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Scientists Detect Rising Microplastics in Human Brains, Study Raises Concerns Scientists Detect Rising Microplastics in Human Brains, Study Raises Concerns A rise in microplastic contamination in human brain tissue has been reported, with findings indicating an increase over recent years. Concerns about potential health impacts have been raised, as microplastics and nanoplastics have been detected in significant amounts. Research suggests that individuals with dementia had even higher concentrations, though the causation remains unclear. While the presence of these particles has been established, debates around research methodology and the accuracy of findings continue within the scientific community. Study Highlights Rising Microplastic Levels According to a study published in Nature Medicine on February 3, the concentration of microplastics in human brain tissue has risen by approximately 50 percent between 2016 and 2024. Researchers found that in those who had died with dementia, microplastic levels were nearly six times higher than in individuals without the condition. Comparisons with samples dating from 1997 to 2013 showed a continuous rise in microplastic accumulation over time. The study examined brain, liver, and kidney tissue from 28 people who died in 2016 and 24 individuals from 2024. The highest concentrations were found in brain tissue, with microplastic levels ranging from seven to 30 times greater than in the kidney and liver. The presence of polyethylene, commonly used in food packaging, was most notable, accounting for 75 percent of the detected plastics. Potential Impact on Brain Health In an email to Live Science, study co-author Matthew Campen, a toxicologist at the University of New Mexico, stated that the accumulation of microplastics could potentially disrupt blood flow in brain capillaries or interfere with neural connections. While concerns about links to dementia exist, no direct causation has been established. Concerns Over Research Methods Skepticism regarding the study’s methodology has been expressed by some scientists. Speaking to Live Science, Oliver Jones, a professor of chemistry at RMIT University in Melbourne, questioned whether the results were biologically plausible. He pointed out that the main analytical method used, pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, might have led to overestimated plastic concentrations due to interference from brain fats. Despite these concerns, toxicologist Emma Kasteel from Utrecht University, in a statement to Live Science, stated that while the exact levels may be uncertain, the confirmed presence of microplastics in the brain warrants further investigation. Source link #Scientists #Detect #Rising #Microplastics #Human #Brains #Study #Raises #Concerns Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Large Holes Open Up in Surrey, England; Car Teeters on the Edge Large Holes Open Up in Surrey, England; Car Teeters on the Edge A giant crater in the southeast English county of Surrey has enveloped part of a residential street, causing the county to declare a major incident. Here’s what we know. What’s going on? There’s a hole. A what? A hole. Actually, two holes. The first hole appeared on Godstone High Street on Monday night, and grew on Tuesday to 65 feet by 20 feet and 16 feet deep. The second hole on the other side of the road is 16 feet by 16 feet, and 16 feet deep. Since Tuesday, both holes have stabilized and neither are continuing to expand. What caused this? The cause is unclear, but geologists have some theories. The area is built on weakly cemented sandstones, which formed during the Lower Cretaceous ******* more than 100 million years ago, that can be eroded by running water, Andrew Farrant, a geologist for the British Geological Survey, said in a statement. While this is not usually an issue, a sudden change in the composition of the ground — caused by heavy rainfall or an influx of water from a burst pipe — can trigger a collapse. In Surrey, a burst water main might have flushed out weak sandstone bedrock beneath the road or caused the collapse of an old, unrecorded sand mine. Or the collapse of a mine roof might have led to the bursting of a water main, said Vanessa Banks, a geologist for the British Geological Survey. More broadly, the push in Britain to build more houses has meant that more water goes into aging infrastructure, putting more pressure on pipes, she said. Periods of intense rainfall, which are likely to become more common because of climate change, can also put more pressure on the seals of aging pipes, she said. Is anyone in danger? No, but people in about 30 properties have had to evacuate, the Surrey County Council said. “Our house is not secure at all,” one resident who evacuated, Noosh Miri, told the BBC. “At the moment we don’t know the extent of the damage but we do know we won’t be going home for some time.” What other havoc has the hole wreaked? Traffic has been diverted from the road, the main road in the village. A car is teetering on the edge of the second, smaller hole, and the owner hasn’t been able to move it. Another resident, Josh Neame, told the BBC that he slept in his car on Monday night after the hole first appeared. What are they doing about the hole? They’d like to fill it. The site is currently being tested by structural experts, and more permanent repairs will happen once it is deemed safe, the Surrey Council said. How long will repairs take? Probably months, said Matt Furniss, the Surrey County councilor responsible for highways. Displaced residents may be able to move back sooner than that, but the timeline is unclear, he said. “We cannot give a definitive date at this point,” he said. Over the last few days, residents have been able to return home for brief visits to collect personal belongings. Are holes like these common? Sinkholes, formed by the dissolution of limestone or other soluble rocks, are common in certain areas, such as near Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky, and in parts of Florida. But sinkholes in Britain are usually small and tend to occur in rural locations. Periodically, new holes form in busier areas in Britain. In December, a hole in Wales opened up in the driveway of a past winner of the reality-TV show Love Island, Liam Reardon, according to local media. Heavy rainfall can trigger the collapse of old mine shafts or infrastructure, though these cases are not technically sinkholes because the crater is not formed by the dissolution of soluble rocks, according to the British Geological Survey. Still, people should not be worried, Dr. Banks said. Residences are generally not allowed to be built on areas where abandoned mines are known to have existed. In instances where holes have occurred, houses have been built above medieval mines that had not been recorded. Source link #Large #Holes #Open #Surrey #England #Car #Teeters #Edge Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Amazon to shutter its app store on Android after more than ten years on mobile Amazon to shutter its app store on Android after more than ten years on mobile Amazon is shutting down its app store on Android The service will remain available on the Fire TV and Tablet Amazon Appstore launched all the way back in 2011 If you’re a fan of the Amazon Appstore for Android then I’ve got some unfortunate news for you. That’s because, as reported by the folks over at TechCrunch, Amazon has sent out a notice to developers announcing the store will be shuttered on August 20th this year. Considering that the Amazon store has been going for a little over a decade, it’s impressive they managed this long. However, for the myriad of developers currently publishing on the store and their fans, this is probably cold comfort. According to the support page on the topic if you do have Android apps that were installed from the store these won’t be guaranteed, which I would assume means you can’t rely on further updates or support. But it also confirms that the Amazon Appstore will remain available for the company’s own proprietary tech such as the Fire TV and Fire Tablet. Alternatively- It’s rather ironic that, right when alternative app stores seem to be gaining traction, Amazon seems to lose its bottle. I don’t necessarily blame them though as in that time they’ve scarcely become a household name when it comes to app stores. I think the reasons for this are diverse, but overall it’s because Amazon haven’t exactly offered anything to bring in players or users. The Epic Games Store which recently launched has all the benefits of the free games programme for example. In either case, it’s a further reminder that even with the force of a major company behind you, you can’t always rely on them sticking around. In any case, there’s no reason to fret, because if you want to find some great new releases that are available right now why not go ahead and dig into some of those we’ve listed on the top five new mobile games to try this week? Source link #Amazon #shutter #app #store #Android #ten #years #mobile Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Economic Outlook Worsens as Polls Find Disapproval of Donald Trump’s Economic Policies | Economy | U.S. News – U.S. News & World Report Economic Outlook Worsens as Polls Find Disapproval of Donald Trump’s Economic Policies | Economy | U.S. News – U.S. News & World Report Economic Outlook Worsens as Polls Find Disapproval of Donald Trump’s Economic Policies | Economy | U.S. News U.S. News & World ReportTrump approval rating underwater 1 month into second term: Survey The HillMany of Trump’s early actions are unpopular, Post-Ipsos poll finds The Washington PostSurprising new poll numbers released on Trump’s performance so far in the White House Fox News Source link #Economic #Outlook #Worsens #Polls #Find #Disapproval #Donald #Trumps #Economic #Policies #Economy #U.S #News #U.S #News #amp #World #Report Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Trump blasts Boeing Air Force One delays, but airlines grow upbeat Trump blasts Boeing Air Force One delays, but airlines grow upbeat Boeing 737s on the ground in Renton, Washington. Leslie Josephs | CNBC President Donald Trump expressed frustration in recent days about the long wait for a pair of Boeing 747s that will serve as the new Air Force One planes. The planes are years behind schedule. Trump negotiated the $4 billion contract for the aircraft during his first term, and it isn’t clear whether they’ll be ready during his current one. Cost-overruns have totaled more than $2 billion to date. Trump advisor Elon Musk is working with Boeing in hopes of delivering the aircraft faster, the manufacturer’s chief executive Kelly Ortberg reiterated on Thursday. “The president’s clearly not happy with the delivery timing. I think he’s made that well known,” Ortberg said at a Barclays industrials conference. “Elon Musk is actually helping us a lot in working through the requirements … to help us get the things that are non-value added constraints out of the way so that we can move faster and get the President those airplanes delivered.” Ortberg called Musk, CEO of SpaceX, which competes with Boeing’s defense and space unit, a “brilliant guy” who can “pretty quickly ascertain the difference between technical requirement and things that we can move out of the way.” Aboard one of the current presidential 747s, Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he is considering alternatives. “We may buy a plane or get a plane, or something,” he said, according to Reuters. Trump toured a 747 that was parked at Florida’s Palm Beach International Airport over the weekend, the outlet reported. First Lady Melania Trump laughs as she watches US President Donald Trump cut with a saber into a cake representation of the new Air Force One design during the Commander-In-Chief inaugural ball at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC, on Jan. 20, 2025. Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty Images The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Frustration is nothing new for Boeing’s airline customers who faced long delays for aircraft just as the post-pandemic travel ***** was taking hold. A near-catastrophic door-plug blow out in January 2024 further slowed Boeing deliveries and prompted a leadership change. Now some customers are growing more upbeat. Executives told CNBC that it appears the manufacturer has turned a corner under Ortberg, who took the helm in August. “Boeing is doing a pretty miraculous job of turning around and becoming more reliable as a supplier,” United Airlines CFO Mike Leskinen said Wednesday at the same Barclays conference. “Our confidence that our MAX aircraft are going to be delivered on schedule has never been greater at my tenure at United Airlines.” Bob Jordan, CEO of all-Boeing 737 carrier Southwest Airlines, said on a Jan. 30 earnings call: “While they still have much work to do, they appear to be on a good path, and we are feeling more optimistic.” Speaking at the Barclays conference on Thursday, Boeing’s Ortberg said he doesn’t see any supply chain problems that would prevent the manufacturer from ramping up production of its cash-cow 737 Max planes, its best-seller, to 38 per month in the coming months. Source link #Trump #blasts #Boeing #Air #Force #delays #airlines #grow #upbeat Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition doesn’t mess with what already works Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition doesn’t mess with what already works Table of Contents Table of Contents A strange new world Small, but smart, additions Getting hooked Everybody has their gaming white whale. For me, and plenty of RPG fans, that is the Xeno series from Tetsuya Takahashi and Monolith Soft. With decades of real-world and in-game lore across multiple entries known for intimidating runtimes and complex interconnected philosophical stories, it has reached a near mythic level. So it’s only apt that my time with Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition begins with a Moby ***** reference in the form of a spaceship called the USS White Whale. A remaster of the original 2015 Wii U game, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is set to release for the Nintendo Switch on March 20. As a standalone story, it acts as one of the best entry points to an intimidating series. For me, it might just be the one I finally roll credits on. In the opening hours of the game I’ve played so far, carefully chosen improvements to the original amplify an already exceptional open world I am eager to get lost in. A strange new world Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition begins with the USS White Whale ****** landing on the planet Mira. This strands the remnants of humanity, fleeing from an intergalactic war Earth got caught in the middle of, on an alien world with few resources. Beyond a stylish opening cinematic and some expository dialogue in the game’s opening hour, Xenoblade Chronicles X sees fit to let you lose on the world without much preamble. This is to its benefit, as feeling like a stranger in a strange land is very much the point of the story. Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition — The Year is 2054 Trailer — Nintendo Switch The player is one of the lucky survivors of the ******, and a resident of the freshly established city of New Los Angeles. The destruction of the rest of the White Whale has thrown the city into a race for survival dependent on scouring Mira for resources. After choosing my appearance, a unique feature for Xenoblade Chronicles X compared to the rest of the series, I’m sent out to do my part. That means exploring the sprawling alien landscape and getting into plenty of trouble. Mira is a vast open-world, and Monolith Soft shows just how good it is at making the player feel the scale of things. Mountains feel huge, large plains appear to stretch out for miles, and it leaves me feeling like an ant in the grand scheme of it all. That is only enforced by the extensive flora and fauna found in Mira. As soon as I step outside the safety of New Los Angeles and into the unkempt wilds of the planet, I am met with plenty of creatures who want to kill me at first sight. Unlike other open-world games, however, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition does a wonderful job at making the inhabitants of Mira feel like living breathing creatures, not just fodder for me to defeat. So much of the early narrative centers around trying to understand the alien planet we have found ourselves on, and some of that includes observing the wildlife. As I wander around I am being told an environmental story about how all of these creatures make use of the land. I, and the rest of humanity, are encroaching here and it adds a real sense of bringing imbalance to a delicate ecosystem. Small, but smart, additions Of course, I can’t take a pacifist approach with the creatures of Mira as much as I might want to — especially when Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition makes beating enemies to a pulp so delightful. Like other titles in the Xenoblade series, X uses an MMO-style combat system. This means that, rather than pressing buttons to directly land every blow on the enemy, my party auto-attacks while I press special abilities, called Arts, depending on the situation. This brings a more strategic feel to every battle, as it’s less about mindlessly slashing and more about listening to party members and triggering follow-up attacks or staggering enemies with the right Art. This will likely be second-nature if this isn’t your first Xenoblade game, but newcomers will likely face a learning curve before it feels natural. Nintendo Combat in the Definitive Edition isn’t exactly the same as the original Wii U release. The most notable addition in the remaster is Quick Cooldown. While every Art has a timer on it after activating that restricts players from spamming it, Quick Cooldown gives a new option. Pressing Y on the controller will immediately reset the cooldown timer of an Art, allowing you to activate it again. While I haven’t played the original Xenoblade Chronicles X, the speed and versatility in combat that Quick Cooldown brings feels like a smart addition to keep the player more involved in what can sometimes be lengthy fights. Quick Cooldown itself can only be activated a certain number of times during battle, though, so it didn’t get me out of every tough situation. That’s a good thing, as it means every battle still has a sense of urgency. Like other recent double dips, such as Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and Super Mario RPG, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition makes only a handful of carefully chosen improvements over the original. Quick Cooldown is one, but by no means the only. The Follow Ball, which can guide players to mission objectives now also indicates any items needed to complete certain missions. It’s little tweaks like this, which seek to clarify any criticisms of the original release, that have the most impact on making Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition a more welcoming game to newcomers. Getting hooked So far my time with Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition has been relatively mundane, something I didn’t quite expect with a Xeno game. I haven’t gotten access to the game’s version of pilotable mechs, called Skells, that are so prevalent in trailers and other marketing materials, and I’m not deep in an overly philosophical story. Instead my time is best described as just vibing in the world. Nintendo Mira is a beautifully realized alien planet that I can’t stop exploring if only because I want to see all of its splendor. Sure I’m partaking in excellent combat encounters along the way, and grabbing the odd side-quest here and there but the world itself is my motivator. So often I find that open worlds feel more like theme parks with loose guide rails to encourage the player towards the “best” experiences, but Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is content to let me roam around aimlessly for hours even if nothing of great note occurs along the way. This actually makes me more invested in the survival story of New Los Angeles, since I get a real sense of the danger lurking in Mira and how it threatens the characters I am slowly growing to care about. I’m starting to think I won’t mind the dozens of hours still to come before I roll credits. Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition launches on March 20 for Nintendo Switch. Source link #Xenoblade #Chronicles #Definitive #Edition #doesnt #mess #works Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Occidental Petroleum: 3 Reasons the Stock Will Gush Higher in 2025 Occidental Petroleum: 3 Reasons the Stock Will Gush Higher in 2025 Occidental (NYSE:) stock price struggles are over. The market corrected to long-term lows, aligning with Warren Buffet’s initial entries into the stock and is set up for a strong rebound. Factors pointing to such a rebound include the results, the balance sheet and capital returns, analysts’ sentiment, and Mr. Buffett himself. Regarding his activity, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:) made predictable purchases in early February that confirm the bottom indicated in December. The December bottom, coincidentally, was also caused by Berkshire’s buying activity. The February purchase is worth $35.725 million in shares and added incrementally to the holding, which stands near 29% of the company. Occidental Petroleum Repositions for Profitable Growth Occidental’s Q4 results reflect its portfolio positioning and cost-cutting efforts, revealing price-related revenue weakness offset by increased production and widening margin. The company’s $6.48 in consolidated revenue is down more than 9% YOY and missed the consensus by a solid 500 basis points despite increased production. However, the adjusted earnings grew more than 500 basis points due to operational improvements and debt reduction, with margin strength expected to stick. The takeaway is that cash flow is improving, providing leverage for investors, as seen in the balance sheet. Regarding cash flow, the company’s $3.6 billion in operating cash is solid. Operating cash in Q4 was more than 55% of the revenue, including operating capital and 47% without, with free cash flow running at 21.6%. The free cash flow allowed for substantial debt reduction and the company to hit its near-term $4.5 billion target, freeing up additional cash flow in future quarters. Balance sheet highlights include increased cash, property, and total assets only partially offset by liabilities. The net result is a 12% increase in equity and an expectation for equity gains in 2025. Occidental’s Dividend is Growing Robustly The company’s dividend, with the stock at $49, is worth nearly 2% in annual yield, and the distribution can be expected to grow robustly. The 2025 increase is worth 9% to investors, and the payment is only 30% of the earnings, leaving ample room for future increases. Dividend investors can profit from Occidental’s steadily increasing payout over the next two to three years because the increase pace will likely accelerate. The expectation is that the company will increase the distribution to match the pre-pandemic levels, an increase worth more than 100% of the 2025 payment. Oil prices are the headwind. WTI is trading at the low end of its established trading range, generally impacting Occidental’s revenue leverage and the oil industry. However, the oil price action in mid-February suggests a floor is in place, support is rising to higher levels, and a price rebound could begin soon. In that scenario, Occidental’s revenue headwind will turn into a tailwind, boosting an already robust cash flow and capital return outlook. Analysts Reset Sentiment: Predict a 25% Upside From Critical Support The analyst’s sentiment trend played a role in Occidental’s share price decline, but the market has been set up to rebound. The sentiment trend includes numerous price target reductions, which present a headwind for stock price action, but the sentiment remains favorable. The 21 analysts tracked by MarketBeat rate the stock as a Hold with a Bullish bias. The bias is due to the high number of Buy ratings, 33%, the low number of Sells, 10%, and the price target. The consensus price target has been steady in the low $60s since mid-2024 and predicts a 25% upside for the market relative to critical support targets. The critical support target is near $49 and aligns with a prior resistance point broken when Berkshire Hathaway started buying the stock. The initial reaction was a price dip in premarket trading, which became a buying opportunity for early traders. The indication going into the open was for the stock to open above the critical support level and move higher because of converging technical signals, including the MACD and stochastic indicators. The MACD and stochastic indicators show a strong bottom and entry signal, so the move could be substantial. The critical resistance target is near $51.85 and could be reached well before the FQ1 2025 earnings release. Original Post Source link #Occidental #Petroleum #Reasons #Stock #Gush #Higher Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Emma Raducanu: Man who ‘exhibited fixated behaviour’ in Dubai detained and given restraining order Emma Raducanu: Man who ‘exhibited fixated behaviour’ in Dubai detained and given restraining order A man who “exhibited fixated behaviour” towards British tennis player Emma Raducanu was detained and given a restraining order, Dubai Police said. An clearly upset Raducanu was seen hiding behind the umpire’s chair two games into a second-round defeat at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday. Raducanu, 22, had spotted the man in the first few rows of the stand during her match against Karolina Muchova. Raducanu was approached by the same man, who gave her a letter and took a photograph, in a public area close to the tournament on Monday. Dubai police said the man was detained before Raducanu decided not to press charges. “Following Raducanu’s complaint, Dubai Police detained a tourist who approached her, left her a note, took her photograph, and engaged in behaviour that caused her distress,” Dubai police said. “While Raducanu later chose to drop the charges, the individual signed a formal undertaking to maintain distance from her and has been banned from future tournaments.” Source link #Emma #Raducanu #Man #exhibited #fixated #behaviour #Dubai #detained #restraining #order Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Why OpenAI is trying to untangle its ‘bespoke’ corporate structure Why OpenAI is trying to untangle its ‘bespoke’ corporate structure On the Friday after Christmas, OpenAI published a blog post titled “Why OpenAI’s structure must evolve to advance our mission.” In it, the company detailed a plan to reorganize its for-profit arm into a public benefit corporation (PBC). In the weeks since that announcement, I’ve spoken to some of the country’s leading corporate law experts to gain a better understanding of OpenAI’s plan, and, more importantly, what it might mean for its mission to build safe artificial general intelligence (AGI). What is a public benefit corporation? “Public benefit corporations are a relatively recent addition to the universe of business entity types,” says , professor of corporate law at the University of Texas School of Law. Depending on who you ask, you may get a different history of PBCs, but in the dominant narrative, they came out of a certification program created by a nonprofit called . Companies that complete a self-assessment and pay an annual fee to B Lab can carry the B Lab logo on their products and websites and call themselves B-Corps. Critically, B Corp status isn’t a designation with the weight of law, or even an industry-wide group, behind it — it’s a stamp of approval from this specific nonprofit. As a result, B Lab eventually felt the certification program “was not enough,” says Professor , executive director of the Lowell Milken Institute for Business Law and Policy at UCLA. “They wanted something more permanent and more rooted in the law.” So the organization began working with legal experts to create a model statute for what would become the benefit corporation. B Lab lobbied state legislatures to pass laws recognizing benefit corporations as legal entities, and in 2010, Maryland became the first state to do so. , Delaware enacted its own version of the law. To make things somewhat confusing, the state went with a different name: the public benefit corporation. Delaware is arguably the most important state for corporate law in the US, thanks to the Delaware Chancery Court and its body of business-friendly case law. , 68.2 percent of all Fortune 500 companies, including many tech giants, are incorporated in the state despite largely operating elsewhere. Delaware is also the state where OpenAI plans to reincorporate its for-profit as a PBC. The basic idea behind public benefit corporations is that they’re business entities that impose a constraint on their board to balance profit maximization, a public benefit that’s stated in the charter of the company, and the concerns of people impacted by its conduct. “It’s a bit of a paradigm shift,” says Professor Dammann, but don’t confuse a PBC with a nonprofit. “The key characteristic of a nonprofit is what we call a non-distribution constraint, meaning if a nonprofit makes a profit, they can’t distribute it to their shareholders,” Professor Dammann says. “If you form a public benefit corporation, there’s no such non-distribution constraint. At its heart, a PBC is still a for-profit corporation.” Why is OpenAI pursuing a PBC structure? First and foremost, a PBC structure — whether it’s private or selling share on the open market — would get OpenAI out from under that non-distribution constraint. But there are likely some other considerations at play. OpenAI hasn’t publicly said this, but it appears some of its employees believe a PBC structure could protect the company from a hostile takeover if it were to go public. In a recent , a source within the company said a PBC structure would give OpenAI a “safe harbor” if a rival firm were to try to buy the company. It “gives you even more flexibility to say ‘thanks for calling and have a nice day’,” the person said. The specific threat OpenAI likely wants safe harbor from is what’s known as the Revlon doctrine, which is named after a 1986 Delaware Supreme Court case involving the cosmetics company Revlon Inc. and now defunct supermarket chain Pantry Pride, then led by CEO Ronald Perelman. “The Revlon doctrine holds that if you’re a publicly traded corporation [incorporated in Delaware] and somebody stages a takeover attempt, then under certain conditions, you have to sell to the highest bidder,” says Professor Dammann. The underlying rationale behind Revlon is that a for-profit company’s sole function is to generate profits, so the board is forced to make whatever choice will return the most money to shareholders. “We don’t know for sure, but we’re fairly confident that the Revlon doctrine doesn’t apply to public benefit corporations,” says Professor Dammann. Theoretically, PBC boards may have the flexibility to reject a takeover bid if they believe a buyer won’t adhere to the social values the company was founded on. However, because “none of this has been litigated,” according to Professor Dorff, it remains a purely hypothetical defense. Moreover, it’s unclear if reorganizing as a PBC would offer OpenAI more protection against a hostile takeover attempt than what it already has as a nonprofit. “I don’t think this has been tested with this particular kind of structure, but my sense is that the nonprofit would not be obligated to sell even in a Revlon moment,” says Professor Dorff. “We need to raise more capital” OpenAI Publicly, OpenAI has said it needs to secure more investment, and that its current structure is holding it back. “We once again need to raise more capital than we’d imagined,” OpenAI wrote in December, two months after securing in new venture funding. “Investors want to back us but, at this scale of capital, need conventional equity and less structural bespokeness.” Unpacking what the company likely means by “structural bespokeness” requires a short history lesson. In 2019, when OpenAI its for-profit arm, it organized the company using a unique “capped-profit” structure. The company said it would limit investor returns to 100x, with excess returns going to the nonprofit. “We expect this multiple to be lower for future rounds as we make further progress,” OpenAI added. It’s fair to be critical of the company’s claims. “You’d have to ask the investors, but I have to say that 100x is an exceptional rate or return, so the idea that you cannot get investment because of a 100x cap seems rich to me,” says Professor Dorff. In fact, there are suggestions OpenAI was already making itself more attractive to investors before announcing its reorganization plan in December. In 2023, reported that the company changed its cap to increase (and not decrease as OpenAI had originally said it would) by 20 percent per year starting in 2025. At this time, OpenAI does not expect to be profitable , and racked up about last year. “We want to increase our ability to raise capital while still serving our mission, and no pre-existing structure we know of strikes the right balance,” OpenAI said in 2019. At that point, Delaware’s PBC legislation had been law for nearly six years. However, the company is now arguing that a PBC structure would “enable us to raise the necessary capital with conventional terms like others in this space.” In OpenAI’s defense, calling its current structure convoluted would be an understatement. As you can see from the company’s own org chart, there are two other entities under the OpenAI umbrella, including a holding company that’s an intermediary between the nonprofit and for-profit. Engadget was able to find at least 11 different Delaware companies registered to OpenAI. George R.R. Martin, Jodi Picoult and other members of the Author’s Guild probably described it best in their copyright lawsuit against the company, calling OpenAI “a tangled thicket of interlocking entities that generally keep from the public what the precise relationships among them are and what function each entity serves within the larger corporate structure.” OpenAI did not respond to multiple requests for comment from Engadget. “A stronger nonprofit supported by the for-profit’s success” Reuters OpenAI’s nonprofit arm does essentially two things: controls the for-profit side’s business, and exists as a “vehicle” to develop “safe and broadly beneficial AGI” (artificial general intelligence). According to the company, its current structure does not allow its nonprofit arm to “easily do more than control the for-profit.” If it were freed of that responsibility — by say, handing it off to investors — OpenAI suggests its nonprofit could focus its resources on charitable initiatives, all while becoming “one of the best-resourced nonprofits in history.” To remedy the situation, OpenAI’s board says the nonprofit should give up absolute control over the for-profit and take whatever degree of control comes with the amount of stock it’s granted through the reorganization process. “The nonprofit’s significant interest in the existing for-profit would take the form of shares in the PBC at a fair valuation determined by independent financial advisors,” OpenAI says of this part of its plan. Professor Dorff argues who controls OpenAI is critical to the company maintaining its mission. The move to reorganize the for-profit as a PBC is not controversial. “Companies do it all the time; there’s a straightforward and clear process to do that,” he tells me. “What is controversial is what they’re trying to do to change the nature of the nonprofit’s ownership interest in the for-profit.” At the risk of oversimplifying things, OpenAI’s board of directors wants to divest the company’s nonprofit of two of its most important assets: control of the for-profit and its rights to the profits from AGI. “You can’t just do that,” says Professor Dorff. “The assets of the nonprofit must remain dedicated to the purpose of the nonprofit.” There are rules that allow nonprofits to modify their purpose if their original one is made defunct, but those won’t apply to OpenAI since we’re not living in a world with safe (or any) AGI. Think of it this way, what is the value of artificial general intelligence? It’s not a traditional asset like real estate or the EVs sold by Tesla. AGI, as , doesn’t yet and may never exist. “One could imagine it’s worth all the labor of the economy because it could eventually replace human labor,” says Professor Dorff. Whatever the eventual value of the technology, Professor Dorff says he’s unsure “any number would enable the nonprofit to do what it’s supposed to do without control.” No matter how OpenAI spins it, any version of this plan would result in a massive loss of control for the current nonprofit entity and its board. One more thing Something the experts I spoke to agreed on was that the laws governing PBCs aren’t very effective at ensuring companies stick to their social purpose. “The legal constraints aren’t very strict,” Professor Dammann says, adding, “the problem with a very broad public benefit is that it’s not so constraining anymore. If you’re dedicated to a very broad version of the public good, then you can always defend every decision, right?” “The dual goal of profit and public purpose doesn’t really tell you how a company is going to manage those objectives,” says , professor of Business Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. “To the extent that public purpose sacrifices profits, and it doesn’t have to, but to the extent that it does, how much of a sacrifice is contemplated?” “What matters a lot in PBC governance is what the private arrangements are,” Professor Dorff adds. “That is, what do the documents say?” A company’s certificate of incorporation, shareholder agreements and bylaws can provide “very robust” (or very few) mechanisms to ensure it sticks to its social purpose. As Professor Dorff points out, OpenAI’s blog post said “nothing about those.” Contrast that with when OpenAI its “capped profit” plan. It gave us a glimpse of some of its paperwork, sharing a clause it said was at the start of all of its employee and investor agreements. That snippet made it clear OpenAI was under no obligation to generate a profit. Right now, there’s a lot we don’t know about its restructuring plan. If the company is still serious about its mission of “ensuring artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity” it owes the public more transparency. What happens next? Reuters Elon Musk’s recent bid to buy the nonprofit’s assets complicates OpenAI’s plan. In this situation, the nonprofit isn’t obligated to sell its assets to Musk under Revlon or anything else — the company simply is not for *****. However, as part of OpenAI’s reorganization plan, the for-profit will need to compensate the nonprofit for its independence. Musk’s bid likely an attempt to inflate the price of this transaction to one higher than what Sam Altman and the rest of OpenAI’s board of directors had in mind. To say Musk and Altman have had since the former left OpenAI would be an understatement on a grand scale, and having an enemy who not only has the most money of any human on the planet, but also broad and largely unchecked control of the United States’ , may frustrate plans. OpenAI also faces a ticking clock. According to documents seen by , the company has, under the terms of its , less than two years to free its for-profit from control of the nonprofit. If it fails to do so, the $6.6 billion it raised in new funding will become debt. If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission. Source link #OpenAI #untangle #bespoke #corporate #structure Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Hims & Hers Earnings Could Be a Game Changer—What to Do Now Hims & Hers Earnings Could Be a Game Changer—What to Do Now There are a few stocks that come along every once in a while, arriving to change the way an old-fashioned industry works and operates. When investors get lucky enough to find one of them, it can typically bring on life-changing returns, even retiring them from active work if they choose to go that route. With this in mind, here are the two main ingredients investors need to check off their list in the search for such an opportunity. First is technology implementation, which changes the way an industry works. One example is how Uber (NYSE:) changed how ridesharing works or how Zillow (NASDAQ:) expedited the housing market’s sales process. The second factor, preferable for an investment, is a low-cost subscription business model, giving ample room for management to navigate market cycles and still be able to count on stable and predictable cash flows for reinvestment back into growth. Today, shares of Hims Hers Health Inc (NYSE:) fit that description, getting ahead of the medical sector through technology and creating an entirely new space of telehealth as a result as well. More than that, the stock has recently gone on an impressive run of up to 502% in just 12 months, confirming the fact that this could be one of those “retire early” stocks if played right. The question is, will the stock still be able to deliver these returns moving forward? Expectations for upcoming earnings might answer that. Controversy Against the Leader When investors compare the momentum and sentiment seen in Hims & Hers stock recently against another healthcare giant like Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:), it becomes evident that the former is leaving everyone else behind. Just like in any other industry, when the up-and-comer starts to breathe down the neck of the leaders, controversy will abound. The latest round involved accusations that the company’s weight loss products (GLP-1s) are not FDA-approved, and those accusations would be right due to a simple loophole. The compounds that Hims & Hers make are not generic but rather compound medicines that have been in use for decades. Now investors can see how these allegations might be a targeted attack on Hims & Hers as it threatens to take market share from the big names, but here’s why investors shouldn’t worry. Hims & Hers was already successful even before introducing its weight loss product line, and there are some numbers to back that up. Hims & Hers Is Firing on All Cylinders According to the company’s latest quarterly earnings, which reported a net 77% growth in revenue over the past 12 months to reach $401.6 million, weight loss products only got up to $100 million worth of this net revenue. That would be approximately 25% of the whole, which is significant but not terminal. It is not terminal, meaning that 100% of this revenue generated would have to be recalled due to a product failure or a complete discontinuation of their weight loss products, which is highly unlikely. Investors should focus on other metrics pertaining to the rest of the 75% of revenue coming into Hims & Hers. With that in mind, a strong key performance indicator (KPI) can be measured through user growth and profitability. As of the latest quarter, Hims & Hers reported up to 2 million subscribers, a 44% jump over the previous year, which shows the quick adoption rate this company has achieved in the market. More than that, the monthly average revenue per subscriber rose to $67, or 24% higher than last year, meaning Hims & Hers not only has the ability to keep taking on market share and growing its user base but also showcases enough pricing power to keep delivering compounded returns in the future. This performance would translate to a free cash flow (operating cash flow minus capital expenditures) of up to $79.4 million, a 312% jump over the previous year. This is important because it allows businesses to keep reinvesting back into growth initiatives and keep compounding value for shareholders. Is HIMS Still a Buy? Some investors might be weary of buying into the Hims & Hers for two reasons. First, the stock has gone on an incredible run recently, leaving some to wait for a potential discount. Second, earnings are right around the corner, and the possibility of any good news being already priced in could weigh a decision to buy. However, there are two factors investors should carry with them into earnings. One is the fact that the company’s short interest still represents over 30% of the float, meaning any more up days could begin to trigger what’s known as a short squeeze, where short sellers are forced to close their losing positions (thereby buying back the stock in bulk). The other factor is that up to $701 million worth of Hims & Hers stock was purchased by institutional investors over the previous quarter, another bullish sign for investors to consider, lest they get left behind on a potential run on earnings. However, for those still worried about buying at the highs, a pullback toward the $58.50 to $60.0 level shows reasonable support, making for a good entry. Original article Source link #Hims #Earnings #Game #ChangerWhat Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Bolsonaro’s push for amnesty admits coup guilt: Lula Bolsonaro’s push for amnesty admits coup guilt: Lula Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva says his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, is acknowledging his guilt in a case in which he’s accused of plotting a coup to stay in power after his 2022 electoral defeat by focusing on a campaign for amnesty. Bolsonaro and allied lawmakers are pushing for a bill that would pardon those convicted over an insurrection on January 8, 2023 — when supporters of the far-right leader stormed government buildings in Brasilia, Brazil’s capital, emulating the US Capitol riots. They are also trying to amend a law that prevents convicted criminals from running for office. “He’s asking for amnesty, which means he’s basically saying, ‘Guys, I’m guilty. I tried to come up with a plan to kill Lula, I tried to come up with a plan to kill (Vice President Geraldo) Alckmin, I tried to come up with a plan to kill (Justice) Alexandre de Moraes,'” Lula told Radio Tupi during a live interview. Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet on Tuesday charged Bolsonaro with devising a multi-pronged plot to remain in power despite his loss to Lula, including an alleged plan to poison Lula and shoot dead Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, a foe of the former president. Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing and dismissed accusations against him as vague, saying the charges were the result of an authoritarian regime manufacturing internal enemies. He was already banned by Brazil’s top electoral court to run in elections until 2030 over abuse of power while in office and casting unfounded doubts on the country’s electronic voting system. The Brazilian president added that Bolsonaro and his allies who were also charged should first defend themselves in court instead of asking for forgiveness in advance. “I always emphasize the presumption of innocence — everyone in this country has the right to prove their innocence and he has that right. So prove it,” Lula said. Lula said that such allegations were “extremely serious.” “I am sure that if it is proven, there is only one way out: prison,” he added. Source link #Bolsonaros #push #amnesty #admits #coup #guilt #Lula Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Google Cloud launches first Blackwell AI GPU-powered instances — 72-way GB200 with 72 B200 GPUs and 36 Grace CPUs Google Cloud launches first Blackwell AI GPU-powered instances — 72-way GB200 with 72 B200 GPUs and 36 Grace CPUs Google Cloud has introduced its A4X virtual machines, which are powered by Nvidia’s GB200-based NVL72 machines. These rack-scale systems feature 72 B200 GPUs and 36 Grace CPUs. According to Google, the new VMs are designed for large-scale AI workloads, such as large language models with long context windows, reasoning models, and scenarios that require massive concurrency. Google also offers A4 VMs for general AI training and development. Google’s A4X VMs leverage Nvidia’s NVL72 machines, which have 72 B200 GPUs and 36 72-core Grace CPUs (2,596 Armv9-based Neovers V2 cores) interconnected with NVLinks. This enables seamless memory sharing across all 72 GPUs, improving response times and inference accuracy. The system also supports concurrent inference requests, making it suitable for multimodal AI applications. Performance-wise, A4X VMs deliver four times the training efficiency of previous A3 VMs that used Nvidia’s H100 GPUs. In particular, Google Cloud promises ‘over 1 ExaFLOPS’ of computing power per GB200 NVL72 system, potentially producing 1440 FP8/INT8/FP6 PetaFLOPS performance, suitable for training and inference with concurrent workloads. A4X VMs also feature the Titanium ML network adapters built on Nvidia’s ConnectX-7 NICs to ensure fast, secure, and scalable ML performance as it enables 28.8 terabits per second (72 × 400 Gbps) of uninterrupted low-latency GPU-to-GPU traffic using RoCE. Google Cloud’s Jupiter network fabric connects NVL72 domains between each other, enabling seamless scaling to tens of thousands of Blackwell GPUs in a non-blocking cluster. In particular, AI teams can deploy A4X VMs via Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), which supports clusters of up to 65,000 nodes. Google also touts advanced sharing and pipelining techniques to maximize GPU utilization for large deployments. A4X VMs also seamlessly integrate with Google Cloud services. Google supports Cloud Storage FUSE, which improves training data throughput by 2.9 times, while Hyperdisk ML accelerates model load times by 11.9 times. Google Cloud now offers both A4 and A4X VMs, each optimized for different AI workloads. A4X, with GB200 NVL72 systems, is aimed at large-scale AI, long-context language models, and high-concurrency applications. At the same time, A4, powered by B200 GPUs and unknown processors, is better suited for general AI training and fine-tuning. The pricing of A4X and A4 is unknown. Get Tom’s Hardware’s best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox. Source link #Google #Cloud #launches #Blackwell #GPUpowered #instances #72way #GB200 #B200 #GPUs #Grace #CPUs Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Champions Trophy 2025 results: India cruise past Bangladesh in dominant win Champions Trophy 2025 results: India cruise past Bangladesh in dominant win Shubman Gill scored a superb unbeaten century after Mohammed Shami took 5-53 as India began their Champions Trophy campaign with a six-wicket win over Bangladesh. Set a modest target of 229 to win, Gill batted through and finished on 101 from 129 ****** as India cruised to victory with 3.3 overs to spare. India made a brilliant start in Dubai as they reduced Bangladesh to 35-5 halfway through the ninth over. Shami took two wickets and spinner Axar Patel had two in two ****** before captain Rohit Sharma dropped a regulation catch at slip to deny him a hat-trick. Bangladesh avoided further humiliation thanks to a superb stand of 154 between Tawhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali. It was slow going for large parts but the pair, who stayed together for 34 overs, kicked on after each passed 50. Shami eventually broke the stand when he removed Jaker for 68, becoming the quickest man to 200 ODI wickets in terms of ****** bowled in the process, and went on to complete his sixth five-wicket haul in one-day internationals. Hridoy brought up his maiden ODI century from 114 ****** before he was the last man out with two ****** of the innings remaining. The India chase got off to a swift start with Rohit making a quickfire 41 and Gill soon into his work to put the 2013 winners in command. Bangladesh fought hard through the middle overs and will rue a dropped catch by Jaker to give KL Rahul a life – had it been taken India would have been five down with 64 runs still needed. But Gill batted with great poise in a chanceless knock, mixing stylish shots with the requisite resolve to ensure India were never truly concerned. The 25-year-old eased his way to an eighth ODI century from 129 ****** and it was left to Rahul to seal the win with a six hoisted over deep backward square. Source link #Champions #Trophy #results #India #cruise #Bangladesh #dominant #win Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Obsidian Worked Way Too Hard on One Avowed NPC Everyone Wants To Sleep With Obsidian Worked Way Too Hard on One Avowed NPC Everyone Wants To Sleep With Whether it be the protagonist, the villain, or maybe even the side highlights, it is the characters that make the game, especially so in RPG titles such as the recently released Avowed. A trend in the industry has also been allowing players to interact extraordinarily with these characters, often even allowing players to romance them. Avowed has many different characters for players to interact with | Obsidian Entertainment Unfortunately, that’s not the case with this one character, Kai, in Avowed that everyone otherwise would have liked to rizz up. While Obsidian Entertainment, the studio behind the game, would not have expected such a warm reception towards Kai, it is still welcome. Avowed: The power of Kai and his loose shirt Players of the game have been melting over Kai | Obsidian Entertainment As expected before its release, fans were naturally excited to see what the game and its different characters will have to offer once it finally comes out. However, all hell broke loose when it came to Kai, with players wanting nothing but suggestive interactions and the ability to romance with him. Talking about the creative decisions the team had to make when it came to the character, Dimitri Berman, the lead character artist, revealed the following in an interview via GamesHub. We didn’t plan for [players to be attracted to Kai] but we don’t stay away from it, We had different outfits and concepts for his outfits – for example, if he’s a soldier, should he wear a heavy armour, a lighter armour, what does it mean? But we always look at the background of the character, how they’re written, their personality. With Kai, he’ll like his shirt open, and he’s got a little whale. We just pick what makes sense for the character. Berman essentially revealed how the design of every single character is thought through under the roof of Obsidian Entertainment. Apparently, all it took for our fish-buddy Kai was for him to have his shirt open and have a tiny whale locket to suddenly become the community’s collective digital crush. Why characters are one of the best way to market your video game Characters remain a huge part of any video game | Obsidian Entertainment In the highly competitive world of gaming, different and unique characters are always the studio’s key to making sure their title emerges as a blazing success. Whether it be Mario, Geralt from the Witcher series, or Master Chief from Halo and more, characters will always be the greatest identity of any video game franchise. Kai is just one of these characters that has happened to catch the eye of the players. And not only are they liking him, they demand to have more suggestive interactions with the character, showing the real down-bad side of the player base. Whether intentional or not, Obsidian Entertainment has stumbled onto the perfect formula for getting RPG players hooked on a character, which is how we know Avowed is a success, despite the Steam numbers suggesting so. Source link #Obsidian #Worked #Hard #Avowed #NPC #Sleep Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Rumor suggests Nvidia’s had difficulties to iron out with chips for RTX 5070 and 5060 GPUs, seemingly leading to delays and possibly low stock levels Rumor suggests Nvidia’s had difficulties to iron out with chips for RTX 5070 and 5060 GPUs, seemingly leading to delays and possibly low stock levels Nvidia has supposedly run into performance issues with the chips for its RTX 5070 and 5060 This has meant these GPUs have been theoretically delayed by a month As a result, initial stock levels of the RTX 5070 may be thin on the ground We’re hearing more rumors about Nvidia’s RTX 5070 and 5060 GPUs being delayed and encountering hiccups with production, as well as suffering from possibly low stock levels at launch (once again). VideoCardz noticed a post on X from analyst Dan Nystedt, who flagged up a report from the Commercial Times, a Taiwanese news outlet, making various claims about Nvidia running into trouble with the mentioned GPUs. Nvidia’s latest RTX50 gaming graphics card series faces delays until mid-March at the earliest due to performance issues in the chips, RTX5070 and 5060, that needed to be debugged, media report, while wafer damage from the January 26 Taiwan earthquake is also a key factor in the…February 20, 2025 Apparently, the Blackwell chips used in the RTX 5060 and 5070 (known as GB205 in the latter case, and rumor has it, GB206 for the former) were suffering from performance issues which required last-minute addressing. And the need for that additional honing late in the day has “delayed the mass production schedule” (bear in mind that this is an article translated from ********). Commercial Times further points out that the “Tainan earthquake disrupted TSMC’s wafer production” which is what Nvidia’s Blackwell chips are fashioned from, so this has compounded supply issues, we’re told. The report asserts that the end result of all this is that the mass production of both the incoming RTX 5070 and 5060 (remember, the latter GPU isn’t officially confirmed by Nvidia yet) has been delayed by around four weeks. The theory presented is that Nvidia previously had targets of mid-February for the RTX 5070 production lines to be running full tilt and mid-March for the RTX 5060, but that schedule has now been pushed back to mid-March and mid-April respectively. (Image credit: ShutterStock) Analysis: A theoretical but depressingly believable scenario What does all this mean in practice? Well, maybe nothing – it’s just a bunch of rumors after all – but the fact is that it does marry up with other speculation suggesting pretty much the same thing: a delay from February/March to March/April. (That came from one of the more reliable sources out there for hardware-related gossip, too). Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. On top of that, do know for sure that the RTX 5070 has been delayed – Nvidia originally announced that this GPU, and its Ti partner, would both go on ***** in February. And while the RTX 5070 Ti is now out as planned, the RTX 5070 vanilla version has indeed been put back to an on-***** date of March 5. (It’s worth noting that the Ti uses a different Blackwell chip, GB203, as opposed to GB205 in the plain 5070 – and so the mentioned chip performance issues wouldn’t apply to the former, as that chip has already been put out there in the RTX 5080). Furthermore, as you may have noticed, the RTX 5070 Ti has gone on ***** today, but stock has vanished pretty much instantly. If you got a GPU, congrats, you were lucky (and if you’re still hunting, check out our guide on where to buy the 5070 Ti). If production of the RTX 5070 is indeed running behind schedule as rumored – and Nvidia having pushed the GPU back does make things look shaky here – then we can fully expect a lean level of supply, and the same blink-and-it’s-gone stock scenario with the RTX 5070. It’s all depressingly believable, too. Let me put it this way: do you think when the RTX 5070 becomes available to buy in early March, there’ll be plenty of stock kicking around? No, me neither, although I could, of course, be very wrong (and nothing would please me more, frankly, as I might want to buy one of these graphics cards). As for the RTX 5060, we don’t know if this GPU is coming soon, as Nvidia hasn’t said anything officially, but the rumor mill reckons it’s due in the near future. If this speculation is correct, though, we’re now looking at mid-April, so the graphics card is still a couple of months away (in theory). The more positive news brought forth with this report from the Commercial Times is that Nvidia is apparently ‘making every effort’ to speed up production for Blackwell GPUs and get everything back on track, and analysts believe that the lackluster supply will gradually improve going forward. So hopefully, this won’t turn into a longer-term tale of skewed supply and demand, with seriously hiked pricing, as we’ve seen in the past. You might also like… Source link #Rumor #suggests #Nvidias #difficulties #iron #chips #RTX #GPUs #seemingly #leading #delays #possibly #stock #levels Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Is That Legal? A Guide to Trump’s Big Moves So Far. Is That Legal? A Guide to Trump’s Big Moves So Far. In his first month in office, President Trump has ordered a radical set of changes to the federal government. Some are within the traditionally understood scope of a president’s power, but many appear to purposely violate statutes, setting up tests of whether limits imposed by Congress on the White House are constitutional. The bounds of presidential power can be hazy, and the Republican-appointed supermajority on the Supreme Court could expand them. Still, so many of Mr. Trump’s actions have defied apparent legal limits that some scholars say the country is approaching a constitutional crisis. Here are 38 of the Trump administration’s biggest moves so far. Actions that appear to conflict with specific statutes or to violate the Constitution. Actions that have been temporarily blocked by a judge, either partly or completely. Actions without these symbols appear more likely to fall within mainstream understandings of presidential power, but may still be unusual or subject to legal challenges. Accessed sensitive data systems at the Treasury Department. States have sued, arguing that this effort by Elon Musk and an initiative called the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, violates the Administrative Procedure Act, the Privacy Act of 1974 and other statutes. Mr. Musk’s team has also sought access to vast amounts of data across the government, including at the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration, prompting lawsuits. (A federal judge has temporarily restricted Mr. Musk’s team and Mr. Trump’s political appointees from accessing Treasury Department data.) Moved to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development, including by placing thousands of employees on leave. A union of federal workers has sued, arguing that only Congress can dissolve the agency and fold its remnants into the State Department, as Mr. Trump is trying to do. (A judge has blocked parts of this.) Fired the head of an office that protects whistle-blowers and fired members of the National Labor Relations Board, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Congress created those agencies to be independent of the White House, and it has been understood that presidents cannot summarily fire their leaders before their terms are up without a cause like misconduct. That limit is explicit in some of their statutes. Several fired officials have sued, setting up potential Supreme Court tests of those limits. (Judges have ordered some of those officials reinstated for now.) Enabled agency heads to summarily fire some career federal employees without obeying civil-service protections. Mr. Trump’s executive order instantly nullified a regulation by the Biden administration to impede such firings, but the order may have violated the Administrative Procedure Act. (That’s a law that governs the executive branch’s rule-making authorities.) A union representing federal employees has sued. Offered buyouts to federal workers. The offer said workers would be placed on administrative leave and paid through the end of September, but it may conflict with laws about leave and severance payments for federal workers. Congress also hasn’t appropriated money for buyouts. (A judge paused the program, but then lifted the pause, for technical reasons.) Ordered Consumer Financial Protection Bureau staffers to stop most work. Congress created the agency, so it would take congressional action to close it. A union representing federal employees has sued, saying that staff members now can’t fulfill the agency’s mission as written into law. Fired as many as 18 inspectors general. A law requires giving Congress 30 days’ notice and detailed, case-specific reasons in writing for any removal of an inspector general, but Mr. Trump ignored it. Several of them have filed a lawsuit, saying the firings “violated unambiguous federal statutes.” Fired more than two dozen Justice Department prosecutors. There are laws aimed at protecting the civil service and its senior career officials, and they require certain processes. Empowered Elon Musk to overhaul the executive branch. Several lawsuits have been filed arguing that Mr. Musk and DOGE lack legitimate legal authority to undertake the sweeping effort to downsize and dismantle federal agencies. Established DOGE. In general, establishing a new unit is within Mr. Trump’s power. Previous presidents have regularly created new units within the executive office of the president. DOGE is not a Cabinet-level department; it was technically a renaming and repurposing of the United States Digital Service, which was itself created by President Barack Obama. Ordered the F.B.I. to turn over a list of everyone who worked on Jan. 6 cases. Agents have sued, saying they believe the administration intends to reveal their identities, which could put them and their families in danger. (A judge has temporarily blocked the public release of names.) Froze federal hiring. Previous administrations have frozen hiring. Ordered security clearances for some people without typical vetting, and stripped them from others. The president has authority to issue and revoke security clearances. Fired the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the head of the Transportation Security Administration and the commandant of the Coast Guard. Congress created these positions to serve fixed terms that would not necessarily turn over at the moment a new president takes office. But the president nevertheless has authority to remove people in such jobs. Dismissed thousands of probationary workers across the federal work force. Probationary workers — often but not always in the first year of their jobs — don’t have the full protections that other civil service workers do. Source link #Legal #Guide #Trumps #Big #Moves Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Aussie Super Lge star Sezer aims at world champs Wigan Aussie Super Lge star Sezer aims at world champs Wigan Revitalised *********** star Aidan Sezer says he’s ready to lead Hull up the Super League table as the buoyant ****** and Whites prepare to host wounded champions Wigan at the MKM Stadium. The former Gold Coast and Canberra half-back, who left Leeds after two seasons in 2023 and rediscovered his motivation levels in a short stint back in the NRL with Wests Tigers, starred in his new side’s eye-catching opening win at Catalans Dragons last week. And the 33-year-old says he’s relishing the opportunity presented by his quick return, with Hull’s bid to wipe clean the memory of a dismal 2024 campaign set for another serious test against a Wigan side smarting from their season-opening defeat to Leigh. “I didn’t know what to expect when I left 18 months ago but I went home and got back to playing the footy I know I still have in me,” Sezer said. “I’m obviously rejuvenated from going back home, and I’ve got myself back in the shape I needed to be in. I’ve come back with renewed motivation, and I’m really happy to be at a club where there have been a lot of changes, with a new administration and a massive ambition to do well.” Sezer was the catalyst of Hull’s first win in Perpignan since 2019, weighing in with two assists for tries by Jordan Lane and Tom Briscoe as his side confounded expectations to run out 24-4 winners. New head coach John Cartwright hailed Sezer in the wake of the Perpignan win, but swiftly turned his attention to the prospect of taking on Matt Peet’s men, who were part of Super League’s first scoreless draw in normal time. “Wigan make winning a habit, and only good teams can do that,” he said. “They’ve got great history, great culture, they’re going to be really tough to beat. But if we get our game right, we feel we can compete with anyone.” The hosts’ chances will be hit by a mounting injury list which sees Jed Cartwright, Amir Bourouh, Oliver Holmes and Zak Hardaker all ruled out of the game. But John Cartwright hopes their opening win in France – which has already left many pundits swiftly recalibrating their pre-season predictions – can serve as a blueprint for even ******* tests to come. Source link #Aussie #Super #Lge #star #Sezer #aims #world #champs #Wigan Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Delta Force ****** Hawk Down Campaign Hands-On Preview – An Intense Fight | MP1st Delta Force ****** Hawk Down Campaign Hands-On Preview – An Intense Fight | MP1st Delta Force ****** Hawk Down hands-on preview – MP1st played Team *****’s campaign mode ahead of release, & have all the details in our preview here! Source link #Delta #Force #****** #Hawk #Campaign #HandsOn #Preview #Intense #Fight #MP1st Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

5,000-Year-Old Spanish Fortress Reveals Roman-Era Burial with Dagger 5,000-Year-Old Spanish Fortress Reveals Roman-Era Burial with Dagger A nearly 5,000-year-old fortress in southwestern Spain has revealed a surprising discovery—an isolated burial from the Roman era. The remains of a man, estimated to be between 25 and 35 years old, were found near the fortress’s outer wall, despite the site having been abandoned for over 2,500 years. The presence of a Roman military dagger suggests he may have been a soldier. As per sources, the burial appears unusual, as no other evidence of Roman occupation has been identified at the location. The fortress, known as Cortijo Lobato, was initially discovered in 2021 during surveys for a solar power plant. Details of the Excavation The excavation, conducted by the private archaeological firm Tera S.L. and led by archaeologist César Pérez, suggests that the Roman-era man may have been a deserter, victim of violence, or succumbed to natural causes. In a statement to Live Science, Pérez mentioned that ancient structures were sometimes repurposed as burial sites by later civilisations. The presence of a “pugio” dagger, commonly carried by Roman soldiers, supports the possibility of military involvement. Copper Age Fortress and Its Fall The fortress, constructed during the Chalcolithic ******* between 3200 and 2200 B.C., featured a central five-sided enclosure reinforced by multiple walls and ditches. Defensive structures included narrow entryways and bastions up to 20 feet wide. As per archaeological findings, fire damage suggests it was abandoned around 2450 B.C. after a violent attack. Evidence points to an expansion phase before its destruction, indicating its strategic importance at the time. Unanswered Questions While the discovery of the Roman burial remains a mystery, the fortress itself highlights an advanced understanding of military architecture in prehistoric Iberia. Investigations continue, with researchers aiming to uncover more about the site’s significance and the events that led to its abandonment. Source link #5000YearOld #Spanish #Fortress #Reveals #RomanEra #Burial #Dagger Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Retailer ‘well-positioned’ for a beat-and-raise Retailer ‘well-positioned’ for a beat-and-raise TD Cowen Senior Research Analyst Oliver Chen joins Morning Brief anchors Seana Smith and Brad Smith to discuss his outlook on Walmart (WMT). The retail giant stock is dropping this morning despite beating fourth quarter earnings estimates. Chen identifies Walmart as a retail sector leader, noting the company “executes so well” across supply chain, curbside pickup, delivery, and AI implementation. “It’s really hard for everybody to do this” at Walmart’s scale and efficiency, Chen says. “This company is consistent, and the consumer is consistent, so it’s [Walmart] well positioned for a beat-and-raise,” he explains. On investment potential, Chen affirms that “we certainly like it for the longer term.” He elaborates: “What we are thinking is that there’s a real barbell opportunity, meaning… these retailers that can execute to exceptional value, low prices, rollbacks, they will be better positioned because customers will trade down to places like Walmart to get that everyday low price. And that’s great across all cohorts.” To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Morning Brief here. This post was written by Angel Smith Source link #Retailer #wellpositioned #beatandraise Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Monster Train 2 breathes new life into one of 2020’s best games Monster Train 2 breathes new life into one of 2020’s best games Monster Train, a 2020 indie hit by Shiny Shoe, is getting a sequel. Monster Train 2 is set to launch this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. Ahead of its reveal, Digital Trends went hands on with the sequel, taking its new clans for a spin. Released in May 2020, Monster Train is a cross between a roguelike, a deckbuilder, and tower defense game that draws inspiration from Slay the Spire. In it, players protect a pyre that’s being delivered to hell via a three-story train by amassing a deck of demons and using them to ward off invading foes. The gameplay loop is all about using cards strategically to fill each floor with monsters that auto attack at the end of a turn. Shiny Shoe followed that up with 2024’s Inkbound, but now it’s returning to Monster Train for a proper sequel. Monster Train 2 continues the first game’s story, delving into a new story in which angels and demons need to unite to fend off a new threat, Titans. All of that gives Shiny Shoe a good reason to create new clans, which bring a slew of monsters to the sequel. Only two were playable in the demo I tried, though there will be three more in the final version. Banished are fallen angels who have allied with Hell to reclaim Heaven from the Titans, while Pyreborn are fiery demons who take their powers from dragons. When heading out on a run, players pick both a primary clan and an allied clan, allowing them to mix decks. Big Fan Those who have played Monster Hunter won’t find many surprises here, as the gameplay loop remains largely unchanged. I’m tossed into a roguelike run where I build up my deck between battles. Fights have me strategically placing units on each train car, paying attention to how I order them to maximize damage when I end my turn. I can help my odds by playing utility cards that either weaken enemies or buff my stats. For instance, Just Cause moves a unit to the front of the line while giving them two points of Valor and upping their armor in the process. While the gameplay is familiar, there are some new concepts to learn. While Banished cards play with Valor, many cards in the Pyreborn deck are all about stacking Pyregel onto enemies. That’s a substance which increases how much damage an enemy takes per stack. Other units I’ve seen include demons that sneeze Pyregel onto enemies and singing birds that apply buffs to units. Like the first game, cards can also be upgraded at rest stops to create some seriously powerful combinations. In one run, I was obliterating Titan-corrupted foes with a massive meteor that barely cost me any mana to play. Aside from new cards and enemies, the changes to the formula seem minimal. The roguelike structure is identical to the first game, using the same top down map between battles. There are still pit stops where I can draft cards, upgrade my deck, and resolve brief story events. One standout moment had me meeting up with an engineer who gave me a few choices of how to retool my train car. I picked an upgrade that made it so I could play cards for free in the middle train car. There seems to be more of a focus on the train itself in general, as the demo included a locked Train Depot feature, which will allow players to customize their train. Though it does feel a bit like a DLC expansion for the first game at the moment, Monster Train 2 looks like it’ll be a reliable sequel for fans of the first. Its new clans should add some more strategic potential to the mix and I’m looking forward to seeing how much I can retool my train in the final version. As someone who went through a pandemic obsession with the original in 2020, I’m ready to ride the same train again. Monster Train 2 launches later this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC. Source link #Monster #Train #breathes #life #2020s #games Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Microsoft Xbox showcases an incredibly impractical AI model for “gameplay ideation” Microsoft Xbox showcases an incredibly impractical AI model for “gameplay ideation” Yesterday, Microsoft Xbox debuted Muse, “a generative AI model designed for gameplay ideation,” alongside an open-access Nature.com article and corresponding blog post with a YouTube video. Not sure what “gameplay ideation” means? While Microsoft defines it as generating “game visuals, controller actions, or both,” its actual functional purposes are pretty limited and certainly don’t do anything like skipping an actual game development pipeline. That said, some of the data is still interesting. The training was done at scale on H100 GPUs. It required about 1 million training updates to extend just one second of real gameplay into an additional 9 seconds of responsive, engine-accurate simulated gameplay. Training data was primarily extracted from existing multiplayer gameplay sessions, though. Instead of just running the game on a single PC, Microsoft had to train this model on a cluster of 100 Nvidia H100 GPUs, which is an order of magnitude more expensive and power-consuming while still only producing an output resolution of 300×180 pixels for about nine more seconds of extrapolated gameplay. Introducing Muse: Our first generative AI model designed for gameplay ideation – YouTube Watch On The most interesting thing the team demonstrated with Muse was duplicating existing props and enemies within the environment and having Muse replicate their functionality. All this hardware cost, electricity toll, and AI training instead of, you know, using development tools to spawn enemies or props instead? While it’s interesting how Muse eventually maintained proper object permanence and duplicated the original game’s behavior, its final use cases seem downright wasteful compared to the already effective, traditional video game development pipeline. While future developments of Muse may be capable of pulling off more interesting feats, it ultimately ends up on a long list of other projects trying to simulate gameplay entirely within AI. While it’s nice to see some degree of engine accuracy and object permanence still present here, it’s such a sub-optimal way to develop, test, or play a video game that I genuinely don’t understand why anyone would want to use this, even after hours of poring over the relevant material. Get Tom’s Hardware’s best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox. Source link #Microsoft #Xbox #showcases #incredibly #impractical #model #gameplay #ideation Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

GTA 5 On PC Is Getting Better Graphics, Faster Loading Times, And Lots More With Free Upgrade GTA 5 On PC Is Getting Better Graphics, Faster Loading Times, And Lots More With Free Upgrade Rockstar Games made a big GTA announcement today, and while it’s not anything to do with GTA 6, it’s still a pretty significant piece of news. GTA 5 for PC is getting a major upgrade, with Rockstar Games bringing over the changes, improvements, and additions from the Xbox Series X|S and PS5 versions. On March 4, everyone who owns GTA 5 on PC will be able to access the upgrade for free, with all story mode and online progress supported. There are some key things to know, including that anyone whose hardware does not meet the minimum requirements (below) can keep playing the existing version of GTA 5 on PC, but it will be a separate instance. People on that version will not be able to play together with those running the upgraded version, but support for the older edition will remain. GTA 5 on PC is getting a big upgrade. Gallery If you don’t already own GTA 5 on PC, you can grab it through GameSpot sister site Fanatical via the link below. Note that the key must be redeemed through the Rockstar Games Launcher. In terms of what’s included in the new version of GTA 5 for PC, everyone who upgrades gets all manner of new vehicles and vehicle upgrades from Hao’s Special Works, along with even more animals populating the game’s environments. Additionally, the Career Progress feature will finally be supported on PC, while PC players will be able to sign up for GTA+ for the first time. Rockstar Games is giving everyone $4,000,000 worth of in-game currency as well to help them get started buying whatever they want. If your PC is beefy enough, you’ll be able to take advantage of new technical features, too, including ambient occlusion and global illumination, along with ray-traced shadows and reflections, some of which are only available on PC. Players can also expect faster loading times, support for higher frame rates and higher resolutions, and better audio with Dolby Atmos. Additionally, Rockstar confirmed that support for FiveM in GTA 5 on PC will continue uninterrupted. Looking ahead, Rockstar said it will announce details on the next GTA Online update in March, and while details are thin for now, the studio said the update will focus on “sky-high illicit revenue opportunities” with the character Oscar Guzman. As for GTA 6, Rockstar Games is planning to launch the game later this year, and the release date might have gotten narrower now that we know when Borderlands 4 is coming. GTA 5 on PC upgraded system requirements Minimum OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel Core i7-4770 / AMD FX 9590 Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1630 (4 GB VRAM) / AMD Radeon RX 6400 (4 GB VRAM) Storage: 105 GB, SSD required Sound card and audio: 100% DirectX 10 compatible Recommended OS: Windows 11 Processor: Intel Core i5-9600K Memory: 16 GB Dual-Channel Configuration RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 (8 GB VRAM) / AMD Radeon RX 6600XT (8 GB VRAM) Storage: 105 GB, DirectStorage-compatible drive Sound card and audio: Windows Spatial Sound-compatible audio system; solution containing Dolby Atmos support required for a Dolby Atmos experience. Source link #GTA #Graphics #Faster #Loading #Times #Lots #Free #Upgrade Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

SpaceX Falcon 9 Lands Near The Bahamas for First Time After Starlink Launch SpaceX Falcon 9 Lands Near The Bahamas for First Time After Starlink Launch A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 23 Starlink satellites was launched from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on February 18 at 6:22 p.m. EST. The mission marked a significant milestone for SpaceX as the rocket’s first stage successfully landed on the droneship Just Read the Instructions, positioned off the coast of The Bahamas. The landing, a first for the region, follows a recent agreement between SpaceX and The Bahamas, which expands the company’s operational scope for new orbital trajectories. New Agreement with The Bahamas According to a statement released by SpaceX on February 7 via X, the collaboration with The Bahamas will enable Falcon 9 to access new orbital paths. Traditionally, the company has stationed its droneships in the open ocean, but this shift signifies a broader strategy aimed at optimising launch and recovery operations. The move is expected to improve efficiency and provide additional launch options. Deputy Prime Minister of The Bahamas, Isaac Chester Cooper, highlighted the significance of the event during SpaceX’s live stream, stating that the first international landing in Exuma Sound represented a major step forward for the country. He emphasised that the development positions The Bahamas within the aerospace industry and offers opportunities for growth in the sector. Falcon 9’s Reusability Milestone As reported by Space.com, the booster used for this mission, identified as B1080, has now completed its 16th flight. Out of its previous 15 missions, nine have been Starlink-related. The ability to reuse boosters multiple times is a key element of SpaceX’s cost-reduction strategy, contributing to the company’s high launch frequency. Source link #SpaceX #Falcon #Lands #Bahamas #Time #Starlink #Launch Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Volvo to roll out second software-defined electric car Volvo to roll out second software-defined electric car The so-called Superset tech stack, on which carmaker Volvo is building its software-defined cars, is behind the company’s next launch. The ES90 electric vehicle, which is being unveiled on 5 March, will be the first Volvo car equipped with dual Nvidia Drive AGX Orin hardware, which the company said will raise the bar on safety and overall performance through data, software and artificial intelligence (AI). As Computer Weekly has previously reported, the Superset tech stack consists of one single set of hardware and software modules, and systems that underpin all upcoming electric cars from Volvo. It represents what Volvo describes as “a radical transformation” in how it can develop and use software to improve levels of safety, technology and overall performance throughout the car’s lifecycle. “With the Superset tech stack, we can make such improvements more efficiently and roll them out even faster via over-the-air updates and across all models based on the Superset,” Volvo said. The Nvidia Drive AGX Orin hardware provides 508 trillion operations per second for AI-based active safety features, car sensors and efficient battery management. Volvo said the hardware will enable its engineers to increase the size of the deep learning model and neural network it uses from 40 million to 200 million parameters. “This will happen over time as we collect more data and continue to develop the model, with the overall goal of improving customer experience and – most importantly – safety levels,” Volvo said. The Nvidia hardware helps the ES90 to understand its surroundings through an advanced array of sensors, which includes one lidar, five radars, eight cameras and 12 ultrasonic sensors, as well as an advanced driver understanding system inside the car. According to Volvo, these safety systems are designed to help keep you safe by detecting obstacles, even in darkness, and activating proactive safety measures such as collision avoidance. Commenting on the hardware and software innovations inside the ES90, Volvo chief engineering and technology officer Anders Bell said: “We innovate in all areas of technology to become a leader in software-defined cars, and we’re channelling all our engineering efforts into one direction: making great cars that get even better over time. “By combining the power of core computing and our Superset tech stack, we can now make safer cars more efficiently than ever before.” The ES90 will be the second Volvo built based on the Superset tech stack, and follows on from the EX90, where the stack was first introduced. The Superset tech stack will underpin all upcoming Volvo electric cars, which, according to Volvo, means it will be able to boost the performance of each car in its lineup simultaneously. For instance, ES90 customers can benefit from EX90 software upgrades and vice versa. Volvo positions the Superset stack as an enabler to replace value creation through hardware with a software approach to building value into its customers’ cars. The Nvidia Drive AGX Orin configuration will also be installed on new EX90 cars, replacing the existing Drive AGX Orin and Drive AGX Xavier hardware. Volvo said existing customers of the EX90 will get an upgrade of their cars free of charge. Source link #Volvo #roll #softwaredefined #electric #car Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]