Its happening in Breda, Netherlands April 9-10, 2025. Find out how to get discounted tickets with a special befores & afters code.The 5th Annual Virtual Productions Gathering (VPG25) is being held April 9-10, 2025 at Breda University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands.It is made up of two days of activities:April 9 Educational Day: Designed for academics and students, this day will explore VPs role in education through live demos, best practices, panel discussions, and student project showcases.April 10 Industry Day: Featuring exclusive talks from leading VP innovators, a cutting-edge live demo, a VP marketplace, and a panel on the future of digital storytelling, this day concludes with a networking mixer.Heres some of the key speakers who will be attending:Erik Wolfie Wolford Shooting Europa an Exploration Into the Latest ICVFX Techniques Shaping the Future of FilmmakingKathryn Brillhart Advancing Cinematic Artistry Through VP Paradigms, Emerging Trends, and TechnologiesAdrian Weber Beyond the LED Wall: The Expanding Role of Real-Time Tools in Media ProductionJoan Da Silva Unreal Engine in Classrooms Way Beyond GamesAs a special offer, befores & afters readers can access an exclusive 20% discount using the promotional code BA_VPG25 when purchasing tickets.Learn more & register here: vpgathering.comThe post Get all the details on the upcoming Virtual Productions Gathering 2025 appeared first on befores & afters.

Due to their function as visual centerpieces in a room, coffee tables often have elaborate and sophisticated designs that catch your attention and enhance the ambiance. They often also have some form of storage space to keep books and magazines within easy reach, though other objects also find their way there over time. Its a piece of furniture that often combines function and form beautifully, yielding varied designs that span styles, materials, and themes.Although theres definitely nothing wrong with those designs, sometimes coffee tables have become a bit too complicated visually and functionally to the point that they become distractions. Rather than serving as a means to get people together, they become the end in themselves. Thats why this concept design for a simple yet pleasing coffee table feels like a breath of fresh air for keeping all those extraneous details down to a minimum.Designer: Denis ZaremboAt first glance, the ALVO coffee table doesnt even look like a table from certain angles, especially when the transparent glass tabletop isnt clearly visible. It almost looks like one of those old wooden toys that try to mimic the general form of some quadruped animal, namely a horse, with its thin four legs and equally thin body. The coffee table doesnt just shave off features, it even shaves off plenty of materials, effectively reducing material waste.ALVO is a bit deceptive to some extent, though probably not by intention. Again from certain angles, it almost looks like it has a rather full body, but the reality is that it only has a simple wooden beam that spans its length. It creates the illusion of volume, which could cause a bit of delight when the viewer realizes the truth up close.The tables very basic design also means that there is no room for storing anything inside hidden drawers or compartments. The only place to put books, phones, and cups is on that clear tabletop, and probably not permanently for lack of space. It might be considered a disadvantage, but it also forces people to be more selective and intentional about what they put down on its surface.By stripping away everything except the bare necessities, the ALVO coffee table concept exposes only what is absolutely necessary for a functional and aesthetic piece of furniture. Laying everything bare leaves no room for any object out of place, reducing the opportunities for accumulating clutter and losing things inside hidden spaces. It may be too plain for some peoples tastes, but its also quite a striking complement to any minimalist interior.The post Ultra-minimalist coffee table concept has nothing to hide first appeared on Yanko Design.

"I think the information that youre going to have about this is available to you right now, Stephanie Holmes told workers at Elon Musk's DOGE who pressed for detail on offers of deferred resignation.

A growing number of US government websites have gone offline as of Saturday, including several related to USAID and others focused on youth programs, Africa, and more.

The hamerkop (Scopus umbretta) is a medium-sized wading bird. It is the only living species in the genus Scopus and the family Scopidae. Its closest relatives are thought to be the pelicans and the shoebill, in the order Pelecaniformes. The shape of its head with a long bill and crest at the back is reminiscent of a hammer, which has given this species its name after the Afrikaans word for hammerhead. It is a medium-sized waterbird with brown plumage. It is found in Africa and Arabia, living in a wide variety of wetlands, including estuaries, lakesides, fish ponds, riverbanks, and rocky coasts. This hamerkop was photographed at Lake Baringo in Kenya.Photograph credit: Charles J. SharpRecently featured: African AmericansA Sensation NovelFranklin D. RooseveltArchiveMore featured pictures

February 2: Candlemas (Western Christianity); Groundhog Day in Canada and the United StatesMedieval artwork of ConradII1033 An assembly at the Abbey of Payerne crowned ConradII (depicted) king of Burgundy.1725 J. S. Bach led the first performance of his chorale cantata Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin, BWV 125, based on Luther's paraphrase of the Nunc dimittis.1848 MexicanAmerican War: During the American occupation of Mexico City, diplomats signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ended the war and had Mexico cede 1.36million square kilometres (530,000sqmi) of territory and the United States pay US$15 million.1913 New York City's Grand Central Terminal, the world's largest train station by number of platforms, opened immediately after midnight.1972 - The Troubles: Protestors burned the British Embassy in Ireland following the massacre of 14 civilians in Derry by British forces.Eleanor of Navarre (b.1426)Gertrude Blanch (b.1897)Hannah Ryggen (d.1970)Mary Docherty (d.2000)More anniversaries: February 1February 2February 3ArchiveBy emailList of days of the yearAbout

The 22nd annual Games for Change Festival will take place June 26 and June 27 in New York under the theme Designing for Tomorrow.The event will take place at the Parsons School of Design in New York City and the group put out a call this week for speakers and awards through February 5.For over two decades, the G4C Festival has been the premier global event for bringing together game developers, creators, educators, and social innovators who believe in the power of games and immersive media to drive real-world change.Under the theme Designing for Tomorrow, the festival will explore how games and immersive media can foster collaboration across generations, perspectives, and sectors. During the two-day Festival, attendees will engage in keynotes, panels, workshops, and networking opportunities centered around three primary tracks: Games & Learning, Civics & Social Issues, and Health & Wellbeing. XR programming will be integrated throughout all tracks.New this year, G4C will host a master class series on June 25, where industry leaders and game design experts will lead in-depth learning sessions. Participants will have the opportunity to learn from high-profile gaming professionals as they share their expertise on topics like in-platform game development, the power of play and design, and securing funding. These are carefully curated sessions tailored for the G4C community.Susanna Pollack is president of Games for Change.The Games for Change Awards ceremony on June 26, a cornerstone of the Festival, will celebrate excellence in social impact games and immersive media. Categories include Most Significant Impact, Best in Innovation, and Best Narrative, among others. This year, the Awards ceremony introduces a new category, Best Platform-Based Project, recognizing impactful games and immersive experiences created within established gaming platforms (such as Minecraft, Roblox, or Fortnite Creative) that leverage built-in tools and communities to drive meaningful social impact.For 22 years, the Games for Change Festival has been a meeting ground for cross-sector innovation in games and immersive media, said Susanna Pollack, president of Games for Change, in a statement. As our industry continues to evolve, were expanding our programming to meet the moment. Our new Masterclass series and enhanced awards program reflect the growth and excitement of our sector. Were thrilled to return to Parsons, where we can build on this momentum and foster the next wave of collaboration and innovation.Pollack was the emcee at our recent GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games event in December, and she is a frequent speaker at events on how games can accomplish so much social good beyond entertainment. Speaker and Award submissions are open until February 5, 2025. For more information, visit festival.gamesforchange.org.The previous 21st annual festival in New York explored The 2030 Marker: A Catalyst for Global Change, bringing together over 150 speakers from 12 countries. The event united 2,300 in-person and virtual attendees for 65 talks and workshops. Beyond New York, our chapter festivals in Africa, Asia, India, Trkiye, and Latin America expanded its global impact, connecting changemakers across continents.The group also hosted the 2nd Annual Games & SDG Summit at the UN, bringing together 180 leaders to forge new partnerships and drive actionable solutions.Games for Change also added new board members: Benjamin Golant: senior director for global game Policy at Tencent Americas; Samir El Agili: chairman at Tilting Point; and Mark Stanley: founder of Strategic Gaming Collective, advisor for Playing for the Planet, and advocate for using games to address global challenges.Last year, Games for Changes impact report said it had 21 festivals, 86 G4C award winners, five global G4C chapters, 22 global chapter events, 58,000 students reached and 75% students in Title I schools.Daily insights on business use cases with VB DailyIf you want to impress your boss, VB Daily has you covered. We give you the inside scoop on what companies are doing with generative AI, from regulatory shifts to practical deployments, so you can share insights for maximum ROI.Read our Privacy PolicyThanks for subscribing. Check out more VB newsletters here.An error occured.

The National Transportation and Safety Board will only update the press about the plane crashes in Washington, DC and Philadelphia on X not over email, as reported earlier by The Desk. The agency announced on Saturday that it will use its @NTSB_Newsroom account to share news conferences or other investigative information.The NTSB later said, Reporters should email mediarelations@ntsb.gov for all other inquiries, claiming that it was meant to better manage the volume of emails about the two incidents n. The NTSB media relations team has always used Twitter/X to inform the media and public on the time and location of media briefings. We cannot respond to every email asking for the details of media briefings, the NTSB said, without explaining the process behind the decision or why an agency would rely solely on one privately owned social media platform.For media covering the airplane crashes in Washington and Philadelphiaall NTSB updates about news conferences or other investigative information will be posted to this X account. We will not be distributing information via email. NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) February 1, 2025At the same time, the US Department of Defense is also removing major outlets, like NBC News, The New York Times, NPR, and Politico, from their dedicated workstations in the Pentagon, according to a report from NBC. Instead, the DoD will impose an annual media rotation program that will replace the outlets with conservative-leaning ones, like One America News Network, the New York Post, and Breitbart. It also includes HuffPost even though it doesnt have a Pentagon correspondent, NBC notes.The Trump administration is targeting media networks in other ways, too, as the Federal Communications Commission ordered investigations into NPR and PBS over their financial sponsors.

Electronics, avocados, vegetables, cars, tractors, crude oil these are some of the things that could soon get more expensive for US consumers. Under President Donald Trumps proposed plan, goods coming in from Mexico and Canada will be subject to a 25 percent tariff beginning on February 1st. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has also said Trump was very much still considering tariffs on China on the same day. As of late Thursday, the specifics of these plans were still up in the air.Sweeping tariffs were one of Trumps marquee campaign promises leading up to the election in November. Hes previously threatened up to a 60 percent tariff on goods from China, a 100 percent tariff on goods from Mexico, and even a 200 percent tariff on John Deere products imported into the US. Despite this, Trump failed to levy any tariffs on day one of his presidency, with Bloomberg reporting on Thursday that his administration lacked even concepts of a plan. His first round is now supposed to hit goods from Mexico and Canada, the two largest trade partners for the US.Read Article >

Skip to main content9to5Mac Overtime9to5Mac Overtime 039: The story of Nomad w/ co-founder and CEO Noah Dentzel Jeff Benjamin|Feb 1 2025 - 3:45 pm PTNomad co-founder and CEO Noah Dentzel joins us to discuss the companys early beginnings, the product development process, success, and learning experiences.9to5Mac Overtimeis a weekly video-first podcast exploring fun and interesting observations in the Apple ecosystem, featuring 9to5Macs Fernando Silva & Jeff Benjamin.Subscribe to Overtime via Apple Podcastsandour YouTube channelfor more.Show linksHostsSubscribeAdd 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.Youre reading 9to5Mac experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Dont know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel Featuredfrom 9to5Mac9to5Mac Logo Manage push notificationsAllPost