteDancethe Chinese company that owns TikTokto answer the allegations in the first quarter of 2025. Authorities will later decide whether and when a trial would take place.When contacted by the Associated Press, TikTok said it had not been notified about the French lawsuit, which was filed in November. It could take months for the French justice system to process the complaint and for authorities in Irelandhome to TikToks European headquartersto formally notify the company, Boutron-Marmion said.Instead, a TikTok spokesperson highlighted company guidelines that prohibit content promoting suicide or self-harm.Critics argue that TikToks claims of robust moderation fall short.Imran Ahmed, the CEO of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, dismissed TikToks assertion that over 98.8% of harmful videos had been flagged and removed between April and June.When asked about the blind spots of their moderation efforts, social media platforms claim that users are able to bypass detection by using ambiguous language or allusions that algorithms struggle to flag, Ahmed said.The term algospeak has been coined to describe techniques such as using zebra or armadillo emojis to talk about cutting yourself, or the Swiss flag emoji as an allusion to suicide.Such code words arent particularly sophisticated, Ahmed said. The only reason TikTok cant find them when independent researchers, journalists, and others can is because theyre not looking hard enough, Ahmed said.Ahmeds organization conducted a study in 2022 simulating the experience of a 13-year-old girl on TikTok.Within 2.5 minutes, the accounts were served self-harm content, Ahmed said. By eight minutes, they saw eating disorder content. On average, every 39 seconds, the algorithm pushed harmful material.The algorithm knows that eating disorder and self-harm content is especially addictive for young girls.For Mistre, the fight is deeply personal. Sitting in her daughters room, where she has kept the decor untouched for the past three years, she said parents must know about the dangers of social media.Had she known about the content being sent to her daughter, she never would have allowed her on TikTok, she said. Her voice breaks as she describes Marie as a sunny, funny teenager who dreamed of becoming a lawyer.In memory of Marie, I will fight as long as I have the strength, she said. Parents need to know the truth. We must confront these platforms and demand accountability.Associated Press writers Haleluya Hadero and Zen Soo contributed to this story.Tom Nouvian, Associated Press

Local studio Nimtim Architects has added an extension to a Victorian terraced house in London containing an adaptable dining space that caters for indoor-outdoor living.Aptly named Supper Time, the extension is hoped to create a central space that supports the activities of the client's growing family and their love for communal dining.Nimtim Architects has added an extension to a terraced house in London"The communal act of eating is central to this project," Nimtim Architects told Dezeen."The new addition allows the family to be flexible with supper clubs spilling into the kitchen and the garden when extra space is needed."The extension contains a dining space that can be extended outdoorsNimTim Architects added the extension to the rear of the home, improving connectivity between the kitchen, dining and outdoor spaces.The placement of the structure preserves the home's original openings, while its terracotta-hued plaster facade is designed to complement the Victorian architecture.It is built around the existing kitchen locationInstead of creating a traditional, fixed dining room, the area is designed to adapt and offer flexibility with a table that can be shifted or extended for hosting. Large doors allow it to be easily opened up to the outside in the summer months."The concept echoes a 'street party' style of dining, where the table shifts and extends when needed, rather than being defined by a dedicated dining room," the studio explained.An exposed timber frame is paired with terracotta-hued plaster wallsThe kitchen remains in its original location but has been enhanced with a new worktop and expanded to include a utility space and shower room.A restored bread oven a feature of the original house is showcased through sliding pocket doors, making it visible from an adjoining snug.Read: VATRAA celebrates "as found" details in London home renovationExposed timber framing and a glazed ceiling invite light into the space while bespoke floor tiles by Bert & May, informed by cobblestone paving, reinforce the project's connection to communal outdoor spaces.The internal walls are finished with the same textured Clayworks plaster as the exterior, which Nimtim Architects said gives an "outdoor feeling" to the space.The floor tiles draw inspiration from cobblestone pavingEach of the surrounding spaces is defined by a distinct colour palette. Dark blue was chosen for the snug, yellow for the pantry and teal for the kitchen island.The teal hue, chosen for its prominent use in kitchens and local restaurants across South and Southeast Asia, anchors the space as the focal point for cooking and gathering.The warm plaster also cloaks the exterior of the extensionBased in London, Nimtim Architects was founded in 2014 by architects Nimi Attanayake and Tim O'Callaghan.The studio has completed several refurbishments and extensions across London, including the renovation of a house in Camberwell with a palette of natural materials and a 1920s house featuring plywood joinery and a recurring arch motif.The photography is byJim Stephenson.The post Nimtim Architects references street parties for Supper Time extension appeared first on Dezeen.

The campaign for this year's ADC Awards has a lot of vision.

MacworldGiven the price of high-end gadgets, it can sometimes feel like youre choosing between a quality product and your savings account. However, you dont have to. A terrific option that not many people consider is a refurbished model.This 2020 Apple MacBook Air with M1 is yours for just $579.99better than Amazon and Walmarts prices. It has been cleaned and inspected and has a grade-A refurb rating, which means its in near-mint condition.Its powered by Apples revolutionary M1 chip. This means its up to 3.5x faster than its Intel-based predecessors, with an 8-core CPU that breezes through tasks like photo editing, coding, and multitasking. Gamers and creatives will love the 8-core GPU, which delivers graphics up to 5x faster, making your favorite apps and games run like a dream.The gorgeous 13.3 Retina display gives you a crisp, vibrant screen. Its fanless build also gives you a silent, cooler computing experience. And with up to 18 hours of battery life, this MacBook Air is built to keep up with your busiest days, whether working, creating, or just streaming your favorite shows in bed.Dont miss this near-mint refurbished MacBook Air with an M1 chip while its just $579.99 (reg. $1,499).StackSocial prices subject to change.