Latest Stories from Jamie
Microsoft testing new program to improve gaming accessibility
Microsoft is aiming to make gaming as accessible as possible for players with disabilities. A new program recommends that first and third party developers now send in their games for inclusive evaluations. Data from the ESA Foundation suggests that there may be as many as 46 million gamers with disabilities in the US alone. It’s incredibly promising then to hear that Microsoft is launching a testing program to help developers refine...
What to expect from NASA’s ‘Perseverance’ Mars landing
Perseverance, NASA’s most sophisticated rover ever, is due to land on the surface of Mars on Thursday. This is your pre-event guide on what to expect and how to follow the mission throughout the year. NASA’s Perseverance rover is just 48 hours from making its descent onto the surface of Mars on the 18th February 2021. $2.7bn metric tonnes of steel are currently hurtling toward the red planet at 12,000...
Stefano Boeri aims to build the first ever sustainable ‘Smart Forest City’
Italian architect Stefano Boeri, famous for integrating plants and natural ecosystems within high rise buildings, has unveiled plans for an ambitious circular ‘Smart City’ in the heart of Cancun. It may be steeped in the history of an ancient civilisation, but Mexico’s city of Cancun could soon become a modern hub for urban climate change innovation. If only the Mayans could see us now. With half the world’s population residing within...
Instagram announces permanent suspensions for hate speech in DMs
At long last, Instagram is cracking down on racist and derogatory content within its direct messenger function. Hate speech will now lead to permanent account suspensions. Instances of racism on Instagram are once again receiving mainstream attention, and parent company Facebook is determined to finally nip the issue in the bud once and for all. Policing content within people’s private messages is a tetchy task and brings to head a bunch...
Elon Musk pledges $100m to fund carbon capture contest
Serial entrepreneur Elon Musk has launched a carbon capture competition to faster cut back on global emissions, and the most impressive invention will receive a $50m cash prize. We all talk a big game on Twitter, but Elon Musk is one to regularly follow up on his midnight musings. Looking to put his $203bn fortune to good use, Elon Musk is creating a competition that will see contestants develop innovative technologies...
Spotify’s speech tech to recommend music based on your mood
Spotify could soon recommend new songs and artists based on analysis of its users voice data. Is there reason to be concerned for our privacy? Whether you’re feeling glum, upbeat, pensive, or perhaps just a little bored, Spotify will soon recommend music to match your exact mood. Freaky eh? After a two year wait, the music streaming giant has just been granted a patent for new technology that will soon analyse...
TikTok to tackle misinformation with fact checkers and content warnings
Falling in line with the big social networking sites, TikTok is now attempting to tackle its spread of misinformation with in-app warnings and fact checkers. While TikTok is all about fun and games, its insatiable rise to the top of mainstream culture now demands a more thorough look into the types of content spreading on its platform. Safety first people, safety first. Chief on the list of concerns admist a global...
Stadia’s internal closure bets on industry shift to Cloud gaming
14 months after Stadia’s high-profile launch, Google is closing the company’s internal game development studio. Its once exclusive Cloud technology is now open to potential suitors. It’s taken Google 14 months to realise it doesn’t want to be a game making company anymore. Grandiose ambitions first revealed at the Game Developers Conference 2019 have never come close to fruition for Google’s Stadia. It originally teased its own Cloud-based console, a controller,...
High school astronomers have discovered four new ‘exoplanets’
A teenage duo from a Massachusetts high school have discovered four new exoplanets and co-authored a paper in the Astronomical Journal. It’s high time we officially axed the term ‘pie in the sky’. Two Massachusetts high schoolers have blossomed from keen physics students into renowned astronomers seemingly overnight. Thanks to a mentorship program at the Center for Astrophysics; Harvard and Smithsonian, both will go down in history for uncovering the existence...
The UN announces bold new framework for space sustainability
With concerns growing over space debris and satellite traffic, the UN and UK government has signed a one-of a-kind agreement to ensure the sustainability of space missions going forward. If you keep up to date with our stories, you’ll know that space junk – though it may sound like a storage locker owned by eponymous hero Rick Sanchez – actually represents a very real issue. As it stands today there are...
