Google employees reportedly call Bard ‘worse than useless’
In its efforts to prevent Microsoft and Open AI running away in the commercial AI chatbot race, Google rolled out Bard way ahead of schedule. A new report claims company employees begged executives not to launch it at the time. Chiefs at Microsoft probably can’t believe their luck. AI has...
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Scientists accomplish most ambitious genetics project to date
In the hope it will lead to important insights about health and human disease, an international team of researchers have sequenced the DNA of nearly every mammal on Earth. Despite decades of advancements in genomics, it remains unclear what most of our DNA actually does. An ambitious international research...
Physicists say a second Big Bang could have created dark matter
Two physicists at the University of Texas suggest dark matter is so elusive and mysterious because it has an entirely different origin to that of the Big Bang. They believe a second cosmic explosion may have occurred weeks after the initial formation of the universe. Hump day is the perfect...
Opinion – dApps could eventually topple big tech
By democratizing our data, dApps could be the internet’s saving grace. Decentralized applications (dApps) are apps that run on block-chain or peer-to-peer technology, meaning that users interact directly with each other, not a central authority. This is not the case with most applications. Photos posted to Instagram, for example, are...
Emergency alert phone notifications being tested in the UK
The first nationwide test of a public warning system that sends emergency notifications to UK mobile phones will take place later this month. Sundays in the UK are pretty decent; there’s Premier League football, often a lunchtime roast, and cherished time spent with family. What we wouldn’t typically associate our...
CD Projekt Red announces menstrual leave for employees
CD Projekt Red, the studio behind Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, has announced menstrual leave for employees experiencing pain from their period or menopause. Is this an indication of a more progressive industry going forward? CD Projekt Red has had its fair share of turbulence in recent years,...
It’s time to begin reflecting sunlight back into space says UN
An open letter has been signed by more than 60 US scientists calling for funded research into ‘solar engineering’ as a global warming deterrent. In laymen’s terms, they want to explore methods of reflecting Earth-bound sunlight back into space. While most ecological NGOs and activists continue to obsess over bringing emission levels down, a cohort of scientists are exploring a potential Earth cooling cheat code. When talking mitigation, it’s no secret...
OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 is helping the visually impaired
The ubiquitous generative AI chatbot is already answering daily queries for visually impaired people with more detail and efficiency than human volunteers. While the recreational uses of AI continue to make headlines every week, the technology’s ability to make day-to-day living more accessible is going under the radar. Largely regarded as the benchmark for quality within tech’s latest race, OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 is now able to accurately break down visual prompts...
Scientists use sound waves to remove microplastics from waterways
The surprisingly basic technology was developed by a team of researchers who believe it could offer a novel solution to the ever-increasing environmental and health threat posed by these tiny particles. Microplastic pollution is a huge problem. The tiny particles, which are undetectable to the human eye and less than 5 mm in length, have been wreaking havoc on our health and the environment’s for decades now. Adding insult to injury, the...
Is Zuckerberg ditching his Metaverse utopia?
A new Meta blog post has outlined how Zuckerberg intends to deliver on his ‘year of efficiency’. 10’000 jobs are to be cut and a further 5’000 open roles are closing. ‘Lower priority projects’ will also be shut down. Is Zuckerberg giving up on the Metaverse? Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced 10’000 layoffs and a freezing of 5’000 open roles in the company’s ‘year of efficiency’. It follows a...
