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Coronavirus: new breathing aid design made in 10 days by F1 engineers

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Apr 19, 2020 11:09 PM CDT

We are all aware of the number of people in hospital that are using, or require respiratory support is high right now over the coronavirus outbreak, with many companies changing their manufacturing output into helping out in any way they can with COVID-19.

Coronavirus: new breathing aid design made in 10 days by F1 engineers

This has now seen engineers from both the Formula 1 engine maker Mercedes-AMG HPP and the University of London working out a way to make continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) devices in bulk. CPAP machines are used to help treat patients with sleep apnea, but it can help people who are experiencing severe breathing problems -- which then free up the valuable ventilators for those who are quite ill.

In just 10 days the team were able to make it happen, where they reverse-engineered an original product -- and then making a new design, getting it tested and thrown through regulatory approval right into full-scale production all in under 10 days. Impressive stuff.

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Here's how to get free transport if you're a COVID-19 essential worker

Anthony Garreffa | Electric Vehicles & Cars | Apr 19, 2020 7:25 PM CDT

If you're a health care worker or law enforcement officer in bunch of cities throughout the US and the world, e-scooter company Lime is reactivating a bunch of its scooters and offering them for free. Lime is the largest e-scooter-sharing company in the world, with 120,000+ scooters in 30 countries.

Here's how to get free transport if you're a COVID-19 essential worker

The new Lime Aid initiative is aimed at essential workers like police officers and health care workers with some easy-to-use transportation all with social distancing given the coronavirus pandemic. Lime is offering 30-minute rides for free, which would be enough to get around the city and even to-and-from work given you're an essential worker.

Lime is offering the 30-minute rides for free in the following cities at first: Austin, Baltimore, Columbus, Dallas, Nashville, Norfolk, Va., Oklahoma City, Salt Lake City, and Washington D.C. in the US; Berlin and Cologne in Germany; Paris, France; Rimini, Italy; and Tel Aviv, Israel.

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Final Fantasy 7 Remake guilts you for being an eco-terrorist

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 19, 2020 6:56 PM CDT

I'm finally getting around to Final Fantasy 7 Remake. I know, it's been out forever. But there's something I didn't expect to feel when I played the second chapter: shame.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake guilts you for being an eco-terrorist

You're an eco-terrorist in FF7 Remake, and despite all the light-hearted camaraderie with your fellow teammates, your actions have dire consequences. Final Fantasy 7 Remake forces you to face your actions right away. As part of Avalanche, you're trying to save the planet by blowing up a mako reactor and stop Shinra from sucking out its lifestream. But it's not that simple. There's casualties, and lots of them.

After you blow up the reactor, you have to run through a ruined sector 7 and see all the harm and destruction you caused.. Everything's on fire. People are crying, scared, hurt, their lives massively disrupted by the attack. The roads are smashed, cars are utterly demolished, buildings are wrecked. It's the site of a major terrorist attack, a domestic warzone, and you have to mill you way through the suffering that you had a hand in.

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id to Doom Eternal speedrunners: Beat the game fast the right way

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 19, 2020 3:39 PM CDT

Speedrunners are using a nifty mouse wheel trick to beat Doom Eternal in less than 27 minutes. id Software is good humored about the exploits, but seems perplexed on how it's even possible.

id to Doom Eternal speedrunners: Beat the game fast the right way

Doom Eternal devs joined up to stream a live chat while watching Xamide beat Doom Eternal in less than 30 minutes. The results were lots of disbelief, exclamations of "whoa!" and "how did he do that?" with a few "why didn't you clip that area?!" thrown in. The result is pretty hilarious and awesome, giving us rare insight into how games are made--and more importantly, how one of the best shooters in the past few years is held together.

Xamide's run was made possible by a mouse wheel glitch. Essentially there's a slow boost exploit that lets you jump incredibly high. To pull this off, you have to forcibly bind your jump to your mouse wheel by using the bind mwheeldown "_jump"_ command in the console. But not any mouse wheel will do; you need one that can seriously spin.

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New Avengers live game has 10 different crafting resources

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 19, 2020 2:36 PM CDT

All live games are grind-fests, but Square Enix's new Avengers game could be exceptionally demanding for your time.

New Avengers live game has 10 different crafting resources

While watching the newly released Avengers trailer, I noticed something interesting: The game has ten different crafting material resources. Ten. This number doesn't include the classic free/premium currency combo that unlocks cosmetic skins. That's a lot of resources that hints at tons of collecting and grinding repeatable missions over and over to amass a mat horde. Why are there so many? Apparently the gear upgrade system is to blame.

I don't 100% know how the system works, but from the brief snippet of footage we can glean some details. It looks like items can be upgraded multiple times to unlock various perks. The perks can be upgraded more than once, but each time requires more resources. That's pretty logical and a lot of games do that. But Avengers apparently tacks on an extra resource for specific upgrades, meaning the starting resource cost is not only compounded, but also requires a separate new resource in addition to the initial cost.

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Dino Crisis returns with new RE3 Remake dinosaur mod

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 19, 2020 1:32 PM CDT

If Capcom won't make it, then modders will: Dino Crisis invades Raccoon City with this new Resident Evil 3 Remake mod.

Dino Crisis returns with new RE3 Remake dinosaur mod

This new RE3 mod isn't exactly Dino Crisis, but it's the next best thing. The Dino Evil 3 mod over at Nexus Mods turns Jill into Regina, complete with signature fiery red hair and machete, and turns every enemy in the game into a dinosaur.

The monster swap, which was made possible by modder FluffyQuack, essentially transforms enemies into hunter betas with a different skin. The dino skin is kinda funny (those huge hips!) but it's a great effort and we'd try it out if we had RE3 on PC (we reviewed it on PS4).

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Online gaming spikes by 75% on Verizon networks thanks to quarantines

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 19, 2020 12:37 PM CDT

Video game traffic on Verizon networks spiked by 75% in March as consumers stay indoors due to coronavirus lockdowns.

Online gaming spikes by 75% on Verizon networks thanks to quarantines

As COVID-19 wrecks whole industries and pauses the global economy, social quarantines are boosting other markets like gaming. Consumers are downloading, buying, and playing more games to stay entertained and connected. This influx puts tremendous stress on infrastructures, leading Sony and Microsoft to artificially slow download speeds on their networks. Now ISP Verizon gives some insight on the huge gaming usage spikes.

According to a recent report, Verizon saw a massive 75% uptick in gaming across its mobile and home internet services in March. There's no info on the current data numbers, but we'd expect them to be even higher in April.

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Coronavirus cover-up: China hit with $4 TRILLION reparations lawsuit

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Apr 19, 2020 8:59 AM CDT

A new class action lawsuit has been brought on by Florida-based law firm Berman Law Group against the Chinese Communist Party, with over 10,000 people signing the class action lawsuit seeking $4 trillion -- yes, trillion with a T.

Coronavirus cover-up: China hit with $4 TRILLION reparations lawsuit

The $4 trillion lawsuit has family members that have contracted, and died of COVID-19 as well as healthcare workers who have gotten sick and died from COVID-19, as they didn't have personal protective equipment. 60 Minutes Australia talked with the chief stategist behind the lawsuit in Florida, Jeremy Alters.

Alters said that China should take accountability for the human loss and economic destruction that has knocked the world onto its knees, telling a 60 Minutes reporter: "We are now in the depth of this economic and human crisis that could have been mostly prevented, if not all prevented".

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Coronavirus could have spread to space and onto the ISS

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Apr 19, 2020 5:18 AM CDT

In space, no one can hear you scream -- from finding out you've tested positive for COVID-19 coronavirus, that is.

Coronavirus could have spread to space and onto the ISS

There are now concerns that coronavirus might have spread to the International Space Station (ISS) after a senior Russian official was at last week's launch to the ISS has tested positive for COVID-19.

Deputy head of Energia Rocket and Space Corporation Evgeniy Mikrin has tested positive for COVID-19, after being present at the launch of the Soyuz MS-16. He was in-person at the launch in Baikonur Cosmodrome, southern Kazakhstan, just under two weeks ago on April 9.

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These dogs can sniff 750 people per hour to screen for coronavirus

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Apr 19, 2020 4:20 AM CDT

COVID-19 coronavirus detection might be getting easier, with a new project in the works that is training dogs to sniff out coronavirus.

These dogs can sniff 750 people per hour to screen for coronavirus

The new project is the only one in the world training dogs to sniff out coronavirus, with the Medical Detection Dogs charity, the London School of Hygiene, as well as the Tropical Medicine and Durham University. The dogs will be given clothes and fabric worn by coronavirus patient, to see if the dogs can pick up a particular odour that would eventually be able to sniff out and identify someone with coronavirus.

Dr Claire Guest, CEO and founder of the Medical Detection Dogs charity explained: "There have already been so many fantastic achievements in the dogs' work to detect human disease, and I believe they can be trained to sniff out Covid-19. When resources and testing kits are low, hundreds of people can't be tested in one go. But the dogs can screen up to 750 people really quickly. By identifying those who need to be tested and self-isolate, they can stop the spread".

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Coronavirus: Australian government to use smartphones to track people

Anthony Garreffa | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Apr 19, 2020 3:43 AM CDT

The Australian government is tightening things Down Under to control coronavirus spread in the country, with lockdowns and borders heavily enforced the Australian government and authorities.

Coronavirus: Australian government to use smartphones to track people

Just like the current app deployment in Singapore, the Australian government is now forging through with plans to release an app to track coronavirus victims, and just exactly where they go. Australia is wanting to lift COVID-19 restrictions that have seen millions of people stop their lives -- work, running businesses, school and everything in between -- and this app, could be the solution.

The Australian government first said that it would be making the coronavirus tracking app mandatory -- but Australian government quickly hopped back a step or two. Australians saw the move as draconian, but Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison tweeted out that it wouldn't be mandatory.

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Sony could reveal PlayStation 5 info in May ahead of corporate meeting

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 18, 2020 6:18 PM CDT

Although Mark Cerny blew the lid off the PlayStation 5's specs and hardware, the console itself is still shrouded in mystery. We don't know what it looks like, how much it costs, or what the launch lineup looks like. Sony may not reveal everything in May, but we could get some brand new info on the system.

Sony could reveal PlayStation 5 info in May ahead of corporate meeting

When will we get a full-on PS5 reveal? Sony's newly announced event schedule gives us some clues. Historically, Sony reveals its consoles at E3 showcases in June. But E3 2020 has been cancelled, and Sony hasn't attended E3 for the last two years. Sony with have two opportunities to reveal new PlayStation 5 info next month: At its Fiscal Year 2019 earnings report on May 13, and at its corporate strategy meeting on May 19. It's possible we'll get more info before those two events, though.

The idea is Sony could prepare investors and consumers with new PS5 info ahead of the two events. The FY2019 briefing will likely be centered around Sony's business plans and answer questions like PS5 projections vs PS4 sales in 2020, how long the PS4 will live alongside PS5, production costs, etc. Typically these events allow investors to ask questions that sometimes glean important info. That might not happen this year since both events will be livecast shows. The second event, Sony's annual corporate strategy meeting, will likewise focus on all of its business segments and basically reinforce the PlayStation ecosystem.

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Relive 1917's heart pounding action in our latest Blu-ray giveaway

Ben Gourlay | Contests & Giveaways | Apr 18, 2020 5:25 PM CDT

Thanks to our friends at Universal Sony Home Entertainment, we have ten Blu-ray copies of the new release World War I blockbuster '1917' to give away to our readers.

Relive 1917's heart pounding action in our latest Blu-ray giveaway

At the height of the First World War, two young British soldiers, Schofield (Captain Fantastic's George MacKay) and Blake (Game of Thrones' Dean-Charles Chapman) are given a seemingly impossible mission. In a race against time, they must cross enemy territory and deliver a message that will stop a deadly attack on hundreds of soldiers - Blake's own brother among them.

To go into the running to win a prize, post this article to your social media profiles, send your postal address to ben at TweakTown dot com and correctly answer the following question before the competition closes on 24 April.

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Cancelled Doom 4 prototype was basically a post-apocalyptic FPS

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 18, 2020 5:17 PM CDT

Now that the Doom series has made a huge comeback, we thought it prudent to take a look at what could've happened with the series. We're glad this Doom 4 project got cancelled. The series might've died out if this game got released.

Cancelled Doom 4 prototype was basically a post-apocalyptic FPS

From 2007 to 2013, id Software was working on Doom 4. But it wasn't the kind of Doom we got in 2016, nor is it the explosive bullets-and-guts thrillride that is Doom Eternal. The cancelled Doom 4 project was a very different type of game; instead of radical monstrosities amid fiery hellscapes and over-the-top chaos, Doom 4 was mostly based around post-apocalyptic survival with a lot of human interactions. It basically reminds me of Metro with demons.

The combat looks good--Doomguy has an awesome kick and even smashes some demon brains with his boots--and the FPS action is a bit slow, but this is a pre-rendered prototype. The death animations are pretty gnarly too. The actual rendered cinematics are pretty damn good, though. They just seem more like RAGE than Doom. The game takes place on earth during a demon infestation, and there's clans of armed humans in cluttered villages and cities straight out of a high-tech Mad Max. The game also has the spirit of Terminator's resistance fighters going up against impossible odds.

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Amazing Unreal Engine 4 volumetric lighting teases next-gen fog

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 18, 2020 4:37 PM CDT

Andras Ketzer's FluidNinja VFX toolset gives us a taste of the insane fog the horizon with next-gen games

Amazing Unreal Engine 4 volumetric lighting teases next-gen fog

While browsing Twitter, I came across a Tweet showcasing this incredible Unreal Engine 4 dry ice lighting demo that blew my mind. The effect is made possible by something called ray-marching, a volumetric rendering technique that basically injects 2D data into 3D spaces. It's not ray tracing, though; ray tracing only does surfaces. Ray marching essentially passes through the surface data, and is described as the "big brother" of ray tracing. Ray marching is pretty complicated, but here's a nice breakdown.

The cauldron demo was made with an NVIDIA GTX 1070 and runs at 182FPS in 1080p resolution, but it's not exactly 3D geometry. It was made using FluidNinja VFX, which allows real-time fluid simulations in UE4. The demo isn't actually three-dimensional: It's a 2D flipbook that simulates 3D visuals by using shadows and depth tricks. The result is brilliantly radiant and swirling fog that looks right out of a high-end next-gen game.

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Doom Eternal's marauder doesn't suck. You do. Here's how to get better

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 17, 2020 10:54 PM CDT

When Doom Eternal hit, everyone complained about the marauder. He's tough...until you know how to beat him. But he's nowhere near impossible to kill. Apparently gamers (and even outlets) are still complaining, so it's time to set the record straight: The marauder doesn't suck. You do.

Doom Eternal's marauder doesn't suck. You do. Here's how to get better

Doom Eternal is a balls-to-the-wall thrill ride of a game. It's all about massacring demons in a whirlwind frenzy of death, mayhem, and total annihilation. You're a living force of nature in Doom Eternal, a hurricane that just leaves blood and guts in their wake. That momentum is only made possible by adaptation and skill.

When enemies like the marauder show up for the first time, you hit a brick wall. But like everything else, Doomguy eventually smashes it. This tough enemy procession is the hallmark of the game, it's bread and butter, and enemies like the marauder are extremely important.

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CS:GO beats DOTA 2 with 1.3 million concurrent players on Steam

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 17, 2020 9:48 PM CDT

Counter-Strike: GO has surpassed DOTA 2 as the second Steam game in terms of concurrent users.

CS:GO beats DOTA 2 with 1.3 million concurrent players on Steam

COVID-19 quarantines are resulting in huge spikes in gaming, and Counter-Strike is no exception. The game hit over 1 million active players back in early March, and now a month later it's broken 1.3 million to dethrone DOTA 2. At the time of writing, SteamDB reports CS:GO is the second most actively-played Steam game of all time. PUBG still leads with an insane 3.2 million concurrent users. Still, though, CS is doing pretty damn good for a 8 year old game. And CS:GO has had the best 24-hour peak of any Steam game to date.

Other fun facts about Steam's playerbase: Fallout 4 actually beats GTA V in all-time concurrent peak users, and PUBG actually has two spots in the top 10 list. One of them belongs to the BR's test server. Right now Steam has over 19 million people online, but only 28% of them, or 5.5 million, are actually gaming.

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MSI Optix MAG301CR: 30-inch monitor offers 2560 x 1080 at 200Hz

Anthony Garreffa | Displays | Apr 17, 2020 8:28 PM CDT

MSI has just revealed its new Optix MAG301CR gaming monitor, offering a larger 30-inch panel with a 21:9 aspect ratio, native resolution of 2560 x 1080 and refresh rate of 200Hz.

MSI Optix MAG301CR: 30-inch monitor offers 2560 x 1080 at 200Hz

We also have a 1ms response time, AMD FreeSync technology, and more. The 30-inch panel in a 21:9 aspect ratio is an interesting one, as we usually see 34-inch 21:9 UltraWide monitors with native resolutions of 3440 x 1440 or 2560 x 1080, so the smaller screen size will make the monitor not feel so packed-in with pixels.

MSI is tapping a fast VA panel which means you're going to have a super-fast gaming experience in first-person shooters, RTS and MOBA games. There's also some HDR goodness here, although I'm not sure many gamers even bother with HDR -- still, it's there.

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Xbox One X Cyberpunk 2077 Limited Edition console glows in the dark

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Apr 17, 2020 7:31 PM CDT

It has been an exciting week for Cyberpunk 2077 fans, with a tease of a concept Cyberpunk 2077 themed DualSense controller for the PlayStation 5 from BossLogic and then the Amazon Canada listing of a Cyberpunk 2077 Xbox One controller, the tease of an entire custom Xbox One X console themed in Cyberpunk 2077 goodness -- and now the confirmation of the limited edition Xbox One X console... Check it out:

Xbox One X Cyberpunk 2077 Limited Edition console glows in the dark

The new Xbox One X Cyberpunk 2077 Limited Edition console goes one stpe further, with what should be some gorgeous glow-in-the-dark bits. Microsoft has no pricing or pre-order details for the custom Xbox One X console just yet, but we do know that the rugged design of the Cyberpunk 2077 controller is based on Johnny Silverhand -- who is played by Neo and John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves.

Microsoft will have its custom Xbox One X Cyberpunk 2077 Limited Edition bundle console available in June, with no details on pricing just yet. Cyberpunk 2077 the game, will be released on September 17, 2020.

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Justice League battles Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles new MUGEN fighter

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Apr 17, 2020 4:35 PM CDT

Ever wonder what a SNES-era Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle x Justice League tournament fighter would look like? Wonder no longer. This 90's style mashup makes your dreams come true.

Justice League battles Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles new MUGEN fighter

MUGEN fans rejoice! Kamekaze's anticipated TMNTxJL fighter is now available to download, complete with tons of custom movesets, combos, and more. The game resembles a mashup of Justice League Task Force on SNES and borrows moves right out of the legendary hit Turtles in Time. The roster tons of familiar and surprising faces, many of which don't actually show up in games. There's the staples like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, and the four TMNT bros. But some more obscure characters like Cheetah, Despero, and even Chrome Dome and Armaggon show up to join the fray.

The fighting is superb and ultra chaotic, the graphics are amazing old-school 16-bit vibrant pixels, and it has a comedic and hilarious nostalgic tone that transports you back to those glory days of comics and cartoons.

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