Facebook sees Gen Z boost after relaunching ‘poke’ feature
Once a staple of Millennial internet use, Facebook has reintroduced the long-defunct ‘poke’ feature to its platform, allowing users to mildly annoy one another at their leisure. If you’re a Millennial, you probably know exactly what we mean when discussing Facebook’s long lost ‘poke’ feature. Although simple, the ‘poke’ button allowed...
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YouTube launches #WomenofYouTube mentorships for Shorts creators
YouTube has announced a new #WomenofYouTube mentorship program which will foster collaboration between female creators on the platform’s Shorts feature. As we celebrate Women’s History Month, YouTube is looking ahead to the future and ways in which it can further elevate its female creator base. At the forefront of this mission...
Spotify testing freemium e-learning video courses
E-learning video courses are Spotify’s next offering as the service pushes for better subscriber retention and growth. Third parties like Skillshare and BBC Maestro are on board and a freemium model will generate new revenue – if people take to the idea. Remember when Spotify was purely a music streaming...
Is Currys Fortnite ‘Trash Tycoon’ e-waste project genuine?
UK tech retailer Currys has collaborated with Epic Games’ Fortnite with its new ‘Trash Tycoon’ gaming experience. Is it genuinely educational or is it corporate greenwashing for PR purposes? The UK’s largest technology retailer Currys has created a new ‘video game experience’ within Epic Games’ Fortnite called ‘Trash Tycoon.’ The...
New study suggests that pregnancy can make you age faster
According to recent research, women who have been pregnant before are more likely to exhibit signs of accelerated biological ageing compared to women who have never been pregnant. While it may feel like common knowledge that pregnancy ages you, a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences...
GDC 2024 begins with keynote on diversity and inclusivity
Old habits die hard in the business of game development, and industry figureheads are making a point of calling for more inclusivity at this year’s conference and beyond. The annual Game Development Conference kicked off yesterday, and thousands will be attending to partake in the week’s round-tables, lectures, tutorials, and...
Spotify begins rolling out music videos feature
While it appeared Spotify had laid its hat on short-form video, the music service will now begin to roll out full music videos on the app across the coming months. Is this the beginning of the end for the looping Canvas videos everyone disables to save their battery life? In a surprising pivot towards long-form video content, Spotify has rolled out an in-app feature that will allow users to watch full...
Could gene-editing cure HIV?
Scientists say they’ve been able to literally cut out the ‘bad’ bits of DNA from infected cells to eliminate HIV in patients using the Nobel Prize-winning technology CRISPR. During the last few years, scientists have made strides towards treating diseases through gene-editing technology, their most promising breakthrough being the discovery of CRISPR. The essence of CRISPR is simple: it’s a means of finding a specific bit of DNA...
Is a TikTok ban coming to the US?
A proposed ban on TikTok is making the rounds in Congress, garnering support from young people and policymakers alike. ‘If they pass it, I’ll sign it,’ said President Joe Biden on Friday. But what exactly does the ban entail? From the moment TikTok rose to widespread popularity, US government officials have worried about the risk the app poses to data security. As a result, a potential ban on the Chinese-owned...
Royals photo commotion highlights challenge of discerning fake content
As artificial intelligence makes discerning between real and fake imagery increasingly tricky, people are undoubtedly becoming less trusting of media they’re presented with. Can we nip this growing scepticism in the bud? Society’s threshold for what qualifies as ‘uncanny valley’ in 2024 is becoming more debatable by the month. Public trust, meanwhile, is clearly waning. Thanks to artificial intelligence and its ability to create unerringly realistic portrayals of real life photo...
