This is today's edition ofThe Download,our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology. Motor neuron diseases took their voices. AI is bringing them back. Jules Rodriguez lost his voice in October of last year. His speech had been deteriorating since a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2020, but a tracheostomy to help him breathe dealt the final blow. Rodriguez and his wife, Maria Fernandez, who live in Miami, thought they would never hear his voice again. Then they re-created it using AI. After feeding old recordings of Rodriguezs voice into a tool trained on voices from film, television, radio, and podcasts, the couple were able to generate a voice clonea way for Jules to communicate in his old voice. Rodriguez is one of over a thousand people with speech difficulties who have cloned their voices using free software from ElevenLabs. The AI voice clones arent perfect. But they represent a vast improvement on previous communication technologies and are already improving the lives of people with motor neuron diseases.Read the full story. Jessica Hamzelou The AI relationship revolution is already here AI is everywhere, and its starting to alter our relationships in new and unexpected waysrelationships with our spouses, kids, colleagues, friends, and even ourselves. Although the technology remains unpredictable and sometimes baffling, individuals from all across the world and from all walks of life are finding it useful, supportive, and comforting, too. People are using large language models to seek validation, mediate marital arguments, and help navigate interactions with their community. Theyre using it for support in parenting, for self-care, and even to fall in love. In the coming decades, many more humans will join them. And this is only the beginning. What happens next is up to us.Read the full story. Rhiannon Williams This subscriber-only story is the next edition of our print magazine, which is all about relationships.Subscribe nowto get a copy when it lands on February 26! What a major battery fire means for the future of energy storage A few weeks ago, a fire broke out at the Moss Landing Power Plant in California, the worlds largest collection of batteries on the grid. Although the flames were extinguished in a few days, the metaphorical smoke is still clearing. Residents have reported health issues, and pollutants have been found in the water and ground nearby. A lawsuit has been filed. In the wake of high-profile fires like Moss Landing, there are understandable concerns about battery safety. At the same time, as more wind, solar power, and other variable electricity sources come online, large energy storage installations will be even more crucial for the grid. Read our storyto catch up on what happened in this fire, what the lingering concerns are, and what comes next for the energy storage industry. Casey Crownhart This story is from The Spark, our weekly newsletter explaining the tech solving the climate crisis.Sign upto receive it in your inbox every Wednesday. The must-reads Ive combed the internet to find you todays most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Inside Elon Musks AI coup If you think government run by AI sounds dystopian, youd be right. (New Yorker$)+Can AI help DOGE slash government budgets? Its complex.(MIT Technology Review)+Musk says DOGE is being transparent. That couldnt be further from the truth.(Gizmodo)2 OpenAI is loosening restrictions on what its bots can sayIts nudging the balance away from safety, and towards intellectual freedom. (The Verge)+Musks lawyers say hell withdraw his $97.4 billion bid for OpenAI if it drops plans to become a for-profit company. (Reuters$)3 Dating apps leave people in the dark over dangerous usersMatch Group seems to do shockingly little in response to reports of rape. (The Guardian)4 Apple is reportedly exploring humanoid robotsBut its still very early days, so I wouldnt like to bet on anything coming to fruition just yet. (TechCrunch)+Heres whats next for robots.(MIT Technology Review)5 Efficiency is the new frontier for AIDeepSeek claims to have built a model for $6 million. Another team says theyve done it for just $6. (The Economist$)+Chinas EV companies are racing to add DeepSeeks AI to their cars.(Business Insider$)+Chinas smartphone makers are rushing to adopt it too.(South China Morning Post$)6 Apple just launched a giant health studyIt will analyze how data from its devices can monitor, manage and predict changes in users health. (CNBC)7 Inside the radically unambitious return of Pebble smartwatchesIts kinda telling that building devices that can last for years is so unusual. (Fast Company$)8 Syria just hosted its first international tech conference in 50 yearsHope abounds as the country starts to rebuild after a 13-year-old civil war. (Rest of World)9 The guy who threw away $775 million in Bitcoin wants to buy the garbage dumpHes never going to give up, is he. (Quartz$)10 Google is going to get AI to guess how old you are for age verificationI fear itd take one look at my tastes and add on a few decades. (The Verge)Quote of the day The AI summaries of questions on Ask are terrible. Can we go back to answering the questions people actually asked? Google employees bemoan the use of AI to compile their various questions into a single one during all-staff meetings,The Guardianreports. The big story Whatever happened to DNA computing? DON BARTLETTI/LOS ANGELES TIMES VIA GETTY IMAGES October 2021 For more than five decades, engineers have shrunk silicon-based transistors over and over again, creating progressively smaller, faster, and more energy-efficient computers in the process. But the long technological winning streakand the miniaturization that has enabled it cant last forever. What could this successor technology be? There has been no shortage of alternative computing approaches proposed over the last 50 years. Here are five of the more memorable ones.Read about five of the most memorable ones. Lakshmi Chandrasekaran We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet 'em at me.)+ Monty is sucha good boythat hes been crowned best dog in America. + A shortcut recipe for chicken rice?Im going to have to try it out.+ If youve got a tight neck and shoulders, a quick hit of relief is justten minutes away.+ To make lasting changes to your life, motivationhas to come from within.

An entertainment revolution, powered by AI and other emerging technologies, is fundamentally changing how content is created and consumed today. Media and entertainment (M&E) brands are faced with unprecedented opportunitiesto reimagine costly and complex production workloads, to predict the success of new scripts or outlines, and to deliver immersive entertainment in novel formats like virtual reality (VR) and the metaverse. Meanwhile, the boundaries between entertainment formatsfrom gaming to movies and backare blurring, as new alliances form across industries, and hardware innovations like smart glasses and autonomous vehicles make media as ubiquitous as air. At the same time, media and entertainment brands are facing competitive threats. They must reinvent their business models and identify new revenue streams in a more fragmented and complex consumer landscape. They must keep up with advances in hardware and networking, while building an IT infrastructure to support AI and related technologies. Digital media standards will need to evolve to ensure interoperability and seamless experiences, while companies search for the right balance between human and machine, and protect their intellectual property and data. DOWNLOAD THE REPORT This report examines the key technology shifts transforming todays media and entertainment industry and explores their business implications. Based on in-depth interviews with media and entertainment executives, startup founders, industry analysts, and experts, the report outlines the challenges and opportunities that tech-savvy business leaders will find ahead. Download the full report. This content was produced by Insights, the custom content arm of MIT Technology Review. It was not written by MIT Technology Reviews editorial staff.

First, I tasted the Classico Cabernet marinara with herbs.According to its ingredients list, Classico's marinara is made with Cabernet wine. Lizzy Briskin Though I was intrigued by Classico's use of Cabernet, the sauce just didn't feel right on pasta.Out of the jar, the sauce was completely smooth, so it was probably pureed and strained before canning.Classico's Cabernet marinara might be better as a pizza sauce.I thought Classico's marinara was just too sweet. Lizzy Briskin When I tasted the sauce, I thought it had a strong sweetness that didn't pair well with pasta. I also prefer some texture in my pasta sauce, so this was too smooth for me.Because of its sweetness and texture, I think Classico's marinara might work better on pizza.The Newman's Own marinara was up next.I thought the Newman's Own marinara was just OK. Lizzy Briskin Unfortunately, I thought the Newman's Own marinara sauce didn't stack up in the flavor department compared to the others.The sauce fell a little flat and had what I thought was an uninspiring, smooth, and almost watery texture.The Newman's Own marinara was too thin for me.The Newman's Own marinara didn't have a standout flavor. Lizzy Briskin Since the texture of the Newman's Own sauce was so watery, it didn't cling to the noodles very well.However, I also saw a tomato-basil sauce from the brand when I was at the store, and that may have more promise.I also tried Primal Kitchen's tomato-basil marinara sauce made with avocado oil.Primal Kitchen's marinara sauce was the only one made with avocado oil. Lizzy Briskin The most expensive marinara I tried came from Primal Kitchen, which was made with avocado oil rather than the Italian standard, olive oil. To me, the addition of avocado oil in itself wasn't necessarily a benefit or worth paying more for.When I poured some sauce into a bowl, I noticed it was quite chunky and thick with small pieces of diced onion and lots of herbs.Primal Kitchen's marinara sauce was pretty tasty.The marinara from Primal Kitchen was hearty. Lizzy Briskin Despite my initial opinions about the avocado oil, the sauce was tasty. I think the avocado oil gave the marinara a richer, heartier flavor than the other sauces, which tasted brighter and more acidic in comparison.The oregano and basil flavors were also prominent in this marinara.I tried Barilla's marinara next.Barilla's marinara had some specks of herbs and onion. Lizzy Briskin When I tried Barilla's marinara, which says it has "no sugar added," I was surprised by how tasty it was.The texture was looser than some of the other sauces, with visible specks of herbs and onion and some larger chunks of tomato.I thought Barilla's sauce had a good herb flavor.The Barilla marinara was pretty tasty. Lizzy Briskin I could certainly taste the basil and oregano but it wasn't overpowering the entire dish.It separated a bit in the jar but came back together when stirred.Finally, I tried Rao's Homemade Sensitive marinara.Rao's Sensitive marinara was made without onions or garlic. Lizzy Briskin The difference between Rao's Sensitive marinara and the regular one is that the former is made without onion or garlic.Out of the jar, the sauce was mostly smooth with a nice amount of larger crushed tomato pieces.Out of all of the marinara I tried, Rao's sauce was my favorite of the bunch and is my personal go-to at home.I thought Rao's marinara sauce truly tasted homemade. Lizzy Briskin Rao's marinara had a slightly smoky flavor, perhaps from roasting the tomatoes. The concentrated-tomato flavor really was the most prominent taste in this jar, which I appreciated.Rao's marinara had the flavor of a homemade sauce that had been simmering all day long.This story was originally published on October 4, 2022, and most recently updated on December 3, 2024.

Linda McMahon, Trump's education secretary pick, is appearing before Congress for her confirmation hearing on Thursday.It comes amid statements from Trump that he'd like to dismantle the Department of Education.The department facilitates the federal grant and student-loan system, along with civil rights enforcement.Imagine you're interviewing for a new role as head of a department, and part of the job description is to shut the division down.That's what appears to be happening to Linda McMahon, President Donald Trump's pick for education secretary. Her role would lead the department that oversees schools, collects student data, and manages the federal student aid system, but even before she appears before lawmakers on Thursday for her confirmation hearing, Trump has said he aims to shut down the department altogether."I told Linda, 'Linda, I hope you do a great job and put yourself out of a job.' I want her to put herself out of a job," Trump told reporters on February 4.Trump reiterated to reporters on February 12 that he wants the Department of Education to be closed "immediately," adding that the department "is a big con job." When announcing McMahon as his education secretary pick in November, Trump posted on Truth Social that one of his goals for her was to "send Education BACK TO THE STATES." Trump and some GOP lawmakers have said that education can be managed at the local level, and a federal agency isn't needed. Trump has also signed an executive order to "promote patriotic education" in public schools and eliminate ideologies that do not align with his politics. The Department of Education does not control classroom curriculum.Eliminating any federal agency requires approval from Congress, and while some Republican lawmakers have introduced legislation to get rid of the Department of Education, there has not yet been enough support to make that happen. Still, Trump has been working to reduce many federal agency functions over the past weeks by laying off staff and canceling the programs they oversee, as he recently did with the US Agency for International Development.Here are some of the Department of Education's key responsibilities that would be impacted if the agency shuts down.Manages grants and student loansOne of the Department of Education's primary tasks is facilitating the $1.7 trillion student-loan portfolio. Over 40 million student-loan borrowers hold federal loans, and the department's Federal Student Aid office works with student-loan servicers to manage borrowers' loan repayment.FSA is also responsible for managing a range of student-loan repayment and relief programs, including the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. It develops the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA form, for students each year and provides Pell Grants for low-income and middle-income college students.Additionally, the department manages grants for US public schools. Those include Title I funding, which gives funds to school districts in lower-income communities, along with funding for districts that teach students with disabilities.Some Republicans have previously suggested that the Treasury Department could facilitate these programs without the Education Department; shifting those responsibilities would be a significant undertaking, education policy experts have said.Collects data on student outcomesThe Department of Education's research arm collects data to monitor key student outcomes, including math and reading literacy scores. The most recent scores, collected through the National Assessment of Education Progress, found that kids are continuing to decline in reading literacy.Nat Malkus, a senior fellow and deputy director of education policy at the conservative think tank American Enterprise Institute, previously told BI that "if it weren't for the Department of Education," we wouldn't even know where kids' proficiency levels stand.The Institute of Education Sciences, a nonpartisan research arm within the department, funds research on education issues nationwide, including teacher quality, educational interventions, and classroom reform at all levels.State education agencies collect data under federal reporting requirements; the Education Department primarily keeps track of overall national trends at US schools and provides funding for data collection.Oversees schools and collegesThe Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights is responsible for investigating discrimination complaints at K-12 schools and colleges. Most recently, the office resolved a complaint regarding anti-Palestinian discrimination on a college campus.According to the department's budget documents, the Office of Civil Rights received over 22,000 complaints in fiscal year 2024, largely on the topics of sex-based and disability-based discrimination. The office projected that it will receive over 23,000 complaints in fiscal year 2025.While it's unclear how Trump would go about his plans to dismantle the Education Department, some Republican lawmakers have previously suggested shifting the department's responsibilities to other federal agencies, like having the Treasury Department oversee grants and loans.Got a tip or anything you'd like to share? Contact this reporter securely on Signal at asheffey.97 or email her at asheffey@businessinsider.com.

This story originally appeared in Kids Today, Voxs newsletter about kids, for everyone. Sign up here for future editions.Its preschool application season in New York City, where I live. That means parents of toddlers are eagerly and anxiously signing on to a (surprisingly user-friendly) city-run website and ranking their preferred programs, in the hopes that, come fall, their 3- and 4-year-olds will be able to go to a high-quality pre-K in their community for free.These programs are huge for families, who otherwise would be spending tens of thousands of dollars a year on day care. They can be wonderful for kids, who are better prepared for kindergarten and more likely to go to college one day. And theyre a surprising bright spot in an otherwise bleak child care landscape. In recent years, states like California, Colorado, and New Mexico have expanded their publicly funded pre-K options. New York City has staved off some proposed funding cuts to its program for 3-year-olds, thanks in part to the activism of families who have come to count on it. Preschool has emerged as that rare issue with bipartisan support, as lawmakers in deep-red states like Alabama increase funding to their programs. In 20222023, enrollment in publicly funded preschool hit an all-time high, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research.Preschool still faces plenty of challenges funding remains uneven, not all programs are high-quality, and the Trump administrations threatened funding freeze is still creating chaos for some federally funded programs. But the relative success of programs across the country and the way theyve been sold to lawmakers and the public could hold lessons for all of us as we move through the uncharted waters of Trump 2.0.Pre-K can have huge benefits for kids and familiesAt the most basic level, preschool helps get kids ready for school. Children who go through a pre-K program are more likely to have pre-literacy and pre-numeracy skills that can help them in kindergarten, and are more used to being in a school-like setting, Elliot Haspel, a family policy expert and senior fellow at the think tank Capita, told me.I saw this with my older kid, who learned how to wait in line and how to pack and unpack a backpack in pre-K skills we take for granted, but that have to come from somewhere.RelatedA sneaky way to boost kids literacyThe benefits dont stop at kindergarten, though (or at backpack loading). One study found that kids who went to preschool were more likely than their peers of similar backgrounds to graduate from high school, take the SAT, and go to college.Other research is more mixed, and not all programs have the same results. But one of the most widespread effects of preschool is also one of the simplest: Pre-K is a source of dependable, free child care, which helps parents work and reduces the economic stress on families, Haspel said. One study found that universal preschool raised parents average earnings by 21.7 percent per year for each year a child was in the program. Increasing the economic stability of a family, in turn, is correlated with any number of positive educational, health, and socio-emotional outcomes for children, Haspel said.How universal preschool spreadAdvocates have been pushing to get more families access to these benefits for decades, but the idea of universal preschool really began taking off nationwide in the 2000s, thanks in part to a campaign by the Pew Charitable Trusts called Pre-K Now, Haspel said. The idea of subsidized child care has been stigmatized in America for over a century, Haspel has argued, seen as a form of welfare for poor children and subject to racism, classism, and a bias against working mothers. So Pre-K Now focused on preschool, putting the emphasis on education rather than care.In some places, preschool has become a part of life, and families wont give it up without a fight.In this country, public education is a right, Haspel told me. Americans have come to expect free, universal education as part of the infrastructure of their towns and cities. Pre-K Now and other advocates built on this expectation, pushing to expand the public education system to include younger kids.In a lot of places, it worked. In 20012002, 14 percent of 4-year-olds were enrolled in publicly funded preschool; by 20222023, the share had more than doubled, to 35 percent.Thats still a minority, but campaigns are continuing. In 2022, for example, New Mexico voters passed a constitutional amendment guaranteeing a right to early childhood education, and creating a funding stream of about $150 million every year, much of which goes to preschool programs. California, meanwhile, aims to give all 4-year-olds in the state access to free preschool by the fall.In some places, preschool has become a part of life, and families wont give it up without a fight. New York City has had free, universal preschool for 4-year-olds since 2014, and then-Mayor Bill de Blasio promised that universal 3-K for 3-year-olds would be next. But his successor, Eric Adams, backed away from that goal, and last year, about 2,500 kids whose families applied did not get a 3-K offer.Parents pushed back, signing petitions and calling their council members. All families who applied ultimately received offers that year (though some spent time on wait lists), and the mayor reversed some planned cuts to the programs budget, said Rebecca Bailin, founder and executive director of the advocacy group New Yorkers United for Child Care. It is a real proof of concept, that organizing on this issue was broadly popular, Bailin told me.The future of early childhood educationLike any public policy, universal preschool is complicated in some places, publicly funded pre-K has actually harmed child care access for infants and toddlers by siphoning resources away from day care providers, Haspel said. In New York, the Adams administration initially prioritized affordable child care for low-income communities over universal 3-K.But it doesnt have to be a zero-sum game, some advocates say. New Yorkers United for Child Care is now campaigning to expand the citys commitment to universal early education to include 2-year-olds. This is a cost that everybody has to bear, Bailin said. Theres no reason why our government cant provide it.Our government, at least at the federal level, now seems to be collapsing around our ears, and it can be hard to be optimistic about any policy change. At the same time, preschool is typically offered by states or cities, whose governments are likely to become ever more important to average citizens in times of federal upheaval. Support for preschool also transcends party lines, with states like Florida, Iowa, and Oklahoma leading the pack when it comes to enrollment.If there are lessons in the success of pre-K, some of them are clearly about branding, which is a little depressing (do we have to be so afraid, as a society, of offering child care?). But theyre also about persistence.The campaign to pass an early childhood amendment in New Mexico took more than 10 years, said Jacob Vigil, deputy policy director of the nonprofit New Mexico Voices for Children. Along the way, backers of the amendment had to build a coalition composed not just of child care advocates, but of immigrants and workers rights groups as well. That kind of trust can take a long time to build, Vigil said. At least in New Mexico, though, it eventually paid off, which feels like as good a lesson for right now as any.What Im readingSchool attendance was down 20 percent in the Los Angeles Unified School District last week, which the superintendent attributes both to fear of ICE raids and students participating in protests against Trumps immigration policies.The Trump administrations anti-DEI efforts could harm Black students academically and psychologically.A new bill, the Kids Off Social Media Act, aims to stop kids under 13 from creating social media accounts. Like other legislation of its kind, it might not work.Yes, my older kid has now discovered the mega-popular Wings of Fire series, about a world of dragons with various powers and inter-dragon grievances. We started with A Guide to the Dragon World, which is sort of an ancillary text and honestly pretty confusing to newcomers. I will report back when we understand anything.From my inboxIn response to my story last week about Donald Trumps executive orders affecting trans kids, a reader asked, How many trans kids are reliant on Medicaid for their gender-affirming care? This question turns out to be a little difficult to answer. The federal government doesnt collect data on how many people, kids or adults, access gender-affirming care through Medicaid, Elana Redfield, federal policy director at the Williams Institute, told me. We do know that 26 states have passed laws banning gender-affirming care for youth, and that about 40 percent of trans youth live in those states, meaning they are likely unable to access care using Medicaid (or any insurance), unless the bans have been blocked in court. In the remaining states, young people could potentially use Medicaid for gender-affirming care, but some hospitals have stopped offering such care in the wake of Trumps executive orders. If youre looking for an estimate of how many young people, generally, access gender-affirming care, Reuters has some data from 20172021, but their analysis doesnt break out people who used Medicaid specifically.I hope this is helpful, and thanks for the question! You can always reach me with queries or recommendations for future stories at anna.north@vox.com.See More:

Avowed has a lot to say for itself (Xbox Game Studios)The makers of Fallout: New Vegas return with a Skyrim style action role-player set in the same fantasy world as Pillars Of Eternity.Best known for their track record of first class role-playing game sequels, Obsidian Entertainment has been responsible for Fallout: New Vegas, Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 2, and Neverwinter Nights 2. Every one of those bodes well for Avowed, which while not a direct sequel, is firmly based in the same universe as the studios two-part Pillars Of Eternity series.The first Pillars game came out in 2015, following a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign, and as demanded by its backers, it was a solidly old school party-based dungeon crawler. Viewed from high above, in an isometric perspective, it was every bit a digital incarnation of a tabletop adventure game, its 2018 follow-up utilising much the same recipe.They are both set in the world of Eora and Avowed is too, but this time youll be experiencing it from a lot closer up. Viewed in first or third person, the events of Avowed take place in the Living Lands, a lawless island where people and nature run riot. Unfortunately, that riot has been getting steadily more unsettling as a sickness called the Dreamscourge overtakes the natural order. And if that sounds like a pretty generic set-up for a fantasy role-player, were afraid thats not the only thing in the game that lacks pizzaz.You play as an envoy sent by the Aedyran Empire to find out whats causing the Dreamscourge and put an end to it. Youre also a godlike, meaning your character has been directly claimed by one of the realms deities, which for some reason causes peculiar fungus-style cranial growths to appear. You can customise what they look like during character creation, but quite a few options make them look a lot like a Clicker from The Last Of Us.Arriving in Paradis, the Living Lands largest city and a comparative safe haven on the island, you quickly find out its still a hive of scum and villainy. You also discover quite how wordy Avowed is going to be. Every single conversation you have, whether its the preamble to shopping with a merchant, meeting a quest giver, or getting to know a more central character, regularly has six or more conversational choices at each stage.As with most role-playing games, these can be a set of questions you work your way through, but frequently theyre just differing responses, leading you down a broad variety of avenues in your chat. The voice acting is of the bog standard American accented variety, which is inoffensive if a little characterless, and the dialogue itself follows a similar pattern, delivering consistently middle-of-the-road prattle.The bigger issue is the gargantuan volume of it youll have to wade through. Books, notes left by military scouts, shopkeepers whose relatives know one of your party members, animancers whose lives have been upended by the Dreamscourge its a never-ending tsunami of median grade plot and lore exposition. Obsidian clearly finds it all completely fascinating, but we have to admit all those vowel-infused, made-up names and endless, minor callbacks to Pillars of Eternity left us wondering at the dreariness of it all.Luckily the action is a bit more invigorating. Gathering a total of four potential party members as you explore, you can take two of them with you on any given quest. Theres Kai, your blue scaly Ruataian bodyguard; Marius, a brash dwarf harbouring a painful secret; Yatzli, a feisty, furry mage; and Giatta, a passionate and opinionated animancer.You then build your three-person team to complement your characters build, using Marius ranged combat, Kais tankiness, Yatzlis spells, or Giattas healing. The two you choose will fight autonomously, although you can manually trigger their special moves.Its a pity there arent any combos or real interaction between their abilities though, and we found little incentive to change party members for different missions, unless one of them had a personal interest in a particular quest. Just like in Mass Effect, each has a side quest just for them, which gives you a deeper insight into their backstories, all of which are then resolved in the final act of the game. You can play the game from a first or third person perspective (Xbox Game Studios)Your character has two weapons loadouts that you can switch between on the fly, each of which lets you dual wield pretty much anything you like. That can be a sword or axe and shield, a wand and spell book, or a sword and pistol if you like. There are also two-handed swords, war hammers, rifles, and axes, which take longer to swing or fire, but do a great deal more damage.When your party makes camp for the night you can use the many crafting materials you collect to upgrade weapons and armour, while levelling up gives you ability points and lets you unlock and improve skills from a wide range of character classes. As ever, its worth specialising, although youre free to pick and choose abilities, and undo them all and start again whenever you like.As well as chopping up enemies or torching them with magic, there are plenty of encounters that can be resolved peacefully, your choice to spare lives having profound consequences throughout the rest of the game. In practice, when you see a group of enemies its hard to know whether theyre the sort that wont attack or not. After being caught out a few times we found ourselves simply slaughtering everything with a red health bar just to be on the safe side, but on the occasions we held back it was always rewarded, and remembered later on. The game is largely bug free, except when it comes to the monsters (Xbox Game Studios)Thats important, because the envoys destiny is attached to an unknown god, who you gradually get to know as you progress. Its to the games credit that its left entirely up to you how you interpret the gods actions and enigmatic pronouncements, or how you treat each of the Living Lands warring factions. Youre free to help, hinder or annihilate pretty much whichever groups you choose.That can be fun when someone starts getting a bit high-handed with your party. Just getting bored with their arrogance and attacking them feels like a wonderful release, and despite its grotesque verbosity, the dialogue has a scattering of those moments too. At one point, when the soul of a long lost fellow godlike is giving you particularly elliptical advice, one conversational option is, Just tell me what to do you cryptic b! Weve lost count of the number of times wed wanted to say exactly that, in this game and numerous others.Its a shame so many of Avoweds 50-odd hours or less if youre not a fan of side quests and bounty hunting is spent in conversation about obscure pieces of lore or, we kid you not, administrative districts and tax regimes. It sometimes feels like watching a fantasy remake of The Phantom Menace, especially as its dialogue gets so comically turgid.Although Avowed has many interesting elements, compared with other recent role-playing games it doesnt fair particularly well. Its combat system isnt as sophisticated or intuitive as Dragon Age: The Veilguard; it has nothing like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2s sense of complex systems interacting; and its dialogue, while ripe with choices, has neither the charm nor character of Baldurs Gate 3. Its not that its innately terrible, theres just not much it excels at.More TrendingAvoweds strongest suit is traversal, its landscapes proving colourful and imaginative even if they can be tricky to navigate when youre trying to get somewhere specific. There are fast travel points all over the place, so its only infrequently an issue, but opening up new pieces of the map is satisfying, even if in the opening hours it sometimes means stumbling across camps of enemies way above your pay grade.Despite appearances, its also not an open world, instead offering five relatively compact freeform areas to explore. They all have distinct personalities but broadly offer the same sorts of mission and pay-offs, with a fairly narrow range of enemies on which to unleash your partys increasingly destructive abilities.Avowed does have a well-developed sense of consequence though. The endings told in stills with a voiceover feel rushed, but who you support, what direction the Living Lands take, and even who your final battle is against are all up to you, and its more than just a binary choice. The action is also fun, especially once youve unlocked a few decent powers. Its just a shame the journey is bogged down by chatter thats remorselessly tilted towards quantity rather than quality.Avowed review summaryIn Short: A modestly ambitious action role-player, thats very good at making you feel you have an impact on the world, but its let down by endless reams of mundane dialogue and predictable mechanics.Pros: Engaging exploration in a set of pleasingly gaudy environments. A wide range of powers to discover, all of which can be reset at will. Your decisions have a lasting effect on the world.Cons: Far too much unnecessary and uninteresting dialogue, in an often very generic fantasy world. Combat and levelling up is competent but unoriginal, as is the entire game concept.Score: 6/10Formats: Xbox Series X/S (reviewed) and PCPrice: 69.99Publisher: Xbox Game StudiosDeveloper: Obsidian EntertainmentRelease Date: 18th February 2025Age Rating: 16 Avowed is a bit too wordy and a bit too familiar (Xbox Game Studios)Emailgamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below,follow us on Twitter, andsign-up to our newsletter.To submit Inbox letters and Readers Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use ourSubmit Stuff page here.For more stories like this,check our Gaming page.GameCentralSign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy

Hes as surprised as we are (Sony)Although it may not have been the biggest sales success Sonys ever had, Astro Bots prestige has pleased the company enough to pursue making similar games.When looking at first party PlayStation 5 exclusives from Sonys own gaming studios, the company only launched two new ones, that werent remasters or remakes, in 2024: Astro Bot and Concord.The former was certainly the more successful of the two (with Concords failure killing its developer), selling 1.5 million units in its first nine weeks. Thats not an insignificant amount but its not blockbuster numbers, when compared to previous first party releases on both PlayStation 4 and 5.Yet the prestige Astro Bot has received appears to have convinced Sony that it needs to take another page out of Nintendos book, and start making more family-oriented games.Speaking in a recent earnings call, Sony president Hiroki Totoki highlighted Astro Bots multiple award wins last year, which included the coveted Game of the Year award at The Game Awards 2024.At The Game Awards 2024, our first party title Astro Bot won four categories, including Game of the Year and Best Family Game the most of any title, said Totoki.He also referenced how Helldivers 2 took home the awards for Best Ongoing Game and Best Multiplayer Game, adding, The fact that titles in genres we are planning to expand in the future, including titles for families and live service games, have received these awards is a major stride towards building a broad title portfolio.How many awards has Astro Bot won?Altogether, Astro Bot holds a collective 22 awards. It took home four awards at The Game Awards 2024: Game of the Year, Best Family Game, Best Game Direction, and Best Action / Adventure Game.Before that, it won Best Audio Design at The Golden Joystick Awards, with developer Team Asobi winning Studio of the Year.As for other awards shows, Astro Bot also won:Three awards at the Equinox Latam Game Awards, including Best Family GameGame of the Year at the Titanium AwardsThree awards at the Grand Game Awards, including Best Family GameThree awards at the New York Game Awards, including Game of the YearSix awards at the Algeria Game Awards, including Game of the Year and Best Family GameAstro Bot stands to win even more, having received multiple nominations at this years D.I.C.E. Awards, the Game Audio Network Guild Awards, and the Game Developers Choice Awards.Totoki didnt seem to mention anything about Astro Bots sales performance, but it doesnt appear Sony is disappointed.This makes sense, though, as the game was handled by a smaller team and presumably had a smaller budget. So, Sony wouldnt have expected it to bring in blockbuster numbers like 2023s Spider-Man 2 or 2022s God Of War Ragnark.Totokis phrasing suggests Sony already intended to double down on more family games like Astro Bot, even before all the awards came rolling in; those just validated its decision.While we certainly wouldnt say no to more Astro Bot-esque games from Sony, you have to question why its only now decided to pursue the family market.Nintendo has found tremendous success doing so, thanks to its many Super Mario games, particularly multiplayer titles like Super Mario Party Jamboree and, of course, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.More TrendingSonys live service games are multiplayer too, but the likes of Concord and the upcoming Fairgame$ are very much geared towards older gamers and do nothing to appeal themselves to kid.This seems all the stranger given Fortnite, the most successful live service game and the one all publishers are always trying to copy, is quite well suited for families, thanks to its cartoony aesthetic and its less serious setting and attitude.Weve heard plenty of stories of parents enjoying Fortnite alongside their children and we cant imagine something like Fairgame$, with its edgier visual style, will offer the same family appeal.Sony did used to make a lot more family friendly games, back in earlier generations, and its not clear why they and, most other third party publishers, stopped. But it seems Astro Bot has convinced them to widen their focus again. What next? Astro Kart? Astro Party? (Sony)Emailgamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below,follow us on Twitter, andsign-up to our newsletter.To submit Inbox letters and Readers Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use ourSubmit Stuff page here.For more stories like this,check our Gaming page.GameCentralSign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy

Having spotty, unreliable internet in your own home is frustrating beyond belief. Its your home, you want to just be able to lay down on the couch after a long day and scroll mindlessly through TikTok. I know I do. But when videos pause to buffer or a download stops in its tracks, that minor inconvenience drives me up the wall. The worst is when it happens on the toilet. I refuse to go back to reading the back of the shampoo bottle, darn it. Thankfully, a good WiFi 6 mesh system can alleviate these troubles and Amazon a two-pack of the eero mesh routers on sale for just $90 down 38% from $145.See at AmazonThe three-pack covers up to 3,000 square feet with high performance WiFi 6. The two units all work together to provide your whole household and even your backyard with uninterrupted internet. And if you find that still isnt enough to cover every corner of your home, you can easily add an additional eero node to your network to expand it even further.Each router unit has two built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports and youll be able to connect over 75 devices over WiFi with download speeds of up to 500 Mbps. Confidently stream 4K video and games from anywhere in your home. Cloud gaming is becoming bigger and better with each passing year, with many new TVs supporting the Xbox app out of the box. You wont even need a gaming system to start getting into the action. Both the router and extenders run off a USB-C power port.Additionally, each eero can work as a Zigbee smart home hub. This makes it super easy to connect and control compatible devices on your network that work with you Amazon Alexa. Likewise, the eero mesh system is Apple Homekit-enabled, working with all of your HomeKit accessories and allowing them to communicate within your home and through the internet.Convenience and controlThe eero smartphone app makes it all very simple, walking your through setup plus allows you to manage your network from anywhere. Youll be able to see whats happening on your network, check device usage, and share network access with your guests. Premium services are available with an eero Plus subscription, granting you advanced digital security, network controls, and even more helpful insights like threats blocked.This is a limited time offer so do not hesitate to grab your two-pack of Amazons eero WiFi 6 mesh system today before its no longer $55 off.See at Amazon

How does a fly larva sneak into a termite nest? With a butt shaped like a termites head, obviously. An international team of researchers in Morocco has discovered blow fly larvae not just living but thriving inside a termite colony. This potentially new species has evolved remarkable adaptations to evade the colonys soldier termites, which swiftly dismember intruders. Its survival tricks include a termite-head-shaped derriere, antennae-like tentacles, and the ability to mimic the colonys distinctive scent. The strategy is clearly working because the researchers observed the termites caring for the intruders. This is a chance finding. In our research group we mainly study butterflies and ants. As it had rained a lot and the butterflies were not flying, we looked for ants. When we lifted a stone we found a termite mound with three fly larvae that we had never seen before, Roger Vila, a biologist at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology, said in a Spanish National Research Council statement. It must be an extremely rare species, because we have made three more expeditions in that area and, despite lifting hundreds of stones, we found only two more flies, together, in another termite mound, he added. As detailed in a study published Monday in the journal Current Biology, the researchers identified a so-called termite mask on the rear end of the blow fly larvae: a head-shaped appendage complete with non-functional antennae and palps (appendages near the mouth related to touch and taste), all exactly the same size as those of large harvester termites. As if that wasnt impressive enough, the larvaes breathing holes look like eyes on the termite mask. Most termites live several meters deep and have no visual perception. However, harvester termites come out at dusk to collect grass, so they have functional eyes that the larvae are able to mimic with their spiracles [breathing holes], Vila explained.As termites have not yet invented artificial lighting (and seeing how easily theyre fooled, they wont for a very long time), members of the same colony identify their fellows by using their antennae to smell and touch each other. But the larvae clearly already know this, since Vila and his colleagues also identified numerous other antenna-like tentacles along their bodies, which they suggest help the baby flies communicate with (trick) more than one termite at a time. Moreover, they have also found a way to mimic the termites smell. We quantified the chemical composition of these larvae and the result is surprising: they are indistinguishable from the termites in the colony where they live; they smell exactly the same, said Vila. In addition, the larvae and termites in a particular colony have slight differences in their chemical profile that differentiate them from other termite mounds. This odor is key to interacting with the termites and benefiting from their communal life. It is a chemical disguise.And benefit they do. After transferring the larvae and termite colony into a lab, the researchers noted that the larvae usually hung out in the most trafficked area of the termite nest. There, their unknowing termite hosts preened them and may have even fed them, though the researchers admit that this latter behavior needs to be confirmed. Additionally, the larvae we studied eventually died without metamorphosing, so there may be elements of the nest and the symbiotic relationship between the termites and the flies that we were unable to transfer to the laboratory. Their diet is currently unknown, and their adult form remains a mystery, Vila pointed out. The researchers noted that humpback flies also demonstrate masking behaviors, with one main difference: they mimic termites as adults, not in their larval stages. Furthermore, the common ancestor of blow flies and humpback flies dates back more than 150 million years, much further than that which separates humans from mice. We are therefore confident that we have discovered a new case of social integration evolution, said Vila.The researchers also revealed that, within the blow fly family, the new fly is a member of the genus Rhyncomya. As scientists are not aware of any other Rhyncomya flies demonstrating this sort of unique lifestyle, the researchers consequently speculate that the species must have evolved quickly. Ultimately, the researchers make the rather unique claim of being the first to observe a blow fly living in disguise among termitessuccessfully, anyway. Who knows how many failed pretenders were dismembered by soldier termites before they got the camouflage right.

The Timeless Appeal of Modernism in Technology and Digital ArchitectureSave this picture!Lloyd's of London Building / Richard Rogers. Image Diliff, via Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 3.0Modernism, a movement that sought to break away from traditional forms and embrace the future, laid the groundwork for many technological and digital advancements in contemporary architecture. As the Industrial Revolution brought about mass production, new materials, and technological innovation, architects like Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe championed the ethos of "form follows function" and a rational approach to design. Their principles resonate in the digital age, where computational design and high-tech materials redefine form and construction.The 20th century's modernist ideals efficiency, simplicity, and functionality created a foundation for architects to experiment with structural clarity and material honesty. High-tech architecture, which emerged in the late 20th century, evolved from these principles, merging modernism's clean lines with advanced engineering and technology. This paved the way for parametricism and algorithm-driven design processes, revolutionizing architecture and enabling complex forms previously thought impossible.Today, digital tools, such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), parametric software, and 3D printing, are deeply rooted in modernist ideals. They streamline design and construction processes, reflecting modernism's pursuit of progress and technological integration. But how did these principles directly influence the digital turn in architecture? Related Article The Continued Relevance of Models in Architecture's Digital Era Modernist Principles and Their Influence on the Digital AgeModernism's legacy extends beyond its physical forms, influencing the conceptual frameworks and technological advancements that define contemporary architecture. Central to this transition is the modernist pursuit of clarity, logic, and the integration of new technologies principles that resonate deeply with the computational tools and processes shaping today's design practices.Save this picture!In "Space, Time, and Architecture", Sigfried Giedion presented modernism as an architectural response to the industrial age, where technology not only transformed construction techniques but also reshaped cultural paradigms. For Giedion, modernism sought to express the dynamics of a rapidly evolving society through spatial reconfigurations and material innovation. These ideas prefigure how digital tools, such as algorithmic modeling and parametric design, allow architects to address complex contemporary challenges with precision and adaptability. By redefining spatial logic, projects like Le Corbusier's Villa Savoye demonstrate how modernism's functional clarity and rational design principles continue to inform the digital realm. The pilotis and open plan of the villa, for example, resonate with parametricism's ability to optimize both form and function seamlessly.Save this picture!Likewise, Kenneth Frampton, in "Modern Architecture: A Critical History", highlighted the rational methodologies modernists used to balance aesthetic aspirations with functional requirements. These principles are evident in works like Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion, where the honest expression of materials and the simplicity of form prioritize efficiency and spatial clarity. Frampton's analysis highlights the bridge between modernist logic and the efficiency-driven innovations of the digital age, where rational processes underpin architectural creativity. Today, similar principles support the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM), which enhances workflows and integrates materials, structure, and design.Save this picture!In "The Second Digital Turn: Design Beyond Intelligence", Mario Carpo extends this conversation by exploring how digital tools diverge from modernist mechanization to enable non-standard forms and mass customization. While modernism championed standardized processes, digital design thrives on flexibility and variation. Yet, the link between the two remains evident in their shared emphasis on progress and innovation. High-tech architecture, as seen in Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano's Centre Pompidou, exemplifies this continuity. The building's exposed systems and modular approach embody modernist ideals of transparency and adaptability and foreshadow the computational possibilities of today's architecture.Save this picture!The influence of modernism on digital design is further illuminated by figures like Cedric Price and Greg Lynn. Price's unbuilt Fun Palace envisioned architecture as an adaptable, programmable system a concept realized in contemporary practices through parametric tools and responsive environments. Similarly, Greg Lynn's digitally-driven experiments push the boundaries of form while maintaining a connection to modernism's structural rationality. Projects like Lynn's Embryological House demonstrate how digital tools reimagine modernist ideals of functional adaptability and technological integration.Save this picture!Charles Jencks, in his writings on Postmodernism, argued that modernism laid the groundwork for the pluralistic, hybridized approaches that define contemporary architecture. The transition to digital design reflects this lineage, where modernist principles of simplicity and order are reinterpreted through computational tools to achieve greater complexity and nuance. Through his theoretical and built work, Peter Eisenman challenged modernism's formal rigidity while embracing its analytical rigor. His digitally influenced projects, like the City of Culture of Galicia, demonstrate how digital methods extend modernist explorations of space and abstraction into new dimensions.Save this picture!Save this picture!Projects themselves serve as markers of this transition. The modularity and structural logic of Moshe Safdie's Habitat 67, for example, echo the modernist ethos while foreshadowing the prefabrication and mass-customization techniques achievable through contemporary digital design. Meanwhile, Zaha Hadid's Heydar Aliyev Center, with its fluid, parametric forms, reflects a digital reimagining of Le Corbusier's principles of continuous surfaces and dynamic spatial relationships.Save this picture!By bridging the gap between the industrial and digital revolutions, modernism provided the intellectual and practical foundations for the computational tools shaping contemporary architecture. Its emphasis on clarity, functionality, and innovation continues to inspire architects, as they reinterpret these principles to address the complexities of the present. The digital turn does not signify a departure but rather an evolution of modernism's core ideals, ensuring their relevance in an increasingly technological world.Save this picture!The High-Tech Movement: A Modernist Legacy and Its Digital ContinuationThe High-Tech movement emerged in the latter half of the 20th century as an evolution of modernism, maintaining its commitment to structural clarity, functionality, and innovation while embracing advancements in engineering and materials. Rooted in modernist principles, high-tech architecture redefined the relationship between form, function, and technology, celebrating infrastructure as an integral part of its aesthetic and performance. This legacy has further evolved in the digital age, where computational tools and parametric design extend modernism's ideals into new realms.Save this picture!Norman Foster, a leading figure in the movement, epitomized this synthesis. Projects such as the Faber & Dumas Headquarters, with its glass curtain walls and lightweight materials, exemplify modernism's aspiration to dissolve barriers between interior and exterior spaces while showcasing emerging material innovations. A similar strategy as Cedric Price's Fun Palace project with its dynamic and programmable spaces where users could redefine environments according to their needs. This speculative design challenged conventional notions of architectural permanence and foreshadowed the adaptability later made possible through parametric design and digital modeling.Save this picture!This conceptual leap from modernist pragmatism to speculative, technology-driven designs also resonates in the work of the previously mentioned architects, Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano. By exposing infrastructure and embracing modularity, their projects maintained modernism's principles of honesty in materials while fostering flexibility and user-centered designsomething Eduardo Souto de Moura explored in Viana do Castelo Cultural Centre in the early 2010s. In doing so, the High-Tech movement effectively bridges modernism's minimalist ethos with the expansive computational possibilities of the digital age.Save this picture!Save this picture!The legacy of High-Tech architecture's modular and adaptable frameworks also resonates in digital practices. During the 1980s, Peter Eisenman explored the deconstruction of architectural form and space, challenging the static, linear paradigms of modernism. Projects like the House Series delved into the fragmentation of form while maintaining the analytical rigor associated with modernist design. These explorations laid the intellectual groundwork for computational architecture, where algorithms and digital tools would later reinterpret and expand upon modernism's structural and spatial logic.Save this picture!Save this picture!Parametricism, as articulated by Patrik Schumacher, represents a natural progression of modernist rationality and experimentation. Projects like Hadid's MAXXI Museum in Rome use algorithms to generate adaptive spaces responsive to user needs and environmental contexts. This aligns with modernism's belief in architecture's capacity to address societal challenges through innovation and forward-thinking design.Save this picture!High-tech architects also drew inspiration from earlier modernist explorations of prefabrication and efficiency. Jean Prouv's prefabricated designs, for instance, resonate in Norman Foster's Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, where prefabricated components reduced waste while allowing structural flexibility. Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes, though predating the High-Tech movement, established a language of efficiency and innovation that architects like Foster and Rogers adapted through advancements in engineering. Rogers's Lloyd's Building exemplifies this continuity, using prefabrication and exposed infrastructure to achieve clarity, optimization, and adaptability.Save this picture!Save this picture!High-Tech's influence also extended to urban design. Cedric Price's Potteries Thinkbelt, though unbuilt, proposed a network of adaptable, technology-driven educational spaces. This systems-based approach challenged the static urbanism of earlier modernism, advocating for dynamic, decentralized solutions that anticipated the responsive urban environments of today's smart cities.Save this picture!By tracing this lineage, it becomes evident that modernism is not a relic but a dynamic framework that continues to evolve. High-tech architecture's emphasis on systems, adaptability, and material innovation laid the groundwork for computational tools and parametric design. Together, these movements uphold modernism's ideals of rationality, progress, and innovation, ensuring its principles remain profoundly relevant in addressing the complexities of the present and future. The result is not a departure but a continuation a testament to modernism's enduring influence on architecture's capacity to imagine and create transformative spaces.This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: 100 Years of Modernism. Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and architecture projects. We invite you to learn more about our ArchDaily Topics. And, as always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us.Image gallerySee allShow lessAbout this authorDiogo Borges FerreiraAuthorCite: Diogo Borges Ferreira. "The Timeless Appeal of Modernism in Technology and Digital Architecture" 13 Feb 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1026333/the-timeless-appeal-of-modernism-in-technology-and-digital-architecture&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream