Pelican Press

How should the College Football Playoff work? Debating seeding, selection and more changes How should the College Football Playoff work? Debating seeding, selection and more changes This year’s Ohio State-Notre Dame national championship felt like a really big deal in Atlanta. A mural of the trophy adorned the high-rise Signia Hotel adjacent to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Buckeyes and Fighting Irish fans were everywhere. At long last, it felt like the College Football Playoff achieved its goal of turning the title game into a Final Four-like event. Then we found out it drew the third-lowest television audience for a title game since the CFP began in 2014. The first 12-team Playoff had a lot of great moments. It could also use some tweaks. In the short term, leaders are unlikely to make major changes to the format for the 2025 season. The ******* stuff is more likely to come in 2026, when the new contracts kick in and the SEC and Big Ten basically get to do whatever they want. But now that we’ve experienced the positives and negatives of the expanded tournament’s first year, we can ask a bolder question: How should the Playoff look? Stewart has provided his ideal format, from the size of the field to when the games should be played. He’s an optimist. An idealist, even. Ralph, more of a pragmatist, is here to add a dose of reality. GO DEEPER Did the 12-team College Football Playoff accomplish what it set out to do? Number of teams Mandel: I really like 12. It gives everyone something to play for: four byes, four home games, four “just get in.” I always knew some teams with underwhelming resumes would get those last at-large spots. No one was harmed by Indiana or SMU getting in the Playoff this year. But you go any further than that, and it gets dicey. That Alabama lost three times, one a blowout in the second-to-last week of the regular season, and still very nearly made it — while finishing No. 11 in the committee’s rankings — is not the best case for expanding the field further. Russo: Stewart is correct that the field doesn’t need more teams, but even before the first 12-teamer was played, there was a push for expansion to 14 last spring, led by the Big Ten. So yeah, it’s expanding. Probably not in 2025, but perhaps to 14 or maybe 16 for 2026. I can already hear the sighs. Understanding that it will expand, please, let’s keep it at 14. Sixteen would eliminate byes, one of those “things to play for” that helps the system, and would create No. 1 vs. No. 16 and No. 2 vs. No. 15 games that are not likely to be competitive. Seeding Mandel: The seeding was a mess this year. The approach to reward the top four conference champions with byes was well-intentioned in 2021, but it was agreed upon before realignment and consolidation killed one major conference and super-sized the others. The problem is not so much that the teams ranked No. 9 (Boise State) and No. 12 (Arizona State) got byes, it’s that the No. 4 team (Penn State) got a lower-ranked quarterfinal opponent (No. 9 Boise State) than the No. 1 team (Oregon vs. No. 6 Ohio State). That’s not competitively equitable. Arizona State was rewarded by getting into the Playoff, which it wouldn’t have if it had lost in its conference championship game. Stop there. Give the top four teams the top four seeds. Russo: This is the most likely component to be immediately addressed for the 2025 season, but there’s no guarantee that a change will be made. The 2025 season will be the final year of the CFP’s original contract, which requires unanimity among the 10 Football Bowl Subdivision conference commissioners and Notre Dame’s athletic director to make alterations to the format. The leaders of Big 12, ACC and Mountain West are in no rush to toss out a piece of the format that just benefited their teams. As ACC commissioner Jim Phillips pointed out to The Athletic, professional leagues — including the NFL — have playoff formats that give preferential treatment to division winners regardless of their overall record. The question is whether it’s worth it for Phillips and those who might want to keep this seeding structure to stand in the way of short-term change when it’s all going to be revamped in the long run, whether they want it or not. The guess here is the seeding gets tweaked for 2025, the way Stewart suggests. GO DEEPER Vannini: Indiana, SMU deserve an apology after yet another Alabama loss Automatic qualifiers/conference champs Mandel: No need to tinker here. Russo: There will almost assuredly be tinkering here. Expanding the field to 14 or 16 opens the door for the Big Ten and SEC to receive as many as four automatic qualifiers, with the Big 12 and ACC each getting multiple guaranteed spots, too. This idea was floated last spring, and as unappealing as it sounded, being assured two spots might sound pretty good now to the Big 12 and ACC after the Big 12 got only one team in the field of 12 and the ACC was also looking at being a one-bid conference until Clemson played its way in by winning the league title game. Expanding automatic qualifiers might be especially intriguing if the leagues get creative with how those spots are filled. We’ll come back to that. Arizona State qualified for the CFP after beating Iowa State in the Big 12 title game. (Sara Diggins / American-Statesman / USA Today via Imagn Images) Sites Mandel: I love bowls. I love covering bowls. But I get to go to the bowls for free. I don’t have to pay thousands of dollars to attend them like most fans do. Meanwhile, the first-round sites were a smashing success based on accounts of those who attended them. The games were sold out, and the toilets did not freeze! Let the bowls host the semifinals and the national championship game. The quarterfinals belong on campuses, too, so the fans of those top-four seeds can see their teams play without getting on a plane. Russo: I love Cracker Barrel. I love eating at Cracker Barrel. There is no more reliable dining experience. I know exactly what I’m getting no matter where in America I step into a Cracker Barrel, from the rocking chairs outside to the tchotchkes in the store to the refills of sweet tea to the taste of the chicken-fried steak. It delivers every time, stress-free. This is the CFP’s relationship with the bowls. They deliver every time, stress-free, in hosting big games. Home sites are a wild card. There is no real desire among the decision makers to put more games on campus. Sorry. Schedule Mandel: I know people will tell me not to overreact to one year of data, but the fact Ohio State-Notre Dame got the third-lowest TV audience (22.1 million) for a CFP national title game should be very concerning to organizers. How could a game between those two enormous brands lead to a viewership drop from Michigan-Washington (no offense, Washington) the year before? I think we know why. The thing stretched two weeks too long. Interest plateaued with the New Year’s quarterfinals, as the ratings for the Jan. 9-10 semifinals were down considerably from last year’s Jan. 1 edition, and then a down-to-the-wire title game between two iconic brands with a month of games leading into it barely did better than this year’s Jan. 1 Rose Bowl quarterfinal (21.1 million) between Ohio State and Oregon. I’ve said it for three years: Shift the season a week earlier. Week 0 becomes Week 1. Then you can hold the first round on the weekend that is currently Army-Navy, the quarterfinals the third week of December and the semis where they belong, on New Year’s Day. Most importantly, the CFP is over before the NFL playoffs begin. Russo: Again, Stewart is correct here, but as of right now, there doesn’t appear to be much desire to make the fix he is suggesting. The problem: Thanksgiving weekend, aka Rivalry Week around college football. The television networks have a captive audience for a four-day weekend. Moving that up a week and replacing it with 10 conference championship games spread out over ****** Friday and Saturday is not particularly appealing compared to a full slate stuffed with high-stakes games and rivalries. However, there is an idea that’s been floating around college football circles for a few months that could maybe increase the possibility of shifting forward the entire season. Fox’s Joel Klatt talked about this on a recent episode of On3’s “Andy & Ari Show,” and Phillips referred to it after a CFP management committee meeting the Sunday before the championship game: What if conference championship weekend featured more games? For example, the Big Ten pits its No. 1 and 2 teams against each other for the conference title and a first-round bye. No. 3 plays No. 6 for one automatic bid. No. 4 plays No. 5 for the other. That’s potentially six games combined for the SEC and Big Ten. In Atlanta, Phillips talked about holding a 2 vs. 3 game for an automatic bid, while the team that finishes first in the conference standings getting the other without playing another game. But let’s take it a step farther: What if No. 1 played No. 4? Unfair, you say? Maybe, but the fact is, these conferences have grown so large (16-18 teams in each P4) as to render their standings almost useless. Last season, none of the top three teams in the ACC’s regular-season standings (SMU, Clemson, Miami) played each other. SMU finished first while playing only two of the four teams (Syracuse, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Duke) that tied for fourth. Miami, on the other hand, played all four of those teams, including two on the road. There were a lot of complaints from outside the Big Ten about Indiana’s schedule last season. But Big Ten rival Illinois should have had the biggest complaint. The Illini finished the regular season 9-3, 5-3 in the Big Ten, after facing Big Ten championship game participants Oregon and Penn State on the road plus four other bowl-bound teams. The Hoosiers played only one of the Big Ten’s big three (Ohio State) and five of the six teams in the league that didn’t reach bowl eligibility. Using the play-in system, Ohio State would have hosted Iowa for a bid, and Indiana would have played Illinois for the other. This is not an endorsement of an expanded championship weekend. And maybe it will have no bearing on whether the start of the season can be moved up. Allowing the CFP to escape a series of weekend battles with the NFL playoffs might be deemed more valuable to ESPN than a packed Thanksgiving weekend schedule. Of course, Fox — which owns no CFP rights — might think differently. Selection process Mandel: No one is ever going to be happy with the committee. But it would help if there was more transparency. The basketball committee makes its core metric, the NET ratings (and the RPI before that), public. You can see exactly what it’s discussing. Meanwhile, football’s strength of schedule metrics are kept behind closed doors. Also: Strength of schedule should matter. I love Boise State, but it never should have been ranked higher than either the Big 12 or ACC champs. My favorite example of “two losses is better than three” this year was 9-3 Syracuse sitting two spots behind 10-2 UNLV in the penultimate rankings. The Orange beat the Rebels on the road during the season. Russo: You know what would decrease the subjectivity in the selection process? More automatic qualifiers based on conference standings and play-in games. Just sayin’. (Top photo: Don Juan Moore / Getty Images) Source link #College #Football #Playoff #work #Debating #seeding #selection Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Lucky Offense is an upcoming casual strategy where good fortune is a big factor Lucky Offense is an upcoming casual strategy where good fortune is a big factor Lucky Offense is an auto-battling strategy coming soon to iOS and Android Take on hordes of enemy armies and powerful bosses as you roll for more powerful guardians Merge units for form Mythical Guardians with distinct powers They say that there’s no luck in warfare and that everything going well must come down to careful planning. Of course, they also say that no plan survives first contact with the enemy, so what do I know? But in Lucky Offense, good fortune isn’t just a boon, it’s practically a necessity! It’s difficult to single out the core conceit of Lucky Offense without having played it ahead of launch, as it’s all a bit vague. But from what I can tell the core focus is that little bit of chance that tickles the animal part of our brain, as you’ll roll for new and more powerful units in each battle. And while strategy is said to be the main point I’ve no doubt luck is a major factor too. Of course, if you do want to try and fine-tune your strategic approach you can also merge your different units. Each of the Guardians you can summon has its own distinct talents, and some Mythic guardians can only be formed by merging those you get with lucky rolls. I feel lucky, oh so lucky If I was being a bit wry about it I’d certainly point out how odd it is that the gambling aspect of gacha has become so normalised that we’re seeing releases built around the mechanic. But at the same time, there’ve been plenty of strategy releases that contain some element of chance, and Lucky Offense is not the first to do so by far. However, whether that means it holds up in the long term is anyone’s guess. With its mix of luck-based formations, quick and simple auto battles alongside the flashy graphics as you demolish enemy armies, I’m sure there’s plenty of fun to be had here. Lucky Offense is set to hit the iOS App Store and Google Play on April 25th! If you want to stay Ahead of the Game why not check out our regular feature of the same name to find out what’s coming up this year? Source link #Lucky #Offense #upcoming #casual #strategy #good #fortune #big #factor Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

11 Baltic cables have been damaged in 15 months. What’s going on? – National 11 Baltic cables have been damaged in 15 months. What’s going on? – National With its powerful camera, the French Navy surveillance plane scouring the Baltic Sea zoomed in on a cargo ship plowing the waters below — closer, closer and closer still until the camera operator could make out details on the vessel’s front deck and smoke pouring from its chimney. The long-range Atlantique 2 aircraft on a new mission for NATO then shifted its high-tech gaze onto another target, and another after that until, after more than five hours on patrol, the plane’s array of sensors had scoped out the bulk of the Baltic — from Germany in the west to Estonia in the northeast, bordering Russia. The flight’s mere presence in the skies above the strategic sea last week, combined with military ships patrolling on the waters, also sent an unmistakable message: The NATO alliance is ratcheting up its guard against suspected attempts to sabotage underwater energy and data cables and pipelines that crisscross the Baltic, prompted by a growing catalogue of incidents that have damaged them. Story continues below advertisement “We will do everything in our power to make sure that we fight back, that we are able to see what is happening and then take the next steps to make sure that it doesn’t happen again. And our adversaries should know this,” NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said this month in announcing a new alliance mission, dubbed “Baltic Sentry,” to protect the underwater infrastructure vital to the economic well-being of Baltic-region nations. 3:41 ‘No way’: Bulgarian shipping CEO denies his crew severed under sea cable on purpose Power and communications cables and gas pipelines stitch together the nine countries with shores on the Baltic, a relatively shallow and nearly landlocked sea. A few examples are the 152-kilometer (94-mile) Balticconnector pipeline that carries gas between Finland and Estonia, the high-voltage Baltic Cable connecting the power grids of Sweden and Germany, and the 1,173-kilometer (729-mile) C-Lion1 telecommunications cable between Finland and Germany. Story continues below advertisement Why are cables important? Undersea pipes and cables help power economies, keep houses warm and connect billions of people. More than 1.3 million kilometers (807,800 miles) of fiber optic cables — more than enough to stretch to the moon and back — span the world’s oceans and seas, according to TeleGeography, which tracks and maps the vital communication networks. The cables are typically the width of a garden hose. But 97% of the world’s communications, including trillions of dollars of financial transactions, pass through them each day. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. “In the last two months alone, we have seen damage to a cable connecting Lithuania and Sweden, another connecting Germany and Finland, and most recently, a number of cables linking Estonia and Finland. Investigations of all of these cases are still ongoing. But there is reason for grave concern,” Rutte said on Jan. 14. 1:40 Russian oil tanker planned to sabotage more undersea power cables, Finland investigators say At least 11 Baltic cables have been damaged since October 2023 — the most recent being a fiber optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland, reported to have ruptured on Sunday. Although cable operators note that subsea cable damage is commonplace, the frequency and concentration of incidents in the Baltic heightened suspicions that damage might have been deliberate. Story continues below advertisement There also are fears that Russia could target cables as part of a wider campaign of so-called “hybrid warfare” to destabilize European nations helping Ukraine defend itself against the full-scale invasion that Moscow has been pursuing since 2022. Without specifically blaming Russia, Rutte said: “Hybrid means sabotage. Hybrid means cyber-attacks. Hybrid means sometimes even assassination attacks, attempts, and in this case, it means hitting on our critical undersea infrastructure.” Finnish police suspect that the Eagle S, an oil tanker that damaged the Estlink 2 power cable and two other communications cables linking Finland and Estonia on Dec. 25th, is part of Moscow’s “shadow fleet” used to avoid war-related sanctions on Russian oil exports. Finnish authorities seized the tanker shortly after it left a Russian port and apparently cut the cables by dragging its anchor. Finnish investigators allege the ship left an almost 100-kilometer (62-mile) long anchor trail on the seabed. 2:05 Baltic Sea sabotage: ‘Russian shadow fleet’ ship suspected of cutting undersea cable Trending Now Terminal Alberta senior chooses MAID in memory of late wife: ‘I have no regrets’ Jan. 6 rioter pardoned by Trump shot, killed by police at traffic stop Intelligence agencies’ doubts Several Western intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of their work, told The Associated Press that recent damage was most likely accidental, seemingly caused by anchors being dragged by ships that were poorly maintained and poorly crewed. Story continues below advertisement One senior intelligence official told AP that ships’ logs and mechanical failures with ships’ anchors were among “multiple indications” pointing away from Russian sabotage. The official said Russian cables were also severed. Another Western official, also speaking anonymously to discuss intelligence matters, said Russia sent an intelligence-gathering vessel to the site of one cable rupture to investigate the damage. The Washington Post first reported on the emerging consensus among U.S. and European security services that maritime accidents likely caused recent damage. Cable operators advise caution The European Subsea Cables Association, representing cable owners and operators, noted in November after faults were reported on two Baltic links that, on average, a subsea cable is damaged somewhere in the world every three days. In northern European waters, the main causes of damage are commercial fishing or ship anchors, it said. In the fiber-optic cable rupture on Sunday connecting Latvia and Sweden, Swedish authorities detained a Maltese-flagged ship bound for South America with a cargo of fertilizer. Story continues below advertisement Navibulgar, a Bulgarian company that owns the Vezhen, said any damage was unintentional and that the ship’s crew discovered while navigating in extremely bad weather that its left anchor appeared to have dragged on the seabed. 4:19 Finland seizes Russian-linked ship suspected of cutting undersea cables NATO’s ‘Baltic Sentry’ mission The alliance is deploying warships, maritime patrol aircraft and naval drones for the mission to provide “enhanced surveillance and deterrence.” Story continues below advertisement Aboard the French Navy surveillance flight, the 14-member crew cross-checked ships they spotted from the air against lists of vessels they had been ordered to watch for. “If we witness some suspicious activities from ships as sea – for example, ships at very low speed or at anchorage in a position that they shouldn’t be at this time – so this is something we can see,” said the flight commander, Lt. Alban, whose surname was withheld by the French military for security reasons. “We can have a very close look with our sensors to see what is happening.” Burrows reported from London. AP journalists Jill Lawless in London, David Klepper in Washington and Veselin Toshkov in Sofia, Bulgaria, contributed to this report. More on World More videos Source link #Baltic #cables #damaged #months #Whats #National Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Climate change made LA wildfires ‘more likely’ according to international study Climate change made LA wildfires ‘more likely’ according to international study Climate change caused by human activity increases the risk of devastating fires, like the ones in Los Angeles, California,according to the World Weather Attribution (WWA) network. The fires left at least 29 dead and thousands homeless. Human-driven climate change set the stage for the devastating Los Angeles wildfires by reducing rainfall, parching vegetation, and extending the dangerous overlap between flammable drought conditions and powerful Santa Ana winds, according to an analysis published Tuesday. The study, conducted by dozens of researchers, concluded that the fire-prone conditions fueling the blazes were approximately 35 percent more likely due to global warming caused by burning fossil fuels. “Climate change increased the risk of the devastating LA wildfires,” said Clair Barnes of Imperial College London, the lead author of the study by World Weather Attribution, an international academic collaboration. “Drought conditions are increasingly pushing into winter, raising the likelihood of fires breaking out during strong Santa Ana winds that can transform small ignitions into deadly infernos. “Without a faster transition away from planet-heating fossil fuels, California will continue to get hotter, drier, and more flammable.” Fossil fuel rise drives planet closer to critical climate safety limit Windy conditions increasing However, these rains have decreased in recent decades. (with AFP) Read more on RFI English Read also:Global temperatures exceeded 1.5C warming limit in 2024How bolder targets, treaties and talks will steer a defining year for climateHow satellite technology is being used in France to fight forest fires Source link #Climate #change #wildfires #international #study Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 review: bringing near-RTX 4090 performance closer to the masses Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 review: bringing near-RTX 4090 performance closer to the masses Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080: Two-minute review At first glance, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 doesn’t seem like that much of an upgrade from the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 it is replacing, but that’s only part of the story with this graphics card. Its performance, to be clear, is unquestioningly solid, positioning it as the third-best graphics card on the market right now, by my testing, and its new PCIe 5.0 interface and GDDR7 VRAM further distances it from the RTX 4080 and RTX 4080 Super from the last generation. It also outpaces the best AMD graphics card, the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX, by a healthy margin, pretty much locking up the premium, enthusiast-grade GPUs in Nvidia’s corner for at least another generation. Most impressively, it does this all for the same price as the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Super and RX 7900 XTX: $999 / £939 / AU$2,019. This is also a rare instance where a graphics card launch price actually recedes from the high watermark set by its predecessor, as the RTX 5080 climbs down from the inflated price of the RTX 4080 when it launched back in 2022 for $1,199 / £1,189 / AU$2,219. Then, of course, there’s the new design of the card, which features a slimmer dual-slot profile, making it easier to fit into your case (even if the card’s length remains unchanged). The dual flow-through fan cooling solution does wonders for managing the extra heat generated by the extra 40W TDP, and while the 12VHPWR cable connector is still present, the 3-to-1 8-pin adapter is at least somewhat less ridiculous the RTX 5090’s 4-to-1 dongle. The new card design also repositions the power connector itself to make it less cumbersome to plug a cable into the card, though it does pretty much negate any of the 90-degree angle cables that gained popularity with the high-end RTX 40 series cards. Finally, everything is built off of TSMC’s 4nm N4 process node, making it one of the most cutting-edge GPUs on the market in terms of its architecture. While AMD and Intel will follow suit with their own 4nm GPUs soon (AMD RDNA 4 also uses TSMC’s 4nm process node and is due to launch in March), right now, Nvidia is the only game in town. None of that would matter though if the card didn’t perform, however, but gamers and enthusiasts can rest assured that even without DLSS 4, you’re getting a respectable upgrade. It might not have the wow factor of the beefier RTX 5090, but for gaming, creating, and even AI workloads, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 is a spectacular balance of performance, price, and innovation that you won’t find anywhere else at this level. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080: Price & availability (Image credit: Future) How much is it? MSRP is $999 / £939 / AU$2,019 When can you get it? The RTX 5080 goes on ***** January 30, 2025 Where is it available? The RTX 5080 will be available in the US, ***, and Australia at launch Where to buy the RTX 5080 Looking to pick up the RTX 5080? Check out our Where to buy RTX 5080 live blog for updates to find stock in the US and *** The Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 goes on ***** on January 30, 2025, starting at $999 / £939 / AU$2,019 for the Founders Edition and select AIB partner cards, while overclocked (OC) and more feature-rich third-party cards will be priced higher. This puts the Nvidia RTX 5080 about $200 / £200 / AU$200 cheaper than the launch price of the last-gen RTX 4080, while also matching the price of the RTX 4080 Super. Both of those RTX 40 series GPUs should see some downward price pressure as a result of the RTX 5080 release, which might complicate the value proposition of the RTX 5080. The RTX 5080 is also launching at the same MSRP as the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX, which is AMD’s top GPU right now. And with AMD confirming that it does not intend to launch an enthusiast-grade RDNA 4 GPU this generation, the RTX 5080’s only real competition is from other Nvidia graphics cards like the RTX 4080 Super or RTX 5090. This makes the RTX 5080 a great value proposition for those looking to buy a premium 4K graphics card, as its price-to-performance ratio is very strong. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080: Specs & features (Image credit: Future) GDDR7 VRAM and PCIe 5.0 Still just 16GB VRAM Slightly higher 360W TDP Swipe to scroll horizontally Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 specs vs RTX 4080 Super vs RTX 4080 Header Cell – Column 0 Nvidia RTX 5080 Nvidia RTX 4080 Super Nvidia RTX 4080 Process Technology TSMC 4nm TSMC 5nm TSMC 5nm Transistors (Billion) 45,600 45,900 45,900 Compute units 84 80 76 Shaders 10,752 10,240 9,728 AI/Matrix cores 336 320 304 Ray Tracing Cores 84 80 76 Render Output Units 128 112 112 Texture Mapping Units 336 320 304 Base Clock (MHz) 2,295 2,295 2,205 Boost Clock (MHz) 2,617 2,550 2,505 Memory type GDDR7 GDDR6X GDDR6X VRAM (GB) 16 16 16 VRAM Bus Width 256 256 256 VRAM Speed (Gbps) 30 23 22.4 Bandwidth (GB/s) 960 736.3 716.8 TDP (watts) 360 320 320 PCIe Interface PCIe 5.0 x16 PCIe 4.0 x16 PCIe 4.0 x16 While the Nvidia RTX 5080 doesn’t push the spec envelope quite as far as the RTX 5090 does, its spec sheet is still impressive. For starters, like the RTX 5090, the RTX 5080 uses the faster, next-gen PCIe 5.0 interface that allows for speedier data processing and coordination with the CPU, which translates directly into higher performance. You also have new GDDR7 VRAM in the RTX 5080, only the second card to have it after the RTX 5090, and it dramatically increases the memory bandwidth and speed of the RTX 5080 compared to the RTX 4080 and RTX 4080 Super. Those latter two cards both use slower GDDR6X memory, so even though all three cards have the same amount of memory (16GB) and memory bus-width (256-bit), the RTX 5080 has a >25% faster effective memory speed of 30Gbps, compared to the 23Gbps of the RTX 4080 Super and the 22.4Gbps on the base RTX 4080. This is all on top of the Blackwell GPU inside the card, which is built on TSMC’s 4nm process, compared to the Lovelace GPUs in the RTX 4080 and 4080 Super, which use TSMC’s 5nm process. So even though the transistor count on the RTX 5080 is slightly lower than its predecessor’s, the smaller transistors are faster and more efficient. The RTX 5080 also has a higher SM count, 84, compared to the RTX 4080’s 76 and the RTX 4080 Super’s 80, meaning the RTX 5080 has the commensurate increase in shader cores, ray tracing cores, and Tensor cores. It also has a slightly faster boost clock (2,617MHz) than its predecessor and the 4080 Super variant. Finally, there is a slight increase in the card’s TDP, 360W compared to the RTX 4080 and RTX 4080 Super’s 320W. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080: Design (Image credit: Future) Slimmer dual-slot form factor Dual flow-through cooling system The redesign of the Nvidia RTX 5080 is identical to that of the RTX 5090, featuring the same slimmed-down dual slot profile as Nvidia’s flagship card. If I were to guess, the redesign of the RTX 5080 isn’t as essential as it is for the RTX 5090, which needed a way to bring better cooling for the much hotter 575W TDP, and the RTX 5080 (and eventually the RTX 5070) appear to have got this new design almost by default. That said, it’s still a fantastic change, especially as it makes the RTX 5080 thinner and lighter than its predecessor. (Image credit: Future) The core of the redesign is the new dual flow-through cooling solution, which uses an innovative three-part PCB inside to open up a gap at the front of the card, allowing a second fan to blow cooler air over the heat sink fins drawing heat away from the GPU. (Image credit: Future) This means that you don’t need as thick of a heat sink to pull away heat, which allows the card itself to get the same thermal performance from a thinner form factor, moving from the triple-slot RTX 4080 design down to a dual-slot RTX 5080. In practice, this also allows for a slight increase in the card’s TDP, giving the card a bit of a performance boost as well, just from implementing a dual flow-through design. Given that fact, I would not be surprised if other card makers follow suit, and we start getting much slimmer graphics cards as a result. (Image credit: Future) The only other design choice of note is the 90-degree turn of the 16-pin power port, which should make it easier to plug the 12VHPWR connector into the card. The RTX 4080 didn’t suffer nearly the same kinds of issues with its power connectors as the RTX 4090 did, so this design choice really flows down from engineers trying to fix potential problems with the much more power hungry 5090. But, if you’re going to implement it for your flagship card, you might as well put it on all of the Founders Edition cards. Unfortunately, this redesign means that if you invested in a 90-degree-angled 12VHPWR cable, it won’t work on the RTX 5080 Founders Edition, though third-party partner cards will have a lot of different designs, so you should be able to find one that fits your cable situation. Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080: Performance (Image credit: Future) Excellent all-around performance Moderately more powerful than the RTX 4080 and RTX 4080 Super, but nearly as fast as the RTX 4090 in gaming You’ll need DLSS 4 to get the best results A note on my data The charts shown below are the most recent test data I have for the cards tested for this review and may change over time as more card results are added and cards are retested. The ‘average of all cards tested’ includes cards not shown in these charts for readability purposes. A note on the RTX 4080 Super In my testing for this review, the RTX 4080 Super scored consistently lower than it has in the past, which I believe is an issue with my card specifically that isn’t reflective of its actual performance. I’m including the data from the RTX 4080 Super for transparency’s sake, but I wouldn’t take these numbers as-is. I’ll be retesting the RTX 4080 Super soon, and will update my data with new scores once I’ve troubleshot the issue. Performance is king, though, and so naturally all the redesign and spec bumps won’t amount to much if the RTX 5080 doesn’t deliver better performance as a result, and fortunately it does—though maybe not as much as some enthusiasts would like. Overall, the RTX 5080 manages to score about 13% better than the RTX 4080 and about 19% better than the AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX, a result that will disappoint some (especially after seeing the 20-25% uplift on the RTX 5090) who were hoping for something closer to 20% or better. If we were just to go off those numbers, some might call them disappointing, regardless of all the other improvements to the RTX 5080 in terms of design and specs. All this needs to be put in a broader context though, because my perspective changed once I compared the RTX 5080 to the RTX 4090. Overall, the RTX 5080 is within 12% of the overall performance of the RTX 4090, and within 9% of the RTX 4090’s gaming performance, which is a hell of a thing and simply can’t be ignored, even by enthusiasts. Starting with the card’s synthetic benchmarks, the card scores about 13% better than the RTX 4080 and RX 7900 XTX, with the RTX 5080 consistently beating out the RTX 4080 and substantially beating the RX 7900 XTX in ray-traced workloads (though the RX 7900 XTX does pull down a slightly better average 1080p rasterization score, to its credit. Compared to the RTX 4090, the RTX 5080 comes in at about 15% slower on average, with its worst performance coming at lower resolutions. At 4K, though, the RTX 5080 comes in just 7% slower than the last-gen flagship. In terms of compute performance, the RTX 5080 trounces the RX 7900 XTX, as expected, by about 38%, with a more modest 9% improvement over the RTX 4080. Against the RTX 4090, however, the RTX 5080 comes within just 5% of the RTX 4090’s Geekbench compute scores. If you’re looking for a cheap AI card, the RTX 5080 is definitely going to be your jam. On the creative side, PugetBench for Creators Adobe Photoshop benchmark still isn’t working for the RTX 5080, so I can’t tell you much about its creative raster performance yet (though I will update these charts once that issue is fixed), but going off the 3D modeling and video editing scores, the RTX 5080 is an impressive GPU, as expected. The entire 3D modeling industry is effectively built on Nvidia’s CUDA, so against the RTX 5080, the RX 7900 XTX doesn’t stand a chance as the 5080 more than doubles the RX 7900 XTX’s Blender Benchmark performance. Gen-on-gen though, the RTX 5080 comes in with about 8% better performance. Against the RTX 4090, the RTX 5080 comes within 15% on its performance, and for good measure, if you’re rocking an RTX 3090 and you’re curious about the RTX 5080, the RTX 5080 outperforms the RTX 3090 by about 75% in Blender Benchmark. If you’re on an RTX 3090 and want to upgrade, you’ll probably still be better off with an RTX 4090, but if you can’t find one, the RTX 5080 is a great alternative. In terms of video editing performance, the RTX 5080 doesn’t do as well as its predecessor in PugetBench for Creators Adobe Premiere benchmark tests, and effectively ties in my Handbrake 4K to 1080p encoding test. I expect that once the RTX 5080 launches, Puget Systems will be able to update its tools for the new RTX 50 series, so these scores will likely change, but for now, it is what it is, and you’re not going to see much difference in your video editing workflows with this card over its predecessor. (Image credit: Future) The RTX 5080 is Nvidia’s premium “gaming” card, though, so its gaming performance is what’s going to matter to the vast majority of buyers out there. For that, you won’t be disappointed. Working just off DLSS 3 with no frame generation, the RTX 5080 will get you noticeably improved framerates gen-on-gen at 1440p and 4K, with substantially better minimum/1% framerates as well for smoother gameplay. Turn on DLSS 4 with Multi-Frame Generation and the RTX 5080 does even better, blowing well past the RTX 4090 in some titles. DLSS 4 with Multi-Frame Generation is game developer-dependent, however, so even though this is the flagship gaming feature for this generation of Nvidia GPUs, not every game will feature it. For testing purposes, then, I stick to DLSS 3 without Frame Generation (and the AMD and Intel equivalents, where appropriate), since this allows for a more apples-to-apples comparison between cards. At 1440p, the RTX 5080 gets about 13% better average fps and minimum/1% fps overall, with up to 18% better ray tracing performance. Turn on DLSS 3 to ‘balanced’ and ray tracing to its highest settings and the RTX 5080 gets you about 9% better average fps than its predecessor, but a massive 58% higher minimum/1% fps, on average. Compared to the RTX 4090, the RTX 5080’s average 1440p fps comes within 7% of the RTX 4090’s, and within 2% of its minimum/1% fps, on average. In native ray-tracing performance, the RTX 5080 slips to within 14% of the RTX 4090’s average fps and within 11% of its minimum/1% performance. Turn on balanced upscaling, however, and everything changes, with the RTX 5080 coming within just 6% of the RTX 4090’s ray-traced upscaled average fps, and beats the RTX 4090’s minimum/1% fps average by almost 40%. Cranking things up to 4K, and the RTX 5080’s lead over the RTX 4080 grows a good bit. With no ray tracing or upscaling, the RTX 5080 gets about 20% faster average fps and minimum/1% fps than the RTX 4080, overall. Its native ray tracing performance is about the same, however, and its minimum/1% fps average actually falls behind the RTX 4080’s, both with and without DLSS 3. Against the RTX 4090, the RTX 5080 comes within 12% of its average fps and within 8% of its minimum/1% performance without ray tracing or upscaling. It falls behind considerably in native 4K ray tracing performance (which is to be expected, given the substantially higher RT core count for the RTX 4090), but when using DLSS 3, that ray tracing advantage is cut substantially and the RTX 5080 manages to come within 14% of the RTX 4090’s average fps, and within 12% of its minimum/1% fps overall. Taken together, the RTX 5080 makes some major strides in reaching RTX 4090 performance across the board, getting a little more than halfway across their respective performance gap between the RTX 4080 and RTX 4090. The RTX 5080 beats its predecessor by just over 13% overall, and comes within 12% of the RTX 4090’s overal performance, all while costing less than both RTX 40 series card’s launch MSRP, making it an incredible value for a premium card to boot. Should you buy the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080? (Image credit: Future) Swipe to scroll horizontally Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 Scorecard Category Notes Score Value Walking back the price of the RTX 4080 and matching the price of the RTX 4080 Super, this card offers better performance without any additional cost. 4 / 5 Specs & features New GDDR7 VRAM and PCIe 5.0 interface goes a long way to future-proofing this GPU. 4 / 5 Design The slimmer design and better thermals make this card a winner on the design front, though the angled power power will frustrate anyone with a 90-degree 12VHPWR cable from the previous gen. 4.5 / 5 Performance While the performance gains on its predecessor are modest on paper, this card manages to come within striking distance of RTX 4090 performance at a substantially lower cost. 4 / 5 Final score Given its performance improvements, new features like DLSS 4 with Multi-Frame Generation, slimmer profile, and approachable premium pricing, this is the best graphics card for most people, especially gamers. 4.13 / 5 Buy the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 if… Don’t buy it if… Also consider How I tested the Nvidia GeForce RTX 5080 I spent about a week and a half with the RTX 5080 I used my complete GPU testing suite to analyze the card’s performance I tested the card in everyday, gaming, creative, and AI workload usage Test System Specs Here are the specs on the system I used for testing: Motherboard: ASRock Z790i Lightning WiFi CPU: Intel Core i9-14900K CPU Cooler: Gigabyte Auros Waterforce II 360 ICE RAM: Corsair Dominator DDR5-6600 (2 x 16GB) SSD: Crucial T705 PSU: Thermaltake Toughpower PF3 1050W Platinum Case: Praxis Wetbench I spent about a week testing the RTX 5080, using my updated suite of benchmarks like ****** Myth Wukong, 3DMark Steel Nomad, and more. I also used this card as my primary work GPU where I relied on it for photo editing and design work, while also testing out a number of games on it like Cyberpunk 2077, ****** Myth Wukong, and others. I’ve been testing graphics cards for TechRadar for a couple of years now, with more than two dozen GPU reviews under my belt. I’ve extensively tested and retested all of the graphics cards discussed in this review, so I’m intimately familiar with their performance. This gives me the best possible position to judge the merits of the RTX 5080, and whether it’s the best graphics card for your needs and budget. Originally reviewed January 2024 Source link #Nvidia #GeForce #RTX #review #bringing #nearRTX #performance #closer #masses Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Princess Beatrice gives birth to second baby – BBC.com Princess Beatrice gives birth to second baby – BBC.com Princess Beatrice gives birth to second baby BBC.comPrincess Beatrice welcomes second child with husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi USA TODAYPrincess Beatrice gives birth to baby daughter Athena The IndependentPrincess Beatrice Welcomes Baby No. 2 with a Name Honoring Queen Elizabeth! PEOPLEPrincess Beatrice welcomes royal baby girl as Edoardo shares beautiful photo GB News Source link #Princess #Beatrice #birth #baby #BBC.com Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Silent Hill 2 remake has sold 2 million copies Silent Hill 2 remake has sold 2 million copies Last year’s remake of Silent Hill 2 has now sold 2 million copies worldwide, Konami says. Released last October, Bloober Team‘s remake of the 2001 PS2 game has sold a combined 2 million physical and digital units. VGC’s Silent Hill 2 review calls it “a skilfully handled retelling of one of the medium’s most loved survival horror games. “It stays faithful to the original (to a fault at times) but breathes enough new life into it to simultaneously ensure that long-time fans will appreciate the respect shown, while newcomers won’t find it antiquated,” we wrote. Source link #Silent #Hill #remake #sold #million #copies Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

******** firms ‘distilling’ US AI models to create rival products, warns OpenAI | OpenAI ******** firms ‘distilling’ US AI models to create rival products, warns OpenAI | OpenAI OpenAI has warned that ******** startups are “constantly” using its technology to develop competing products, amid reports that DeepSeek used the ChatGPT maker’s AI models to create a rival chatbot. OpenAI and its partner Microsoft – which has invested $13bn in the San Francisco-based AI developer – have been investigating whether proprietary technology had been obtained in an unauthorised manner through a technique known as “distillation”. The launch of DeepSeek’s latest chatbot sent markets into a spin on Monday after it topped Apple’s free app store, wiping $1trn from the market value of AI-linked US tech stocks. The impact came from its claim that the model underpinning its AI was trained with a fraction of the cost and hardware used by rivals such as OpenAI and Google. Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, initially said that he was impressed with DeepSeek and that it was “legitimately invigorating to have a new competitor”. However, on Wednesday OpenAI said that it had seen some evidence of “distillation” from ******** companies, referring to a development technique that boosts the performance of smaller models by using larger more advanced ones to achieve similar results on specific tasks. The OpenAI statement did not refer to DeepSeek directly. “We know [China]-based companies – and others – are constantly trying to distill the models of leading US AI companies,” the OpenAI spokesperson said. “As the leading builder of AI, we engage in countermeasures to protect our IP [intellectual property], including a careful process for which frontier capabilities to include in released models.” OpenAI, which has itself been accused of using data without permission or a licence from publishers and the creative industry to train its own model, has already blocked unnamed entities from attempting to distill its models. The OpenAI spokesperson added that it was now “critically important” that the company worked with the US government to “best protect the most capable models from efforts by adversaries and competitors to take US technology”. The launch of DeepSeek was a ‘wake-up call’ for Silicon Valley, Donald Trump said earlier this week. Photograph: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP/Getty Images On Tuesday, David Sacks, Donald Trump’s AI and crypto tsar, told Fox News that he thought it was “possible” that intellectual property theft had occurred. “There’s substantial evidence that what DeepSeek did here is they distilled the knowledge out of OpenAI’s models,” he said. “I think one of the things you’re going to see over the next few months is our leading AI companies taking steps to try and prevent distillation. That would definitely slow down some of these copycat models.” skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we’ll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion The US navy has reportedly already banned its members from using DeepSeek’s apps due to “potential security and ethical concerns”. The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said the US national security council was looking into the potential implications the AI app posed. Earlier this week, Trump called the launch of DeepSeek a “wake-up call” for Silicon Valley in the global race to dominate artificial intelligence. The investigation by OpenAI and Microsoft into possible distillation was first reported by Bloomberg. Microsoft declined to comment. Source link #******** #firms #distilling #models #create #rival #products #warns #OpenAI #OpenAI Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Lord Peter Mandelson says criticism of Donald Trump ‘ill-judged’ Lord Peter Mandelson says criticism of Donald Trump ‘ill-judged’ The ***’s choice for the next ambassador to the US, Lord Peter Mandelson, has described his previous criticism of Donald Trump as “ill-judged and wrong”. Speaking in an interview with US broadcaster Fox News, he said the new US president had won “fresh respect” from him, adding he was “quite confident” Trump would approve of his appointment. As part of the process Lord Mandelson’s credentials have to be presented to Trump, which the president is reportedly expected to agree to. In previous years, Lord Mandelson has described Trump as “reckless” and “a bully”. In an interview with an Italian journalist in 2019, he described Trump as “reckless and a danger to the world”. This followed a 2018 interview with the Evening Standard where he described Trump as “a bully”. But he told Fox News: “I made those remarks six years ago in 2019, led rather along this by an Italian journalist… it was a time in Britain by the way with very fraught politics and there was high emotion about many things in Britain at that time. “I consider my remarks about President Trump as ill-judged and wrong. “And I think that time and attitudes towards the president has changed since then.” Acknowledging Trump’s “extraordinary” second mandate, Lord Mandelson said Trump had won “fresh respect” from him and said he had heard nothing from the White House that suggested there was going to be any difficulty about his appointment. “I think that President Trump will look at my credentials and consider what’s best for the relationship going forward, ” he said. “The president is a nice person, is a fair-minded person, and that’s why I feel quite confident that, when as I say he does look at my credentials he’ll think ‘right, I think this guy could work well for both our countries and our special relationship’.” He added Trump could be “one of the most consequential” US presidents. The government is much less concerned than previously about the possibility that Lord Mandelson’s appointment could be blocked by Trump. Some of the president’s allies had suggested that the president could take the extraordinary step of blocking him from taking up the role. But Lord Mandelson is understood to have now received his “agrément” from the US government – a formal step confirming their willingness to accept him as a diplomat in their country. The final hurdle will come when Lord Mandelson presents his “letter of credence” to Trump. It is understood that he is likely to fly to Washington DC to carry out the final formalities next week. The Foreign Office and US State Department have been contacted for comment. Mandelson’s comments go further than others in government in recanting previous criticism of Trump. Others in government such as the Foreign Secretary David Lammy have typically sought to deflect questions about their attacks on Trump by pointing out that many senior Republican politicians have previously criticised him too. On Sunday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had his first phone call with Trump since the inauguration, but its is thought Lord Mandelson’s appointment was not discussed. Lord Mandelson is a well-known figure in British politics, having served in multiple ministerial roles under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before taking up a life peerage in the Lords. Source link #Lord #Peter #Mandelson #criticism #Donald #Trump #illjudged Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

What International AI Safety report says on jobs, climate, cyberwar and more | Artificial intelligence (AI) What International AI Safety report says on jobs, climate, cyberwar and more | Artificial intelligence (AI) 1. Jobs In a section on “labour market risks”, the report warns that the impact on jobs will “likely be profound”, particularly if AI agents – tools that can carry out tasks without human intervention – become highly capable. “General-purpose AI, especially if it continues to advance rapidly, has the potential to automate a very wide range of tasks, which could have a significant effect on the labour market. This means that many people could lose their current jobs,” says the report. The report adds that many economists believe job losses could be offset by the creation of new jobs or demand from sectors not touched by automation. According to the International Monetary Fund, about 60% of jobs in advanced economies such as the US and *** are exposed to AI and half of these jobs may be negatively affected. The Tony Blair Institute has said AI could displace up to 3m private-sector jobs in the ***, though the ultimate rise in unemployment will be in the low hundreds of thousands because growth in the technology will create new roles in an AI-transformed economy. “These disruptions could be particularly severe if autonomous AI agents become capable of completing longer sequences of tasks without human supervision,” the report says. It adds that some experts have pointed to scenarios where work is “largely” eliminated. In 2o23, Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, told the former *** prime minister Rishi Sunak that AI could ultimately replace all human jobs. However, the report says such views are controversial and there is “considerable uncertainty” over how AI might affect labour markets. 2. The environment The report describes AI’s impact on the environment as a “moderate but rapidly growing contributor” as datacentres – the central nervous systems of AI models – consume electricity to train and operate the technology. Datacentres and data transmission account for about 1% of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions, says the report, with AI constituting up to 28% of datacentre energy consumption. It adds that models are using more energy as they become more advanced and warned that a “significant portion” of global model training relies on high-carbon energy sources such as coal or natural gas. Use of renewable energy by AI firms and improvements in efficiency have not kept pace with rising demand for energy, says the report, which also points to tech firms admitting that AI development is harming their ability to meet environmental targets. The report also warns that water consumption by AI, used for cooling equipment in datacentres, could pose a “substantial threat to the environment and the human right to water”. However, the report adds that there is a shortage of data about the environmental impact of AI. 3. Loss of control An all-powerful AI system evading human control is the central concern of experts who fear the technology could extinguish humanity. The report acknowledges those fears but says opinion varies “greatly”. “Some consider it implausible, some consider it likely to occur, and some see it as a modest-likelihood risk that warrants attention due to its high severity,” it says. Bengio told the Guardian that AI agents, which carry out tasks autonomously, are still being developed and so far are unable to carry out the long-term planning necessary for those systems to eradicate jobs wholesale – or evade safety guidelines. “If an AI cannot plan over a long horizon, it’s hardly going to be able to escape our control,” he said 4. Bioweapons The report states that new models can create step-by-step guides to creating pathogens and toxins that surpass PhD-level expertise. However, it cautions that there is uncertainty over whether they can be used by novices. There is evidence of advancement since an interim safety report last year, the experts say, with OpenAI producing a model that could “meaningfully assist experts in the operational planning of reproducing known biological threats”. 5. Cybersecurity A fast-growing threat from AI in terms of cyber-espionage is autonomous bots being able to find vulnerabilities in open-source software, the term for code that is free to download and adapt. However, relative shortcomings in AI agents mean the technology is not able to plan and carry out attacks autonomously. 6. Deepfakes The report lists an array of known examples of AI deepfakes being used maliciously, including tricking companies into handing over money and creating pornographic images of people. However, the report says there is not enough data to fully measure the amount of deepfake incidents. “Reluctance to report may be contributing to these challenges in understanding the full impact of AI-generated content intended to harm individuals,” the report says. For example, institutions often hesitate to disclose their struggles with AI-powered fraud. Similarly, individuals attacked with AI-generated compromising material about themselves may stay silent out of embarrassment and to avoid further harm.” The report also warns that there are “fundamental challenges” to tackling deepfake content, such as the ability to remove digital watermarks that flag AI-generated content. Source link #International #Safety #report #jobs #climate #cyberwar #Artificial #intelligence Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Five-way coalition likely in Vanuatu, just one woman MP Five-way coalition likely in Vanuatu, just one woman MP The final results from Vanuatu’s January 16 election have confirmed a shocking gender disparity, with just one woman elected in the 52-seat parliament. Source link #Fiveway #coalition #Vanuatu #woman Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Starbucks is cutting 30% of its menu Starbucks is cutting 30% of its menu Starbucks (SBUX) is set to eliminate a significant number of drinks and food options in the coming months as part of the company’s plan to simplify its offerings, reduce wait times and improve its customer experience. CEO Brian Niccol outlined the plan on Starbucks’ earnings call Tuesday, saying there’s soon going to be a “roughly 30% reduction in both beverages and food,” but he didn’t name specific items. Niccol has previously said that the chain’s menu had become “overly complex,” resulting in long lines. Starbucks has already axed its lineup of olive oil drinks and iced energy drinks. However, the coffee giant has recently added new drinks, too, including an espresso-based beverage called the cortado. The company also brought back pistachio-flavored drinks. A slimmer selection will help Starbucks “be more responsive and tuned in to cultural moments,” Niccol said, pointing to the success of the Dubai Matcha drink based off its new matcha tea options that recently became a viral craze. The changes are part of Niccol’s plans to turnaround the chain’s fortunes, which reported its fourth consecutive quarter of declines: US sales at stores open at least a year slid 6% for the quarter that ended on December 29. Starbucks is eliminating 30% of its menu in the coming months. · Meir Chaimowitz/NurPhoto/Shutterstock Niccol admitted that there’s “still room for improvement,” but he’s confident that Starbucks is “on the right track.” Since he took the helm last September, Niccol has rolled out a series of changes that have received a “positive response” from customers. Those changes include reimagining the vibe inside Starbucks’ locations by instituting a new policy for paying customers, bringing back condiment bars and adding personal touches written by baristas on paper cups. The company also tweaked its name to “Starbucks Coffee Company” to reinforce its coffee roots. However, there’s one change that customers probably don’t like: Niccol has drastically reduced the number of deals, resulting in a 40% decline in discounted transactions. He credited that for improving sales. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Source link #Starbucks #cutting #menu Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Your tax return could trigger an audit without these key tax forms Your tax return could trigger an audit without these key tax forms Catherine Ivill – Ama | Getty Images Sport | Getty Images Many taxpayers are eager to file returns quickly to collect a refund, but it’s important to gather the necessary tax forms first, experts say. Every year, employers and financial companies report income and other activity on so-called information returns, such as W-2s and 1099s, with a copy going to taxpayers and the IRS. The agency has “very sophisticated software” that compares information returns to what’s reported on your filing, said Elizabeth Young, director of tax practice and ethics for the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, or AICPA. Your return can be “flagged for audit” when there’s a mismatch, she said. More from Personal Finance: How to get the ‘fastest refund possible’ as tax season opens Higher-income American consumers are showing signs of stress These 2025 changes could affect your retirement While the IRS issues most tax refunds within 21 days, some returns may require “additional review” and can take longer, according to the agency. Here’s a breakdown of the key tax forms you’ll need to minimize that risk as you file your return this season — and when to expect them. When to expect tax forms Although many tax forms come in January, others may take until mid-February to March or longer, according to AICPA. Typically, investment statements are among the last forms to arrive, especially for more complicated assets. For earnings, your tax forms may include a W-2 for wages, 1099-NEC for contract or gig economy work, 1099-G for unemployment income and 1099-R for retirement plan distributions. However, your return should reflect income even when you don’t receive a tax form, Young said. “If you earn it, it’s reportable,” she said. “You’re accountable for it.” Other forms can help secure tax credits and deductions. You can claim an “above-the-line deduction” even if you don’t itemize tax breaks. Tax forms for these may include 1098-E for student loan interest, 5498 for individual retirement account contributions or 5498-SA for health savings account deposits. If itemized tax breaks exceed the standard deduction, you may need 1098 for mortgage interest, your annual giving statement or property tax credits. You also may need 1098-T for education tax breaks or receipts to claim the child and dependent care tax credit. ‘Check your mail routinely’ As your tax forms arrive, it’s important to stay organized, said certified public accountant Brian Long, senior tax advisor at Wealth Enhancement in Minneapolis. “Check your mail routinely,” he said. However, some forms may come digitally, so you’ll want to check your online accounts periodically for updates. You can use your “prior-year tax return as a checklist,” Long said. But keep in mind that you may need fewer or more tax forms this season, depending on your situation. Source link #tax #return #trigger #audit #key #tax #forms Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

WA Greens MLC Brad Pettitt calls on Labor to end fracking in the Kimberley WA Greens MLC Brad Pettitt calls on Labor to end fracking in the Kimberley WA Greens MLA Brad Pettitt joined Kimberley anti-fracking advocates in Broome on January 29, calling for the Government to ban fracking in the region ahead of the election this March. Source link #Greens #MLC #Brad #Pettitt #calls #Labor #fracking #Kimberley Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Best Ways to Get Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket Best Ways to Get Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket Trade Tokens are a unique Pokémon TCG Pocket consumable as they are used to swap Pokémon between friends, and there are ways to gather them fast and easily for higher-profile Trading. Pokémon TCG Pocket has been a smash hit since day one. Its first month alone made over $120 million, and its developers have continued to pump constant content into the free-to-play Pokémon title. One absent feature was finally added in January 2025—Trading. Part of the long-awaited function requires you to micromanage a currency called Trade Tokens. This handy guide shows you how to get Tokens, the best ways to do so, and how to use them. How to Get Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket Give up cards in exchange. Image by Insider Gaming Pokémon TCG Pocket Trade Tokens are earned by exchanging duplicate cards in the “My Cards” section of the app. It has to be a card with a rarity rating of Three-Diamond or higher. If you’re familiar with Flair, this should be quite straightforward. A quick inspection of your card collection shows you how many of each card you have. You likely have a larger quantity of One-Diamond and Two-Diamond cards than you do anything else. Here’s a quick guide to getting Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket: On the Pokémon TCG Pocket app, press the My Cards button found along the bottom bar tabs. Find a Three-Diamond-rarity Card or higher. Make sure you have three or more of the Card. If you do, press on it. Choose Obtain Items. Press on the Trade Token exchange option (it’s the green symbol I’ve shown in the guide already). Finally, press Exchange. An animation plays to give you your Trade Token(s) at the end of it. Fastest Way to Get Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket The best and fastest way to get Trade Tokens is to open more packs and make sure to exchange duplicates of your highest-rated cards to get more Trade Tokens. You can’t buy Trade Tokens in the shop, nor can you spend real money on Trading. Sacrificing your highest-rated swaps is the best way to get more Trade Tokens right now. To do so, open Packs, acquire more Hourglasses from the Shop, battles, and Events, and hoard those Packs! Remember, you need to have at least three of a card to use the Obtain Items feature and obtain Trade Tokens. I was fortunate by the time Trading came around, I had several Three-Star Charizard ex 280/226 cards, allowing me to earn a lot of Trade Tokens from the get-go. If you’re not interested in Flair, or you favor Trade Tokens, this is currently the way to go. How Many Trade Tokens Can You Get in Pokémon TCG Pocket? From zero to hero. Image by Insider Gaming You can earn anywhere between 25 to 1,500 Trade Tokens depending on the rarity of the Card you exchange in Pokémon TCG Pocket. Here’s a quick table showing you the exact value of each rarity, so you know what you’re getting in return for the swap. Card Rarity Trade Tokens Obtained Three-Diamond 25 Four-Diamond 125 One-Star 100 Two-Star 300 Three-Star 300 Gold Crown 1,500 What Are Trade Tokens in Pokémon TCG Pocket? Trade Tokens are one of two items required to perform a Trade in Pokémon TCG Pocket. It would be nice to do a simple one-off Trade like in the Pokémon games. However, just as Pokémon GO requires Stardust, Pocket adheres to its own consumable item currencies: Trade Tokens and Trade Stamina. The better the rarity of the Pokémon, the more Trade Tokens are needed. If you follow my guide though, it should be easier than catching a Weedle with a Master Ball. Stay on top of Trade Tokens and you should always have enough to perform quick Trades. Is Trading something you use a lot in Pokémon TCG Pocket? Are you disappointed it’s only certain rarities that can be traded? Let us know down below with a quick comment. For more Pokémon TCG Pocket content, check out how to play Pokémon TCG Pocket on PC, and our best Celebi ex Deck. SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to receive the latest news and exclusive leaks every week! No Spam. Source link #Ways #Trade #Tokens #Pokémon #TCG #Pocket Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Trump makes moves to expand his power, sparking chaos and a possible constitutional crisis Trump makes moves to expand his power, sparking chaos and a possible constitutional crisis Just a little over a week into his second term, President Donald Trump is taking steps to maximize his power, sparking chaos and what critics contend is a constitutional crisis as he challenges the separation of powers that have defined American government for more than 200 years. The new administration’s most provocative move came this week, as it announced it would temporarily halt federal payments to ensure they complied with Trump’s orders barring diversity programs. The technical-sounding directive had enormous immediate impact before it was blocked by a federal judge, potentially pulling trillions of dollars from police departments, domestic violence shelters, nutrition services and disaster relief programs that rely on federal grants. Though the Republican administration denied Medicaid was affected, it acknowledged the online portal allowing states to file for reimbursement from the program was shut down for part of Tuesday in what it insisted was an error. Trusted news and daily delights, right in your inbox See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. Legal experts noted the president is explicitly forbidden from cutting off spending for programs that Congress has approved. The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the power to appropriate money and requires the executive to pay it out. A 50-year-old law known as the Impoundment Control Act makes that explicit by prohibiting the president from halting payments on grants or other programs approved by Congress. “The thing that prevents the president from being an absolute monarch is Congress controls the power of the purse strings,” said Josh Chafetz, a law professor at Georgetown University, adding that even a temporary freeze violates the law. “It’s what guarantees there’s a check on the presidency.” Democrats and other critics said the move was blatantly unconstitutional. “What happened last night is the most direct assault on the authority of Congress, I believe, in the history of the United States,” Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine, said Tuesday. While some Republicans were critical, most were supportive. “I think he is testing the limits of his power, and I don’t think any of us are surprised by it,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican who is close with Trump. At first blush, the Trump administration appears to be following the correct procedures in identifying potential spending cuts, and the Impoundment Control Act outlines a procedure for how they could become permanent, said Rachel Snyderman, a former official at the Office of Management and Budget who is now at the Bipartisan Policy Center. Congress must eventually sign off on any cuts the administration wants to make, Snyderman said, though she noted that no president since Bill Clinton, a Democrat, has been successful in getting that done. Congress did not act on $14 billion in impoundment cuts Trump proposed during his prior term, she said. “We have to see what the next steps are,” Snyderman said. The proposed halt on grants comes after Trump, who during the campaign pledged to be “a dictator on day one,” has taken a number of provocative moves to challenge legal constraints on his power. He fired the inspectors general of his Cabinet agencies without giving Congress the warning required by law, declared that there is an immigrant “invasion” despite low numbers of border crossings, is requiring loyalty pledges from new hires, challenged the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship and is moving career staff out of key positions at the Department of Justice to ensure his loyalists control investigations and prosecutions. On Tuesday evening, the new administration made its latest move, trying to prune the federal workforce by offering pay until the end of September for those who agree to resign by the end of next week. The Trump actions have all led to a cascade of court challenges contending he has overstepped his constitutional bounds. A federal judge in Seattle has already put on hold Trump’s attempt to revoke birthright citizenship, calling it a blatant violation of the nation’s foundational legal document. On Tuesday, nonprofit groups persuaded a federal judge in Washington to put the administration’s spending freeze order on hold until a fuller hearing on Feb. 3. Democratic attorneys general also rushed to court to block the order. New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, a Democrat, said the swiftness of the court action against Trump’s spending freeze demonstrates the “carelessness” of the order. “My hope is that the president, working with Congress, can identify whatever his priorities are and can work through the normal constitutional order that is well established that limits the power of Democratic and Republican presidents,” he said. The grant freeze — administration officials described it as a “pause” — fits with a long-sought goal of some Trump allies, including his nominee to run the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, to challenge the constitutionality of the Impoundment Control Act. They contend the president, as the person in charge of distributing funds, should be able to have some control over how the money goes out. Though there’s little doubt the new administration wanted a court fight over its power to control spending, experts agree that this was likely not the way they hoped to present it. “This is a really sloppy way of doing this,” said Bill Galston, of the Brookings Institution, adding that he thought it was an administration error. “This is just classic Trump. He believes it’s better to be fast and sloppy than slow and precise.” In her first press conference, Trump’s new press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, on Tuesday urged organizations that need the grants to call the administration and show how their operations are “in line with the president’s agenda.” “It’s incumbent on this administration to make sure, again, that every penny is accounted for,” Leavitt said. Republican lawmakers largely took the freeze in stride. “This isn’t a huge surprise to me,” said Rep. Dusty Johnson of South Dakota during the House Republican retreat at one of the president’s Florida golf resorts. “Clearly, Donald Trump campaigned in no small part on the idea that the Biden administration was putting out a lot of money that was not consistent with Donald Trump’s values.” But Democrats and others were furious at the move, which seemed designed to undercut congressional authority. “If President Trump wants to change our nation’s laws, he has the right to ask Congress to change them,” Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont, said in a statement. “He does not have the right to violate the United States Constitution. He is not a king.” Chafetz, of Georgetown University, said the lack of pushback from Republican members of Congress was especially alarming because the legislative branch is the one whose powers are most at risk in the latest power play. Even if Trump loses the legal battle, Chafetz said, he and his followers might feel like they’ve won by pushing things to this extreme. “Damaging the institutions they don’t like,” he said, “seems to be their whole theory of governance.” ___ Riccardi reported from Denver. Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Lisa Mascaro in Washington and Morgan Lee in Albuquerque, New Mexico, contributed to this report. Source link #Trump #moves #expand #power #sparking #chaos #constitutional #crisis Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Trump's spending pause – Axios Trump's spending pause – Axios Trump’s spending pause AxiosTrump Administration Orders Federal Grants and Loans Freeze: Live Updates The New York TimesWhite House blames “outage” for locking out Medicaid, Head Start, health centers from funding site CBS News Source link #Trump039s #spending #pause #Axios Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Free agent Tim Kelly awaiting contract for West Coast, keen to remain at Eagles Free agent Tim Kelly awaiting contract for West Coast, keen to remain at Eagles Free agent Tim Kelly is keen to stay at West Coast but a contract-extension is not imminent for the star midfielder as the season draws closer. Source link #Free #agent #Tim #Kelly #awaiting #contract #West #Coast #keen #remain #Eagles Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

What to Expect After Nvidia’s Major Market Cap Tumble What to Expect After Nvidia’s Major Market Cap Tumble Expectations were high for artificial intelligence (AI) companies, but they took a hit on Monday after ******** startup DeepSeek claimed it can spend way less money and deliver AI performance comparable to major tech firms. This triggered massive selloffs in megacap stocks. Nvidia (NVDA) fell 17%, losing over $500 billion in market capitalization — a record-breaking decline, larger than the entire market cap of companies like Mastercard (MA), Netflix (NFLX), Costco (COST), and Bank of America (BAC). Broadcom (AVGO) also plunged 17%, losing about $200 billion in market value, while Oracle (ORCL) fell roughly 14%, or $70 billion in market cap. It made me curious how stocks have tended to perform after such massive losses. I’ll leave it to the fundamental traders to assess DeepSeek’s impact on Nvidia, Oracle, and Broadcom earnings. What I’ve done below is look at historical instances when large-scale losses have occurred, then see how the stocks performed afterwards. Specifically, I went back to 2000 and found instances when a stock’s price dropped by 10% or more, resulting in a loss of at least $50 billion in market cap. The table below indicates this could be a buying opportunity for these stocks. I found 30 times before in which a stock fell 10% and $50 billion in market cap in a single day, with these stocks gaining more than 12% on average over the next three months, and over 20% in the next six months. with 60% of the returns positive. The average positive return of more than 50% over the next six months suggests there’s been massive upside in these situations, despite the fact these are megacap stocks. itow1jan28 This next table is for comparison, and shows the return you would have earned had you purchased the S&P 500 Index (SPX) instead of the beaten down stocks. Buying the beaten down stocks outperformed on average at every time frame recorded. iotw2jan28 Above, it shows that when massive market-cap losses occurred in the past, they tended to be overdone. Meanwhile, the table below summarizes a stock’s performance after a single-day gain of 10% or more, resulting in a market cap gain of at least $50 billion. It seems that whenever a stock’s value changes by $50 billion or more during a single day, whether it is up or down, it’s a good idea to buy it and hold it for six months. These stocks gained 10.6% on average in the next six months, with 58% outperforming the SPX. If you had invested in the SPX, it would have gained just 3% over the next six months. iotw3jan28 Source link #Expect #Nvidias #Major #Market #Cap #Tumble Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

China’s DeepSeek AI hit by information request from Italy’s data protection watchdog China’s DeepSeek AI hit by information request from Italy’s data protection watchdog China’s DeepSeek AI has already caught the eye of a data protection watchdog, shortly after it went viral and became the top-rated free app on Apple’s App Store in the US and other regions. As TechCrunch reports, Garante, or the Italian Data Protection Authority, has written DeepSeek to ask for information about the AI chatbot due to the “possible risk for the data of millions of people in Italy.” The watchdog is in charge of monitoring the application of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules in the country. In an announcement about the information request on its website, Garante said it contacted both the Hangzhou and the Beijing DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence offices to ask them what kind of personal data the AI chatbot collects. It also asked them to clarify their purposes for the data they collect and whether the information they gather is stored on servers physically located in China. In its privacy policy, DeepSeek admitted that it transfers personal information of the country where the user lives and that it keeps them “in secure servers located in the People’s Republic of China.” However, it said that the service will “do so in accordance with the requirements of applicable data protection laws.” In addition, Garante is asking DeepSeek what type of information is used to train its AI system. And, in case web scraping is involved, it wants the service to clarify how both registered and non-registered users are informed about the processing of their data. Notably, Bloomberg has published a report that Microsoft and OpenAI are already investigating whether DeepSeek took OpenAI data and possibly used it for training. Apparently, a group of users exfiltrated a large amount of data using OpenAI’s API back in the fall of 2024, and Microsoft’s security researchers reportedly believe that they have a connection to DeepSeek. The chatbot service now has 20 days to respond to Garante’s request. In the US, Reuters said authorities have started looking into the national security implications of the China-based AI chatbot. Source link #Chinas #DeepSeek #hit #information #request #Italys #data #protection #watchdog Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

*** to Dispose of 140 Tonnes of Radioactive Plutonium at Sellafield for Long-Term Safety *** to Dispose of 140 Tonnes of Radioactive Plutonium at Sellafield for Long-Term Safety The *** government has announced its decision to dispose of 140 tonnes of radioactive plutonium stored at the Sellafield site in Cumbria. This stockpile, the largest of its kind globally, has been accumulated over decades as a by-product of nuclear fuel reprocessing. Previously retained for potential recycling into new nuclear fuel, the material will now be immobilised and prepared for permanent disposal underground. This move aims to address long-term safety concerns while reducing the economic and security challenges associated with storing the hazardous material. Plutonium Conversion for Long-Term Safety According to a statement released in an official press release by the *** Parliament, Energy Minister Michael Shanks, the material will be transformed into a stable, ceramic-like form to ensure its safe and durable containment. Nuclear materials scientist Dr Lewis Blackburn from the University of Sheffield explained that this process involves converting plutonium into a solid, stable material suitable for geological disposal. As reported by the BBC, the exact type of ceramic to be used remains under investigation, with ongoing research determining the most effective method for immobilisation. Deep Geological Disposal Facility in Development Efforts are underway to identify a suitable location for a geological disposal facility, which will house the immobilised plutonium and other high-level radioactive waste. According to nuclear waste expert Prof Claire Corkhill from the University of Bristol, this facility will offer a long-term solution by isolating the material in durable forms inspired by natural minerals. Speaking to the BBC, she highlighted that these materials have successfully contained radioactive elements for billions of years, demonstrating their reliability. The construction and operational readiness of the disposal facility are expected to take several decades, with completion anticipated by 2050. This strategy marks a significant step towards reducing the economic burden of storage, which currently exceeds £70 million annually, and ensuring the secure management of the ***’s radioactive waste. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. Marco OTT Release Reportedly Revealed: Everything You Need to Know Revolver Rita OTT Release Reportedly Revealed Online: Everything You Need to Know Source link #Dispose #Tonnes #Radioactive #Plutonium #Sellafield #LongTerm #Safety Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Amateur fossil hunter finds 66-million-year-old animal vomit – CNN Amateur fossil hunter finds 66-million-year-old animal vomit – CNN Amateur fossil hunter finds 66-million-year-old animal vomit CNNFossilized vomit found in Denmark dates back 66 million years — prehistoric ***** hailed as national treasure New York Post Prehistoric ***** offers clues about ancient sea predators’ diets The Washington Post Source link #Amateur #fossil #hunter #finds #66millionyearold #animal #vomit #CNN Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Tales of the Shire’s Experimental Approach Makes a Case for Another Offbeat LotR Adaptation Tales of the Shire’s Experimental Approach Makes a Case for Another Offbeat LotR Adaptation OtterX30d ago Nah, something feels off with the graphics and the character design is truly awful. It feels like someone is is playing the game with the shadows turned completely off. The animations are stiff. It all feels like a phoned-in mobile game. The feedback has been pretty negative on YouTube since the reveal. It’s a shame, as I love LotR, but I have no interest in this one. Source link #Tales #Shires #Experimental #Approach #Case #Offbeat #LotR #Adaptation Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Carmen Sandiego out now on iOS and Android exclusively via Netflix Games Carmen Sandiego out now on iOS and Android exclusively via Netflix Games Carmen Sandiego is out now on Netflix Games for iOS and Android This exclusive early release for Netflix subscribers lets you play it first It sees the titular globe-trotting vigilante take on the forces of V.I.L.E Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego? Well, she’s right in the palm of your hand! Because starting today you can leap into the newest entry in the Carmen Sandiego Series on iOS and Android, but only if you’re a Netflix subscriber. Carmen Sandiego, as you might expect focuses on the titular criminal turned vigilante as she takes on her former allies in the secret criminal syndicate V.I.L.E. Sandiego will trot the globe as she works to track down and capture agents of V.I.L.E. with a little bit of exploration, subterfuge and the occasional hang-gliding minigame to help her along. It may be a bit different from previous entries in the series which mainly focused on point-and-click mechanics, and most importantly saw Sandiego cast as the villain. However, the fact that Carmen Sandiego is now available to play on Netflix even ahead of consoles and other platforms demonstrates just how key this reinvention of her as a globe-trotting vigilante has been. Around the world around the world It should be little surprise that Netflix is so eager to get Carmen Sandiego on their platform early, as Gameloft’s first foray into major multiplatform releases could represent a real AAA-style experience for fans. It also means that Netflix subscribers might see a bit more value if they’re getting top launches like this earlier than most. And with a bevvy of features, it seems that Gameloft’s first major effort in this sort of genre might be a winner, but we’ll just have to see how Carmen Sandiego is received. In any case, if you’re a fan of finding out the latest releases why not check out our regular feature Ahead of the Game? This week Catherine dives into the dungeon-crawling multiplayer release Gold & Glory to find out just how gilded this treasure-grabbing simulator is. Source link #Carmen #Sandiego #iOS #Android #exclusively #Netflix #Games Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Grim signs for Aussies looking to change jobs in January Grim signs for Aussies looking to change jobs in January Australians are choosing the worst time of the year to try and find their next job, according to new research. Source link #Grim #signs #Aussies #change #jobs #January Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]