Silent Hill 2 remake has sold over 2 million copies worldwide to bolster the coffers of publisher Konami.As noted in the Japanese company's fiscal report for the nine months ended December 31, 2024, revenue within the Digital Contents division (which houses its video game business) increased by 32 percent year-on-year to 228 billion yen ($1.47 billion).Operating profit within the segment rose by 52.7 percent year-on-year to 80.5 billion yen ($521.1 million).Digging into those results, Konami lauded the performance of Bloober Team's remake of Silent Hill 2 and said the horror title "continues to increase its sales."It described the decision to develop remakes as a "new initiative" within its console game business. Konami intends to continue the trend with the upcoming remake of Metal Gear Solid 3.Elsewhere, Konami revealed its eFootball franchise has exceeded 800 million lifetime downloads and said the free-to-play soccer sim continues remains a strong performer.Discussing its mobile game business, the company highlighted the longevity of Professional Baseball Spirits A (Ace) and Jikkyou Pawafuru Puroyakyu, which have both been on the market for almost a decade. It also outlined plans to develop a Yu-Gi-Oh! project to celebrate the card games 25th anniversary.Based on its current performance, Konami has upwardly revised its Digital Entertainment forecast and now expects the segment to deliver 290 billion yen in revenue and 88.5 billion yen in operating profit by the end of the fiscal year in March 2025.The company has also upwardly revised its full-year consolidated revenue forecast by 14.3 percent to 412 billion yen.

EcoFlow has confirmed that its currently testing new advanced features for its PowerStream Balcony Solar System that were made available to a small group of testers on a paid basis. After other EcoFlow users raised concerns last week about the possibility of having to pay subscription fees for features on devices they already own, the company shared a statement to its Facebook page on January 30th saying that it has not initiated any software payment plans at this time and that it will not proceed with any such plans until we have fully considered and evaluated our user opinions.The company says the new PowerStream features that will be available through its mobile app include cutting-edge technologies tailored to specific critical needs and that by only making them available through a subscription model, users wont have to pay for advanced features they dont use. EcoFlow also says the paid model will allow the company to continue maintaining and developing these niche but critical new features.EcoFlow also assures users that it has no plans to lock its apps and other software features already available on its power devices behind a paywall. All existing features available to PowerStream users remain unaffected. The core functions of these devices will never be subject to payment thresholds, and you will never be required to make additional software payments to use your devices normally.The PowerStream Balcony Solar System uses solar panels, a large portable battery, smart plugs, and a compact microinverter to deliver cheaper solar-generated power to other devices and appliances around a home using standard wall outlets. Using EcoFlows mobile app, users can specify how much power from the solar panels is used to keep devices like washing machines and coffee machines running, or how much is used to charge up batteries for times when solar power generation is reduced.Details about the new features being tested for the PowerStream system including added functionality, when theyll be available to all users, and how much theyll cost havent been revealed by EcoFlow.See More:

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. | Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesTreasure Secretary Scott Bessent has been named the Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the bureau announced today. Bessent quickly instructed the agency to to stop all rulemaking, communications, litigation, and other activities, reports Bloomberg Law. A source inside the CFPB told Bloomberg Law that his order appeared to shut down the CFPB altogether for the time being. If thats true, it could mean the bureau no longer plans to move forward with a pending rule set to go into effect March 3rd that would forbid data brokers from selling sensitive personal information, including Social Security numbers. The CFPB did not immediately respond to The Verges request for comment. The news comes as Bessent, who Trump named Treasury Secretary last week, is under scrutiny over his role in reportedly allowing Elon Musks Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to access the US federal payment system. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren sent him a letter looking for an explanation as to why he let that happen. Bessent, a former hedge fund manager, says he looks forward to working with the CFPB to advance President Trumps agenda to lower costs for the American people and accelerate economic growth.

Large-scale language models (LLMs) have advanced the field of artificial intelligence as they are used in many applications. Although they can almost perfectly simulate human language, they tend to lose in terms of response diversity. This limitation is particularly problematic in tasks requiring creativity, such as synthetic data generation and storytelling, where diverse outputs are essential for maintaining relevance and engagement.One of the major challenges in language model optimization is the reduction in response diversity due to preference training techniques. Post-training methods like reinforcement learning from human feedback (RLHF) and direct preference optimization (DPO) tend to concentrate probability mass on a limited number of high-reward responses. This results in models generating repetitive outputs for various prompts, restricting their adaptability in creative applications. The decline in diversity hinders the potential of language models to function effectively in fields that require broad-ranging outputs.Previous methods for preference optimization primarily emphasize aligning models with high-quality human preferences. Supervised fine-tuning and RLHF techniques, while effective at improving model alignment, inadvertently lead to response homogenization. Direct Preference Optimization (DPO) selects highly rewarded responses while discarding low-quality ones, reinforcing the tendency for models to produce predictable outputs. Attempts to counteract this issue, such as adjusting sampling temperatures or applying KL divergence regularization, have failed to significantly enhance diversity without compromising output quality.Researchers from Meta, New York University, and ETH Zurich have introduced Diverse Preference Optimization (DivPO), a novel technique designed to enhance response diversity while maintaining high quality. Unlike traditional optimization methods prioritizing the highest-rewarded response, DivPO selects preference pairs based on quality and diversity. This ensures that the model generates outputs that are not only human-aligned but also varied, making them more effective in creative and data-driven applications.DivPO operates by sampling multiple responses for a given prompt and scoring them using a reward model. Instead of selecting the single highest-rewarded response, the most diverse, high-quality response is chosen as the preferred output. Simultaneously, the least varied response that does not meet the quality threshold is selected as the rejected output. This contrastive optimization strategy allows DivPO to learn a broader distribution of responses while ensuring that each output retains a high-quality standard. The approach incorporates various diversity criteria, including model probability, word frequency, and an LLM-based diversity judgment, to assess each responses distinctiveness systematically.Extensive experiments were conducted to validate the effectiveness of DivPO, focusing on structured persona generation and open-ended creative writing tasks. The results demonstrated that DivPO significantly increased diversity without sacrificing quality. Compared to standard preference optimization methods, DivPO led to a 45.6% increase in persona attribute diversity and a 74.6% rise in story diversity. The experiments also showed that DivPO prevents models from generating a small subset of responses disproportionately, ensuring a more even distribution of generated attributes. A key observation was that models trained using DivPO consistently outperformed baseline models in diversity evaluations while maintaining high quality, as assessed by the ArmoRM reward model.Further analysis of persona generation revealed that traditional fine-tuned models, such as Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct, failed to produce varied persona attributes, often repeating a limited set of names. DivPO rectified this issue by expanding the generated attribute range, leading to a more balanced and representative output distribution. The structured persona generation task demonstrated that online DivPO with word frequency criteria improved diversity by 30.07% compared to the baseline model while maintaining a comparable level of response quality. Similarly, the keyword-based creative writing task showed a substantial improvement, with DivPO achieving a 13.6% increase in diversity and a 39.6% increase in quality relative to the standard preference optimization models.These findings confirm that preference optimization methods inherently reduce diversity, challenging language models designed for open-ended tasks. DivPO effectively mitigates this issue by incorporating diversity-aware selection criteria, enabling language models to maintain high-quality responses without limiting variability. By balancing diversity with alignment, DivPO enhances the adaptability and utility of LLMs across multiple domains, ensuring they remain useful for creative, analytical, and synthetic data generation applications. The introduction of DivPO marks a significant advancement in preference optimization, offering a practical solution to the long-standing problem of response collapse in language models.Check out the Paper. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,dont forget to follow us onTwitter and join ourTelegram Channel andLinkedIn Group. Dont Forget to join our75k+ ML SubReddit. NikhilNikhil is an intern consultant at Marktechpost. He is pursuing an integrated dual degree in Materials at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. Nikhil is an AI/ML enthusiast who is always researching applications in fields like biomaterials and biomedical science. With a strong background in Material Science, he is exploring new advancements and creating opportunities to contribute.Nikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/Researchers from University of Waterloo and CMU Introduce Critique Fine-Tuning (CFT): A Novel AI Approach for Enhancing LLM Reasoning with Structured Critique LearningNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/Researchers from Stanford, UC Berkeley and ETH Zurich Introduces WARP: An Efficient Multi-Vector Retrieval Engine for Faster and Scalable SearchNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/Intel Labs Explores Low-Rank Adapters and Neural Architecture Search for LLM CompressionNikhilhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/nikhil0980/Meta AI Introduces MR.Q: A Model-Free Reinforcement Learning Algorithm with Model-Based Representations for Enhanced Generalization [Recommended] Join Our Telegram Channel

LatestMachine LearningAI Hallucinations: Why Large Language Models Make Up Information and How to Address It 0 like February 3, 2025Share this postLast Updated on February 3, 2025 by Editorial TeamAuthor(s): Rohan Rao Originally published on Towards AI. This member-only story is on us. Upgrade to access all of Medium.Photo by julien Tromeur on UnsplashI was going through a few basic topics of AI and suddenly I found AI hallucinations. So lets talk about it today.Just like humans have hallucinations, AI has hallucinations too! They are competing with us in every possible way.Everything depends on how LLMs perform. When LLMs generate output or information that appears to be right but is incorrect or fabricated factually to make it appear to be true then it is termed as AI hallucinations.What exactly happens? Well, AI hallucinations result in small-scale inaccuracies, assertions that appear to be true but its not, etc.This makes them challenging to detect and manage.As we all know LLMs require some data to learn and identify patterns. The data is not in hundreds or thousands, but millions.Its okay to work with hundreds or thousands of data when you just starting to learn, but not a large-scale research.Since LLMs learn by identifying patterns using enormous amounts of data, these models truly dont understand what patterns they are learning or what should be the accuracy. It all depends on the numeric calculations.If training data contains inconsistencies, it is highly Read the full blog for free on Medium.Join thousands of data leaders on the AI newsletter. Join over 80,000 subscribers and keep up to date with the latest developments in AI. From research to projects and ideas. If you are building an AI startup, an AI-related product, or a service, we invite you to consider becoming asponsor. Published via Towards AITowards AI - Medium Share this post

Two elite snipers. One year-long mission in a mysterious, deadly location. No contact. Those are the rules of The Gorge, a new Apple Original high-octane thriller from director Scott Derrickson. Starring Anya Taylor-Joy, Miles Teller and Sigourney Weaver, The Gorge is headed to Apple TV+ on February 14.As a special treat, Den of Geek readers have the unique opportunity to watch the movie early, for free and in style at our extra-special screening in a premium London location.From the director of Doctor Strange and The Black Phone, The Gorge follows two highly-trained operatives (Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy) appointed to posts in guard towers on opposite sides of a vast and highly classified gorge, where they have to protect the world from an undisclosed, mysterious evil that lurks within. They bond from a distance while trying to stay vigilant in defending against an unseen enemy.When the cataclysmic threat to humanity is revealed to them, they must work together in a test of both their physical and mental strength to keep the secret in the gorge before its too late.Check out the trailer here:What is the truth about the Gorge? Join Den of Geek for a premium screening experience to find out. Here are the details:Date:Time: Arrivals from 6 PM, seated by 6.30 PMVenue: The Cinema in the Power Station, Battersea Power StationGetting to The Cinema in the Power StationGetting to Battersea Power Station is easy via several transport routes. Plan your travel to the site here.CLICK HERE TO CLAIM YOUR TICKETSJoin our mailing listGet the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!Tickets will be allocated on a first come first served basis, guests can specify the number of tickets they require. We asked that if you can no longer attend please let us know by contacting Chris Longo (clongo@denofgeek.com).Ticket Giveaway Contest Terms and ConditionsEligibility: This Promotion is open to residents of the United Kingdom, aged 18 years or over. Proof of age may be required.Prize: Tickets will be allocated on a first come, first served basis, applicants can specify the number of tickets they require. Winners will be notified by email. The ticket is non-transferable, non-exchangeable, and has no cash value. Any costs beyond the prize (e.g., travel, lodging) are the winners responsibility. Prizes do not include any other service or item not specifically described above. We ask that if you can no longer attend please let us know by contacting Chris Longo (clongo@denofgeek.com).Rights: By entering, participants agree to allow Den of Geek or its partners to use their names and likeness for promotional purposes, or contact the winners for future giveaways or events.Liability: The contest sponsor is not liable for any damages, losses, or injuries related to participation or prize use.Modification: The sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the screening if necessary.Data Protection: You can find information on security and data privacy via our third-party partner RSVPify here. RSVPify implements industry best practices and security measures to protect personal data from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. We collect and process personal data only for legitimate and specific purposes, with explicit consent from the individuals involved.This screening will be monitored for unauthorised recording. By attending you agree not to use audio or video recording devices in the screening room (audio recording devices for credentialed press exempted) and consent to a physical search of your belongings and person. Any attempted use of recording devices will result in your immediate removal from the screening room and may result in forfeiture of such device. Camcording can result in a criminal charge.

The countdown is on. Our first real look at the upcoming MCU Fantastic Four movie will come at 7 am ET on Tuesday, Feb. 4 (FF, get it?). Were not getting just a trailer for the movie, but a whole lead-up to the release, complete with a lead spot on the chat show Good Morning America.As is increasingly common, Marvel has announced the big trailer event with a smaller teaser. But this ones a bit more substantial than the usual quick montage of images that constitute other trailers for trailers. The Fantastic Four: First Steps trailer teaser shows people in the early 1960s gathering with excitement at a storefront to watch the launch of the Marvel-1, the rocket that carries Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn) into space, where theyll be bombarded by cosmic rays and transformed into Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Girl, the Thing, and the Human Torch. Its an excellent callback that sets up the tone of the movie and the importance of Marvels First Family nicely for the audience.The Marvel-1 obviously plays an important role in comic book lore. After all, when Jack Kirby and Stan Lee introduced the team in 1961s Fantastic Four #1, there wasnt even a company called Marvel Comics yet. Marvel Comics was initially the title of an anthology series launched in 1939, but did not become the name of the superhero line until 1963s Fantastic Four #14. The Marvel-1 pointed toward what would become perhaps the greatest name in American comics.The Marvel-1 looks great in the teaser trailer, fully embracing the movies retro-futuristic aesthetic. But even better is the name of the organization responsible for the Marvel-1 and its launch: the Future Foundation.The Future Foundation was introduced in 2010s Fantastic Four #576, part of the defining run by writer Jonathan Hickman. Reed Richards created the Foundation as a think tank for the next generation of scientists, free thinkers who matched their technical prowess with boundless imagination, the very foundations on which the Fantastic Four were built.Its original members consisted of young super-geniuses, including Alex Power of the Power Pack, the child clone of supervillain the Wizard, evolved Moloids (minions of the Mole Man), with Dragon Man serving as mentor. Later additions included Valeria Richards, the younger and smarter daughter of Reed and Sue), X-Men supporting characters Artie and Leech, Wakandan teen Onome, and Adolf Impossible, son of the mischievous imp the Impossible Man.The Future Foundation embodied the central themes of the Fantastic Four, which had been lost in the decades since Lee and Kirby launched the series. The Fantastic Four captured a sense of optimism during the space race, the idea that the worlds youth would think of things and go places that previous generations didnt dare to dream, that they wouldto borrow the title of Hickmans first FF storyline solve everything.By the 2010s, Fantastic Four remained one of the most important comics of all time, but the team was anything but young and forward thinking. The Future Foundation gave the series a shot in the arm by embracing the weirdest corners of the Marvel Universe and letting the kids go nuts with ideas.If Fantastic Four: First Steps can capture just a fraction of the Future Foundations optimism and energy, then the movie will be the most energetic superhero film ever made.Fantastic Four: First Steps launches into theaters on July 25.

The post ID@Xbox Showcase Returns with IGN on February 24 appeared first on Xbox Wire.

SummaryCelebrating Global Black Culture: Xbox honors the diverse and rich expressions of Black culture from around the world, highlighting the influence of Afro-Caribbean, Afro-Latino, African, and African American traditions in gaming.Discover Games Shaped by Black Creators and Stories staring Black protagonists: Xbox is spotlighting a robust list of games that reflects the rich diversity of black creators as well as games that feature black protagonists.Spotlighting Emerging Black Creators: Xbox is proud to continue to amplify the voices of new and upcoming Black creators, showcasing their unique perspectives and innovative contributions to the gaming industry.As we celebrate Black History Month, its important to recognize that Black culture is vast, diverse, and rich in its many expressions. From the rhythms of Afro-Caribbean music to the artistry of African American traditions, Black culture stretches across the globe, with each region contributing its own unique narratives, creativity, and spirit. This February, Xbox is proud to spotlight the varied voices of Black creators from all corners of the world, showcasing the powerful stories and games that reflect the breadth of the Black experience.Black culture is not a single story it is shaped by generations of resilience, joy, innovation, and communal spirit shared across different countries, continents, and languages. Through the games we support, we aim to highlight these diverse perspectives and celebrate the beauty and complexity of Black culture in all its forms.Xbox is proud to support the next generation of Black creators who are shaping the future of gaming, via the games we create and programs we offer. These emerging voices are bringing fresh, dynamic perspectives to the industry, crafting innovative and culturally rich experiences that will resonate with players for years to come. By supporting and amplifying these creators, we aim to provide a platform where their unique stories can thrive, inspiring a new wave of talent and players alike.Xbox remains committed to supporting the creators who inspire, challenge, and entertain, helping to ensure their stories are shared and celebrated globally.PLAYMinecraft Celebrates Black History Month with Education and Community ImpactAs part of its celebration of Black History Month, Minecraft is continuing its mission to amplify the voices of Black individuals, foster education around Black history, and highlight the power of community. Through the Minecraft and Microsoft platforms, Minecraft is showcasing Black creators in its marketplace, partnering with educators to teach civil rights history, and supporting non-profits that work within Black communities.Lessons in Good Trouble is an immersive Minecraft experience aimed at teaching players about the importance of standing up for whats right. DevelopedMinecraft EducationLessons in Good Trouble has reached more than 6 million downloads since its first release in 2020. This updated DLC, Lessons in Good Trouble shows players that they have the power to create change in their own communities. It is available for free in the Minecraft EducationIn addition to the educational content, Minecraft Marketplace is highlighting the work of Black creators, ensuring their contributions are celebrated and showcased to a global audience. In addition to the educational content, Minecraft is partnering with The Cxmmunity Foundation to help increase the representation of underrepresented communities in esports and gaming through STEAM development. Be on the lookout throughout the month of February as The Cxmmunity Foundation is highlighted on Minecrafts socials to learn more about this organization and check out their programs here.By fostering a space for diverse voices and histories, Minecraft is building a more inclusive community where education, creativity, and social change intersect.South of Midnight: A Journey into Southern FolkloreWere excited to spotlight South of Midnight, an innovative third-person action-adventure game that explores the rich cultural landscape of the American Deep South. In this haunting Southern Gothic tale, players step into the shoes of Hazel, a young woman with a powerful ancient weaving ability. Set in a world steeped in myth and folklore, South of Midnight invites players to navigate a world shaped by the regions history, culture, and traditions, with a focus on the often-overlooked Black stories embedded in Southern heritage.As Xbox celebrates Black History Month, we are proud to highlight South of Midnight as an example of how games can preserve and amplify Black culture, folklore, and resilience, all while weaving together a narrative thats as rich and complex as the region it represents.South of Midnight will be available on April 8, 2025, on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox App for Windows PC, Steam and cloud, and you can play it day one with Game Pass.Discover Games Shaped by Black Creators and Featuring Black ProtagonistsCelebrate Black history through the power of play. During February and beyond, you can play a variety of game collections highlighting Black creators, lead characters, and character creation options that include a variety of skin tones and inclusive hairstyles.Check out a few highlights from our full Xbox Game CollectionGames Featuring Black Protagonists & Stories:Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition The African Royals The definitive RTS game returns! Dive into the heart of Africa as you explore a new continent for Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition with two brand new civilizations and their kingdoms, the Ethiopians and the Hausa! Using an Age up mechanic unique to the African civilizations, gain new Alliances with every age and use your Influence to hire your allies units or research their technologies. Play AoE III: DE The African Royals today (Requires Age of Empires III Base Game, sold separately)Baldurs Gate 3 Abducted, infected, lost. You are turning into a monster, but as the corruption inside you grows, so does your power. Forge a tale of fellowship and betrayal, sacrifice and survival, and the lure of absolute power. Caught in a conflict between devils, deities, and sinister otherworldly forces, you and your party will determine the fate of the Forgotten Realms.Streets of Rage 4 Among the best beat em up series ever created, with jammin 90s beats and over-the-top street beating, the iconic series Streets of Rage returns with a masterful tribute to, and revitalization of, the classic action fans adore. Streets of Rage 4 is a beat em up series known for this timeless gameplay and electronic dance influenced music, and builds upon the classic trilogys gameplay with new mechanics, beautiful hand-drawn visuals and a God-tier soundtrack.Games from Black Creators:Tell Me Why Dont Nod, the studio behind the beloved franchise, Life is Strange, present a fresh narrative adventure. In this intimate mystery, reunited twins Tyler and Alyson Ronan use their supernatural bond to unravel the memories of their loving but troubled childhood. Set in beautiful small-town Alaska, Tell Me Why features true-to-life characters, mature themes and gripping choices. As you conjure up memories of the past, your choices will affect the twins relationship, determine the strength of their bond, and shape the course of their lives.El Paso, Elsewhere El Paso, Elsewhere is a supernatural, neo-noir, third-person shooter. Hunt werewolves, fallen angels, and other damned creatures in a vivid slow-motion love letter to action classics. Fight your way through a reality-shifting motel, floor by bloody floor. Save the victims of Draculae, lord of the vampires. Destroy the villain you loved even if it means dying yourself.DISCOVERRising Voices: Emerging Black Creators Shaping the Future of GamingXbox is excited to spotlight Nicodemus Madehdou, the visionary CEO and founder of JumpButton Studio, whose journey into the gaming industry is a testament to resilience, passion, and the power of community. After relocating to the U.S. from Liberia in 2004, Nicodemus faced the challenges of adjusting to a new environment but found solace and connection through online games like RuneScape. This pivotal experience ignited his desire to create games that could bring people together and break down social barriers. Along with his co-founders, Daniel Ostermiller and Calbert Warner, Nicodemus founded JumpButton Studio with the mission of creating inclusive and culturally rich gaming experiences.Based in Philadelphia, JumpButton Studio draws on the citys vibrant cultural and historical background, alongside its strong educational institutions like Drexel University, to foster a thriving local gaming community. Nicodemus is committed to making Philadelphia a hub for game development, ensuring that talented local students have the opportunity to build their careers without needing to leave the city.To aspiring developers, Nicodemus offers valuable advice from his own experiences navigating the highs and lows of the industry. He emphasizes the importance of resilience, learning from failure, and being transparent with team members and investors. Drawing strength from mentors, peers, and his community, Nicodemus believes that building strong relationships is essential to long-term success in the gaming world.His team at JumpButton is working on an two exciting new games. The first game is titled The Piece, an original game where graffiti art comes to life. The team is excited to reveal the game to our readers first and are excited to see peoples reactions and thoughts. Their second game is Our Passing Thoughts, a co-op adventure born out of the challenges of isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. The game explores the power of communication, vulnerability, and connection through its unique mechanics. In Our Passing Thoughts, players share abilities like jumping or attacking, forcing them to work together in ways that reveal the true value of trust and sacrifice in relationships. Its a game designed to evolve with its players, challenging them to navigate the push and pull of each others needs and grow stronger together. With a release planned for later this year, Our Passing Thoughts aims to provide an experience thats as much about the players connection as it is about the gameplay. Be sure to follow them on @opt_thegame on social platforms.Xbox is proud to highlight Nicodemus and JumpButton Studio as part of our ongoing commitment to celebrate and amplify the voices of emerging Black creators who are shaping the future of gaming.GIVEGamingwith ImpactRewards members in the United States can earn and donate points to organizations supporting mental wellness with Xbox. The organizations below will be available on the Rewards hub:Gameheads A tech training program that uses video game design, development and DevOps to create diverse talent and bold new voices, train youth of color for tech eco-steam and prepare them for college, career and civic life. (US)Xbox players 18 and older can earn Rewards points in various ways, such as playing games, completing Game Pass Quests (terms apply), and purchasing games and other eligible items at the Microsoft Store (exclusions apply).Start earning for impact todayand redeem your points for great rewards. Donate your points on the Rewards hub or on theRewards redeem page.Wallpapers and Dynamic BackgroundsThe Black History Month Xbox design is available today as an Xbox wallpaper and dynamic background on console follow these steps to apply the dynamic background:Press the Xbox button on your controller to open the guide.Select Profile & system > Settings > General > Personalization > My background > Dynamic backgrounds.You can choose between Games, Xbox, or Abstract dynamic backgrounds. Choose the background art that you want with the A button.

Wearable devices have become a big part of modern health care, helping track a patients heart rate, stress levels and brain activity. These devices rely on electrodes, sensors that touch the skin to pick up electrical signals from the body.Creating these electrodes isnt as easy as it might seem. Human skin is complex. Its properties, such as how well it conducts electricity, can change depending on how hydrated it is, how old you are or even the weather. These changes can make it hard to test how well a wearable device works.Additionally, testing electrodes often involves human volunteers, which can be tricky and unpredictable. Everyones skin is different, meaning results arent always consistent. Testing also takes time and money. Plus, there are ethical concerns about asking people to participate in these experiments, including making sure they are informed about the risks and benefits and can voluntarily participate.Scientists have tried to create artificial skin models to avoid some of these problems, but existing ones havent been able to fully mimic the way skin behaves when interacting with wearable sensors. To address these limitations, my colleagues and I have developed a tool called a biomimetic skin phantom a model that mimics the electrical behavior of human skin, making testing wearable sensors easier, cheaper and more reliable.What is a skin phantom?Our biomimetic skin phantom is made of two layers that capture the nuances of both the skins surface and deeper tissues. Biomimetic means it imitates something from nature in this case, human skin. Phantom refers to a physical model or device made to mimic the properties of something real, like human tissues, so it can be used for research instead of relying on actual people.Your skin is made up of multiple layers of cells.OpenStax, CC BY-SAThe bottom layer mimics the deeper tissues under the skin. It is made from a gel-like substance called polyvinyl alcohol cryogel, which can be adjusted to have similar softness and electrical conductivity to real biological tissues. We chose this material because these qualities, along with its durability and wide use in biomedical research, make it a good stand-in for the deeper layers of skin.The top layer mimics the outermost part of the skin, known as the stratum corneum. It is made from a silicone-like material called PDMS, which is mixed with special additives to match the skins electrical properties. Also widely used in biomedical research, PDMS is flexible and easy to shape to closely replicate the skins outer layer.One unique feature of our skin phantom is its ability to mimic different levels of skin hydration. Hydration affects how well skin conducts electricity. Dry skin has higher resistance, meaning it opposes the flow of electricity. This makes it harder for wearable devices to pick up signals. Hydrated skin conducts electricity more easily because water improves the movement of charged particles, leading to better signal quality. Improving how dry skin is modeled and tested can lead to better electrode designs.To replicate the effects of skin hydration, we introduced adjustable pores into the top PDMS layer of the skin phantom. By precisely changing the size and density of the pores, the model can mimic dry or hydrated skin conditions.Testing the skin phantomMy team and I tested our skin phantom in several ways to see whether it could truly replace human skin in experiments.First, we used a method called impedance spectroscopy to study the phantoms electrical properties. This technique applies alternating electrical signals at different frequencies and measures the materials resistance to electrical flow, providing a detailed profile of its electrical behavior. Results from the experiments we conducted on five volunteers showed that the phantoms impedance response closely mirrored that of human skin across both dry and hydrated conditions, with a difference of less than 20% between real skin and the phantom.Moist skin behaves differently from dry skin.Frederic Cirou/PhotoAlto via Getty ImagesWe also tested whether wearable devices could pick up signals from the skin phantom and how signal quality changed with different skin conditions. To do this, we recorded eletrocardiogram signals on phantoms designed to mimic dry and hydrated skin. The results showed clear differences in signal quality: The phantom simulating dry skin had a lower signal-to-noise ratio, while the hydrated skin phantom showed better signal clarity. These findings are consistent with previous studies from other researchers.Together, our skin phantom closely replicates the way human skin responds to wearable sensors across a range of conditions, including dry and hydrated states. This accuracy makes it an optimal stand-in for real skin in the lab.Wearable technologyThe skin phantom is more than just a testing tool its a step forward for wearable health technology.By removing the unpredictability of human testing, scientists can design and improve wearable devices more quickly and effectively. They can also use it to study how skin interacts with medical devices, such as patches that deliver medicine or advanced diagnostic tools.Our skin phantom is also simple and inexpensive. Each phantom costs less than US$3 and can be made with standard lab materials and tools. It can be reused multiple times within the same day without significant changes in its electrical properties, though extended use over several days may require adjustments, such as rehydration, to maintain stable performance. This affordability and reusability make the phantom more accessible for labs with limited budgets or resources.As wearable technology becomes more common in health care, tools such as the skin phantom can help make devices more reliable, accessible and personalized for everyone.Krittika Goyal, Assistant Professor of Manufacturing and Mechanical Engineering Technology, Rochester Institute of TechnologyThis article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Story by The Conversation An independent news and commentary website produced by academics and journalists. An independent news and commentary website produced by academics and journalists. Get the TNW newsletterGet the most important tech news in your inbox each week.Also tagged with