Honkai: Star Rail is taking gambling to the next level with the Cosmic Lucky Prize event, which runs daily from Jan. 27 until Feb. 2.This limited-time event requires you to log in daily to choose between instant gratification or a chance to get a whole lot of premium currency. A few very lucky players will win 500,000 Stellar Jade (which equals 3,125 gacha pulls), so its an enticing gamble.Below, we explain how the Honkai: Star Rail Cosmic Lucky Prize event works and which option you should pick to net the most Stellar Jade.How does the Cosmic Lucky Prize work?Every day when you log in, you will be presented with a choice: Take the 100 jades now? Or enter a lottery?So theres a chance every day to win 500,000 Stellar Jade from the lottery, and if you are not among the lucky few players who gets that grand prize, youll have a 10% chance to get 600 Stellar Jade and a 90% chance to get 50 Stellar Jade. Your reward from the lottery will be delivered to your mail the next day. You can only win the 600 jades and the 500,000 jades once (if youre so lucky to even win those).There will be varying numbers of winners each day and 20 winners total.Pretty much, the lottery is for the gamblers and the 100 Stellar Jades are for those who like to stay safe.So, should you pick the 100 Stellar Jade or the lottery option?Keeping it real with you, dear reader, I dont want to be personally responsible for your gambling decisions, but I will try to advise you!Its safest to just grab the 100 jades daily. Picking the safe 100 Stellar Jade option will net you 700 jades over the course of the event, as opposed to the lucky prize, which will very likely just net you 350 Jades unless you get lucky enough to hit that 10% and get 600 jades. However, if you hit the 10% chance one time, youll walk out with 900 jades total making it more worthwhile but its all kind of dependent on if you actually hit that 10%. I cant really speak for your own luck, here!The option you pick can also depend on your need for Stellar Jades. Are you trying to pull in any of the gacha banners right now and you need more jades? Then you should pick the safer option and get the 700 jades. If you arent pulling for anyone and are still saving for future banners (with plenty of time to farm more jades), then gambling may be more enticing.However, lets be honest here Im personally going for the gamble every day. Im not taking my own advice here. And you dont have to, either. Long live the gamble!

We may earn a commission from links on this page.Housing is getting smaller and more expensivewhich means many of us are putting our mental energy into making our existing homes work for us even if theyre bursting their seams with stuff. From storage unit strategies to time-honored ideas like making sure every stick of furniture comes with bonus storage capabilities, were all trying to cram two houses worth of stuff into one house.If your house appears to be at full capacity and you just dont have any more room for shelves, cabinets, or anything else, you have one move left: Start literally carving storage out of the bones of your house. There are hidden voids everywhere, and with a little elbow grease and surprisingly little skill you can fill those hollows with your stuff. Here are a few easy ways to carve storage out of your home.Interior wallsNo matter what kind of house you live in, or what size it is, you have walls. And the interior, non-load-bearing walls in your house are probably framed with 2x4 studs and clad in drywall. If you remove the drywall, it will look something like this: Credit: sockagphoto/Shutterstock Those hollows can be pretty easily transformed into shallow shelf space. Framing 2x4s are actually about 3.5 inches deep (for reasons), which is actually just deep enough for paperback books or any small items (e.g., spice bottles, bathroom supplies). Here are the basics for carving storage out of your walls:Use a stud finder that also detects wiring and plumbing, like this one. You want a section of wall free from clutter that also doesnt threaten to electrocute you or flood your house if you slip with the drill. Use the stud finder to map out where your studs arethey should be either 16 or 24 inches apart, but you can run into weird exceptions, especially in older homes or homes where a DIY maniac did a lot of their own work.Decide how tall you want your storage area to be, and use a utility knife or multitool to cut out the drywall.Paint the exposed back of the other side of the wall, or cover it with wallpaper or whatever else you want.Take a 1x4 and cut two one-inch pieces for each shelf youre going to add. Screw these into the studs on either side of your opening at the heights you want your shelves to be. Use a level, for goodness sake, to make sure your shelves will be level. Alternatively, you could drill pin holes for shelf supports so you have adjustable shelving; pin holes are typically 1/4 inch in size, but you should pick your shelving and check the diameter of the supports before you commit.Cut 1x4s or 2x4s to size to act as your shelves and set in place.Trim the opening with more 1x4 (or whatever you want, if youve got some woodworking skills), fill holes, caulk, and paint.Voila! Viable storage set into the wall. You can add one or more of these storage options anywhere in the house, and if you dont need them any more you can just remove the trim, drywall over the opening, and forget it was ever there.StaircasesThe stairs in your house represent a lot of wasted space. If theyre open, meaning you can already access the space under them, you have a few simple options for turning that space into usable storage, including sloped shelf brackets (and/or sloped clothing rod holders) attached to the underside of the stairs, some appropriately sized stock cabinets, or simply stacking up some storage cubes in a neat geometric pattern.If the stairs are closed (meaning the empty space below is covered by drywall), you can get more ambitious and create built-in storage under there. This could be as simple as replicating the in-wall storage described abovecutting out some drywall between studs to gain access to the void under the stairs, then adding a small door for accessor getting fancy with a set of pull-out shelves (this might be a project worth hiring a carpenter for). As long as you dont mess with the support structure of the stairs theres no reason you can use that void underneath.Toe-kicksThe toe-kick is that part at the bottom of your kitchen and bathroom cabinets that are set back so you can stand super close to the counters. Theres usually nothing but empty space behind them so they are an ideal spot to carve out some extra storage for your house.You can buy kitchen cabinets with toe-kick drawers already included, but if don't have those, you can add toe-kick storage to existing cabinetrybut it requires custom-built drawers. You can find folks to make them for you on Etsy, or hire a local carpenter to build them for you. Then its just a matter of removing the existing toe-kick cover, installing the drawer slides, and then inserting the drawer itself.Keep in mind that these drawers will be very shallowyoure not getting pots and pans in there. But they will enable you to get a lot of smaller stuff off your counters and out of your other drawers and cabinets, opening up plenty of extra space.FloorsLike walls, your floor is a system of joists spaced 16 or 24 inches apart, and you can cut a section out of your floor between joists, build in some storage, then re-attach the floor section with a hinge and a handle to create storage under the floor. This is a surprisingly simple project, though youll have to get comfortable with cutting up your floor:Figure out where your joists are, and measure out how large you want your storage to be. Make sure pipes and wiring arent going to get in the way.Mark a section of the floor thats about a half-inch wider. This will create a lip of joist that the section will rest on when closed.Cut out your floor and subfloor, being careful not to cut into the joists themselves.Build a simple plywood box and insert it into the space youve created, attached to the joists.Turn your section of floor into a trap door.Fill up your new storage box and drop the door into place. If you take care with your build, it will be nearly invisible.

Like storytelling, cooking skills are often passed down from family. You mosey into the kitchen as a kid and watch your parents cut, stir, cook, and bake a few times a day, and thats how you do it yourself later in life. While theres nothing necessarily wrong with the knife techniques you grew up with, theres a chance youre missing out on a few foundational skills. Learning the difference between similar cuts (and when to use each) can help you make progress toward cooking goals that have been hard to reach, like duplicating recipes youve seen on the internet. Or maybe you want to work in the food industrymost of the intricate, professional cuts you see in restaurants all begin with one of these basic methods. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann SliceAfter absorbing the importance of keeping your knives sharp and tucking your fingertips out of the way, the first cut you need to learn to the basic slice. The slice is a single straight, vertical cut, from the top down to the cutting board (which is sitting safely and securely on your countertop). To properly slice, you dont usually thrust down with force, but instead smoothly run the knife through the ingredient with consistent speed and pressure. This versatile cut can be made wide for a crusty slice of bread, medium for your burgers tomato, or paper thin for apple chips. Before slicing (or trying any of the following cuts): If your fruit or veggie doesnt have a flat side, its common practice to slice a small chip off one of the sides so you can sit the produce firmly on the cutting board without worrying about it rolling away. Then, slice at will. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann Plank Slicing leads to planking. This knife cut involves making a long, lengthwise slice. The plank cut is aesthetically pleasing and I love it, no more so than when grilling. The ideal shape for your planked veggies is thinner than it is longrectangular, and reminiscent of a plank of wood (go figure). You can cut perfect planks of carrots after you evenly cut off the rounded bits. The plank can involve a fair amount of waste if you want perfect edges, but you can do rustic planks too. (Who doesnt love a reclaimed-wood coffee table?) For grilling and roasting, slice zucchini, eggplant, cauliflower, and other hearty vegetables lengthwise into thick, even planks. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann Rough ChopChop can be a non-specific word for cutting, but definitionally, its close to the dice (outlined below). I differentiate the rough chop because, in my experience, its one of the most used cuts in home cooking. The goal is to get medium to small pieces that are about the same size, but uniformity is not an imperative. This cut doesnt promise precision or pretty presentation, but its still safe and useful.To rough chop herbs, vegetables, fruits, or nuts, break down big ingredients into smaller pieces first. Keep one hand on the handle and the other either holding the vegetable or on the spine of the knife to add leverage with your fingers out of harms way, and start chopping. Again, no need to be perfectjust send the blade down at your own pace. Afterward, chop through the ingredients again in the other direction; that might mean turning your knife, the food, or the cutting board 90 degrees to get the right angle. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann DiceThe dice is more of a precision cut than a rough chop. The goal is to create neat cubes of food. You can dice in a variety of sizesusually large, medium, and small. (Once you go finer than a small dic, the cuts get new names.)To dice fruits and vegetables neatly, slice off the irregularities and rounded sides. Cut into planks. Stack the planks and cut them lengthwise once or twice, depending on the size of the dice. Keeping the pieces stacked, spin the item and cut widthwise to achieve perfect cubes. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann MinceA mince can be precise or rough, but the results of both are tiny. Precise mincing is like an extra-small dice; youre making very small cubes. It usually involves a fine blade so you can make cuts that are close together. Make a series of close parallel cuts, equally sized, along all three axes like a dice, but with the cuts closer together. If you were to mince a carrot, youd cut it into planks, turn it and cut it into long strips, then turn the strips and cut across them at a 90 angle and cut straight down to make petite cubes. A rough mince is done with a fine blade or even a cleaver, depending on what youre cutting. Frequently, rough mincing is done with herbs, garlic, seeds, and nutsthings that are small to beginwith so shaping them into precise cubes is a big ask. But it can be fun, like over-doing a rough chop on purpose.Mice without precision using a sharp chefs knife, which has has a curved blade that helps you create a rocking motion. Gather the ingredient into a heap and, using your fingers or the top of the palm on your non-dominant hand, put pressure on the end of the blade to anchor it to the cutting board. Angle your fingers up to keep them safe, and press on the spine of the knife, with knifes heel angled upward and the ingredients underneath, waiting to be mowed down. Your dominant hand holds the handle of the knife. Rock the heel of the knife down along the curve of the blade, and up again, keeping the tip-end of the knife planted so it never loses contact with the cutting board. This creates something like a one-sided see-saw. As you rock the blade through the ingredients, pivot slightly to change the angle and make increasingly smaller cuts. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann Roll cutI saved my favorite cut for last. The roll cut is not exactly precise, but its not rough either. Also referred to as an oblique cut, its ideal for long, round vegetables that roll, like carrots, zucchini, and potatoes. The roll cut creates a morsel of food that has multiple sides, none parallel. Usually with a slice, chop, dice or mince, at least two of the edges, or cuts, are parallel or close to it; not so with the roll cut. Besides the pleasing aesthetic, cutting a vegetable like this allows you to make similarly sized pieces even if the vegetable has a small and a large end. It creates a little more surface area, allowing the veg to cook quickly and evenly, and the different angles keep pieces from stacking or sticking together in the pan. To roll cut a carrot, sit the entire carrot facing East-West on a cutting board. If you normally would hold your knife at a 90 degree angle to the carrot, North-South, now youll angle it 45 degrees inward, Northwest to Southeast. Your knife will stay like this, making the same 45 degree cut; he carrot is what rolls. Make the first cut and roll the carrot a quarter or a third of a turn. Cut. Roll the carrot again, and repeat. At the thin end make the cuts farther apart and toward the thick end make the cuts closer together, so the sections are similarly-sized. Once you get familiar with this cut, you can adjust the angle of the knife and the spacing of each cut to change the shape. Your pieces will have charming oblique cuts facing different directions.

On the same day Apple launched iOS 18.3 to the public, its dedicated sports app got a few tweaks including beefed-up soccer coverage. Apple Sports also now has a new way to navigate favorites and broadcast info for each games page.Apple has invested heavily in soccer for Apple TV+, scooping up the exclusive global rights to Major League Soccer (MLS) until 2033. The streaming service also has several exclusive MLS documentaries, including one about Lionel Messi. His arrival in Americas premier soccer league quickly doubled the services subscriptions. In a far less expensive move, todays Apple Sports update adds the ability to track match scores from Englands FA Cup, the EFL Championship and the League Cup.The update adds a couple of UI tweaks, too. You can now swipe left or right to quickly scroll through your favorite teams and leagues. And its easier to find out how to watch games: Each page now shows which network each nationally broadcast game is on.Apple Sports arrived in February 2024 as an easy, ad-free way to track scores and standings including on the iPhones Lock Screen through Live Activities. The app launched with support for basketball, hockey and soccer, the three major sports active last February. It was later updated to include baseball and football ahead of MLB and the NFLs opening days. In December, Apple added the ability to schedule Live Activities and a tab in the Play-By-Play section for video highlights.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/apple-sports-adds-the-fa-cup-and-other-uk-soccer-tournies-202654579.html?src=rss

Meta is giving its AI assistant a better memory in an effort to make the chatbot more useful. The companys latest AI update allows the assistant to remember certain details that you share with it in 1:1 chat and uses your past activity on Facebook and Instagram to make more personalized recommendations.With the change, which will initially be available to the US and Canada, Meta AI will be able to track your preferences based on information you share in chat with it. In a blog post, the company uses the example of food allergies and other dietary restrictions so meta AI will remember to recommend recipes that fit your requirements.But the assistant will also be able to track other details about you, including information about your personal life and relationships. (Meta will allow you to track Meta AIs memories about you and remove specific details.) And, notably, Meta AI can now use your past activity across Facebook and Instagram to inform its interactions with you.MetaFor example, the company notes that Meta AI may suggest weekend activities based on the location youve identified on your Facebook profile and specific Reels youve watched. Metas systems know a lot about their users, so these types of recommendations could be pretty far reaching and as eerily-accurate as Metas in-app advertising.When asked for more details about what types of Facebook and Instagram activity may be used for these types of suggestions, a Meta spokesperson pointed to the companys Help Center. Other information from your profile like your age and gender, and interests based on your activity across our products, such as the types of content, including ads, you view or interact with and how you interact with it, it states, may be used to help personalize your interactions with AI.The latest Meta AI updates comes amid increasing hype around China-based DeepSeek, an AI assistant thats currently the top app in Apples App Store. The sudden popularity of the assistant, which was purportedly developed for less than $6 million, has rattled investors and some in the AI industry. Metas Chief AI Scientist, Yann Le Cun, however, said Monday that the market reactions to DeepSeek are woefully unjustified.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-ai-will-now-use-your-facebook-and-instagram-activity-to-inform-its-recommendations-201218403.html?src=rss

Speculation mounts after President Trump signed an executive order to extend the deadline for a sale to American buyers.

Mark Gurman teases two meta Quest headsets are in the works: the Meta Quest Pro 2 and Meta Quest 4.

Amazon named Jason Buechel, who currently serves as CEO of Whole Foods, to oversee its larger worldwide grocery business.

Nvidia called DeepSeek's R1 model "an excellent AI advancement," despite the Chinese startup's emergence causing the chip maker's stock price to plunge 17%.

See all the recipients here in this press release from the Academy.The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today that 14 scientific and technical achievements, represented by 37 individual award recipients, will be honored at its annual Scientific and Technical Awards ceremony, which has been rescheduled to Tuesday, April 29, 2025, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.Achievements receiving Scientific and Technical Awards must demonstrate a proven record of contributing significant value to the process of making motion pictures. In addition, an Academy Award of Merit (an Oscar statuette) will be presented at the ceremony to collectively recognize all the individuals who have developed and supported captioning technology, whether open or closed, for film. The statuette will reside at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.As part of the Academys mission to celebrate artistry and innovation in filmmaking, we are honored to recognize the exceptional contributions of this years Scientific and Technical Awards recipients. Their work has powerfully driven advancements in our industry, said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang. Also, we are deeply honored to present the Academy Award of Merit to the individuals who created and supported the development of captioning for films. This is an essential technology that plays a vital role in making the cinematic experience accessible to all.Each year, our international committee of industry professionals conducts thorough evaluations of the innovation and impact of technologies developed for the motion picture industry, said Darin Grant and Raymond Yeung, co-chairs of the Academys Scientific and Technical Awards Committee. This years awards encompass a wide range of film production advancements, from fire stunt safety, stabilized hand-held camera operation, and animation to post-production innovations in dialogue capture and CG imagery rendering systems. These vital technologies have expanded the visual possibilities of cinema, creating new and compelling experiences for moviegoers.The Academy Awards for scientific and technical achievements are:TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS (ACADEMY CERTIFICATES)ToEssex Edwards,James Jacobs,Jernej Barbic,Crawford DoranandAndrew van Stratenfor the design and development of Ziva VFX.Ziva VFX is a system for constructing and simulating muscles, fat, fascia, and skin for digital characters. An artist-friendly interface that emphasizes easily understood physical metaphors, coupled with a robust, physically accurate solver, has enabled a broad range of studios to bring visually rich creatures to life.ToJavor KalojanovandKimball Thurstonfor the creation of Wt FXs ML Denoiser.This denoiser prioritizes temporal filtering using innovative optical flow techniques to preserve crucial details. Novel training strategies allow its machine learning algorithms to denoise computer-generated imagery to the most exacting standards.ToNeeme Vainofor the development of Fireskin360 Naked Burn Gel.This widely available gel allows longer targeted burns directly on the skin, broadening the range of fire stunts performed across the industry.ToDustin BrooksandColin Deckerfor the development of naked burn gel.Fire for Hires gel first publicly demonstrated a naked burn, where fire appears directly on the skin, enabling a new form of safe fire stunts in motion pictures.ToAttila T. frafor the creation of Intel Open Image Denoise, and toTimo Ailafor his pioneering work at NVIDIA applying U-Nets to denoising.Open Image Denoise is an open-source library that provides an elegant API and runs on diverse hardware, leading to broad industry adoption. Its core technology is provided by the widely adopted U-Net architecture that improves efficiency and preserves detail, raising the quality of CG imagery across the industry.ToMark Noelfor adapting and enhancing the safety and reliability of transportable six-degrees-of-freedom motion base technology for motion picture use.The NACMO series of modular motion bases enables filmmakers to dynamically control simulated actions, providing precise movements, enhancing special effects, and enriching the visual experience for audiences worldwide.ToSu Tiefor the development of the sensor analysis and stabilization software, toBei Shimenfor the electrical engineering, and toZhao Yanchongfor the mechanical design and engineering of the Ronin 2 gimbal system.Utilizing three-axis stabilization through multiple sensors, the DJI Ronin 2 has achieved broad adoption. It is controllable from a diverse set of input devices, enabling filmmakers to create complex, dynamic camera moves.ToTabb Firchaufor the conception and development, toJohn EllisonandSteve Webbfor the attitude control system, toDavid Bloomfieldfor the motor design, and toShane Coltonfor the motor driver system design of the Mvi gimbals.Freefly Systems introduction of handheld stabilized gimbals provides single-person or collaborative remote camera operation with various controllers, enabling previously difficult shots without dolly or crane-supported stabilized heads.SCIENTIFIC AND ENGINEERING AWARDS (ACADEMY PLAQUES)ToJayson Dumenigofor the development of the Action Factory Hydrogels.Action Factory hydrogels are engineered to allow longer burns at higher temperatures with quick turnaround times, increasing the safety and efficiency of fire stunt performances.ToThijs Vogels,Fabrice Rousselle,David Adler,Gerhard RthlinandMark Meyerfor the creation of Disneys ML Denoiser.This sophisticated machine learning denoiser features a ground-breaking kernel-predicting convolutional network and temporal stability. It has been adopted far beyond its original domain of animation and is an essential tool for creating computer-generated imagery in feature films.ToNir Averbuch,Yair ChuchemandDan Ravivfor the concept, design and development of the Auto Align Post 2.Sound Radixs Auto Align Post 2 allows the seamless blending of multiple moving microphones during film post-production, eliminating phase distortion, saving significant time over manual alignment methods and raising the reproduction quality of dialogue recorded on set.ToCurt Schallerfor the concept, design and development of the Trinity 2 system, and toDr. Roman Foltynfor the software and hardware design of its motorized stabilized head.The ARRI Trinity 2 is a body-worn system that combines a traditional inertial camera stabilization system with electronic gimbal technology, allowing unprecedented freedom of camera movement for acquiring shots with multiple transitions that are otherwise unobtainable.ToSteve Wagnerfor the initial concept and software, toGarrett Brownfor the design, and toJerry HolwayandRobert Orffor the engineering of the Steadicam Volt stabilization system.The Tiffen Steadicam Volt revolutionizes inertial stabilization with its advanced two-axis motorized design, creating artificial inertia and simulated friction while providing adjustable tactile feedback. Different modes allow the operator to alter the physical feel of the rig. The Volt empowers filmmakers to achieve dynamic shots with more complex camera movement while maintaining a stable roll axis.ToDave Freethfor the design, engineering and development of the hand-held Stabileye three-axis motorized camera stabilization system.The compact size and live adjustment of operating parameters of these devices facilitate subtle and dynamic camera moves closer to actors, and in tighter quarters than previously possible. Its low latency allows for instinctive operation whether controlled by a single operator or remotely.The post This years Sci-Techs have been announced appeared first on befores & afters.