Infrastructure upgrades could unlock 60,000 homes over the next decade under plans to return capital to 1990s growth ratesSadiq Khan has pledged to start work on three major rail schemes in the capital over the next 10 years as part of plans to unlock nearly 60,000 new homes.Extensions to the Bakerloo Line, the Docklands Light Railway and the West London Orbital have all been included in the latest London Growth plan, published by the mayor of London and London councils.The 104-page document, which outlines a series of actions aiming to return the capital to the high growth rates of the 1990s and 2000s, also includes an ambition to work towards starting the long-delayed Crossrail 2 scheme from south to north London.Route for the Bakerloo Line extensionTransport for London has been proposing an extension of the Bakerloo line east from Elephant and Castle for more than a decade but mothballed the upgrade in 2022 due to the impact of the covid pandemic.Khan has now said he is prioritising starting the project, which the report says will unlock 20,000 homes, within the next 10 years as part of a strategy to ease Londons housing shortage.Current plans for the line being drawn up by Aecom and WW&P would include four new stations at Burgess Park, Old Kent Road, New Cross Gate and Lewisham.The Dockland Light Railway extension east from Gallions Reach to new housing developments in Thamesmead is said to have the potential to unlock 30,000 homes, while an extension of the West London Orbital between Hounslow and West Hampstead could unlock 7,000 homes.The Crossrail 2 scheme, a new southwest to north line including a core route through the central London, would unlock some 200,000 new homes, according to the report.Starting in suburbs south west of Wimbledon, the route would join with the Elizabeth Line at Tottenham Court Road and continue north through Euston where it would link with the planned London terminus of HS2.While HS2 tunnelling to Euston is yet to start, construction of the lines current terminus at Old Oak Common by a joint venture between Balfour Beatty, Vinci and Systra is well underway.Analysis by Arcadis commissioned by HS2 has claimed the scheme could bring 22,000 homes to the area surrounding Old Oak Common and boost the local economy by 10bn over the next decade.Planning applications within a 1.5 mile radius of the site have risen by 22% since 2017 and have a combined value of 3.4bn, more than four times higher than in the preceding seven-year period, according to the research.When complete, Old Oak Common will be one of the best connected stations in the UK, linking with the HS2 network to the West Midlands with its underground platforms, while eight further surface level platforms will link to the Elizabeth Line, the Great Western Railway and the Heathrow Express.

The winner of the estimated 15 million contract will work with the council to design and deliver a long-term upgrade of defences along the River Avon to protect homes and businesses from the growing risk of flooding caused by climate change.The project aims to future proof the city against rising water levels, promote active travel and urban greening, and help to unlock regeneration opportunities. An outline business case featuring public realm landscaping measures including terracing was approved last summer.According to the brief: BCC is looking to appoint a lead consultant who will coordinate a multi-disciplinary team to develop the approved Outline Business Case into Final Business Case including detailed design and to obtain consents for construction.AdvertisementA lead consultant is required to co-ordinate ground investigation, topographical and environmental surveys, land requirements, and the consultation and engagement to develop the designs for consenting (Transport and Works Act Order).They will then undertake the detailed design (RIBA stage 4) for construction. An option to retain the team until the end of the construction period is also required.Bristol is the largest city in South West England with 463,400 residents and has seen a wave of high-profile design procurements in recent years. BDP recently won a contest run by the Bristol Housing Festival for the redevelopment of a site on Midland Road in the citys Old Market Quarter.Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands won a two-stage contest to re-masterplan Bristols 33ha Western Harbour regeneration zone one year ago. A team led by Architecture 00 won Bristol City Councils contest for a 290,000 revamp of Filwood Broadway on the southern fringes of the city last summer.Round one bids will be evaluated 100 per cent on quality and a five-strong shortlist will be selected in early April. Stage two bids will take place from April to May.AdvertisementConsultants must hold employers liability insurance of 10 million, public liability insurance of 5 million and professional indemnity insurance of 5 million.Competition detailsProject title Bristol Avon Flood Strategy Multi-Disciplinary Consultancy ServicesClient Bristol City CouncilContract value 15 millionFirst round deadline Midday, 24 March 2025Restrictions Bidders must demonstrate experience in assembling and leading a multi-discipline team to deliver complex infrastructure projects. Providers must evidence 3 case studies of relevant projects completed within the last 3 years, detailing:At least one example relating to a major flood defence schemeThe composition and management of the multi-disciplinary teamThe approach taken to develop and secure approval for the full business caseMore information https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006900-2025

The winning team selected for the estimated 210,000 contract will create a new interactive Wonderlab gallery occupying the location of the museums current first floor Power Up exhibition.The design team will also carry out a fitout relocating Power Up to the second floor of the museum which recently opened a new temporary exhibitions gallery by Carmody Groarke.The 3.5 million-to-4.5 million project, planned to complete in 2028, follows the creation of similar Wonderlab spaces at the Science Museum in London, the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford, and the National Railway Museum in York.AdvertisementAccording to the brief: The Science Museum Groups Wonderlab galleries are each an awe-inspiring spectacle, filled with interactive exhibits and immersive experiences aimed to engage children and their accompanying adults.Visitors to Wonderlab encounter powerful and meaningful learning experiences - they develop new skills, are challenged in their perceptions and grow in confidence to talk about science and their relationship to it.After visiting our Wonderlab galleries, we want visitors to perceive the world around them differently and leave confident to explore the world around them through creative problem solving and experimenting.The city centre museum which is part of the London-based Science Museum Group is partially located within the worlds oldest surviving railway station complex known as Manchester Liverpool Road. The museum has occupied a series of Grade I-listed warehouses and the former station since 1983.The latest procurement comes 10 years after Carmody Groarke won a competition for a new 4 million outstanding architectural space for temporary exhibitions within railway arches and the vaults of an 1830 warehouse at the museum site.AdvertisementLast year, the museum launched a search for an architect to transform part of a Grade I-listed warehouse into a new commercial space.Round one bids for the latest commission will be evaluated 50 per cent on experience, 30 per cent on methodology and 20 per cent on sustainability. Stage two bids will be evaluated 75 per cent on quality and 25 per cent on price.Applicants must hold employers liability insurance of 10 million, public liability insurance of 10 million and professional indemnity insurance of 5 million.Competition detailsProject title SIM Architect and Lead Designer for Wonderlab and Power UpClientContract value 3.5 million-to-4.5 millionFirst round deadline 5pm, 23 March 2025Restrictions TbcMore information https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006722-2025

Adobe has finally released a true Photoshop iPhone app -- not Photoshop Express, not Lightroom, but Photoshop, the company's marquee program that is virtually synonymous with photo editing. Did it take more than 20 years? Sure. But rather than lament the past, I'd rather dive into what all is inside this inaugural Photoshop iOS app. Don't fret if you're an Android user; you can expect to see a version ready for you later this year.After spending the past few days getting to know the app, the most accurate and succinct thing I can say about it is this: It is entirely its own beast. The Photoshop many of us know and love -- as a desktop app or on the web -- is overloaded with tools and precise to the point of occasionally being temperamental. But when creating a mobile version of Photoshop, Adobe had the (admittedly tough) challenge of shrinking its professional, feature-crammed program down to a small screen and an even smaller editing menu. And, frankly, that really isn't possible. Instead, Adobe had to reimagine what the program could be in an age where everyone can take decent photos on their phones and edit them there, too.The end result does what it's supposed to do -- it's actually pretty good in certain cases -- but everyone from veteran pro users to beginners will have to spend some time getting reacquainted with Photoshop on their iPhones. But once you've got a feel for how it's laid out, it does feel somewhat familiar to the Photoshop we all know and sometimes love. The mobile app is available free or you can upgrade to the premium plan for $8 per month -- and if you're already paying for the Photography, Creative Cloud or another Adobe plan that includes Photoshop, you'll get access to the app, too.These are the features that stood out to me, my tried-and-tested tips for finding your way around and everything I hope Adobe addresses in its next update.Tips for using Photoshop on iPhonesThroughout my time using the app, I got a sense of dj vu from my first time exploring Photoshop. I found myself stumbling through menus, searching for the right tool, adjusting nitpicky sliders and running into frustrating errors I eventually solved. The joys of creating!If you feel like there should be more features then you might be missing some if you're not opening every tool's submenu. You have to keep tapping each option to reveal another row or panel of options. Given your iPhone's limited screen real estate, it's an understandable design choice but it makes for a tedious learning curve. Once you know where your go-to tools are housed, it's less inconvenient.Once you're feeling more comfortable finding your way around, you'll want to get familiar with tap select.Understanding tap selectTap select is the new, made-for-mobile selection tool that you'll want to get to know quickly. It helps you isolate the regions of your project you want to edit. If you're familiar with quick actions in the Lightroom mobile app, you'll recognize the different ways it categorizes elements in the project: subject, background and sky. In Photoshop, it also pulls out other elements in the project tool.It is by no means a perfect tool, though. In one memorable instance, the engines separated my colleague Imad's glasses and eyes from the rest of his body. I guess I could've given him glowing red eyes, but I didn't want to do that. Katelyn Chedraoui/CNETTap select identifies objects seemingly haphazardly. Sometimes it would pull out random objects in the background of my photos and miss people in the foreground. Other times it works well -- it's inconsistent. When you need to make precise selections on desktop, you can tease and adjust your selections down to the pixel if you want. But you're naturally more limited on mobile, which makes it frustrating when tap select can't seem to get what you're trying to choose. The add and subtract tools meant to refine your choices need some refinement, too.While you might have to futz with the selection to get what you want, eventually you're able to create unlimited layers and then masks. Masking, for the uninitiated, is a process that lets you hide and reveal different layers in your project. It's an essential tool in a photo editor's toolbox but it's also something that you need time to get comfortable with. I found it less intimidating to create and use masks on mobile than I did on desktop, but it was still a learning process.Masking on mobile is one of the things that separates Photoshop from other basic editors. "I'm very excited for more people to understand the power of masking, and how much benefit there is to non-destructively hiding elements of your image," said Shambhavi Kadam, senior director of product management for Photoshop mobile, in an interview at the app launch. "It gives me a lot more flexibility when I'm working on my projects."Like tap select, masking isn't perfect on mobile. But I hope to see future improvements from this base foundation.Firefly AI on the goThere's no separate Firefly iPhone app, so Photoshop is a good option if you need to generate AI images on the fly. Like most other experiences I've had with Adobe Firefly, the AI images were pretty good. You get three variations per prompt. Unlike when you use the Firefly web or desktop apps, there aren't any follow-up editing tools for further refinements. This is a serious loss for creators; Firefly has one of the best editing panels of the AI image generators I've tested. Being able to upload reference images, specify the style and make other adjustments is key to creating usable AI images. You get none of that in the Photoshop mobile app. So, if you're unhappy with the variations, you either need to edit manually in the app or start over.Another option for editing your AI images is to add layers from assets from Adobe Stock's free collection. The Photoshop app lets you search and upload easily, without needing to log into Adobe Stock and manually license, download and upload each element. If you want to pay to use an image or element that isn't included in the free collection, you'll need to do all that. But as a budget-conscious creator, I appreciated the free collection's integration. I used Firefly to generate the image of the mountain range and stars, then layered an Adobe Stock gradient to give it an Aurora Borealis-like, colorful sky. Katelyn Chedraoui/CNETGenerative fill is one of the most used tools in Photoshop -- on par with the crop tool, Adobe told me last year -- so it's not surprising to see that the genAI tool is front and center in the mobile app. You get three variations and the same lack of editing tools (though it's less important with generative fill). I did notice that the generations seemed to be clearer on the desktop app than the mobile app, but I couldn't figure out why. Overall though, the generations were usable. Generative expand also didn't seem to produce the same high-quality results I'm used to seeing. However, generative remove was on par with the desktop app.As a reminder, Adobe's AI policy states it won't train on your work. Adobe's AI models are trained using publicly licensed content, including Adobe Stock. You can opt out of using generative AI by adjusting your settings.Reset your expectations and you'll be happyPhotoshop is inherently different from so many other mobile photo editing apps that simply prompt you to scroll through different thumbnails to select the best filter or adjust a few sliders. So the task of creating a mobile app that's true to what its users need is a high mountain to climb. For its initial launch, I think Adobe did an okay job with that. But I'm hopeful this is just laying the foundation for stronger updates and more feature roll-outs.Inevitably, you will run into times when you wish you had a specific tool or more precise control over your edits. Which, while I am not a professional creator, makes me suspect the mobile app likely isn't going to replace your work using other versions of Photoshop. If you're using Photoshop all day, every day for work, you're likely going to notice and hit the limitations of the mobile app quickly. Using Photoshop on iPad might be a happy medium between the mobile and desktop apps, in terms of screen size and editing tools available.The biggest thing the app has going for it is its convenience, which, in my opinion, is the sole reason to use it. If you need to quickly adjust a color scheme, add text to an image, or resize your project to be social media friendly, they're all easily done in the app. But don't expect to be a nitpicky Nancy while editing on a plane because you'll just end up hunched over, mentally yelling at your iPhone (at least, that was my experience).

9.2/ 10 SCORE Ninja Crispi $160 at Amazon $180 at Best Buy$180 at Target Pros Cook, serve, and storage capabilities Easy to clean: almost everything is dishwasher-safe Intuitive operation No concern about PFAS Ability to see cooking in progress Can buy additional glass vessels for maximum food prep Small storage footprint with nesting capabilities Portable Cons Price is on the high side for air fryers Some exposed hot elements during operation Ninja just released a glass-bottom air fryer and, after testing it for a few weeks, it has me wondering why all countertop cookers aren't built this way. While it's not technically the first air fryer with a glass cooking chamber to hit the market -- we've tested this self-cleaning air fryer and found it OK, for instance -- it's by far the best.Ninja's Crispi, available for $180 for the full-sized model, solves two problems we've had with other models: the wearing out of nonstick surfaces and the potential for release ofchemicalsfrom those surfaces into food. As a bonus, the Crispi's glass is easier to deep clean than most metal baskets. (Although, cleaning air fryers has never been a big hassle.) The Ninja Crispi is our new favorite air fryer. NinjaNinja's Crispi comes with interchangeable 6-cup and 4-quart glass cooking chambers so you can watch your food as it crisps to perfection. You can nab the machine with just the smaller 6-cup chamber for $98 at Walmart. The two glass bowls double as portable containers for transport immediately after cooking and get cleaner than nonstick baskets could ever.Safety and cleanliness are big, but the real star of the Ninja Crispi, however, turned out to be its versatility: cooking, serving and storage all in one vessel. Meal preppers especially take note: here's everything you need to know about the Ninja Crispi and why it just might be the best air fryer we've tested.Ninja Crispi 4-in-1 portable glass air fryer at a glanceStyle: Modular air fryer with two different sizes of glass cooking vessels and a separate cooking pod in three different color optionsDimensions: 13.5 by 12 by 13.5 inchesPower: 1,500 wattsWeight: 15.74 poundsPrice $160See at AmazonSee at NinjaNinja Crispi setup Here's everything that comes with the Ninja Crispi. Pamela Vachon/CNETDespite not looking anything like a typical air fryer, the Ninja Crispi was intuitive to set up and use. Each of the glass cooking vessels has a built-in stand with feet that keeps it off the counter surface. Side handles are also fitted on the stands of the bowls, which allow not only for easy transporting between the counter and the table (since the vessels can also be used to serve) but also make it easy to shake the contents as needed during the cooking process.The nonstick crisper plates were packaged separately and simple to place inside the bowls and to remove for cleaning. Lids for both the 6-cup and 4-quart bowls were also included: a snap-on lid for the smaller and a simpler press-on lid for the larger.The cooking pod itself has an ergonomic shape for easy lifting and also has feet for safe placement on the counter when not in use. The cooking pod sits easily on top of the 6-cup bowl, and a big-batch adapter frame fits the cooking pod onto the larger bowl. Between unwrapping and rinsing all of the washable parts, I was ready to go in about 2 minutes.Ninja Crispi operation Being able to visually track progress is one of the big draws for Ninja's new air fryer. Pamela Vachon/CNETThe cooking pod itself includes crisp, bake, air fry and max crisp functions. Crisp is intended to revive leftovers, while max crisp is the ideal setting for packaged frozen foods. While it is tempting, given its baking dish look, the glass TempWare bowls are not intended to be used as the actual cooking vessels for batters in bake mode, since air still needs to circulate below the cooking vessels in order to be effective. (Will I try anyway? The temptation is real)Pressing any button will indicate a digital timer to which you can add or subtract minutes. (The timer defaults to 10.) Below 1 minute, the timer changes into seconds, and the device beeps to alert you when the cycle is done. Overall the sound level of the Ninja Crispi was similar to conventional air fryer models, with just a moderate whir when operating.What I liked about the Ninja Crispi The cooked food is ready to be packed away or brought to a party as soon as it's done. Pamela Vachon/CNETAs expected, the ability to see the cooking in progress was really satisfying, both from a nerdy perspective and also to be able to look for visual cues in terms of when to flip your items or to assess doneness. Both chicken parts and Brussels sprouts were cooked evenly and efficiently with very little risk of over-cooking given the 360-degree window into the proceedings.The versatility, however, makes the Ninja Crispi tremendously interesting, especially for avid meal preppers. Full meals or individual cooked components can go right from cooking into the fridge, with the included lids for easy storage. (Though I am bound by refrigerator logistics to tell you to let it all cool first, so you don't inadvertently raise the temperature inside your fridge.)Additional cooking bowls in a variety of sizes can also be purchased separately, allowing for the possibility of a multitude of individually cooked meals with no cleanup required in between usage: just transfer the cooking pod from one cooking vessel to the next, assembly-line style. Sunday meal prep has never been easier, nor required fewer dishes. My Brussels got a good char in the Crispi. Pamela Vachon/CNETThe Ninja Crispi is also easy to store, with a footprint and height requirement that is far less than a lot of conventional models. It also makes for easy portability -- ideal for a potluck situation or even just a hot-meal self-care moment -- where you could even justify cooking on site. Either of the cooking bowls and the cooking pod could easily fit in a shoulder bag. If I worked in an office, it would thrill me to bring the whole thing with me to have a hot, healthy lunch without reheating. Though if you're contemplating being the person to cook fish directly at your desk: maybe don't.Not only can the larger 4-quart bowl be used directly as a family-style serving vessel -- whose practical feet preclude the need for a trivet or pot holder -- but one could argue that the smaller 4-cup vessel can be used to eat out of directly, significantly reducing the number of dishes to wash. Speaking of washing, everything except the cooking pod itself is dishwasher-safe.What I didn't like about the Ninja Crispi Convenient as it, the glass cooking chamber does get hotter than your average air fryer base. Pamela Vachon/CNETAs a modular device with a ton of built-in practicality and versatility, I do think the Ninja Crispi is a game-changer in the air fryer market. That said, at $160 it's on the higher side, price-wise, for an air fryer.Those with little ones in the house may also want to take note, when the cooking pod is being used with the adapter for large batches, the adapter can become hot and is potentially exposed once the heating pod is removed. Never minding little ones, if you're an absent-minded cook yourself, it can be a hazard.Read more:8 Foods That Go From Good to Great in an Air FryerFinal verdict on the Ninja CrispiIf you're a disciple of air fryer cooking, and especially if you have a serious commitment to meal prepping, the Ninja Crispi is arguably one of the most versatile models on the market. It's satisfying to use and easy to store and clean. I may look for it on sale during Prime Days or the like, but even without a discount, its utility and the reputation of the Ninja brand merits its price tag.See it at Ninja Our Experts Written by Pamela Vachon Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Reviews ethics statement Why You Can Trust CNET 16171819202122232425+ Years of Experience 14151617181920212223 Hands-on Product Reviewers 6,0007,0008,0009,00010,00011,00012,00013,00014,00015,000 Sq. Feet of Lab Space How we test CNETs expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise.

March 3, 20256 min readHow Anime Fans Stumbled upon a Mathematical ProofWhen a fan of a cult anime series wanted to watch its episodes in every possible order, they asked a question that had perplexed combinatorial mathematicians for yearsBy Manon Bischoff edited by Daisy YuhasFans of a classic anime series sought to work out how long it would take to the watch a 14-episode series in every possible order as efficiently as possible. Yuriko Nakao/Getty ImagesMath solutions can be found in surprising places, including the dark realms of the Internet. In 2011 an anonymous poster on the now infamously controversial image board 4chan posed a mathematical puzzle about the cult classic anime series The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Though the bulletin board has become littered with hateful, violent and extreme content, that original post led to a solution to the sophisticated math problem.The first season of this anime series consists of 14 episodes that were designed so that you can watch them in any order you like. (For people who are as unfamiliar with the anime world as I am: an eight-part live-action thriller called Kaleidoscope on Netflix follows the same principle.) At some point in a 2011 discussion of the series on 4chan, someone asked the minimum number of episodes they would have to watch to have seen it in every possible order.In fact, this question is related to so-called superpermutations. And as it turns out, this mathematical area holds many puzzles: to this day, mathematicians are still unable to fully answer the problem that the 4chan user had posed.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.But amazingly, in that discussion, one of the anonymous users made an estimate of the minimum amount of all episodes to watch with an approach that was previously unknown to mathematicians. Ill need to [elaborate on] this in multiple posts. Please look it over for any loopholes I might have missed, wrote the user, who explained in several steps how they arrived at their estimate. Other users then took up the arguments and discussed thembut outside of 4chan, none of this made any waves. No one seemed to take any notice.Extreme Binge-WatchingIn mathematics, two objects permutate when they are rearranged or recombined. For example, you can permutate AB to BA. If an anime series consisted of only two parts, you could either watch the first and then the second episode (1-2) or the second and then the first (2-1).If you want to watch a series in multiple arrangementsperhaps to figure out which sequence of episodes makes the most senseyou need a superpermutation. This is a sequence of all possible permutations. Imagine a marathon showing where you watch the first episode, followed by the second, and then watch the second episode, followed by the first (1-2-2-1). To avoid watching the second episode twice in a row, a shorter superpermutation would be 1-2-1; you would only have to watch three episodes to still have every possible order covered.If a series consists of three episodes, it becomes a little trickier to find the shortest superpermutation. In this case, there are 3! = 6 different sequences: 1-2-3, 1-3-2, 2-3-1, 2-1-3, 3-1-2, 3-2-1. Fortunately, you dont have to watch 3 6 = 18 parts but can find a clever shortcut, in this case: 1-2-3-1-2-1-3-2-1. That order contains all possible permutations of the numbers 1, 2 and 3, but you only have to watch nine episodes!Mathematicians have also calculated the shortest superpermutations for a series consisting of n = 4 and n = 5 episodes (33 and 153 episodes, respectively). Beyond that, however, they are in the dark. The shortest superpermutations for n > 5 are not known.In fact, the challenge relates to one of the most intractable problems in algorithmics: the traveling salesperson problem. In this problem, a person wants to visit different cities and end up back in their hometown. The task is to find the shortest route that connects all the cities. The shortest superpermutation is a variation of this problem in which the individual permutations represent different cities. In this case, you assign different distances between cities by determining the overlap of the permutations. For example, cities 1-2-3 and 2-3-1 have a large overlap: the last two digits of the first permutation match the first two digits of the second, so they can be combined to form 1-2-3-1. We can therefore assign a short distance between those two cities. On the other hand, 1-2-3 and 2-1-3 do not overlap. (To see both sequences, you have to look at a full six parts; no shortcut is possible.) Thus, these cities have a large distance between them.To find the shortest route within permutations, you connect the permutations that overlap the most. There is only one difficulty: there is no known algorithm that solves the traveling salesperson problem quickly. If we are dealing with a few citiesor, in the case of an anime series, a few episodesthis is not a major drawback. But as soon as the n becomes large, computers fail at the task because the computing time grows exponentially with n.Computers are able to calculate superpermutations for n = 4 and n = 5 but not for anything beyond that. And although it is possible to calculate elaborate superpermutations for larger numbers, finding the shortest superpermutation becomes more difficult.Experts must therefore make do with estimates. For example, there is an algorithm that helps estimate the length of the shortest possible superpermutation for n objects: 1! + 2! + 3! + ... + n! Using that algorithm, if n = 2, you get a superpermutation of length 1 + 2 = 3. For n = 3, this results in a length of 1 + 2 + 6 = 9. For n = 4, you get 33. And for n = 5, you get 153, which corresponds to the shortest superpermutation in each case.For larger n, however, this algorithm no longer applies: computers have been able to find shorter superpermutations than it would suggest exists. In fact, the formula 1! + 2! + 3! + ... + n! massively overestimates the length of the shortest superpermutation for large n. Although the algorithm offers only an approximate answer, mathematicians use it as a starting place, with the goal of narrowing down options to find more precise answers.Coincidences and RediscoveriesIn 2013 Nathaniel Johnston, now a mathematics professor at Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, landed on a Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya fandom page. Johnston himself was not an anime fan. He had arrived at the site after Googling some search terms related to superpermutations. There he came across the discussion that had been held on 4chan almost two years earlier, which a user had copied to the fandom site.Johnston didnt bother doing the math but cited the fandom post on his blog. This comment, too, went unnoticed for several years.Then in October 2018 mathematician Robin Houston came across his colleagues blog post through a curious coincidence. Houston had just learned that Australian science fiction author Greg Egan had found a new maximum length for the shortest superpermutations, expressed as:n! +(n 1)! + (n 2)! + (n 3)! + n 3That in itself was bizarre. But when Houston started learning more about this result, he realized that the minimum length of a superpermutation had been given a new value by an anonymous anime fandom user (he didnt know about the origins on 4chan at that time). The formula for the minimum length is:n! +(n 1)! + (n 2)! + n 3Houston shared his discovery on Twitter (now X) on October 23 of that year. A curious situation. The best known lower bound for the minimal length of superpermutations was proven by an anonymous user of a wiki mainly devoted to anime, he wrote.Along with his colleagues, mathematicians Jay Pantone and Vince Vatter, Houston decided to check the 4chan users proof and write it down in a mathematical way. The researchers posted their mathematical work to the Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences that same month, and the first author is listed as Anonymous 4chan Poster.So what do these formulas tell us? If you want to watch all episodes of an n-part series in all possible combinations, you must sit through at least n! +(n 1)! + (n 2)! + n 3 episodesthats the 4chan users contributionand at most n! +(n 1)! + (n 2)! + (n 3)! + n 3, which we know through Egans work.In the case of the eight-episode series Kaleidoscope, you would have to watch at least 46,085 and, at most, 46,205 episodes. For The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, or Haruhi, with 14 episodes, the number increases drastically: a minimum of 93,884,313,611 episodes and a maximum of 93,924,230,411. Recall that this is not a complete solutionits just setting a range for the size of a superpermutation that would allow you to efficiently watch the series in every possible order.Fortunately, Egan also provided an algorithm for constructing the corresponding superpermutation. This allows Haruhi fans to work out the best viewing order of episodes. But with an average episode length of around 24 minutes, it would take about 4 million years to sit through this superpermutation.

OpinionMarch 3, 20255 min readCutting a Parent Out of Your Life Isnt Always the Right SolutionPopular culture paints going no contact as the best way to deal with hard family relationships. But its not always the right choiceBy Joshua Coleman & Karl Pillemer edited by Megha SatyanarayanaPlan Shooting 2/Imazins/Getty Images Plan Shooting 2/Imazins/Getty ImagesMemoirs, interviews and essays now widely celebrate going no contact with a parent. The New York Times published this, just a day ago: I Broke Up With My Abusive Mother. I Don't Regret That Decision." Another essay opens, Were Done: For me, with the parents I had, no contact was the only option, .Given these headlines, it may feel like its only abusive, immature or traumatizing parents getting the pink slip these days.But its not.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.Our research and clinical experiences reveal that such estrangements often happen because of specific situational factors, such as financial conflicts or problems with family businesses, wills and inheritances, rather than a long history of family dysfunction or abusive parenting. Adult children who are struggling with mental illness will sometimes cut off their well-meaning parents because they are unable to properly engage in the relationship. More fundamentally, when parents and children profoundly disagree over certain values, say, politics, religion or lifestyle choices, this can lead to estrangement.In addition, we often see how a controlling or troubled partner can instrumentally turn an adult child away from what was once a close relationship with a parent. Or, while more common with younger children, we see one parent turn an adult child against the other during divorce.Although any one of these dynamics may result in increased conflict between parent and child, the view that the parent is always the abuser and limiting factor to change is wrong. Based on our experience and research, the key to reconciliationregardless of the conflicts originsis fostering open communication between parents and adult children, helping them navigate tensions with greater empathy and understanding.Psychotherapists are sometimes part of the problem. They may be helpful in resolving family conflicts, but Individual therapy has replaced traditional moral and religious values as a mechanism to decide who to keep in or exclude from our lives, creating expectations of parents that are far more exacting than those in previous generations. This means that adult children may be more likely to judge their mothers and fathers as having failed in their parenting compared to previous generations.How did we get here?Almost daily, we read letters from estranged adult children telling us their therapists validated questionable claims of emotional abuse at their parents hands. We hear from therapists who label common experiences of disappointment such as not attending enough sporting events as life-altering trauma. We see caring and well-meaning parents labeled as narcissists, borderlines and sociopaths by therapists whove never met them. We hear about therapists and social media influencers encouraging their clients to go no contact as a way to establish authority, autonomy and identity. And we hear countless stories of therapists and social media influencers supporting cutoffs because its better for the clients mental health, when whats causing their mental disorder has nothing to do with their parents behavior.There is no question that abusive parents are the reason for some estrangements, and in some situations continued contact can be damaging or even dangerous; we arent talking about those cases. But growing research shows those are in the minority.Part of the problem is that we lack cultural models for maintaining loving relationships with family members who are sometimes difficult or hurtful. In the U.S. this may result from our emphasis on individual happiness, independence and personal growth, sometimes at the expense of our relationships with family and others. Sociologist Amy Schalet describes family relations here as governed by what she terms adversarial individualism: a belief that identity is created in defiance of parents rather than in collaboration with them. From this perspective, cutting off those who would limit us, family or otherwise, is cast as a virtuous act in the service of these aspirations.However overwhelming family dynamics may appear, they are often more solvable than they seem. Both parents and adult children need to acknowledge their part. If you are the canceled parent, remember that nothing compels your children to have a relationship with you beyond their desire to be in your life. You must be willing to make amends, take responsibility for prior hurts and accept the adult childs ideals of what a healthy relationship looks like, however much their version is at odds with your own. Even if you disagree with your adult childs view of you, their childhood or the past, you need to be willing to listen, learn and show empathy. Whether you are objectively right or wrong is beside the point if a relationship is what youre seeking.If you are thinking about cutting ties with a parent or have already done so, know that there is often hope for repair. Conversations tend to end the way they begin, so a productive dialogue starts with acknowledgment rather than accusations. Labeling a parent as a narcissist or emotionally abusive is more likely to trigger defensiveness and hurt rather than openness and reflection. Instead begin by expressing what you value in them, then carefully describe the specific behaviors that cause you pain or make you feel the need for distance. Accept that you and your family wont agree on everything, and listening to their perspectiveeven if you ultimately disagreedoesnt make you weak or unassertive. While cutting off toxic family members is sometimes an act of courage or self-care, it can also be a way of avoiding the vulnerability needed to express feelings of hurt, misunderstanding or criticism.In the meantime, we need to talk more about how the adult child contributes to the conflict that has put estrangement on the table. Pervasive labeling of parents as toxic, immature or narcissistic wont solve family issues. It distorts the problem and keeps people from finding solutions. It also harms parents who may have made mistakes but were trying to do their best, sometimes under difficult circumstances. Counselors should look beyond parental abuse toward other factors that may be at play in estrangements including the genetic predispositions of the adult child, social class, sibling relations, cohort, friends and luck, for exampleThe growing narrative that estrangement is always a justified act of self-preservation doesnt take into the complexity and messiness of family relationships. Outside situations of true trauma, there needs to be a greater emphasis on reconciliation, open dialogue and willingness on both sides to engage in repair. While most therapists may avoid reflexively encouraging estrangements, too many fail to consider all contributing factors and potential paths forward.At their core, family relationshipslike all human connectionsare complex and require effort, understanding and patience. The punitive narratives that dominate the estrangement conversation leave little room for the reality that most families face. Rather than default to one-sided blame, both the parent and the adult child need to take a more thoughtful approach to their relationship.This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views expressed by the author or authors are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

GTA developer announces Rockstar Australia studio, bringing LA Noire boss back into the foldControversial Team Bondi founder returns.Image credit: Rockstar News by Tom Phillips Editor-in-Chief Published on March 3, 2025 LA Noire boss Brendan McNamara is back within GTA developer Rockstar, as the head of the newly-acquired and retitled studio Rockstar Australia. Rockstar announced today it had bought McNamara's Sydney-based developer Video Games Deluxe, following a decade of close collaboration on various Rockstar re-releases. It was Video Games Deluxe - now re-named Rockstar Australia - that swooped in to update the recent GTA Trilogy port, following earlier work by another studio that was widely-criticised for its poor performance.Video Games Deluxe also worked with Rockstar on the 2017 re-release of LA Noire, as well as the game's VR Case Files version.Of course, McNamara was responsible for the original version of LA Noire - he was its director, and the founder of its developer Team Bondi. LA Noire was a commercial success and its technical ambition was praised, but Team Bondi closed less than a year after the game shipped following allegations of a toxic workplace and crunch culture during its seven-year development, and a furore over more than 100 people who worked on the project deliberately being left out of its credits. "The expectation is slightly weird here, that you can do this stuff without killing yourself," McNamara told IGN back in 2011, addressing the accusations of exploitative working practices. "Well, you can't, whether it's in London or New York or wherever; you're competing against the best people in the world at what they do, and you just have to be prepared to do what you have to do to compete against those people."McNamara next tried to get a new game off the ground, named Whore of the Orient, though a publishing deal with Warner Bros. Interactive collapsed and the project was canned."It affects the company, yeah, definitely," McNamara told Eurogamer in 2011, discussing the impact of the accusations surrounding LA Noire's development on Team Bondi's ability to get another project off the ground. "It affects my reputation. But it also affects people's opportunities in Australia."People are entitled to their opinion. I'm perfectly happy for people to say they don't like working with me or I'm a bully or I'm this or whatever," he continued. "The part that annoys me is people do it anonymously. I'd rather they just ring me up and tell me to fuck off, right? Or people want to print your company emails on the internet. I'm like, what is that about? That could happen to any company in the business."It's unclear what Rockstar Australia will be working on specifically now - though with the launch of GTA 6 on the horizon, it's unlikely to be much else."It's been an honour to work closely with Rockstar Games this past decade," McNamara said in a statement today. "We are thrilled to be a part of Rockstar Games and to continue our efforts to make the best games possible."Rockstar parent company Take-Two Interactive recently narrowed down GTA 6's release date to an autumn 2025 window.

Like many folks who saw Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's reveal trailer last year, my first thoughts were along the lines of 'Get that gorgeous-looking battle system into my veins, stat.' And at long last, I've been able to sample an early chunk of Sandfall Interactive's upcoming action RPG for myself, playing around the first three and a half hours of the game after its opening prologue.At this stage in the game, the titular expedition team have left their hometown of Lumiere behind and set off on what everyone assumes will be a one-way trip to try and defeat the evil being known as The Paintress, who lives on a faraway island visible from the shores of Lumiere, and who keeps wiping out swathes of their friends by drawing eerie numbers on a large pillar. 33 is the latest number to get scrawled out on 'The Continent', and it's since wiped out everyone who's 33-years-old including expedition leader Gustave's love interest, Sophie, and shrinking the remaining population of Lumiere even further.Watch on YouTubeBut the team's arrival on the shores of The Continent to try and break this tragic cycle of death and eventual extinction have gone awry. A mysterious, but intensely hostile old man - a sight unheard of for these young explorers - suddenly wipes out most of their squad right off the bat, leaving Gustave and a handful of other survivors to scrabble for a hasty retreat. I pick up with Gustave in an ethereal forest, where high rock walls and bioluminescent flowers guide me forward toward my first main goal: a place called The Indigo Tree, your team's designated meet-up point if your arrival went south.Along the way down these beautiful, albeit linear gullies, I was able to get to grips with Clair Obscur's frankly stupendous combat system. But before I get to that, I want to talk a little bit about what happens between battles, as this is arguably what we've seen the least of during its various trailers so far, and which sadly left me a little cold after my playthrough. It's not all bad news, I should say - there are hints of greatness here which I'll get to shortly, but early on at least I could feel my enthusiasm for the game starting to wane every time I wasn't in a fight. The scenery in Clair Obscur is properly gorgeous. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveThe world itself looks stunning, no doubt about it. When I finally broke through the thick foliage of the trees, an enormous cliff view opened up, revealing huge, jagged rocks hanging curiously in the air, all pointed toward that ominous 33-etched pillar. The ghostly canopy of the Indigo Tree also draped itself across the sky like an otherworldly Erdtree from Elden Ring. Later, I explored a coral reef area where everything behaved like it's underwater but it was actually just regular air - plumes of seaweed rippled upwards toward the sky, large fish bristled through the dense undersea thickets overhead, and bubbles lazily bobbed along in front of my face. Left: This underwater-but-not coral area is a real jaw-dropper in the visuals department. Right: Some treasure puzzles require you to use your free-aim shooting powers to unlock multiple magical locks around the environment. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveIt's the kind of visual splendour that really punches above its weight considering Sandfall's comparatively small team size, and the temptation to coo over the sheer majesty of it all from a distance is strong in the extreme. But when it comes to traversing these rich, dense spaces, it's essentially Dead-end Nooks and Crannies: The Game, but without the aid of a mini-map to guide you through its warren of branching avenues. I should say that noodling down these side paths is almost always worth it, as there was always some glowing trinket to pick up at the end of it - white orbs signifying more common items such as Chroma currency, while rarer, purple orbs sometimes doled out buff-boosting Picto armour, or Chroma Catalysts that can be used to upgrade your weapons, to name just a couple. These items were regularly guarded by fierce enemies, too - and even those that seemed free for the taking would often become ambush traps, forcing you to fight your way back to the main path.All fine stuff on the face of it, but the act of trying to find a way forward - coupled together with some truly excessive motion blur that I couldn't disable for the life of me in this particular build - made navigating these lush environments more of a chore than I was expecting. It's exactly the kind of cocktail that puts my collectible-FOMO-obsession into overdrive, a feeling I don't mind indulging as long as I know where the main path is at all times. But Clair Obscur infuriatingly forgoes any kind of map to help orient you in these large and imposing settings, and repeatedly running into brick walls and doubling back on myself began to grate as the preview build went on. This overworld field links all of the main levels together - and is the only place you can open a map of any kind, which is sadly an impressionistic painting of this central area rather than any more precise. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveOne thing I wasn't expecting, though, was a kind of central, overworld hub connecting all these disparate environments together. After defeating the boss monster of the forest, for example, I stepped through a portal that brought me to an area that felt like I was stepping out onto Hyrule Field in Ocarina of Time again, or the plains outside Midgar from the original Final Fantasy 7. With the camera pulled back and Gustave looming large over a cartoonishly small rendition of the world at large, it conjured the best kind of nostalgia I could hope for in a modern game like - that feeling of playing a PS1 Final Fantasy game, just with the sumptuous detail and lighting of an Octopath Traveler diorama. Left: Finding shortcuts will no doubt become a vital part of exploring this overworld map. Right: If you're too weak to tackle an area yet, you'll be well-warned in advance. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveI also spied shortcuts and obstacles here that needed to be unlocked before I'd be able to push further into other areas of the island. Other, higher-level areas also had big red warning signs flagged up as I approached them, though that didn't stop me from having a go at them anyway, just to try my luck. This overworld hub is a place I suspect we'll be returning to often throughout Clair Obscur, dipping into its numerous, discrete locations to further the story, and then returning to explore another area with the knowledge gained from our previous stops. Indeed, a teaser montage at the end of the preview also hinted at being able to travel by air and sea in this area once you'd unlocked the requisite skills and characters, and I can see how this meshing of Metroidvania tropes with the bones of its core RPG could be very appealing indeed. I found myself thinking, I want to play that version of Clair Obscur, as what I played just now felt very limited and narrow in scope.Granted, my preview was just an early segment of the very first act. Blinkers are to be expected. I just wish Sandfall Interactive would deign to give us a map to help us see it in all its glory, rather than eschewing any kind of HUD or UI completely when outside of battle. The battles are wonderful, even if the menus have possibly a smidge too much text. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveAnd my word, those battles. What a triumph. I couldn't wait to get back into the thick of it a lot of the time, as its turn-based combat just felt so light on its feet. Each party member, for example, has a pool of action points to spend each turn, which deplete when you perform special attacks or use your free-aim ability to shoot glowing, enemy weakpoints from afar, but accrue with regular ones. But the way each character's individual skillsets twist and build on this basic premise brings heaps of tactical thinking to the forefront of your battle plan.Gustave, for instance, has a special power called Overdrive, which lets him unleash a devastating Lightning attack with his mechanical left arm - provided you've accrued enough charge by performing other special attacks first, that is. Lune, meanwhile, is more of a magic user, and her elemental attacks will leave elemental 'stains' that can then be consumed by other attacks for additional damage. The more abilities you unlock, the more you start to think how well they might synergise with each other, and even at this early stage there were plenty of potential combo opportunities to really wrack up the damage. Above: Your free-aim ability can shoot enemy weakpoints to take off big chunks of enemy health. Below: Most skills involve quick-time events to power them up, and getting the timing right on the orange strip will earn you a Perfect hit. | Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveBut it was Maelle who really ratcheted up the tension here, as her pe attacks are all centred around one stance flowing into the next, accruing more and more bonuses and effects provided you keep the chain unbroken. This creates a constant dance between different flow states - her offensive stance will boost her attacks, but leave her open to more damage, for example, while swapping into a defensive stance will bolster her defence at the cost of attack power. If a foe is burning, however (which you might have achieved by using her fiery Spark attack during her defensive stance), you can switch to her 200% damage-dealing Virtuose stance - the pinnacle of Maelle's attack triangle in the preview, and a real piece-de-resistance that feels intensely gratifying to unleash after building up to it across several turns. Image credit: Eurogamer/Kepler InteractiveIt's even more delicious if you manage to perfectly counter an enemy while in Virtuose stance, too, as players are given the chance to either dodge or parry every single attack that comes their way via time-based button presses. The timing is pretty hard to nail on its default difficulty, but there's nothing more satisfying than parrying an attack three times in a row and then watching your squad - either individually or altogether if it's a group assault - pull off the biggest middle-finger counterattack I've seen in a game in a very long time. It's truly tremendous stuff, and it's all executed with a real eye for neat visual flourishes that make you go 'Heck yeah' at the TV. Even the Persona games can't measure up to the level of showmanship on display here, and I simply couldn't get enough of it.It's this combat that still makes me excited for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, but please for the love of all that's holy, I'm going to need a goddamn map if I'm ever going to be as thrilled by the exploration side of the game. Just like the ever-present 33-painted pillar on the horizon, I can clearly see the brilliance lying at the heart of this game. I just hope that its final release on April 24th won't get too bogged down in the tedium of navigation to let us appreciate it in all its glory.

You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you're reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games here Contents hide The release date for WWE 2K25 is imminent! Soon fans will be able to enter the ring and enjoy 2Ks newest offering. Previously, leaks suggested the game is getting NBAs biggest mode, and 2K has confirmed these leaks with the reveal of The Island. Now, as we approach the early access launch, 2K is teasing the DLC roster. From what we can gather so far, the WWE 2K25 DLC roster list includes huge legends, new NXT greats, and even more.WWE 2K25 DLC roster listBelow is the WWE 2K25 DLC roster list comprising of wrestlers uncovered so far from 2Ks teasers posted on WWEGames X account:GiuliaStephanie VaquerMotorcity Machine GunsPentaJordynne GraceZariaThe above wrestlers are DLC that appear pretty definite by the teasers. Below is a list of possible WWE 2K25 DLC rosters that seem hinted at but less certain:Jesse VenturaPsycho SidPaul OrndorffJunkyard DogTito SantanaKSI or Speed (Prime Bottle)Mark HenryVictoriaDLo BrownAl SnowBilly Gunn2K should be unveiling the WWE 2K25 DLC roster list soon, and we will make sure update this article when the wrestlers are confirmed.DLC bonusesBelow is the list of confirmed WWE 2K25 DLC that comes as pre-order bonuses, along with whats exclusive to the Deadman and Bloodline editions:Pre-order bonus DLC:Wyatt SicksUncle HowdyDexter LumisNikki CrossJoe GacyErik RowanDeadman edition DLC:MyFACTION Persona Card: Undertaker 90MyFACTION Persona Card: Mattel Elite Greatest Hits Undertaker*Usable UrnBrother Love ManagerBloodline edition DLC:MyFACTION Persona Card: Mattel Elite Collection Greatest Hits Roman ReignsMyFACTION Persona Card: Mattel Elite Series 114 Jey UsoWrestleMania 41 ArenaMyFACTION Persona Card: New playable Superstar2x MyFACTION Persona Card: WrestleMania Main EventMyFACTION Persona Card: The Rock (Nation of Domination)Remember that you must pre-order to get the Wyatts Six Pack, and you want to buy either the Deadline or Bloodline edition to get the DLC Season Pass. Early access also launches on March 7th for the Deadman and Bloodline editions, meanwhile, the Standard edition releases on March 14th.Related TopicsWWE 2K25 Subscribe to our newsletters!By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and may receive occasional deal communications; you can unsubscribe anytime.Share