Discord rolls out age checks amid pressure to protect young users
All Discord users across the world will have to provide proof of age next month, or face being resigned to a ‘teen appropriate’ experience by default. Will this help Discord to finally address safety concerns regarding young users? Discord has proven notoriously hard to police, but rising pressure in recent...
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Opinion – humans aren’t ready for sentient AI
Scientists aim to better understand consciousness to test whether AI is truly sentient. But are humans prepared to handle that reality? Though Artificial Intelligence has become central to many of our lives, there are those who worry that a Terminator-like reality might be on the horizon. What drives this concern? The...
Social media loves telling you what’s wrong with your face
Why are so many cosmetic doctors dishing out unsolicited advice on our appearance? Cosmetic surgery is not the taboo it once was. These days, aesthetic enhancements are accepted as part and parcel of the modern beauty regimen – and celebrities who forgo them are considered trailblazers. The normalisation of cosmetic medicine has...
Is new AI social network ‘Moltbook’ legitimate?
‘Moltbook’ is a new platform made exclusively for AI to discuss any chosen topic. It operates exactly like Reddit, except humans can’t post. The company claims to have over 1.5 million users - are they all real? For the past few weeks, the tech world has been buzzing over ‘Moltbook,’...
Instagram floods non-paid users with ads
Meta is officially trialling premier subscriptions for Instagram. Those staying on the free version are already being bombarded with ads, and many say the standard experience is being deliberately degraded. Thousands of us looking to procrastinate on Instagram this morning were halted by a new paid sign-up page. The vast majority...
Antarctica inaugurates the world’s first ice sanctuary
With climate change raging over glacial ice, the landmark sanctuary was built to preserve Earth’s historical records held within the ice. Time machines have long captured human imagination but have remained firmly in the realm of science fiction. Yet, understanding the past may not require such sophisticated piece of...
Why did Ubisoft fall off so badly?
Why has one of the noughties’ biggest gaming publishers become basically irrelevant in recent years, and is there a way back? Remember Ubisoft in its pomp? It seems strange to say now, given the publisher seems intent on lurching from one disaster to another in recent years, but at one point in time, Ubisoft could do no wrong. Creatively and commercially, it had a firm grip of the industry from 2007 up...
UK government weighing up social media ban for under 16s
UK ministers are currently voting on an amendment to ban under 16s from social media and the Prime Minister is reportedly open to following in Australia’s footsteps. Under mounting pressure, the UK government is now weighing up whether to ban children under 16 from using social media. A consultation is currently taking place, in which dozens of MPs will vote on whether an Australia-style policy should be implemented by next...
Why are people complaining about Lara Croft’s new design?
Gamers online are taking issue with the casting of Sophie Turner for Amazon Prime’s new screen adaption of Lara Croft. Complaints unsurprisingly range from her not ‘looking’ the part to issues with her previous acting. In news that probably won’t surprise many, reactions to Lara Croft’s latest look for Amazon’s Primes adaption have been mixed. Gamers and fans are unhappy with the casting of Sophie Turner, with comments saying that...
AI is helping African mothers give birth safely
The anticipation of having a baby is often clouded with uncertainty for Africa’s women as well as their families and healthcare providers due to an overwhelming number of pregnancy complications. According to WHO, annually there are over 2 million stillbirths in the world, over half occurring in Sub-Saharan Africa. These stillborn deaths are often preventable. Poor access to prenatal care, shortages of qualified health care providers, delayed responses to emergencies,...
