Pelican Press

Charity calls for prostate-******* testing of high-risk men Charity calls for prostate-******* testing of high-risk men Getty Images Screening men born with a high risk of developing prostate *******, once they reach the age of 45, makes financial sense, a ******* charity says. But Prostate ******* Research also acknowledges more accurate tests would be needed to justify screening all men. There is no prostate-******* screening programme in the ***, unlike those for *******, bowel and cervical *******. Instead, the onus is on men to request a blood test from their GP once they are over 50. Men dying The debate around prostate screening revolves around an imperfect test and the trade-off between finding some men’s aggressive cancers earlier and the harms of diagnosing and treating slow-growing tumours that would never have affected a man’s health or lifespan. The case for and against is constantly reviewed in the ***, with the most recent report from the National Screening Committee, in 2020, saying the harms were too great. Further updates are expected this year. Despite more men dying from prostate ******* than women from ******* *******, there is no reliable test for the ********. The blood test men over 50 can request from their GP measures prostate-specific antigen (PSA), released by the prostate, a small ****** located below the bladder involved in the production of ******. But PSA levels can be high for a variety of reasons – including an enlarged prostate, inflammation or infection, recent vigorous exercise or **** – or remain normal despite *******. And there are many different kinds of prostate ******* – not all deadly. “There are prostate cancers that are so slow-growing that they will not affect a man’s lifespan,” GP Dr Margaret McCartney says. These are found in one in three men over 50. “And then you have a small number of very aggressive prostate cancers which do move quickly and cause harm,” Dr McCartney says. Follow-up magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and a tissue biopsy can help narrow down which men have ******* and need treatment – but some still end up being treated for something that would never cause a problem. “Far more men have tests done to try to work out what kind of prostate ******* it is, than are going to benefit from it – there’s the problem,” Dr McCartney says. Followed up Clinical trials have produced conflicting results about screening. One, in Europe, says it saves lives. Another, in the ***, shows a more marginal benefit. And a third, in the US, says it does not. Prof Hashim Ahmed, chair of urology at Imperial College London, says: “We need to screen 570 men to prevent one ****** – that’s a lot of men to counsel.” Screening means aggressive cancers can be treated before symptoms appear. But trials show there are harms to testing large numbers of healthy men – and once a ******* is spotted, even a low-risk one, it needs to be followed up. ***** ****** Many men with a low-risk ******* are simply monitored or begin “watchful waiting” – but a ******* diagnosis and the invasive tests it involves have a psychological impact. One in 10 of these men opts for ******** surgery rather than live with the anxiety of wondering whether their ******* will grow, Prof Ahmed says. But this can leave them unable to maintain an ********* – and a third spend the rest of their life needing a pad because they ***** ******. “At the age of 47-48, if we’re talking about testing and diagnosing men at that age, that’s two or three decades of those kinds of symptoms,” Prof Ahmed told BBC Radio 4’s Inside Health programme. “So I would rather avoid finding low-risk ********.” Getty Images Much research in the field has focused on refining the process to minimise the harms of screening. And Prof Ahmed is running the Transform trial, starting next year, to compare the most promising technologies. But the results could be 10 years away. In the meantime, Prostate ******* Research’s report says, screening 45-69-year-olds at high risk – ****** men and those with a family history of the ******** or particular gene mutations – would deliver an economic benefit, after factoring in the cost of treatment and the impact on working lives and carers. “Finding and treating cancers early outweighs the harms of over-treatment by four times,” the charity’s chief executive, Oliver Kemp, says. And another charity, Prostate ******* ***, says the report supports its call to overhaul “dangerously outdated NHS guidance that is leading to too many men receiving a late, incurable diagnoses”. ‘Very difficult’ Prof Frank Chinegwundoh, a consultant urological surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust, says: “It’s very difficult to weigh up the risks and benefits.” But he often sees men who could have been diagnosed earlier – and they can be relatively young, he says. “We can do a lot better than we are currently doing,” Prof Chinegwundoh told Inside Health. And he says ****** men – who have double the risk of the ******** – should consider having a PSA test at 40, particularly if they have a strong family history of the *******. But earlier this year, concerns were raised ****** men were at greater risk than other men of being harmed by a ******* diagnosis that did not need to be treated, because they have naturally higher PSA levels. ‘Tough question’ While the arguments rage, what should men do today? “It’s a really tough question,” Prof Ahmed says. And the NHS needs to give men better information. The trade-off between the risks and benefits of being tested is “very nuanced, very personal”, Prof Ahmed says, and what is acceptable to one man will be unacceptable to another. Source link #Charity #calls #prostatecancer #testing #highrisk #men Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

NYT Strands today: hints, spangram and answers for Wednesday, November 13 NYT Strands today: hints, spangram and answers for Wednesday, November 13 Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you’ll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle. Like Wordle, Connections, and the Mini Crossword, Strands can be a bit difficult to solve some days. There’s no shame in needing a little help from time to time. If you’re stuck and need to know the answers to today’s Strands puzzle, check out the solved puzzle below. How to play Strands You start every Strands puzzle with the goal of finding the “theme words” hidden in the grid of letters. Manipulate letters by dragging or tapping to craft words; double-tap the final letter to confirm. If you find the correct word, the letters will be highlighted blue and will no longer be selectable. If you find a word that isn’t a theme word, it still helps! For every three non-theme words you find that are at least four letters long, you’ll get a hint — the letters of one of the theme words will be revealed and you’ll just have to unscramble it. Every single letter on the grid is used to spell out the theme words and there is no overlap. Every letter will be used once, and only once. Each puzzle contains one “spangram,” a special theme word (or words) that describe the puzzle’s theme and touches two opposite sides of the board. When you find the spangram, it will be highlighted yellow. The goal should be to complete the puzzle quickly without using too many hints. Hint for today’s Strands puzzle Today’s theme is “We’re walking” Here’s a hint that might help you: animals that walk on two legs. Today’s Strand answers NYT Today’s spanagram We’ll start by giving you the spangram, which might help you figure out the theme and solve the rest of the puzzle on your own: Today’s Strands answers HUMAN OSTRICH GIBBON KANGAROO PANGOLIN MEERKAT Source link #NYT #Strands #today #hints #spangram #answers #Wednesday #November Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Thursday, November 14 (game #256) NYT Strands today — hints, answers and spangram for Thursday, November 14 (game #256) Strands is the NYT’s latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it’s great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints. Want more word-based fun? Then check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games. SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers. Your Strands expert Your Strands expert Marc McLaren Social Links Navigation Global Editor in Chief NYT Strands today (game #256) – hint #1 – today’s theme What is the theme of today’s NYT Strands? • Today’s NYT Strands theme is… Name of the game NYT Strands today (game #256) – hint #2 – clue words Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system. CART CARD CARDS LUMP LUMPS LOCK NYT Strands today (game #256) – hint #3 – spangram What is a hint for today’s spangram? • It’s a mystery NYT Strands today (game #256) – hint #4 – spangram position What are two sides of the board that today’s spangram touches? First: top, 3rd column Last: bottom, 5th column Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM. NYT Strands today (game #256) – the answers (Image credit: New York Times) The answers to today’s Strands, game #256, are… PLUM GREEN PEACOCK MUSTARD ORCHID SCARLET SPANGRAM: CLUESUSPECTS My rating: Moderate My score: 2 hints I have mixed feelings about today’s Strands puzzle. On the one hand, it’s a nicely challenging instalment that I had to use my brain (and memory) to solve. On the other, it has a couple of anomalies that slightly detract from the experience. Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable ****** Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content. The theme here is CLUESUSPECTS, as the spangram has it, and setting aside the fact that it’s called CLUEDO in the ***, I have no issue with it as a concept. However, I am a little miffed about the fact that one of the answers is ORCHID. I’m not an expert, but my online research has led me to understand that ORCHID was only added as a character, in place of Mrs (or Chef) White in 2016, and was removed again in 2023. Given that CLUE/CLUEDO has been around since the 1940s, that seems an oddly short change to reflect here. Plus, Mrs SCARLET was called Mrs SCARLETT with two Ts from 1949 until 1963, then lost the second T in the US, then regained it in 2016. Which is fine – but then you have the SCARLET spelling from one era and the ORCHID character from another. It’s all just a little messy. On the other hand, I’m being petty. This Strands puzzle is fine, though I needed two hints to establish what the concept actually was. Once I had it, it was easy enough to solve, even allowing for the slight weirdness around a couple of the answers. Anyway, it made me want to play it again for the first time in several decades, so that’s no bad thing. How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know. Yesterday’s NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, 13 November, game #255) HUMAN GIBBON KANGAROO PANGOLIN MEERKAT OSTRICH SPANGRAM: BIPEDAL What is NYT Strands? Strands is the NYT’s new word game, following Wordle and Connections. It’s now out of beta so is a fully fledged member of the NYT’s games stable and can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile. I’ve got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you’re struggling to beat it each day. Source link #NYT #Strands #today #hints #answers #spangram #Thursday #November #game Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

********** outside Brazil Supreme Court leads to evacuation, 1 *****: officials – National ********** outside Brazil Supreme Court leads to evacuation, 1 *****: officials – National Descrease article font size Increase article font size At least one ********** outside Brazil’s Supreme Court ******* one person and forced the justices and staff to evacuate the building in the capital of Brasilia, police and firefighters said. A police statement said an artifact exploded outside the court without providing more details. Local firefighters confirmed that one person ***** at the scene, but did not identify the victim. The court’s justices and staff safely left the building after the incident, which took place at about 7:30 p.m. local time, shortly after Wednesday’s session finished. Jorge Macedo, a staffer at Brazil’s top court, confirmed the evacuation to The Associated Press. Local media showed footage suggesting two blasts outside the court, with 20 seconds between the first and the second explosions. 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. The Supreme Court in recent years has become a target for threats due to its crackdown on the spread of false information amid Brazil’s deep polarization. Story continues below advertisement 1:52 Brazil shuts down access to Elon Musk’s X José Chrispiniano, a spokesman for President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the 79-year-old leader was not in the neighboring presidential palace at the time of the blast. Trending Now Kate Middleton fans slam TV star for ‘vile’ comment about princess’s looks Trump’s appointees have criticized Trudeau, Canada’s border security Police blocked all access to the area where Brazil’s Supreme Court, Congress and presidential palace are located. The presidential security bureau was conducting a sweep of the grounds around the presidential palace, local press reported. Earlier, another ********** was heard outside Brazil’s Congress, but it apparently did not cause damages. 2:15 Over 1,200 arrested after pro-Bolsonaro riot at Brazil’s Congress &copy 2024 The ********* Press Source link #********** #Brazil #Supreme #Court #leads #evacuation #***** #officials #National Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

12,000-Year-Old Stones Reveal Possible Early Use of Wheel-Like Technology 12,000-Year-Old Stones Reveal Possible Early Use of Wheel-Like Technology In an exciting discovery from *******’s Nahal-Ein Gev II archaeological site, a collection of perforated, donut-shaped stones may represent some of the earliest evidence of wheel-like technology in human history. According to a study published in PLOS ONE by researchers Talia Yashuv and Leore Grosman from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, these 12,000-year-old stones likely served as spindle whorls, essential tools for spinning fibers into yarn. This discovery suggests that early humans may have ***** the groundwork for rotational technology long before the invention of the cartwheel. Spindle Whorls: A Key Step in Rotational Technology Spindle whorls are small, weighted objects that attach to a spindle stick, allowing it to spin more efficiently. These devices, when connected to a spindle, mimic the structure of a wheel and axle by rotating around a central axis, creating a steady motion used to twist fibers like flax or wool into yarn. This ancient technology resembles the more well-known wheel-and-axle system used in transportation but on a smaller scale and with a different purpose. Spinning methods. (a) Manual thigh-spinning [64]; (b) Spindle-and-whorl “supported spinning” [68]; (c) “drop spinning” [66]. The bottom pictures show Yonit Kristal experimenting spinning fibers with replicas of the perforated pebbles, using supported spinning and drop spinning techniques (photographed by Talia Yashuv/PLoS ONE). The perforated stones were discovered within the context of a significant transitional ******* for early humans, as communities shifted towards agriculture and settled life. The find dates to approximately 12,000 years ago, during the Neolithic *******. Researchers believe these spindle whorls might have enabled more productive textile-making processes, helping Neolithic communities to clothe themselves, store goods, and trade. Reconstructing Ancient Spinning Techniques To test their theory, Yashuv and Grosman examined the stones in detail using digital 3D models, analyzing the dimensions of the stones and their perforated centers. These digital reconstructions allowed the researchers to delve into the craftsmanship of early humans, uncovering what may be one of the earliest uses of rotational technology. As part of the study, the researchers created replicas of these ancient spindle whorls to spin fibers and evaluate the stones’ functionality. They found that the whorls, when paired with a spindle, could indeed gather yarn efficiently, supporting their hypothesis that the stones served as spinning tools. Techniques such as “drop spinning” and “supported spinning” were used in experiments, giving the researchers and the public a unique glimpse into prehistoric textile-making practices. The experimental spindles and whorls, the 3D scans of the pebbles and their negative perforations. (Talia Yashuv/PLoS ONE). Prehistoric Craftsmanship and Modern Reflections The stones’ resemblance to early wheel-and-axle systems connects ancient textile production to later technological innovations like the potter’s wheel and, ultimately, the cartwheel. The researchers suggest that this early use of spindle whorls may reflect a larger trend in human history where rotational tools, initially designed for one purpose, paved the way for further advancements that would eventually transform human civilization. “This study not only highlights the innovativeness of prehistoric artisans but also bridges ancient technologies with our present-day capabilities,” Yashuv explains. She adds that by reconstructing and testing these tools, researchers are able to connect modern technology with the resourcefulness of our ancient ancestors, revealing a continuous link between early invention and current-day scientific methods. Implications for Understanding Human Innovation While spindle whorls themselves were not wheels, they reveal a fundamental understanding of controlled rotational movement—an essential concept behind one of humanity’s greatest inventions. The findings open the door for future studies into other small, round, perforated objects that may have been overlooked or misclassified in archaeological contexts. This discovery encourages a reevaluation of how and when humans first began using rotation to enhance their crafts, a practice that would eventually lead to technological milestones shaping the course of human history. For more details on the study, visit PLOS ONE’s website. Top image: Left; Talia Yashuv of the Hebrew University at the excavation site of Nahal Ein Gev II in northern *******. Right; the experimental spindles and whorls. Source: Left, Naftali Hilger; Right, Talia Yashuv /PLoS ONE Source link #12000YearOld #Stones #Reveal #Early #WheelLike #Technology Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

The Resident Evil 2 remake will shuffle its way to Apple devices in December The Resident Evil 2 remake will shuffle its way to Apple devices in December Now you’ll be able to play one of the greatest zombie survival games of all time on your iPhone or iPad. is headed to the Apple and Mac App Store on December 10. The game won’t be available on every Apple device. You’ll need any iPhone 16 model, an iPhone 15 Pro or an iPad or Mac with the M1 chip or later. You’ll also be able to try a small portion of the game before purchasing the full experience. The game comes with “universal purchase” and “cross-progression” for all your eligible devices, according to a Capcom statement. The Resident Evil 2 remake will offer advanced controls for touchscreens and the Mac version. Both Leon and Claire will also have “a new Auto ***** feature” so you can unload your clip into whatever’s shuffling towards you. This is just one of four Resident Evil games available for Apple devices and computers. Capcom and Apple have released versions of and Resident Evil 4 on the App Store and Resident Evil: Village on the App and Mac App Store. Source link #Resident #Evil #remake #shuffle #Apple #devices #December Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Apple defends the M4 Mac mini’s power button Apple defends the M4 Mac mini’s power button Apple Apple announced a new wave of product refreshes recently, and not only does the charging port for the Magic Mouse remain on the bottom of the device — the M4 Mac mini’s power button has been moved to the bottom, too. These design choices have riled up plenty of people, but it seems Apple stands by its new power button placement for the Mac mini. In a video posted on ******** social media platform Bilibili, Apple’s Greg Joswiak not only defends the decision but praises it. He calls it a “kind of optimal spot for a power button,” claiming that you just need to “kinda tuck your finger in there and hit the button.” According to our M4 Mac mini review and many others, however, there isn’t enough room to reach the button without lifting the entire PC — and there’s no way to tell which side the button is even on. Things like that don’t just magically stick in everyone’s heads. Joswiak also comments that “you pretty much never use the power button on your Mac,” so even if the button isn’t that easy to access, it seems Apple believes it doesn’t matter that much. Whether people should turn their computers off regularly or not is a topic of much debate — but at least we now know what Apple thinks. Who’s ******** someone somewhere is now going to run a test to find out what happens when you turn a Mac mini off every night versus never turning it off at all. Chris Hagan / Digital Trends In terms of the actual reason for the button placement, Joswiak implies that it’s due to the size reduction. If that’s true, it does seem like a decent trade-off — but some people are pretty convinced that Apple likes to sacrifice practicality just to achieve the most minimal design possible. If you can deal with the power button, it’s worth noting that the power the M4 Mac mini provides is fairly amazing for the price. Source link #Apple #defends #Mac #minis #power #button Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Kevin Rudd: Peter Dutton questions PM’s judgement as latest Trump appointment clouds ambassador’s future Kevin Rudd: Peter Dutton questions PM’s judgement as latest Trump appointment clouds ambassador’s future Opposition leader Peter Dutton says Anthony Albanese’s decision to send Kevin Rudd to Washington raises questions about his political judgement as the future of Australia’s ambassador to the US ******** under a cloud after Donald Trump’s election win. Mr Dutton said Labor was in a “difficult position” given the past criticisms of Mr Trump from senior figures including Mr Rudd, Mr Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who in 2021 said Mr Trump was prepared to “trash alliances” for his own interests. “I guess the difficulty that the Prime Minister is in at the moment is that if he sacks Kevin Rudd then what does he do with Penny Wong?” Mr Dutton said. “And if he sacks Penny Wong what does he do given he’s made his own disparaging remarks about president-elect Trump?” Mr Dutton and senior colleagues are publicly backing Mr Rudd to continue in the post after his success during Joe Biden’s presidency, where he was credited with shepherding crucial AUKUS legislation through US Congress. But there are questions as to whether Mr Rudd – who once described Mr Trump as a “traitor to the West – can remain an influential player in Washington. Speculation about his future intensified on Wednesday after senior Trump advisor Dan Scavino posted a GIF of sand running through an hourglass in response to a tweet from Mr Rudd congratulating Mr Trump on his election win. The message was widely interpreted as a sign Trump’s inner circle believes the ambassador is on borrowed time in Washington. Mr Scavino was overnight appointed White House deputy chief of staff. Mr Dutton said Mr Albanese’s decision to appoint Mr Rudd in 2023 raised questions about his political judgement. “The Prime Minister has made a number of captain’s calls, and they’ve been at odds with the advice that he’s received from his closest advisors and colleagues. And I suppose that’s a question about the Prime Minister’s judgment,” he said. Senior Labor ministers Mark Butler and Tanya Plibersek rallied around Mr Rudd on Thursday morning, insisting he remained the best man for the job. In a subtle message to the incoming Trump administration, Mr Butler said Australia chooses who its ambassador is. “The point I think I’ve tried to make, and many others on both sides of politics here in Australia have made, is that Kevin Rudd is a very serious ambassador,” Mr Butler told RN Breakfast. “We’re very convinced that Kevin is the right person for this job.” Ms Plibersek said Mr Rudd has demonstrated his skill as an ambassador. “He’s widely recognised as one of the world’s preeminent experts on China and particularly on the time of Xi Jinping as leader,” she told Sky News. “We know that people like Malcolm Turnbull, a former ******** prime minister, and other prominent Liberals, including former ambassadors, have said that it’s important for Kevin Rudd to remain as ambassador and it shows Australia’s strength.” Source link #Kevin #Rudd #Peter #Dutton #questions #PMs #judgement #latest #Trump #appointment #clouds #ambassadors #future Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

All-MLB team 2024: Ohtani, Soto only repeat winners as Bowden picks the best at each position All-MLB team 2024: Ohtani, Soto only repeat winners as Bowden picks the best at each position The league’s 2024 All-MLB team will be announced on Thursday, so it’s the perfect time to make my own picks for the best in baseball at each position. I’ve chosen an All-MLB team for years and it’s always interesting to see how much turnover there is from season to season. Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto were the only players selected this year who also made my team in 2023. Ohtani, of course, is in his own category; he’s the only one to make the team in each of the past three seasons. Also noteworthy: The Dodgers, Yankees and Guardians were the only clubs with two players on my All-MLB team this year. As always, I have included my choices for top owner, front office executive and manager, but I suspect my player selections will generate the most interest and debate. Let me know in the comments section what you think I got right and wrong. Note: Player selections were made based on the regular season; postseason performance was not considered. WAR, OPS+ and ERA+ are according to Baseball Reference. MLB advanced stats and percentiles are according to Statcast. Players William Contreras has become one of the top catchers in the league. (Benny Sieu / Imagn Images) Catcher: William Contreras, Brewers WAR: 4.9 OPS+: 129 William Contreras batted .281/.365/.466 with 37 doubles, 23 home runs, 99 runs scored and 92 RBIs. The 26-year-old catcher won a Silver Slugger Award for the second year in a row and made his second All-Star team. He finished in the 92nd percentile in batting run value, the 94th percentile in average exit velocity and the 91st percentile in hard-hit rate. He graded out above average in framing and pop time as well. Also considered: Salvador Perez, Yainer Diaz First base: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays WAR: 6.2 OPS+: 166 Vladimir Guerrero Jr. slashed .323/.396/.544 with 44 doubles, 30 home runs, 98 runs scored and 103 RBIs. He won his second Silver Slugger Award and made the All-Star team for the fourth consecutive year. He finished in the 98th percentile in batting run value, xwOBA, xSLG and average exit velocity, and in the 100th percentile in xBA. Also considered: Bryce Harper, Freddie Freeman, ********** Walker Second base: Ketel Marte, Diamondbacks WAR: 6.8 OPS+: 155 Ketel Marte was the MVP of the Diamondbacks this year and should finish third in the National League MVP voting behind Shohei Ohtani and Francisco Lindor. Marte slashed. 292/.372/.560 with 23 doubles, 36 home runs, 93 runs scored, 95 RBIs and seven stolen bases in eight attempts. He made his second All-Star team (but first since 2019) and won his first Silver Slugger Award. He finished in the 96th percentile in batting run value, xBA, xSLG and hard-hit percentage; the 97th percentile in xwOBA; and the 98th percentile in average exit velocity. Also considered: Jose Altuve Bobby Witt Jr. had a breakout season this year. (Daniel Shirey / MLB Photos via Getty Images) Shortstop: Bobby Witt Jr., Royals WAR: 9.4 OPS+: 171 Bobby Witt Jr. is expected to finish second in the ********* League MVP voting behind Aaron Judge. The 24-year-old phenom slashed .332/.389/.588 with 45 doubles, 11 triples, 32 home runs, 125 runs scored, 109 RBIs and 31 steals. He led the majors in hits and batting average. He became the first shortstop in MLB history with two 30-30 seasons (home runs, steals). He made his first All-Star team and won his first Gold Glove Award. He finished in the 99th percentile in batting run value, base running value and outs above average (defensive range). He was in the 100th percentile in xBA and sprint speed. Also considered: Francisco Lindor Third base: José Ramírez, Guardians WAR: 6.8 OPS+: 143 José Ramírez is expected to finish in the top five in the AL MVP voting for the fifth time in his career. (It would be his seventh top-10 MVP finish through his age-31 season.) He batted .279/.335/.537 with 39 doubles, 39 home runs, 114 runs scored, 118 RBIs and 41 stolen bases. He made his fourth consecutive All-Star team (sixth overall) and won his fifth Silver Slugger Award. He finished in the 96th percentile in batting run value, the 98th percentile in K% and the 83rd percentile in outs above average. He’s fundamentally sound and always hustles, even on routine groundouts. His intangibles are off the charts. In my opinion, he’s a future Hall of Famer. Also considered: Rafael Devers, Manny Machado, Matt Chapman Right field: Juan Soto, Yankees WAR: 7.9 OPS+: 178 Juan Soto was my preseason pick for AL MVP; he won’t end up winning the award, but he’s expected to be third or fourth in the voting. Soto slashed .288/.419/.569 with 31 doubles, 41 home runs, a league-leading 128 runs scored, 109 RBIs and 129 walks. He made his fourth All-Star team and won his fifth Silver Slugger Award. He finished in the 100th percentile in batting run value, xwOBA and BB%. He was in the 98th or 99th percentile in xBA, xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, hard-hit rate and chase rate. He’s about to become the highest paid player in MLB history based on net present value. (Note: Soto made my All-MLB team last year as a left fielder with the Padres.) Center field: Aaron Judge, Yankees WAR: 10.8 OPS+: 223 Aaron Judge was the best overall player in MLB this year. He led the league in WAR, home runs (58), RBIs (144), walks (133), on-base percentage (.458), slugging percentage (.701), OPS (1.159) and total bases (392). He made his sixth All-Star team, won his fourth Silver Slugger Award and soon will win his second AL MVP Award. He finished in the 100th percentile in batting run value, xwOBA, xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, hard-hit rate and walk rate. He was in the 83rd percentile in arm value and the 75th percentile in arm strength despite being below average overall defensively in center field. Left field: Teoscar Hernández, Dodgers WAR: 4.3 OPS+: 137 Teoscar Hernández had arguably the best year of his career, batting .272/.339/.501 with 32 doubles, 33 home runs, 84 runs scored, 99 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 15 attempts. He made his second All-Star team, won his third Silver Slugger Award and even won the Home Run Derby to boot. He finished in the 90th percentile in batting run value, the 91st percentile in xSLG and the 94th percentile in barrel rate. He was in the 70th percentile in arm strength and the 83rd percentile in sprint speed. He’s a below-average defender in left field but a strong presence in the clubhouse and a player who posts every day with high energy and enthusiasm. Also considered: Jurickson Profar, Riley Greene, Steven Kwan, Jackson Chourio, Bryan Reynolds Shohei Ohtani had quite a year. (Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn Images) Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers WAR: 9.2 OPS+: 190 Shohei Ohtani is expected to win his third MVP Award and first in the NL. He batted .310/.390/.646 and led the league with 731 plate appearances, 134 runs scored, 54 home runs, 130 RBIs and 411 total bases. (He also led the league in OBP, SLG and OPS.) He stole 59 bases in 63 attempts. He opened the 50-50 Club as only he could, with one of the best single-game offensive performances ever. He made his fourth All-Star team and won his third Silver Slugger Award. He finished in the 99th percentile in batting run value and xBA and in the 100th percentile in xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel percentage and hard-hit rate. And despite all those amazing numbers and accomplishments, he surely cares most about one I haven’t even mentioned yet: winning his first World Series. (Note: Marcell Ozuna deserves a special mention for his strong season, but Ohtani was the only player “considered” here, for obvious reasons.) Starting pitcher: Tarik Skubal, Tigers WAR: 6.3 ERA+: 170 Tarik Skubal led the AL in wins (18), ERA (2.39), strikeouts (228) and FIP (2.50). He made his first All-Star team and soon will win the AL Cy Young Award. Batters hit .197 against his four-seam fastball, .216 against his changeup, .207 against his two-seamer, .169 against his slider and .158 against his knuckle curve. He finished in the 100th percentile in pitching run value, the 99th percentile in fastball run value and the 93rd percentile in offspeed run value. Also considered: Chris ***** Closer: Emmanuel Clase, Guardians WAR: 4.4 ERA+: 674 Emmanuel Clase will soon win the Mariano Rivera Award, given to the best reliever in the AL, and he dominated like Rivera in the regular season. Clase led the AL in games finished (66) and saves (47) for the third consecutive year. He made the All-Star team for the third straight year. He posted an astounding 0.61 ERA, allowing only 39 hits in 74 1/3 innings. He finished in the 98th percentile in pitching run value and the 99th percentile in fastball run value. Also considered: Ryan Helsley, Kirby Yates, Raisel Iglesias Front office and field staff Owner: Mark Walter, Dodgers Mark Walter approved more than a billion dollars in future payroll commitments last offseason. He allowed president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, general manager Brandon Gomes and manager Dave Roberts to make all the baseball decisions without interference. He always provides the necessary resources so this franchise can pursue World Series titles. He deserves more credit for the Dodgers’ success than he’s received. Executive: Andrew Friedman, Dodgers Andrew Friedman not only landed Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in free agency but also signed Teoscar Hernández to a one-year “pillow” contract that was a big success for the team and player. However, Friedman’s pivotal in-season moves — including a lopsided three-way trade that netted shortstop/center fielder Tommy Edman and reliever Michael Kopech and his deadline day deal for starter Jack Flaherty — made him the pick here. Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller and Royals GM J.J. Picollo deserved consideration as well. Manager: Dave Roberts, Dodgers Dave Roberts secured his place as a future Hall of Fame manager with an outstanding postseason, winning his second World Series title in four years. In nine years as manager of the Dodgers, Roberts has an 851-506 record (.627 winning percentage). The Dodgers have made the playoffs in all of those nine seasons and won the NL West in eight of nine. Roberts now has four pennants and two world championships to his name, but this was his best year as a manager as he had 12 starting pitchers spend time on the injured list and still found a way to lead his team to the best regular-season record followed by an outstanding postseason run. So many managers had impressive seasons — including Matt Quatraro, Stephen Vogt, A.J. Hinch, Pat Murphy, Carlos Mendoza and Mike Shildt — but Roberts gets the nod here. He’s one of the game’s best motivators and best human beings as well. My past All-MLB teams 2023 Catcher: Adley Rutschman, Orioles First base: Matt Olson, Braves Second base: Marcus Semien, Rangers Shortstop: Corey Seager, Rangers Third base: Austin Riley, Braves Right field: Ronald Acuña Jr., Braves Center field: Julio Rodríguez, Mariners Left field: Juan Soto, Padres Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Angels Starting pitcher: Gerrit Cole, Yankees Closer: Félix Bautista, Orioles Owner: Steve Cohen, Mets Executive: Alex Anthopoulos, Braves Manager: Bruce Bochy, Rangers 2022 Catcher: J.T. Realmuto, Phillies First base: Paul Goldschmidt, Cardinals Second base: Jose Altuve, Astros Shortstop: Carlos Correa, Twins Third base: Manny Machado, Padres Right field: Aaron Judge, Yankees Center field: Mike Trout, Angels Left field: Steven Kwan, Guardians Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Angels Starting pitcher: Justin Verlander, Astros Closer: Edwin Díaz, Mets Owner: Peter Seidler, Padres Executive: Andrew Friedman, Dodgers Manager: Terry Francona, Guardians (Top image: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic. Photos: Nic Antaya / MLB Photos / Getty Images; Mary DeCicco / MLB Photos / Getty Images; Brace Hemmelgarn / Minnesota Twins / Getty Images) Source link #AllMLB #team #Ohtani #Soto #repeat #winners #Bowden #picks #position Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

****** Ops 6 BlackCell Trailer Shows Off One Of COD’s Most Impressive Operators Yet ****** Ops 6 BlackCell Trailer Shows Off One Of COD’s Most Impressive Operators Yet Call of Duty: ****** Ops 6’s in-game store gets stocked with all manner of microtransactions tomorrow, November 14, to kick off the game’s Season 1. And included among them is the BlackCell bundle, which features Goliath as its headlining hero. Goliath is one of the most unique Call of Duty operators to date. Goliath has a “molten, crystalized skull” whose armor emits flames. As you can see in the trailer below, Goliath is a menacing force to be reckoned with. BlackCell bundles are Call of Duty’s most expensive in-game offerings, coming in at around $30. For that price, purchasers get a new Operator, along with 20 Battle Pass tier skips, an allotment of 1,110 COD Points to spend on other stuff, and exclusive guns. For the Season 1 BlackCell DLC, this includes the “Boiling Point” ******** rifle that is actually dripping with *****. It also comes with the “Who’s Laughing Now” finishing move in which Goliath’s hyena companion comes in and tears your ****** apart. The bundle also includes a special BlackCell clan tag to show off in lobbies and winner’s cricles. Beyond all of this, BlackCell owners get BlackCell-exclusive skins for Sev, Bayan, Bailey, Carver, Alvarez, and Stone, along with six BlackCell-exclusive ******* blueprints. People who buy the BlackCell DLC can also unlock any single page of the Battle Pass and bypass the normal requirements. What’s more, there are more than 130 rewards that BlackCell owners can unlock throughout Season 1. The new BlackCell bundle goes live on November 14 If you don’t want to spend $30 on the BlackCell bundle, ****** Ops 6’s in-game store will receive many other bundles for the Season 1 launch, including one that turns you into a shark. Check out the gallery below to see more of what’s included during Season 1. November 14 also marks the launch of Call of Duty: Warzone’s new map, Area 99, and it’s also when ****** Ops 6 content integrates into Warzone. Source link #****** #Ops #BlackCell #Trailer #Shows #CODs #Impressive #Operators Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Quordle today – hints and answers for Thursday, November 14 (game #1025) Quordle today – hints and answers for Thursday, November 14 (game #1025) Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers. Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles. SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know the answers. Your Quordle expert Your Quordle expert Marc McLaren Social Links Navigation Global Editor in Chief Quordle today (game #1025) – hint #1 – Vowels How many different vowels are in Quordle today? • The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*. * Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too). Quordle today (game #1025) – hint #2 – repeated letters Do any of today’s Quordle answers contain repeated letters? • The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 1. Quordle today (game #1025) – hint #3 – uncommon letters Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today? • Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today’s Quordle answers. Quordle today (game #1025) – hint #4 – starting letters (1) Do any of today’s Quordle puzzles start with the same letter? • The number of today’s Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 2. If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you’re not ready yet then here’s one more clue to make things a lot easier: Quordle today (game #1025) – hint #5 – starting letters (2) What letters do today’s Quordle answers start with? • E • T • C • C Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE THEM. Quordle today (game #1025) – the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster) The answers to today’s Quordle, game #1025, are… Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable ****** Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content. I’m on a bit of a roll with Quordle at the moment. Having suffered a couple of losses a few months ago, I now have a 55-game streak and even seemingly tough games are proving no match for my three-start-word-strategy. This, obviously, is the kiss of ****** and I wouldn’t be surprised if my luck changed tomorrow, but for now at least I’m on easy street. EXALT and TASTE are the two potentially difficult words today, on account of the uncommon X and the repeated T respectively. But my start words gave me the other 18 letters I needed, so adding in that X and T was a simple task. ******* challenges no doubt await. How did you do today? Send me an email and let me know. Daily Sequence today (game #1025) – the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster) The answers to today’s Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1025, are… Quordle answers: The past 20 Quordle #1024, Wednesday 13 November: YEARN, ELBOW, SURGE, PINEY Quordle #1023, Tuesday 12 November: CHORD, ATTIC, OLIVE, EIGHT Quordle #1022, Monday 11 November: COPSE, REGAL, GRUNT, GOODY Quordle #1021, Sunday 10 November: GROIN, FAULT, FERRY, SUITE Quordle #1020, Saturday 9 November: FLUME, THERE, ATOLL, SANER Quordle #1019, Friday 8 November: DELAY, NAVAL, MOLAR, SWARM Quordle #1018, Thursday 7 November: REPAY, SYNOD, LOATH, PITHY Quordle #1017, Wednesday 6 November: SASSY, DRUID, THREW, SLOSH Quordle #1016, Tuesday 5 November: BEGET, AMUSE, STONY, LOUSY Quordle #1015, Monday 4 November: CHILL, TACKY, GRAPH, PLAZA Quordle #1014, Sunday 3 November: QUIRK, HEART, ELBOW, KNOWN Quordle #1013, Saturday 2 November: SWUNG, FLOOR, PARER, CRUST Quordle #1012, Friday 1 November: FIFTY, GULCH, RECUT, TWEET Quordle #1011, Thursday 31 October: TWINE, RIGID, BELCH, AMEND Quordle #1010, Wednesday 30 October: SLOOP, BRINE, BROOD, FLUID Quordle #1009, Tuesday 29 October: CLIFF, BURNT, SNAKY, POLYP Quordle #1008, Monday 28 October: MACAW, LIEGE, GOUGE, CARGO Quordle #1007, Sunday 27 October: STUNG, CLOUT, SOWER, BASIS Quordle #1006, Saturday 26 October: DUCHY, CANNY, BLOCK, SMART Quordle #1005, Friday 25 October: PRANK, EXIST, RUDDY, PICKY Source link #Quordle #today #hints #answers #Thursday #November #game Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

S&P 500 target, outlook on Trump-Musk DOGE cuts: Market Domination S&P 500 target, outlook on Trump-Musk DOGE cuts: Market Domination US stocks (^DJI, ^IXIC, ^GSPC) are reacting to this morning’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) print, which saw prices rising in line with economist projections for October. Julie Hyman and Josh Lipton tackle the day’s biggest market stories on today’s Market Domination. Oppenheimer Asset Management chief investment strategist John Stoltzfus outlines the catalysts he is seeing that could push the S&P 500 (^GSPC) to 6,200 by 2024’s end. Citi chief US economist Andrew Hollenhorst and Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy professor Gautam Mukunda both comment on what President-elect Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative could look like under the helm of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Market Domination here. Other top trending stocks on the Yahoo Finance platform include Rocket Lab USA (RKLB), AST SpaceMobile (ASTS), Amazon (AMZN), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Caterpillar (CAT), and Snowflake (SNOW). This post was written by Luke Carberry Mogan. Source link #target #outlook #TrumpMusk #DOGE #cuts #Market #Domination Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce’s Kansas City-area homes burglarized last month Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce’s Kansas City-area homes burglarized last month The homes of Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were burglarized last month, the team confirmed Wednesday. Officers responded to a reported burglary shortly after midnight on Oct. 6 at Mahomes’ estate in Belton, Mo., according to a police report from the Cass County (Mo.) Sheriff’s Office. Mahomes is not identified in the report, but the address listed matches public records for the three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback. There was no forced entry, according to the police report, which characterizes the offense as first-degree burglary. A spokesperson for the Cass County Sheriff’s Office said an investigation into the incident is ongoing. Mahomes addressed the incident Wednesday, calling it “frustrating” and “disappointing.” “I can’t get into too many of the details because the investigation is still ongoing,” he told reporters. “But obviously something that you don’t want to happen to really anybody, but obviously yourself.” A day after the reported burglary at Mahomes’ home, another reported burglary occurred around 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 7 at a residence in Leawood, Kan., believed to belong to Kelce, according to a Leawood Police Department offense report. The Chiefs beat the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead Stadium in a “Monday Night Football” matchup that night with pop star Taylor Swift, Kelce’s girlfriend, in attendance. The police report for the incident indicated $20,000 in cash was taken and there was $1,000 worth of damage to a rear door. A Leawood Police Department spokesperson declined to provide additional details, saying the department does not release victim information except in cases of fatalities, crashes and homicides. TMZ first reported the news of the reported burglaries at Mahomes’ and Kelce’s homes. — Nate Taylor contributed to this report. (Photo: David Eulitt / Getty Images) Source link #Chiefs #Patrick #Mahomes #Travis #Kelces #Kansas #Cityarea #homes #burglarized #month Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Activision Cracking Down on Call of Duty VPN Users Activision Cracking Down on Call of Duty VPN Users Activision’s Team RICOCHET has published changes on ****** Ops 6 and Warzone to combat account boosting and VPN users. For the longest time, gamers worldwide have accused streamers of abusing ‘VPN lobbies’ to get better clips while playing in regions with a less talented pool of players. In the latest round of changes, RICOCHET has confirmed how it’s tackling that practice, and while it’s not eradicating the use of VPNs, it’s ‘cutting down’ VPN ******. Wherever You Will Go Using a VPN in Call of Duty has been a thing for several years. Typically, players will use a VPN to get away from highly competitive regions like the ******* Kingdom, North America, and some ********* countries. It reached a point where some VPN providers were marketing their products directly at Call of Duty players trying to circumvent ‘tougher lobbies’. In a recent update, it was confirmed that Team RICOCHET (and Treyarch) has deployed two new changes: Enhanced AFK detections to battle against account boosting Adjusting ping thresholds to require players to play matches in their region to cut down on VPN ****** If you’ve got awful internet, then the latter change might impact you regardless of whether you have a VPN active or not. One thing that users insist Activision needs to address is the number of players taking part in the practice of ‘2 boxing’. ****** Ops 6 is yet to have a serious issue with cheaters, so something is being done right at Team RICOCHET. In the latter months of its lifecycle, Modern Warfare III was plagued by cheaters, particularly the Ranked Play platform. In the coming days, Ranked Play will hit ****** Ops 6, so it could just be a matter of time before this game also suffers. For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that World of Warcraft is getting player housing Subscribe to our newsletter to receive the latest news and exclusive leaks every week! No Spam. Source link #Activision #Cracking #Call #Duty #VPN #Users Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Daisy the AI granny is here to answer calls from scammers and waste their time Daisy the AI granny is here to answer calls from scammers and waste their time O2 has created an AI granny that will trap scammers in meandering conversations to waste as much of their time as possible Daisy is trained on real anonymized scammer data in partnership with well-known scambaiter Jim Browning of the YouTube channel Tech Support Scams New survey reveals that 7 in 10 (71%) of Brits would like to get their own back against scammers that have tried to trick them or their loved ones. You might not have thought it possible, but grannies will be leading the AI revolution and fighting back against scammers. We’re talking about Daisy (also written dAIsy), the AI granny created by O2 to trap scammers into a long and futile conversation, so they waste as much time as possible on the phone as they try to get her to input her bank details into her computer. If you listen to dAIsy working her AI-magic on scammers in the video below you’ll be able to hear that she is indistinguishable from a human and responds to the scammers by playing into people’s preconceptions about senior citizens not being comfortable with technology. Scammers become increasingly frustrated as they try and try to get her to enter a fake web address into her browser, or enter her personal information, only to have to endure long and meandering conversations that ultimately lead to nowhere. AI Scambaiters: O2 creates AI Granny to waste scammers’ time – YouTube Watch On Thanks Grandma Daisy isn’t an AI feature you can add to your personal phone account, rather it is a phone number that O2 ******* Media has managed to get added to a list of online ‘mugs lists’ used by scammers targeting *** consumers. dAIsy is available to answer the phone to scammers no matter what time they call, 24/7. Her goal is to keep the scammers on the phone for as long as possible so that they have less time to ply their treacherous trade against real people. Murray Mackenzie, Director of ****** at ******* Media O2, said: “We’re committed to playing our part in stopping the scammers, investing in everything from firewall technology to block out scam texts to AI-powered spam call detection to keep our customers safe. But crucially, Daisy is also a reminder that no matter how persuasive someone on the other end of the phone may be, they aren’t always who you think they are.” O2 ******* Media has set up a webpage offering tips, tricks, and advice on dealing with scammers. A recent survey by the company revealed that 7 in 10 (71%) of Brits would like to get revenge on scammers who have tried to trick them, or their loved ones. But why waste your own time when a convincing chatbot with all the time can help ****** back against scammers? You might also like… Sign up to be the first to know about unmissable ****** Friday deals on top tech, plus get all your favorite TechRadar content. Source link #Daisy #granny #answer #calls #scammers #waste #time Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

GOP senators brush off concerns about Thune’s relationship with Trump GOP senators brush off concerns about Thune’s relationship with Trump John Thune triumphed in his campaign for GOP leader by laser-focusing on two things: *********** senators and mending his relationship with Donald Trump. He spent the last few months donating heavily to colleagues and joining them on their campaigns. He spoke frequently with Trump directly, including after the general election last week. And he ignored a ************* and MAGA-world pressure campaign to elect Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) as the GOP leader. “I’ve been focused on my colleagues,” Thune said. He narrowly defeated Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) on the second ballot by a vote of 29-24. Scott fell on the first ballot. His ability to navigate his way to victory in this political environment is an early signal of how Thune plans to try to balance leading a historically bipartisan institution and appeasing Trump when Republicans control all branches of the government. An institutionalist like his predecessor, current ********* Leader Mitch McConnell, Thune has worked to stay in touch with Trump while keeping his focus heavily on the senators who will actually keep him in power. Senators ultimately backing Thune indicates they remain interested in holding tight to their congressional powers, even as they look to greenlight much of Trump’s agenda — many Thune backers cited holding firm to separation of powers as one of their motivations heading into the vote. Still, it was important to senators that Thune ended his rift with Trump, after a series of public criticisms against the former president. Thune said after the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol ******* that Trump’s actions were “inexcusable.” He was also the first member of congressional GOP leadership to call on Trump to withdraw from the presidential race after the infamous Access Hollywood tape was made public. But even ************* senators aren’t worried about that history, at least right now. “J.D. Vance once referred to him as *******, and he’s vice president,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told POLITICO of Thune’s past criticism of Trump. “So, one thing I know about Donald Trump: he’s got that sort of jocular, masculine ability to let the past be the past and embrace and pray in the middle of the 50-yard line after the game.” Cramer, a Thune backer, called Trump “not an irrelevant factor, but not the main factor” for most senators’ votes on the leadership slate. “They’re in a good place with each other,” added Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), who’s spent recent time with Trump and is a Thune ally. “There’s no rift between them. There are no concerns about their relationship at all.” Still, there are major potential areas of disagreement looming over the next two years, particularly the fate of the Senate filibuster. The president-elect has at times called to abolish the 60-vote threshold, including pushing hard on then-Majority Leader McConnell during Trump’s first term in the White House, while Thune has publicly confirmed he plans to keep the current threshold in place. And there are still moderates in the chamber who could be a thorn in Thune’s side on nominees or other ************* priorities. GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) have been vocally outspoken against the president at times. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial, is still in the chamber. Trump, in Washington for meetings with the House *********** conference and President Joe Biden, did not immediately comment following the approval of the new Senate GOP leadership slate. But Thune and Trump have spoken regularly over the past few months, including a phone call after Thune won on Wednesday. “[Thune] said over and over and over and over that he was going to make President Trump’s agenda his agenda, and so I feel good about that,” prominent ************* Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who supported Cornyn, said after the vote. Multiple senators pointed out that Thune’s voting record aligned with Trump’s more than 90 percent of the time during the president-elect’s first term in office, according to a FiveThirtyEight average, a point that was underscored during a candidate forum Tuesday and during nomination speeches Wednesday. “President Trump and Sen. Thune I think will do a great job working together,” said Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.). “Sen. Thune is ready for change, and he knows that America is expecting results.” That voting record is not reflective of some of Thune’s prior dust-ups with Trump, though. In addition to comments on Jan. 6 and the Access Hollywood tapes, Thune more recently backed Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) initially in the 2024 *********** primary before shifting to Trump after the South Carolinian withdrew from the race. Trump even sought to recruit a primary challenger against Thune for his 2022 reelection bid, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Despite that history and their losses, Cornyn and Scott both expressed support for Thune’s leadership and vowed Republicans would stick together to enact their agenda. “There’s no division,” Cornyn insisted. “I think it’s really important for our conference to stay together, to be as effective as we can be. … It was a secret ballot so, I don’t think any of us know exactly who voted for who.” That dynamic is something Thune tacitly acknowledged after the vote, vowing to “be a leader who serves the entire *********** conference.” “This *********** team is *******. We are on one team,” Thune said. “We have a mandate from the ********* people.” Eleanor Mueller, Meredith Lee Hill and Caitlin Emma contributed to this report. Source link #GOP #senators #brush #concerns #Thunes #relationship #Trump Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

How AI is helping brands identify consumer trends faster How AI is helping brands identify consumer trends faster Supermarkets are a hotbed of competition. The aisles are lined with thousands of products vying for your attention and money, so how does a new player stand out in the crowd? The answer may sit with artificial intelligence. Supermarkets are a hotbed of competition. The aisles are lined with thousands of products vying for your attention and money, so how does a new player stand out in the crowd? This is where $88 billion market research industry comes into play. Traditionally, this would involve hands-on surveys of small groups of people, but the results are not fool proof – often only seeing trends in the near term, which can be a problem when launching a new product can take one to two years. But companies like AI Palette are looking to use new technologies like artificial intelligence to transform the market. “The challenge that they always have is that consumer preferences are changing faster than ever before, and they are not able to understand and predict what will be popular one year or two years from now,” Somsubhra Gan Choudhuri, Co-founder and CEO, AI Palette, told CNBC Tech: The Edge. So how does AI Palette use large language models to predict trends? Watch the video above to find out. Source link #helping #brands #identify #consumer #trends #faster Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Heisman straw poll: Cam Ward plummets so … are the quarterbacks actually out of it? Heisman straw poll: Cam Ward plummets so … are the quarterbacks actually out of it? The Athletic’s Heisman straw poll is grasping at, um, ideas. Throwing stuff at the wall. Darts, even. Jaxson Dart, welcome. The Ole Miss quarterback makes his debut this week with a second-place vote after throwing for 199 yards and running for 50 on a **** ankle in a program-defining win over Georgia. Bryson Daily, welcome. The Army quarterback also appears, grabbing a pair of third-place votes after running for 153 yards and two touchdowns at North Texas to keep his team unbeaten and in the College Football Playoff race. That makes five quarterbacks among the nine players who received votes this week, and that sounds about right. Except that none of them rate as serious contenders for the award, not based on our voting, not at this point. You’ve got to go back to 2015, the year Alabama running back Derrick Henry won it over Stanford running back ********** McCaffrey, to find a pre-Thanksgiving pool of contenders without a quarterback making a serious push. The only other non-quarterback winner since then was Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith in 2020, and Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence was in there until the end (ultimately losing 1,856 to 1,187). We’re on the cusp of a third non-quarterback winner in the past 10 years. And for this era of football? That’s a pretty good decade for non-quarterbacks. Miami’s upset loss at Georgia Tech did serious damage in the straw poll to Miami quarterback Cam Ward’s momentum. He was the one signal caller hanging with Colorado receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter — the poll leader by a growing margin — and Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. That loss dropped Ward from 41 points to 13, from 25 ballots to 10, from third place to fourth, behind Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel (one first-place vote, 14 points). The Athletic follows the same voting protocol as that of the Heisman: 3 points for a first-place vote, 2 points for a second-place vote, 1 point for a third-place vote. Hunter overtook first place a week ago and had a slim 57-51 lead over Jeanty, but that’s up to a margin of 69-54. Hunter went up from 12 first-place votes to 18, and Jeanty went down from 11 first-place votes to eight — even after Jeanty ran for 209 yards and three touchdowns against Nevada. Player Team Pos 1st 2nd 3rd Pts Travis Hunter WR/CB 18 7 1 69 Ashton Jeanty RB 8 13 4 54 Dillon Gabriel QB 1 1 9 14 Cam Ward QB 0 3 7 13 Kurtis Rourke QB 0 2 2 6 Bryson Daily QB 0 0 2 2 Jaxson Dart QB 0 1 0 2 Kaleb Johnson RB 0 0 1 1 Tyler Warren TE 0 0 1 1 Hunter had nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown in a comeback win at Texas Tech, and he reminded everyone of his dominance on defense with an acrobatic interception, taken off the board by a Colorado offsides penalty. The Buffs are in a serious hunt for the Big 12 title — and a top-four seed and College Football Playoff bye that would likely come with it — and that should be a major boost for Hunter. A boost completely unforeseen just a few weeks ago. Indiana’s Kurtis Rourke is the fifth quarterback in the poll, and he gained slightly from last week, sitting in fifth place with 6 points. Rourke and the Hoosiers were their dominant selves Saturday in the first half of a win over Michigan, then sputtered for the first time all season and held on for a 20-15 win. A gaudy stat line and rout would have helped him more, of course. He does have Nov. 23 at Ohio State ahead. Daily has Nov. 23 against Notre Dame. Gabriel has an expected Big Ten title game. Ward has a hopeful ACC title game. And Dart is like most quarterbacks in the SEC in that it’s possible he could play in the league title game. Opportunities are scarce. The quarterbacks are about done. So The Athletic voters are throwing names around. How about Penn State tight end Tyler Warren? He got a third-place vote, just like Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson, and those two come in tied for eighth. BYU kicker Will “Big Game Bill” Ferrin got an honorable mention after his clutch performance to keep BYU unbeaten at the expense of rival Utah. Ole Miss linebacker Suntarine Perkins was under consideration for a vote, didn’t get it, but he deserves a mention, too. Plenty of others have earned that, at least. How about Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson? Or Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, a guy who got a lot of votes early, after what he did to LSU? The pool of players with a shot at New York may be expanding. The list of true contenders appears to be down to two, on its way to one. (Photo of Ashton Jeanty: Loren Orr / Getty Images) Source link #Heisman #straw #poll #Cam #Ward #plummets #quarterbacks Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Blizzard has released remastered versions of Warcraft 1 and 2 Blizzard has released remastered versions of Warcraft 1 and 2 Blizzard has simultaneously announced and released “fully remastered versions” of Warcraft 1 and 2. The titles were revealed during an ongoing Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct stream. “These remasters have brand new hand drawn visuals that capture the original art style from each game, and you’ll be able to swap between the original graphics and the remastered versions in real time,” said Brad Chan, senior manager of Warcraft RTS. Blizzard has “added modern controls” for Warcraft 1, while both games include various UI and UX improvements. The studio is also releasing Warcraft 3: Reforged Patch 2.0, which “overhauls the environments and lighting and revamps the user interface”, according to Chan. “In addition, we are uprezzing all classic Warcraft 3 assets to HD.” All three titles are available as part of the Warcraft Remastered Battle Chest, which is priced at $39.99. Source link #Blizzard #released #remastered #versions #Warcraft Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Is GPT-5 in trouble? Report suggests that AI has plateaued Is GPT-5 in trouble? Report suggests that AI has plateaued Viralyft / Unsplash OpenAI’s next-generation Orion model of ChatGPT, which is both rumored and denied to be arriving by the end of the year, may not be all it’s been hyped to be once it arrives, according to a new report from The Information. Citing anonymous OpenAI employees, the report claims the Orion model has shown a “far smaller” improvement over its GPT-4 predecessor than GPT-4 showed over GPT-3. Those sources also note that Orion “isn’t reliably better than its predecessor [GPT-4] in handling certain tasks,” specifically coding applications, though the new model is notably stronger at general language capabilities, such as summarizing documents or generating emails. The Information’s report cites a “dwindling supply of high-quality text and other data” on which to train new models as a major factor in the new model’s insubstantial gains. In short, the AI industry is quickly running into a training data bottleneck, having already stripped the easy sources of social media data from sites like X, Facebook, and YouTube (the latter on two different occasions.) As such, these companies are increasingly having difficulty finding the sorts of knotty coding challenges that will help advance their models beyond their current capabilities, slowing down their pre-release training. That reduced training efficiency has massive ecological and commercial implications. As frontier-class LLMs grow and further push their parameter counts into the high trillions, the amount of energy, water, and other resources is expected to increase six-fold in the next decade. This is why we’re seeing Microsoft try to restart Three Mile Island, AWS buy a 960 MW plant, and Google purchase the output of seven nuclear reactors, all to provide the necessary power for their growing menageries of AI data centers — the nation’s current power infrastructure simply can’t keep up. In response, as TechCrunch reports, OpenAI has created a “foundations team” to circumvent the lack of appropriate training data. Those techniques could involve using synthetic training data, such as what Nvidia’s Nemotron family of models can generate. The team is also looking into improving the model’s performance post-training. Orion, which was originally thought to be the code name for OpenAI’s GPT-5, is now expected to arrive at some point in 2025. Whether we’ll have enough available power to see it in action, without browning out our municipal electrical grids, ******** to be seen. Source link #GPT5 #trouble #Report #suggests #plateaued Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Special counsel Jack Smith seeks pause Special counsel Jack Smith seeks pause Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Department of Justice building in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 1, 2023. Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images Special counsel Jack Smith asked a federal appeals court Wednesday to pause proceedings in his effort to overturn a judge’s decision to dismiss the ********* classified documents case against President-elect Donald Trump and two other defendants. Smith’s request cited Trump’s election last week to a second term in the White House. On Friday, the special counsel cited that same reason in asking a federal judge in Washington, D.C., for a pause in proceedings in another ********* case, where Trump is charged with ******* related to his attempt to reverse his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. That request was granted. Both moves reflect the expectation that the Department of Justice will drop both ********* cases against Trump because of his election. DOJ policy says that the department cannot criminally prosecute a sitting president. But even if that policy was not in effect, Trump has the power as president to order his attorney general, who will head the DOJ, to toss out both cases. Trump on Wednesday announced that he would nominate the controversial Florida congressman Matt Gaetz as his attorney general. NBC News reported earlier Wednesday that Smith and his team of prosecutors in the special counsel’s office intend to resign before Trump is sworn in as president in January. Trump was expected to ***** Smith if he did not quit. On Tuesday, a New York state judge granted a request by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for a one-week delay in proceedings in a third ********* case against Trump to give prosecutors time to consider how his electoral victory affects that case. Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in the case on Nov. 26 on nearly three dozen counts of falsifying business records related to a 2016 hush money payment to ***** star Stormy Daniels. Florida federal court Judge Aileen Cannon earlier this year dismissed the ********* case against Trump in which Smith had accused the *********** of illegally withholding classified government records after leaving office in early 2021 and obstructing efforts by officials to recover them. Cannon, who was nominated by Trump, also tossed out obstruction charges against Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta, and a worker at his Mar-a-Lago resort, Carlos de Oliveira. Cannon ruled that Smith’s appointment as special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland, who heads the DOJ, violated a clause in the U.S. Constitution that regulates how government officials are appointed. Smith asked the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to overturn Cannon’s ruling. But in its filing to that court on Wednesday, Smith’s office wrote, “As a result of the election held on November 5, 2024, one of the defendants in this case, Donald J. Trump, is expected to be certified as President-elect on January 6, 2025, and inaugurated on January 20, 2025.” Read more CNBC politics coverage “The Government respectfully requests that the Court hold this appeal in abeyance— and stay the deadline for the Government’s reply brief, which is currently due on November 15, 2024 — until December 2, 2024, to afford the Government time to assess this unprecedented circumstance and determine the appropriate course going forward consistent with Department of Justice policy,” the filing said. The filing also said that if the delay is granted, prosecutors will inform the appeals court “of the result of its deliberations — and, if appropriate, file its reply brief — no later than December 2, 2024.” Trump is charged in Atlanta state court ******* related to his attempt to reverse President Joe Biden’s White House win in 2020. But Trump is not expected to stand trial in that case while serving as president. However, the case could be stayed until he leaves office in 2029. Source link #Special #counsel #Jack #Smith #seeks #pause Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

A Singaporean AI startup is trying to disrupt market research industry A Singaporean AI startup is trying to disrupt market research industry Artificial intelligence is aiming to disrupt a 100-year-old industry. Finding ways to attract consumers to buy packaged goods stretches back to the 1920s when ********* psychologist Daniel Starch created the world’s first market research study. Today, the global market research industry is worth an estimated $87.7 billion and is expected to grow by another $15 billion in the next four years, with artificial intelligence’s rise one of the major contributing factors. One company hoping to lead that disruption is Ai Palette. Founded in Singapore in 2018, the startup provides AI-powered market research with real-time predictive analytics. Rival firms include ZoomInfo Sales, Trajaan and Brandwatch Consumer Intelligence, all of which deploy a variety of technology to comb through consumer data and marketing trends. Using more than 61 billion data points from 24 countries, Ai Palette’s platform – running for the past four years – generates new concepts for brands based on identified trends, transforming traditional market research in the process. Somsubhra Gan Choudhuri, co-founder and CEO Ai Palette, said AI can take up much of the brain power usually done by people. “For example, a company wants to launch a new juice in a market like Thailand, our platform will tell them what kind of juice they should launch, along with how they should position it, so that it is successful in the market,” he told CNBC’s “CNBC Tech: The Edge.” “And we do that using the power of artificial intelligence by analyzing the big data around food to identify what are the latest trends out there,” he added. Before co-founding Ai Palette, Choudhuri worked in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry. He said firms are increasingly unable to keep up with fast changing consumer tastes and are unable to predict popular trends from one year to the next. “That’s when I came across AI and machine learning. As I learned more about it, it became quite obvious to me that it’s just a matter of time before AI impacts every industry,” said Choudhuri. Big manufacturers jump on board Part of Ai Palette’s technology includes the ability to analyze as much as 39 different factors to predict the future trajectory of a trend. That has caught the attention of some of the world’s major food and beverage brands, such as Diageo, Nestlé, and Pepsico. Symrise, a company that works with brands to manufacture ingredients and products such as scents, uses Ai Palette to pull data from an array of sources, such as social media and online reviews. A single analysis is then published for the manufacturer to interpret. Food brand Pringles, known for its flavored potato chips sold in 140 countries worldwide, also uses Ai Palette to understand snack preferences across four different markets. The platform has helped introduce localized products in the developing markets of Thailand and Indonesia. Cereal giant Kellogg, meanwhile, used Ai Palette during the Covid-19 pandemic to trawl through online content from Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand in four languages. The cereal maker managed to identify trending recipes for foods and incorporated them into a new breakfast cereal, such as crispy calamari flavor. Despite the technological advances, traditional methods remain a part of the process, said Conor Delahunty, vice president for Global Sensory & Consumer Insights at Symrise. One vital element ********, so far at least, beyond the clutches of automation and technology. “We still have to taste the product, because our artificial intelligence cannot do that yet,” said Delahunty. Public and private backing As AI development gathers pace, so does interest from investors. Venture capital firm 500 Global invests in entrepreneurs who it believes are building game-changing companies. It has supported over 2,900 startups with a combined portfolio valuation of over $300 billion. Vishal Harnal, global managing partner of 500 Global, has his eye on startups with a “very specific sector” focus and that are “tackling big problems that no one is maybe looking at right now.” Ai Palette ticked his boxes for an investment. “What they really loved was that we are trying to disrupt a very large and traditional industry like the CPG [consumer packaged goods] industry where the companies are very traditional and there has not been much disruption,” said Choudhuri. Along with VC investors, Ai Palette has had the backing of the Singapore government, which is committing more than three quarters of a billion Singaporean dollars ($7,500,000) to AI development to strengthen its AI ecosystem. The startup also raised $5.7 million in a funding round in March, with funding going towards the expansion of its AI insights tool and a new “FoodGPT” chatbot. Source link #Singaporean #startup #disrupt #market #research #industry Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Caitlin Clark’s morning on the LPGA Tour: Shanked shots, pured drives and so many fans Caitlin Clark’s morning on the LPGA Tour: Shanked shots, pured drives and so many fans BELLAIR, Fla. — There were hushed tones and whispers as 6:30 came and went, as each minute ticked closer to the 7 a.m. tee time. Was there traffic? Has anyone seen her? LPGA and tournament organizers, eager to see Wednesday go off without a hiccup, fretted the day would instead begin with one. Then, around 19 minutes before her tee time, Caitlin Clark strolled onto the driving range at the Pelican Golf Club. Casual and cool in head-to-toe Nike, an official carrying her bag to the far end where cameras were set up to document her first swings. She thinned the first couple, but soon enough was launching them into the sun as it rose over the tree line. An introduction to her caddie, an insistence to him that she would not care if a club was dropped along the next 18 holes, and a cart ride later, Clark was standing on the first tee box at The Annika next to its namesake and Nelly Korda, the No. 1 golfer in the world — with all the attention on her, a 16 handicap. This is Caitlin Clark’s normal but something extraordinary for this golf tournament, a crowd that swelled to in the thousands, following the biggest women’s basketball star in the world hit a little white ball. “We’ve messaged a little on Instagram beforehand but to get to spend some time with her and to see the influence that she has on people, bringing people out here, and to see how amazing of an influence she is just for sports, was really cool to see firsthand today,” Korda said. So how is Caitlin Clark’s golf swing? In a word, relatable. The Athletic sent multiple videos of her swings during Wednesday’s pro-am to golf coach Dana Dahlquist, who works with Bryson DeChambeau, among others. Dahlquist’s biggest takeaway was, like a lot of amateurs, Clark doesn’t load properly into her left side and doesn’t get the hands to square the club face early enough. So by the time she gets to impact, she has to “stand up” to attempt to strike the ball with a square face, which reduces the potential for power, speed, etc. “For ******** golfers, it’s an interesting thing that all golfers that are not high-level players struggle with the same thing,” Dahlquist said. “They tend to somewhat spin out, tend to have the face more often and if you’re taking lessons it’s a good balance between educating your hands how the club releases and then learning to get to your left side appropriately so you can straighten out your golf ball and make good contact.” At the same time, Clark’s elite athleticism and understanding of her body still allow her to recover and generate considerable clubhead speed. Her first tee shot was on the same line as Korda’s, and only around 20 yards behind Korda, averaging 269 yards off the tee this year. Even if her approach game leaves her left of her target with a tendency to pull her irons, she always had the length to get to the green. Clark said she first began playing golf with a pink set of junior clubs, going to the course in Iowa with her dad, and watching Rory McIlroy on TV. She’s since upgraded to Callaway, and in advance of this week (set up through Gainbridge, a title sponsor for this LPGA Tour stop and one of Clark’s sponsors) has been taking lessons from former LPGA pro Martha Foyer-Faulconer in Indianapolis, Golf Week reported. Golf and basketball fans swarmed Clark at the end of her pro-am on Wednesday. (Ray Seebeck / USA Today Sports) Clark said following the end of the Indiana Fever’s playoffs she hoped to become a professional golfer in the offseason. It was a joke taken seriously in some quarters, to her surprise, but Clark does want to play competitive golf — against her friends, for bragging rights. “That’s what’s been fun about it. It’s challenging,” Clark said. Pro golf has occasionally been accused of being too thirsty for attention from other professional athletes and celebrities, eager to bring their youthful energy and audiences to a sport that skews older. That can lead to awkward fits and partnerships that come off as inauthentic. Clark and the LPGA — this is her second pro-am appearance, after a 2023 PGA Tour John Deere Classic showing — is not that. She is a golfer, casually and comfortably speaking the lingo and dropping Pebble Beach as her bucket list course. She friggin’ cleans the grooves of her irons with a tee as she waits for her next shot. But she faces unique challenges compared to the rest of us, like LPGA ***** lining up to take selfies with her as she walks up the 18th fairway. Or doing a walk-and-talk up No. 7 with Golf Channel, then immediately having to swing — Clark asked for and received a mulligan after chunking her shot 100 yards, and ultimately decided she was done with the ***** after airmailing the green. “I’m just the average golfer. I’m going to hit some good, I’m going to hit some bad. It is what it is,” Clark said. If anything was surprising about Clark’s game, it was how the famously competitive WNBA Rookie of the Year could shrug and laugh off even the worst of shots — a shanked tee shot on the third ***** sent a portion of the crowd ducking for cover. Clark played with Korda on the front nine and then Sorenstam on the back nine. While the former said she was more focused on getting ready for the tournament and light conversation, the latter did offer Clark some swing thoughts. “It was more just tempo. She hits it a little quick,” Sorenstam said. “She played with Nelly on the front and Nelly is about power, so of course when you play with someone like that you want to swing ******* and faster. Now when it’s windy, I’m like, just got to calm down, find the tempo, and try to make sure that club face is more square to the target.” The Athletic’s Gabby Herzig contributed to this story. (Illustration: Eamonn Dalton / The Athletic; Photo: Douglas P. DeFelice / Getty Images) Source link #Caitlin #Clarks #morning #LPGA #Tour #Shanked #shots #pured #drives #fans Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

The Next *********’s Creed Set Right after World War 1 Could Do What Call of Duty Did With ****** Ops The Next *********’s Creed Set Right after World War 1 Could Do What Call of Duty Did With ****** Ops For more than a decade, the *********’s Creed franchise has taken players on epic journeys through history, traveling through Ancient Egypt, Renaissance Italy, and even Viking-era Britain. But as the series continues to evolve, many fans are asking whether the franchise has exhausted its historical settings. The ******* for something fresh and bold has never been louder. The franchise needs to start making some changes to rejuvenate its playerbase. | Credit: Ubisoft YouTube Channel Instead of sticking to the tried-and-true formula, what if the franchise decides to take a bold pivot? Just like Call of Duty has split into its mainstream and ****** Ops sub-series, *********’s Creed should adopt a dual-franchise approach. This would allow the franchise to remain rooted in its historical roots while also looking into modern, untapped eras. Since the next installment is set in feudal Japan, the one after that should be set after World War I, particularly the Weimar Republic. A New Vision for Modern *********’s Creed By taking a dual approach, the franchise can keep its content fresh and provide players with new stories. | Image Credit: Ubisoft The core concept behind the *********’s Creed franchise has always been about exploring how the Assassins and Templars shape world events through covert action. They are often hidden in the shadows of larger historical moments. However, after more than a decade of following the different historical settings, it’s time for the series to evolve. Ubisoft should take a new direction with the series and adopt a parallel timeline approach: one mainline series that focuses on historical settings (like the typical installments before it), and another sub-series, which focuses on a more modern setting, mostly in the 20th century. This would allow the franchise to explore untold stories from more recent history while still preserving its classic historical adventures. So, what better way to start this modern-era approach than by setting the next *********’s Creed game in the aftermath of World War I? Players on social media and gaming forums have been vocal about this idea, and the Weimar Republic stands out as the perfect setting. The Weimar Republic (1919–1933) was a time of intense political and social disorder in Germany. It followed World War I and the country was suffering from economic instability, ******** political movements, and the rise of extremism. This volatile environment provides a mix of cultural innovation and political chaos which is the perfect backdrop for an *********’s Creed game. Comment byu/Cosplayinsanity from discussion inassassinscreed Comment byu/Cosplayinsanity from discussion inassassinscreed Comment byu/Cosplayinsanity from discussion inassassinscreed Comment byu/Cosplayinsanity from discussion inassassinscreed The whole thread is filled with players expressing their interest in the strategy of dividing the frnahsie into two. This way they get to experience covert espionage gameplay in various eras and not just in historical times. Why Modernizing the Franchise Matters A title set in the modern era will showcase the potential of the franchise and how it can create engaging gameplay. | Image Credit: Ubisoft The world of *********’s Creed has always centered on the idea that history is secretly shaped by the invisible hands of the Assassins and hidden organizations, operating in the background to influence the course of important world events. However, these stories set in the past are compelling but they are starting to feel somewhat limited and repetitive. The series has already covered a wide variety of periods in history, from the Crusades to Ancient Greece. This has created a question in many’s minds: what’s next? Is there any more unexplored historical setting that could hold the same level of intrigue? To reflect on these questions and take the series into a new era, Ubisoft should pivot toward the modern era. The starting point should be the Weimar Republic as it would be perfect for the series to bring its unique brand of stealth, combat, and historical with the intriguing and haunting backdrop of Germany after WW1. This would allow players to engage with issues like political events, social movements, and espionage, all while retaining the core principles of the series: stealth, freedom, and shaping the course of history. The dual approach will help gamers as the titles will not feel repetitive and provide a fresh view of the modern era. In the end, this is just a speculation and everything depends on Ubisoft, if it ever decides to change its method and try something new, Weiman Republic is the perfect start for a modern installment in the iconic series. Source link #Assassins #Creed #Set #World #War #Call #Duty #****** #Ops Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Early ****** Friday gaming keyboard deals 2024: Logitech, Asus, more Early ****** Friday gaming keyboard deals 2024: Logitech, Asus, more If you’ve been checking out the best early Alienware ****** Friday deals for a sweet new gaming rig, you also need to make sure your accessories are up to the task too. That’s why we’ve picked out the best early ****** Friday gaming keyboard deals so you can enjoy a better experience while you game. These are just some of the early ****** Friday deals happening right now, with many more guaranteed to help kit you out for superior gaming. We also have some early ****** Friday 4K monitor deals, which are perfect if you have a high-end gaming rig and want to get the best visual experience from it. Besides picking out the best early ****** Friday gaming keyboard deals, we also have some key buying advice so that you know what to consider before buying one. Read on while we take you through everything. SteelSeries Apex 3 TKL Gaming Keyboard — $35 $45 22% off SteelSeries SteelSeries makes some great gaming keyboards, with the SteelSeries Apex 3 TKL Gaming Keyboard the more affordable option. It’s a tenkeyless design with whisper quiet switches and anti-ghosting technology, so it’s accurate and feels great to use. It also has dedicated multimedia buttons for any downtime away from games. HyperX Alloy Origins 65 — $50 $100 50% off HyperX The HyperX Alloy Origins 65 is teeny and cute and kind of perfect for hooking up to a games console rather than PC. It uses mechanical key switches to ensure better responsiveness and a longer lifespan. It’s wired, so it’s easy to swap between devices. Plus, its RGB lighting looks cool. Logitech G915 TKL Wireless Keyboard — $150 $230 35% off Logitech As sleek as a laptop keyboard, the Logitech G915 TKL Wireless Keyboard has low profile mechanical switches that are smooth to use and super accurate. The keyboard is gorgeous, boasting good lighting, 40 hours of battery life, and dedicated media controls. It works well across multiple devices too. ASUS ROG Strix Scope II 96 $157 $180 13% off ASUS Topping our look at the best gaming keyboards, the ASUS ROG Strix Scope II 96 has hot-swappable switches with the pre-lubed NX Snow linear switches and ROG NX Storm clicky switches for the most satisfying experience. It means better stability and less friction, while there’s sound-dampening foam for quietening down the experience. It’s easy to connect to multiple devices wirelessly too. Asus ROG Azoth 75% Gaming Keyboard — $198 $250 21% off Asus If you want to be able to customize your keyboard as and when needed, check out the Asus ROG Azoth 75% Gaming Keyboard. It comes with a DIY Switch lube kit for swapping out the switches with pre-lubed switches for smoother clicks and less bounce, while there are ROG-tuned force curves for greater keystroke feel. It also has a unique gasket mount design with three layers of dampening foam. How to choose a gaming keyboard on ****** Friday While you can just head straight to our roundup of the best gaming keyboards and go from there, it’s useful to know exactly what you’re looking for. One key thing is how committed you are to having the best gaming hardware. Are you looking for esports or pro streaming level of tech? In that case, budget to spend in the $100-$150 mark and possibly more than that. However, if you’re more casual and an occasional gamer, this will be overkill. Aim to spend under $100 with $50 being the sweet spot during sales. Look for if you need a full-size keyboard or if a smaller build without the numeric keypad (like many laptops) will suffice. Two different types of switch are also available: mechanical and linear. Mechanical keys are louder and more expensive, but feel great and are highly responsive. Linear may suit your budget better or your situation if you need something quiet. Finally, check for an ergonomic design that works best for your joints and how your desk is ***** out. How we chose these gaming keyboard ****** Friday deals When it comes to seeking out gaming keyboard deals, we don’t just do so during sales events like ****** Friday. We do this all year around which helps us spot the very best deals on gaming keyboards during times like these. We get that the cheapest gaming keyboard isn’t necessarily the one you want. Instead, you need the keyboard to be a good price but also something that’s worth owning. That’s why we use our expert knowledge on gaming keyboards to ensure we only feature the accessories that are actually worth using and owning. Few gaming keyboards are genuinely cheap so you want to invest in something which is built to last. That way, you get the best value. Alongside that, we tend to steer away from incremental discounts and focus on the genuinely big discounts around so that you reap the biggest savings. We also focus on the best brands so you pick up something which is built to last. Source link #Early #****** #Friday #gaming #keyboard #deals #Logitech #Asus Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]