Journalists love a good tech prototype. These exciting experiments break up the monotony of covering the same incremental refreshes day-in and day-out.They also come with a downside: As attention grabbing as they are, theres no guarantee that theyll ever actually come to market.Thats why covering them can be a bit tricky, as it can be difficult to decide how much attention to give a product consumers might never actually see. Luckily, Lenovo actually made good on one of its earlier promises at CES this year, showing off a rollable laptop thats set to launch sometime in 2025. Now, the company has three additional concepts it's showing off for Mobile World Congress, all of them arguably as cool.A foldable spin on that CES rollable screen Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt First, theres the ThinkBook Flip AI PC, which you can think of as a more affordable take on that rolling laptop from CES. Rather than having some of the screen hidden inside the laptop and unfurling like a scroll, this laptops screen folds over the top-half of the device, stretching across both the sides of the lid. Using your hands, you can unfold it to get an especially tall vertical display, or, alternately, mirror the front of your screen to the backside for presentations. Or, you could use the laptop in a sort of tablet mode while its closed. Its similar to existing devices like the Yoga Book 9i, sure, but unlike on those, the screen is continuous and the keyboard is built into the device. Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt There are upsides and downsides to this approach. Because theres no need to house a rolling mechanism, the Flip AI PC is actually able to get a little taller than a rollable laptop, but at the same time, its also a bit more top heavy, so you cant use the fully extended screen at a steep angle without extra support.Snap-on laptop monitors Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt Also in the realm of extended laptop displays are the Magic Bay Dual Display and 2nd Display laptop accessories. Technically, this isnt the first time Lenovos shown off concepts for Magic Bay, existing technology that allows certain accessories to snap onto pogo pins on the back of some ThinkBook laptops. Those have even included secondary displays before, but this years ideas definitely are a bit more involved.Starting smaller, the Magic Bay 2nd Display is an 8-inch vertical screen that complements a laptop with a (non-touch) tablet-like companion. Its similar to the 10-inch horizontal panel that sits above your laptop screen that Lenovo showed off at last years CES, and coincidentally recalls my husbands own desktop setup. As handy as it seemsits even on a hinge for a customizable angle its nonetheless overshadowed by Lenovos other Magic Bay display concept. Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt The Magic Bay Dual Display turns your laptop into a three-monitor workstation, with additional 13.3-inch screens on either side of your device, complete with a 120Hz refresh rate across both. At 2.6 pounds, it's rather heavy, so it comes with a built-in kickstand. This isnt the first time Ive seen an idea like this, but when I saw this in person, I was impressed by how much more intuitive the connection process seems compared to current third-party alternatives.A solar-powered laptop Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt Outside of the realm of screens, theres also an experimental solar-powered laptop that can charge off sunlight, called the Yoga Solar PC. It works through a solar cell built into the back of the laptops lid, which Lenovo says has an over 24% solar energy conversion rate and can charge up enough to play one hour of video within about 20 minutes of direct sunlight. I didnt get to see it in action, seeing as I was in a dark room while Lenovo was showing it off, but I can say the solar technology doesnt seem like its impacting the form factor too much. It was plenty thin looking to my naked eye, and the company says its 0.6-inches thin and 2.69 pounds. If thats still too big for you, Lenovo did also show off the Solar Power Kit for Yoga concept, which is a standard battery bank that connects to a detachable USB-C solar panel (I didnt see this one in person). Credit: Lenovo Evolutions on earlier concepts Credit: Lenovo While I got to see (most of) the above concepts in person, the company also has a few iterative changes on earlier ideas, and showed that its prototyping out its own version of competing devices. These include a glasses-less 3D ThinkBook, similar to devices that Asus and Acer already have on the market, as well as an AI-powered robotic companion named Tiko that would attach to laptops via Magic Bay. For more functionality, theres also a Tiko Pro in the works, a small horizontal Magic Bay display that combines the advantages of the 2nd Display with AI-powered widgets. Again, weve seen versions of these either from competitors or at previous Lenovo concept announcements, but theyre still worth keeping an eye on. A bit more exciting is the Hybrid Dimensional 24-Inch Curved Monitor, which can supposedly display 3D visuals while simultaneously showing 2D assets without any loss in resolution, although this needs to be seen with your own eye to really be judged, and I have yet to get hands-on time with it.Bringing AI to non-AI PCs Credit: Lenovo Finally, there are tools to bring AI to non-AI PCs. Lenovo says its experimenting with two dedicated neural processing units, or NPUs, that can connect to existing PCs either through a USB stick or a monitor. Working like an external graphics card, the Lenovo AI Stick contains a 32TOPS NPU that can plug into a computer without an NPU over Thunderbolt to allow it to run LLMs and AI graphics tools locally. It can work off just the laptops own power, but Lenovo says you can also plug it into a wall at the same time for increased performance. Meanwhile, the AI Display with NPU Inside does much the same thing, but rather than including the NPU in a hub-like structure, builds it right into your monitor. This comes with the added benefit of allowing the screen to physically rotate, elevate and tilt to follow your movements, but like most monitors, its much bulkier and does need to be plugged into a wall at all times. Lenovo also says its working on an AI Ring that would provide gesture-based control while in spatial computing apps, although the company didnt go into much detail beyond that.And thats it on Lenovos MWC concepts. Its a pretty wide array. Again, none of these are guaranteed to come to market, but that does mean they get to be a bit wackier than the typical product announcement. Personally, Id love to get my hands on the Magic Bay Dual Display, and I could see the AI Stick being useful to developers. In the meantime, the company also announced a number of chip upgrades for its existing ThinkPad, ThinkBook, IdeaPad, and Yoga laptops that will start hitting the market with the new Yoga 7 2-in-1 and IdeaPad Slim 3x this month.

The ThinkBook line has sort of become Lenovos de facto testing ground for far-out ideas and ambitious concepts. See the ThinkBook Plus Gen 6 Rollable we saw just a couple months ago at CES. But at MWC 2025, the company is pushing things further than ever through the new ThinkBook 16p Gen 6 and four of its display accessories which range from practical add-ons to something thats more like a Tamagotchi.The ThinkBook 16P powering all of Lenovos crazy concept accessories isnt all that different from the company's previous 16-inch workstations. It sports up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 2785HX chip with as much as 64GB of RAM, 2TB of PCIe storage and an NVIDIA RTX 5070 GPU. You get the choice of either a 3.2K IPS display with a 165Hz refresh rate or a slightly lower-res 2.5K IPS panel with a faster 240Hz refresh. Theres also plenty of connectivity including dual Thunderbolt 4 ports, three USB-A jacks, a full-size HDMI 2.1 and a card reader.Lenovo's Magic Bay 2nd Display Concept attached to the ThinkBook 16p Gen 6.Sam Rutherford for EngadgetOne interesting addition is that Lenovo included a discrete NPU (separate from its main chip) that offers up to 32 TOPS of additional performance. This should provide a nice boost, particularly for anyone who needs to run demanding AI tasks locally. That said, for the rest of us lay folk, its largely unnecessary.However, the real spectacle is Lenovos assortment of accessories. They all connect to the ThinkBook 16P using the companys Magic Bay docking system, which was first introduced to this product family a couple generations ago. For people who constantly yearn for extra space to multitask while traveling, Lenovo has two add-ons to choose from. The Magic Bay 2nd Display Concept is a small 8-inch screen that attaches magnetically to the ThinkBook 16P. It can be used simply as an external monitor or as an AI dashboard that displays widgets, messaging apps and other tools.On the flipside, the Magic Bay Dual Display Concept adds not one but two additional 13.3-inch panels that flank the notebooks primary screen, giving you a huge amount of real estate for pretty much anything. In addition to using the laptops mounting system, this prototype also features a built-in kickstand to help keep the whole contraption stable. This is important because while it is rather complicated compared to most accessories, once you get everything set up, it really does a good job of recreating the multi-monitor workstations people have at home or in their office.Lenovo Magic Bay Tiko Pro Concept displayLenovoAs for Lenovos remaining two concepts, they are so new the company wasnt able to show them off during my preview session. The Tiko Pro Concept looks like an even more streamlined take on 2nd Display, as its a slim panel with an extra-wide aspect ratio thats meant to sit across the top of the laptops display, sort of like an external notification shade. Meanwhile, the non-pro Tiko Concept is a circular screen that houses an AI companion with its own set of emoji-based faces, gesture-based responses and more.In case thats not enough, Lenovo even teased a cat-themed headband that adds little ears to your robotic friend. At this point, you may be asking how the Tiko is supposed to increase your productivity? And for that, I can only guess that having a friendly face around might boost your mood and thus improve your productivity. Or at the very least, it could be a more charming way of seeing stuff like Slack reactions. Honestly, I have no idea, and Im not sure Lenovo does either.Now I have to stress again that all of these accessories are concepts, so theres no guarantee that theyll ever officially go on sale. Lenovo says they are merely prototypes meant to help expand and explore how its Magic Bay docking system could be used in the future. But in a time when so many PC makers seem to be having trouble thinking up ways to innovate, its clear Lenovo isnt being shy about thinking outside the box.Sadly, the ThinkBook 16P Gen 6 is not slated to be available in North America, but for those in Europe and Asia, keep an eye out for it to go on sale sometime this spring or summer.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/lenovo-gave-its-latest-16-inch-thinkbook-a-bevy-of-funky-concept-screen-accessories-230008238.html?src=rss

I love a game that screams things like neato! and godlike! while Im feverishly pressing buttons and darting my eyes around the screen, trying to make my fingers work as fast as my brain. My skills in the Playdate game XTRIS are definitely not godlike, but theres just something about that classic arcade announcer voice that makes me think each time, this is the one where Ill finally crack the leaderboard. (It never is). XTRIS is a $4 game by Fletch Makes Stuff thatll have you chasing a moving X around a board made up of either four, five or six tiles. The timers set to 60 seconds, and in that time you have to land on the X as many times as possible. Each X you collect will go tumbling dramatically off the grid and be added to your score, which is faintly displayed in the background. If it sounds easy, its not. The X moves fast, and as you race after your target using the D-pad to control the movement of a black square, things become increasingly intense. The music builds like an alarm thats telling you time is almost up, and flames start shooting up from the bottom of the screen. All the while, the announcer (voiced by Jordan Carroll) is shouting words of encouragement that start to feel a little ominous by the end. Its wonderfully chaotic. Despite the relatively simple presentation, XTRIS really lives up to its promise of being a juicy arcade action directly into the palm of your hand. For each of the three levels Tetromino, Bridge and Squiggle youll be able to see how other players scored, and how you stack up against them. And once youve played a certain level a few times, youll be shown your own score trends to see how youre improving (or plateauing). I keep telling myself, just one more try when I finish a round, and we all know how that goes. Theres a Zen Mode for each level as well, so you can work on your dexterity without the time crunch and with a chiller track playing. If you poke around in the menu, you can also find some unlockable characters and symbols to switch up the appearance of the game, swapping the X for something like a frog or a slice of pizza. XTRIS is available now on the Playdate Catalog.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/xtris-is-a-fast-paced-arcade-style-playdate-game-you-wont-be-able-to-put-down-224738429.html?src=rss

Congratulations to all the nominees!The Oscar for Best Visual Effects at the 97th Academy Awards was awarded to Dune: Part Two (Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer).Here was the acceptance speech:Paul Lambert: Thank you once again to the Academy. Thanks to Brice Parker, Jason Garber, our amazing cast and crew, all my fellow haitre ds, producers, production, Legendary, Warner Brothers, DNEG, Wylie Co., Rodeo, Territory, the incredible MPC, and of course our visionary director Denis Villeneuve. To my wonderful wife Mags and my two boys Boston and Jackson, who are again sat up there in the roof. Thank you.Stephen James: Thank you to everyone at DNEG and all of their families, and this is dedicated to Linda. Thank you.Gerd Nefzer: [Speaks German] Denis, thank you. Big thank you to my wife and my family, my daughter Janna, my son Luca, my mother Elke, my father-in-law Karl, who brought me in this business 38 years ago. What a great evening.Here are the other nominees.Alien: Romulus (Eric Barba, Nelson Sepulveda-Fauser, Daniel Macarin and Shane Mahan)Better Man (Luke Millar, David Clayton, Keith Herft and Peter Stubbs)Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (Erik Winquist, Stephen Unterfranz, Paul Story and Rodney Burke)Wicked (Pablo Helman, Jonathan Fawkner, David Shirk and Paul Corbould)The post And the VFX Oscar went toDune: Part Two appeared first on befores & afters.

Rolling dice is a lie. Think about itmost dice are meant to be thrown, tossed, chucked with reckless abandon across the table. But the ForgeMaster Dice? These are actually rolled. They glide, they spin, they tumble with a strange, almost hypnotic smoothness, like a miniature roulette wheel deciding your fate. It feels weird at first, but then something clicksliterally. The embedded magnets snap the die into place, locking in your result with a soft, satisfying clack. Its less of a chaotic gamble and more of a mesmerizing ritual, like watching gears turn inside a clockwork machine.The moment you pick one up, you realize this isnt your average polyhedral set. Traditional dice are just weighted lumps of resin or metal, but these? These are a mechanical marvel. Each D20 is precision-machined from aerospace-grade aluminum, with 77 carefully placed magnets ensuring every roll is fair and balanced. And thats just the start. The D20 splits apart, revealing its secret tricka mini roulette spinner hiding inside. Its the kind of clever, borderline ridiculous design that makes you want to roll again just to see it in action.Designer: thorns tavernClick Here to Buy Now: $99 $159 ($50 off) Hurry! Only 6 Days Left.Lets just take a second to talk about exactly how different this dice looks from traditional dice. If dwarves had a high-tech research lab, this is what their dice would look likeindustrial, heavy, and full of intricate little details that scream craftsmanship. The anodized aluminum finish gives them a medieval-meets-sci-fi aesthetic, like something an artificer would pull out of their satchel before muttering, Lets leave this to chance. Stainless steel bearings keep the motion buttery smooth, while the copper accents add a warmth that makes them feel like a relic of some forgotten age. They dont just roll well; they look like they belong in a glass display case.Unlike traditional dice that rely on physics alone, the ForgeMaster Dice incorporate 77 strategically placed magnets to ensure fair and consistent rolls. These magnets create a unique rolling action, where the dice tumble in a controlled yet unpredictable manner, landing with an oddly satisfying click as they lock into place, leaving absolutely zero ambiguity.The ForgeMaster Dice arent just fun to roll; theyre fun to play with between turns. That D20? It splits apart and transforms into a tiny roulette-style fidget spinner. Its the kind of detail that makes you want to keep rolling, just to watch it work. You can feel the magnetic pull as it locks back together, like some kind of arcane puzzle box. If youve ever been the type to endlessly click a pen or shuffle poker chips while thinking, these dice will hijack your brains need for tactile engagement.Even the weight of them feels deliberate. Heavy enough to feel substantial but not like youre lugging around a bag of ball bearings. The balance is spot-on, thanks to CNC machining down to 0.01mm precisionsomething you usually hear in engineering circles, not D&D accessories. The laser-engraved numbers are crisp and easy to read, even in dim lighting. No more squinting at a glittery resin die under candlelight, trying to tell if you rolled a 9 or a 6. And if youre the kind of player who customizes everything, the modular design lets you swap out materials, colors, and even numerical engravings. Your rogue can have a sleek, stealthy black set, while your bard can flaunt a flashy, metallic gold version.From a practical standpoint, the durability of these dice is outstanding. Unlike resin dice that can chip or crack over time, the aerospace-grade aluminum alloy ensures that these will last through years of campaigns, convention trips, and dramatic table-flipping moments. The combination of materials also makes them resistant to corrosion, ensuring they maintain their luster and precision long after their first roll.Its rare for dice to be this satisfying to use. Sure, there are plenty of premium metal dice out there, but the ForgeMaster Dice go beyond aesthetics and into the realm of actual gameplay enhancement. They roll smoother, feel better, and add a layer of tactile joy that makes you want to keep playing. And honestly? Thats exactly what a great gaming accessory should dokeep you coming back to the table, eager for the next adventure.For TTRPG enthusiasts looking to elevate their gaming experience, the ForgeMaster Dice offer something truly special. They merge the ancient appeal of finely crafted tools with cutting-edge engineering, creating a set of dice that are as enjoyable to roll as they are to admire. Whether youre chasing that elusive nat 20 or just enjoying the feel of cold metal clicking in your palm, these dice turn a simple game mechanic into an immersive ritual.The ForgeMaster was forged by the fine folks at Thorns Tavern, whove been dabbling in the gaming space since 2012. The baton-shaped gaming apparatus measures a cool 8.27 inches (210mm) in length, giving you a 3.7-inch (94mm) handle to hold firmly onto as you pray to your gods/angels/relics before rolling a number or a series of numbers. The ForgeMaster weighs less than half a pound (220 grams), which does make it significantly heavier than any regular resin die but take my word, once your hands feel the magic of the ForgeMaster, youll never want to revert to the archaic, boring polyhedral die ever again. Each ForgeMaster comes in a deluxe box with a storage pouch, a lanyard, and a toolkit to help modify/customize your die. You can choose between gold, silver, or black variants, with the ForgeMaster shipping globally starting June 2025.Click Here to Buy Now: $99 $159 ($50 off) Hurry! Only 6 Days Left.The post These Magnetic Dice Roll Like a Mini Roulette WheelAnd Its Changing TTRPG Games Forever first appeared on Yanko Design.

Hulu subscribers following the Oscars ceremony on Sunday night were outraged when the streaming service ended its broadcast of the event before the awards show was actually over. Viewers saw a thank you for watching message that falsely claimed the live event has now ended despite the fact that the Best Actress and Best Picture awards were still to come. Social media platforms immediately lit up with complaints.It proved to be a rough night for the Disney-owned service. A few hours earlier, Hulu acknowledged that some customers were having issues logging in: that problem was rectified slightly before 9PM ET. But shutting off the live stream ahead of the evenings biggest announcement was an even more embarassing blunder. The error likely stems from Hulu giving the Oscars stream a set ending time of 10:32PM. Thats exactly when viewers were kicked out of the stream. As usual, several acceptance speeches ran long on Sunday night, and Hulus chosen cutoff time didnt allow for enough wiggle room for an often-unpredictable broadcast. I dont know how were still having these streaming mishaps in 2025 especially from the company that owns the rights to the Oscars telecast but here we are.The Verge has reached out to Hulu for an explanation as to just what went wrong on Hollywoods biggest night.

LLMs have demonstrated strong reasoning capabilities in domains such as mathematics and coding, with models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini gaining widespread attention. The release of GPT -4 has further intensified interest in enhancing reasoning abilities through improved inference techniques. A key challenge in this area is enabling LLMs to detect and correct errors in their outputsa process known as self-correction. While models can refine responses using external ground-truth reward signals, this approach introduces computational overhead, requiring running multiple models during inference. Studies have shown that accuracy can still improve even when reward feedback is derived from proxy models. However, without external guidance, current LLMs struggle to self-correct based solely on intrinsic reasoning. Recent efforts explore using LLMs as evaluators, where models generate reward signals through instruction-following mechanisms rather than pre-trained reward functions.Related research on self-rewarding alignment has investigated methods for integrating response generation and evaluation within a single LLM. Iterative fine-tuning approaches enable models to label their outputs, providing learning signals that drive self-improvement. Self-correction studies have demonstrated that while teacher-assisted training enhances reflection in conversational tasks, intrinsic self-correction for reasoning remains unreliable without additional supervision. Most prior work depends on external reward models to determine when corrections should be made, leading to increased inference costs. Rule-based reinforcement learning has also been explored as an alternative, with recent advancements showing that certain pre-trained models naturally exhibit self-correction behaviors. However, replicating these results across different architectures remains challenging, as performance improvements are often linked to proprietary training data and specialized model design.Researchers from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of Maryland, College Park, explore self-rewarding reasoning in LLMs, enabling them to generate reasoning steps, evaluate their correctness, and refine responses without external feedback. Their two-stage framework first uses sequential rejection sampling to construct long chain-of-thought (CoT) trajectories that embed self-rewarding and self-correction behaviors. Fine-tuning on this data helps models learn these patterns, which are further improved using reinforcement learning with rule-based signals. Experiments with Llama-3 and Qwen-2.5 show that this approach enhances self-correction and matches the performance of models relying on external rewards.Self-rewarding reasoning in language models is framed as a multi-turn Markov Decision Process (MDP). The model generates an initial response and evaluates its answer. If deemed correct, it stops; otherwise, it refines the response iteratively. This approach follows a two-stage training framework: self-rewarding instruction fine-tuning (IFT) and RL. The IFT stage involves sequential rejection sampling to collect reasoning trajectories, while RL optimizes correctness assessment using KL-regularized training. Unlike traditional RLHF, this method employs oracle rewards to prevent reward hacking. Experiments demonstrate its effectiveness in improving mathematical reasoning accuracy through structured self-correction and verification processes.The study evaluates mathematical reasoning models using datasets like MATH500, OlympiadBench, and Minerva Math, assessing performance through metrics such as initial and final accuracy, self-correction improvements, and reward model accuracy. Baseline methods like STaR/RAFT and intrinsic self-correction show limited effectiveness, often leading to unnecessary modifications and accuracy drops. In contrast, self-rewarding reasoning models consistently enhance accuracy and correction efficiency while minimizing incorrect changes. Fine-tuning on self-generated corrections significantly improves the models ability to refine errors without overcorrection. This approach outperforms traditional methods by integrating self-rewarding signals, leading to more reliable mathematical reasoning capabilities.In conclusion, the study introduces a self-rewarding reasoning framework for LLMs, improving self-correction and computational efficiency. By integrating self-rewarding IFT and reinforcement learning, the model detects and refines errors using past attempts and internal reward signals. Experiments with Llama-3 and Qwen-2.5 show superior performance over intrinsic self-correction. Future improvements include addressing reward model accuracy issues, enhancing reinforcement learning in later training stages, and exploring multi-turn RL methods. A two-stage approachsequential rejection sampling for reasoning patterns and reinforcement learning with rule-based signalsenables step-by-step correction without external feedback, offering a scalable, efficient solution for mathematical reasoning.Check outthe Paper and GitHub Page.All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also,feel free to follow us onTwitterand dont forget to join our80k+ ML SubReddit. Sana HassanSana Hassan, a consulting intern at Marktechpost and dual-degree student at IIT Madras, is passionate about applying technology and AI to address real-world challenges. With a keen interest in solving practical problems, he brings a fresh perspective to the intersection of AI and real-life solutions.Sana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Stanford Researchers Uncover Prompt Caching Risks in AI APIs: Revealing Security Flaws and Data VulnerabilitiesSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Beyond a Single LLM: Advancing AI Through Multi-Model CollaborationSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/LongPO: Enhancing Long-Context Alignment in LLMs Through Self-Optimized Short-to-Long Preference LearningSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Enhancing Instruction Tuning in LLMs: A Diversity-Aware Data Selection Strategy Using Sparse Autoencoders Recommended Open-Source AI Platform: IntellAgent is a An Open-Source Multi-Agent Framework to Evaluate Complex Conversational AI System' (Promoted)

There hasnt been a clear favorite for theBest Picture Oscar all season. Even as the 97th Academy Awards unfolded, it wasnt initially obvious who would take home the top prize. Several of the bigger contenders took home multiple prizes.The Brutalistwon for Best Cinematography and Best Original Score, as well as Best Actor for Adrien Brody.Emilia Perezwon Best Supporting Actress for Zoe Saldana and Best Original Song.Wickedwon Best Costume Design and Best Production Design. EvenDune: Part Twotook home prizes for Best Sound and Best Visual Effects.But little by little, you began to notice thatAnora was winning prize after prize and it was winning nearly all of the major awards. The films writer/director/editor, Sean Baker, won three prizes. And he wonawards for each of those roles: Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Editor.Then the films star, Mikey Madison, won Best Actress in perhaps the biggest upset at this years Oscars, defeating Demi Moore inThe Substance who had previously beatenher for the same prize at this years Golden Globes. And then, when Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal opened the Best Picture envelope on the stage of the Dolby Theatre,the cardthey pulled from the envelope read Anora too.In doing so, that gave Baker an honor that has never happened before in the history of movies: He is the first filmmaker to win four Oscars for his work on a single film.NeonNeonloading...READ MORE: The 13 Biggest Oscars Scandals EverAnorais the second Best Picture winner in six years for indie distributor Neon, who previously released 2019s Best Picture champ,Parasite.Last years Best Picture winner was Christopher Nolans blockbuster biopicOppenheimer.You can read the full list of winners at this years Academy Awards here. You can read ScreenCrushs review ofAnora here, and if you want to see where it landed on our own list of the best movies of 2024, you can read that here.Actors Who Won Oscars For Their First Movie Roles

The CompanySimplyAnalytics is a powerful spatial analytics and data visualization application used by thousands of business, marketing, and social science researchers in the United States and Canada. It comes pre-packaged with 200,000+ data variables and allows our users to create maps, charts, tabular reports, and crosstabs. We are passionate about creating outstanding software, and we believe in test driven development, continuous integration, and code review.As a smaller company, each of our developers has an important role to play - at SimplyAnalytics, you are not just another cog in the wheel, you are an integral member of our team. You will be working on valuable features and making key decisions that impact the direction of the product and our users. In addition, we provide an excellent work-life balance, with 100% remote work, 20 personal days off, flexible work hours, a collaborative work environment, and quarterly professional development days to explore and share your interests with the rest of the team.The RoleWe're looking for a Senior Frontend Developer to take on an important role in the development and maintenance of our cutting edge analytics and data visualization application. You'll be developing and maintaining production-quality in-house tools and customer-facing features within a large shared code base.The ideal candidate has experience working on complex single-page applications, is a self-starter, has a high level of attention to detail, is comfortable asking questions, enjoys working with talented colleagues, and has an interest in analytics and data visualization.We are a 100% remote company. Our employees can live and work anywhere in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Central America, or South America. This is a full-time salaried position. When applying, please include a cover letter.Responsibilities:Design, develop, and test features, both in-house and customer-facingWrite modern high-quality, clean, scalable, and maintainable codeContribute ideas for new features or improvements to existing featuresAssist colleagues through code-review, collaboration, and troubleshootingRequired:8+ years of professional software development experience on large, structured code bases using vanilla JavaScript (this is not a React, Angular, Node.js, or full-stack position)Strong UI development skills (CSS & HTML)Open to learning new technologiesSelf-starter who gets things doneAttention to detailBonus:Experience implementing data tables, charts, graphs, or other data visualizationsExperience working on complex analytics, data visualization, or mapping applicationsD3.js experienceMapLibre GL JS or Mapbox GL JS experienceExperience with geospatial, demographic, business, marketing, or health dataExperience with TypeScriptComfortable using Linux CLI

1 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETThe James Bond movie catalog is big -- 25 films in the official 007 canon, plus two others. Six different actors have played the cinematic secret agent across six decades, from 1962's Dr. No to 2021's No Time to Die. If it's all new to you, it might seem a little daunting.Daniel Craig's 007 is the most recent and stands out to many -- especially newer Bond watchers -- as the face of the secret agent. He starred in five of the films, compared with seven for Sean Connery (the original James Bond), seven for Roger Moore, five for Pierce Brosnan, two for Timothy Dalton and one for George Lazenby.So there's a lot to explore beyond the Craig era. The question is, where to start? And then where do you go from there? Sure you could watch them chronologically by theatrical release date from 1962 onward, but a notable characteristic of the Bond franchise -- unlike the MCU -- is that for the most part there's very little continuity or narrative arc. There are also, we have to warn you, some real clunkers mixed in with the gems.This guide gets the shaken, not stirred treatment, bouncing from era to era and actor to actor to guide you through the most essential Bond movies to start and give you tips on where to go from there. The two of us have been watching Bond movies for decades, across nearly all the era as they occurred, so we've got strong thoughts on what worked well and what flopped. Let's get into it.2 of 28MGMCasino Royale (2006)The movie to start with is the one that kicked off the Daniel Craig era, the most modern Bond of the bunch. His Casino Royale honored the franchise while upping the ante with intense action sequences and a lead who gave the role a welcome sense of edge. This movie also gives us the Bond origin story that had been missing from all the previous films, adapted smartly from the Ian Fleming novel that started it all. Casino Royale also kicks off a five-film narrative arc, a throughline that helps Craig's movies stand out from all the others. It's also just a breathtaking action flick, period.3 of 28MGMQuantum of Solace (2008)Spoiler: We're going through all the Craig movies first, across the whole of his arc. That's our recommendation on the best way to approach the full 007 catalog. The Craig movies are all indispensable... except maybe this one, Craig's second. Quantum of Solace does deliver spectacularly on the action front, but underneath the hood it's a confusing and not entirely satisfying story. If you skip it, you're not missing all that much from the arc. If you're a completist like us, go ahead and dig into this one next.4 of 28MGMSkyfall (2012)If you're looking for the best Bond movie of the modern era, and arguably the quintessential one of all time, this would be it. Skyfall, Daniel Craig's third, is the highest-grossing Bond movie, earning more than $1.1 billion at the global box office. And for good reason. It's a compelling story and just plain gorgeous to watch. It reintroduces and reinvents two of the definitive recurring characters from the Bond series, Q and Moneypenny. The villain is one of the best ever, played with gusto by Javier Bardem. It's also the first entry in the franchise to take home Oscar wins since 1964's Goldfinger -- it won one for sound editing and another for Adele's title song.5 of 28MGMSpectre (2015)Spectre continues the narrative trend of delving deeper into the James Bond backstory, reintroducing audiences to one of the franchise's most iconic villains: Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Christoph Waltz breathes new life into the bad guy, with a twist that opens up an intriguing perspective, while Ralph Fiennes replaces Judy Dench as M. The fourth of Craig's five Bond movies, it is the second-highest grossing entry of the franchise and probably the darkest.6 of 28UniversalNo Time to Die (2021)No Time to Die is the final film in the Daniel Craig Bond era, and it delivers a powerful wrap-up to his story arc. (Its nearly three-hour runtime makes it the longest entry in the franchise.) It also leaves a clean slate for whoever steps into 007's shoes next. Will it be as big a reinvention as with Craig's debut? That's up to Amazon, which bought MGM Studios -- home of the Bond franchise -- in 2022 and which this year is finalizing a deal to gain creative control over Bond. A whole new and yet to be determined future for James Bond awaits. Will it also look to the distant past? That's where we're going next in our recommendations.7 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETDr. No (1962)Until Daniel Craig came along, the definitive James Bond actor was the one who first portrayed him on the big screen: Sean Connery. His first turn came in Dr. No, a relatively low-budget movie that set the standard for every 007 film that comes after and that established his trademarks -- we first encounter him in a casino, wearing a tux, bantering suavely and introducing himself as Bond, James Bond. Connery brings the fictional spy to life with a mix of cool and classy that, for many, makes him the quintessential Bond.8 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETFrom Russia with Love (1963)The second Bond movie followed quickly after Dr. No and helped establish 007 as the spy movie franchise to watch -- and, for many in Hollywood, to imitate. It introduced a fun level of campiness to the mix, continued the "Bond girl" trend, gave us Robert Shaw as the Spectre assassin out to eliminate Bond and introduced Desmond Llewelyn as Q, the armorer, in an iconic supporting role that would continue across 17 Bond movies, working with every Bond actor except Craig. Like Dr. No, it's a low-key movie compared to those that follow, starting with...9 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETGoldfinger (1964)For many, Goldfinger is the best James Bond movie of all time. Released just a year after From Russia With Love, Connery's third 007 film has everything fans have come to expect from a Bond movie: the megalomaniac villain with an outrageous and murderous scheme, the henchman with a quirky method for killing (Oddjob and his hat), big set pieces with extravagant action and, of course, the titular hero in a stylish dinner jacket. It's also got one of the all-time greatest theme songs, belted out by Shirley Bassey.10 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETOn Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969)Connery would go on to do two more Bond films before walking away and leaving Eon Productions scrambling for a replacement. That led to an anomaly in the franchise: On Her Majesty's Secret Service is the only entry that starred George Lazenby as 007. He lacked Connery's charisma and was a novice actor to boot. That said, the movie delivers a good deal of excitement and charm and another anomaly: Bond getting married. Take a guess how that relationship turned out.Those two Connery-as-Bond films between Goldfinger and On Her Majesty's Secret Service, both of which are essential 007 franchise watches. Thunderball and You Only Live Twice have not aged well and rank well down the must-watch list.11 of 28MGMGoldenEye (1995)We're skipping around again for this next recommendation -- we'll get to Roger Moore in a second. GoldenEye is the first Pierce Brosnan Bond movie and pretty much the best Pierce Brosnan Bond movie. All the ingredients for a good 007 movie are here: Sean Bean as the bad guy, Famke Janssen as the Bond girl and the introduction of Judy Dench as spy boss M. (Dench would play M in seven Bond films, up through Skyfall, in case you're looking for arcs.) Audiences had waited six whole years for a new James Bond movie, and Brosnan's introduction as 007 was welcomed by many: He brought a nonchalant suaveness to the role and ushered the franchise into the '90s.12 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETThe Spy Who Loved Me (1977)Our next recommendation brings us to Roger Moore's third Bond movie, The Spy Who Loved Me, which received three Oscar nominations. That's a noteworthy accomplishment for a James Bond movie that is... fine. Richard Kiel's terrifying villain Jaws makes his debut here, and he returns two years later in the corny, sci-fi-flavored Moonraker.13 of 28MGMMoonraker (1979)Moonraker hit theaters in 1979, two years after the original Star Wars movie disrupted the sci-fi genre and changed Hollywood forever. The iconic space adventure's influence on Bond is on full display here. The filmmakers sent 007 to space, a decision that made sense in the moment. As hokey as it is to watch today -- it's the campiest in a long run of campy Bond movies -- audiences ate it up at the time, and it proved to be the best-reviewed Bond movie of the Roger Moore era.14 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETThe Living Daylights (1987)Timothy Dalton was James Bond but only fortwo movies. The Living Daylights is his introduction to the franchise and turned out pretty well just for the simple fact that it wasnota Roger Moore entry. A welcome combination of tough and suave was finally back on screen.At this point in our list, we're transitioning quickly away from the must-sees to the remainders bin. There are good moments and fun bits in just about every Bond movie, but we're also moving toward groaner territory.15 of 2820th Century Fox Home EntertainmentTomorrow Never Dies (1997)Honestly, Pierce Brosnan's follow-up to GoldenEye was a bit of a dud. That doesn't mean there aren't noteworthy elements to the film. You've got Jonathan Pryce stepping into the villainous role of Elliot Carver, and eventual Oscar-winner Michelle Yeoh got her first significant Hollywood role as Chinese secret agent Wai Lin. So that's something.16 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETThe World Is Not Enough (1999)The third Pierce Brosnan James Bond film ticks all the expected boxesbut doesn't reinvent the wheel. Still, it served its purpose and delivered enough entertainment to earn it a solid $361.7 million at the worldwide box office. It co-stars Robert Carlyle as the villain Renard, who feels no pain; Sophie Marceau as the strikingly conflicted Elektra King; and Denise Richards as a nuclear physicist named (checks notes) Dr. Christmas Jones. Seriously.17 of 28MGMFor Your Eyes Only (1981)Roger Moore's collection of Bond films is hit or miss. For Your Eyes Only lands in the hit category. It didn't break new ground, but it is a competent thriller that earned the second-best box office showing for a Moore Bond film, earning $195.3 million worldwide. 18 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETThunderball (1965)Thunderball is one of Sean Connery's lesser-appreciated James Bond entries. That's not to say it isn't entertaining. It concludes with an epic underwater battle sequence and provides the template for the actor's final Bond outing, Never Say Never Again, nearly two decades later.19 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETNever Say Never Again (1983)Sean Connery returned to the role of James Bond in 1983's Never Say Never Again, his second comeback in the role and a reprise of the Thunderball plot. (This is also one of the two non-canonical Bond movies, meaning it didn't come from Eon Productions.) The actor's final appearance as 007 was well-reviewed and benefited from having been released during the reviled tail end of the Roger Moore era.20 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETYou Only Live Twice (1967)You Only Live Twice is a fair enough entry in the franchise, even if Connery's performance feels as if he needs a break (and he did). The film holds a special place in 007 canon though. Its cat-petting iteration of Blofeld (this time, played by Donald Pleasence) is complete with a villain's hideaway in a volcano and a whole load of scenery chewing that inspired the Austin Powers franchise's Dr. Evil. 21 of 28MGMThe Man with the Golden Gun (1974)The Man with the Golden Gun is Moore's second outing as 007 and a bottom-dweller in the James Bond franchise. The casting of horror icon Christopher Lee as villain and rival marksman Scaramanga adds some corny flair.22 of 28MGMDiamonds Are Forever (1971)Diamonds Are Forever is Connery's lowest-ranked Bond film and the last one he made before taking a 12-year hiatus from 007. (It was his first comeback, sandwiched between Lazenby's turn in On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Roger Moore's Bond debut in Live and Let Die.) Charles Gray brings Bond villain Blofeld to life alongside Jill St. John's Bond girl, Tiffany Case. Ultimately, this installment showed the need for a new actor to take the reins in the lead role.23 of 28MGMLive and Let Die (1973)Live and Let Die was Roger Moore's first outing as James Bond, and the vibe just wasn't the same as in Connery's heyday. The movie leans heavily, and uncomfortably, into the blacksploitation film trend going strong at the time. Geoffrey Holder plays the voodoo-practicing henchman Baron Samedi and Yaphet Kotto menaces underwhelmingly as the head bad guy, Katanga/Mr. Big. A high point: This entry features the hit title song by Paul McCartney's Wings.24 of 28MGMLicense to Kill (1989)License to Kill is the second -- and final -- James Bond movie of the Timothy Dalton era and a solid-enough action movie. It doesn't feel much like a 007 movie, though; it's more in the vein of the cop action movies of the era. Robert Davi plays the drug lord villain Sanchez, Carey Lowell is feisty Bond girl Pam Bouvier and a young Benicio del Toro has his moments as a henchman.25 of 28MGMOctopussy (1983)Octopussy is one of the most forgettable and skippable Bond films. Just months after this Roger Moore entry hit theaters, Sean Connery returned triumphantly, if briefly, to the role in Never Say Never Again, making 1983 a year packed with James Bond. Maud Adams returns to the franchise (after appearing in The Man with the Golden Gun) as the titular character. If you like to see James Bond wearing a gorilla suit or disguised as a clown, this is the movie for you.26 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETView to a Kill (1985)A View to a Kill is Roger Moore's seventh and final outing as James Bond. The subpar entry is ridiculous to be honest and bogged down with a whole bunch of silly plot points. Christopher Walken plays the villainous Max Zorin who wants to destroy Silicon Valley to control the computer chip market. Grace Jones is also in this film -- she plays Bond baddie (and eventual ally) May Day.27 of 28MGMDie Another Day (2002)Die Another Day is Pierce Brosnan's final James Bond film and, OK, it does hit some of the story beats audiences want from a 007 film. But an invisible car? Really? It's a safe franchise entry that avoids taking big swings. It's also widely considered one of the bottom-dwellers of the franchise. The most significant selling point for the movie at the time was the casting of then-reigning Oscar-winner Halle Berry as Bond girl Jinx Johnson. Monty Python's John Cleese took on the role of Q, and Madonna performed the title track.28 of 28Screenshot by Aaron Pruner/CNETCasino Royale (1967)Rounding out the list is the original Casino Royale, which, we can say with conviction, is a bad movie. This is one of the two noncanonical entries in the franchise (the other being Never Say Never Again) and features a bevy of actors playing 007, an absurdly campy, poorly executed, psychedelic-tinged outing. The result is a silly, sloppy and downright weird Bond movie that features performances by David Niven, Peter Sellers and Orson Welles.