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Russia wants to build $40 million per-week hotel on the ISS

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Dec 27, 2017 12:48 AM CST

Can you imagine a future where the uber-rich travel to the International Space Station to stay in a $40 million per-week hotel? Well, Russian space corporation Roscomos plans on building a luxury hotel on the ISS for just that reason.

Russia wants to build $40 million per-week hotel on the ISS

It might cost $40 million per week (and an additional $20 million if you want to go on a spacewalk with a cosmonaut), but Popular Mechanics is reporting that Russian space contractor RKK Energia is working on the idea that will see the construction of the second module it's building that will cost somewhere between $279 million and $446 million.

RKK Energia is already hard at work on the first of two modules, something that will act as a science laboratory and a power supply station. The second module on the other hand, will be paid for by RKK Energia, as the Russian government is only paying for the first one.

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 with 5GB of RAM is on the way

Anthony Garreffa | Graphics Cards | Dec 26, 2017 11:16 PM CST

NVIDIA might be enjoying the holidays a little too much, with news breaking that the company is preparing a new variant of one of their most popular GTX 10 series cards.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 with 5GB of RAM is on the way

News has broken that NVIDIA is preparing a new GeForce GTX 1060, something that will be using the full GP106 with 1280 CUDA cores, but a weirder 5GB of GDDR5 on a smaller 160-bit memory bus (compared to the 192-bit memory bus on the 3GB and 6GB versions of the GTX 1060).

This new GTX 1060 5GB model would be an exclusive model for the Chinese market, where internet cafes are continuing to see major success. These cards would be sold in a very plain way, with generic packaging and most likely no marketing push behind it.

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Qualcomm approved to test self-driving cars in California

Anthony Garreffa | Electric Vehicles & Cars | Dec 26, 2017 10:52 PM CST

Qualcomm has just been approved to test one of their new self-driving vehicles with three drivers on December 12, testing out their autonomous car technology in California alongside NVIDIA and others.

Qualcomm approved to test self-driving cars in California

The new autonomous cars aren't made by Qualcomm, but they do have their in-house 9150 C-V2X chipset the San Diego giant announced a few months ago now. Qualcomm's new chipset provides the car with 360-degree non-line-of-fight awareness, as well as the ability to communicate with one another and with infrastructure like traffic lights.

VP of Product Management for Automotive at Qualcomm, Nakul Duggal, told CNBC that Qualcomm expects to be "a key player in the autonomous space". Qualcomm has now started field trials of the new 9150 C-V2X chipset in other parts of California, before it starts tests in Michigan, China, Germany, Italy, and Japan.

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Guillermo del Toro says he 'saw a UFO' moving 'super-fast'

Anthony Garreffa | Science, Space, & Robotics | Dec 26, 2017 9:55 PM CST

Guillermo del Toro, the mega director behind Hellboy and Pacific Rim, talked with The Hollywood Reporter not long ago and said that he experienced one of the most strangest, and supernatural experiences of his life.

Guillermo del Toro says he 'saw a UFO' moving 'super-fast'

Not only did del Toro say he has had two experiences with ghosts, but he had a close encounter with a UFO when he was younger. During the interview, del Toro explained: "You sound like a complete lunatic, but I saw a UFO. I didn't want to see a UFO. It was horribly designed".

During his experience, del Toro said he sat alone with his friend in the dark, and saw a light on the horizon that was moving "super-fast". They honked at it, and then flashed their lights, where they said the UFO "went from 1,000 meters away [to much closer] in less than a second".

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Pennsylvania woman gets $284,000,000,000 electricity bill

Anthony Garreffa | Business, Financial & Legal | Dec 26, 2017 8:30 PM CST

There is one woman on the planet that can easily say she had the biggest electricity bill ever, or alternatively she's an evil mastermind that is about to take over the world by building killer robots, or something.

Pennsylvania woman gets $284,000,000,000 electricity bill

Mary Horomanski from Erie, Pennsylvania, recently logged onto her online utility account where she saw a balance of $284,000,000,000 - yes, $284 billion. Horomanski was interviewed by local news outlet GoErie, where she said: "My eyes just about popped out of my head. We had put up Christmas lights and I wondered if we had put them up wrong".

But don't worry, the utility company only wanted $28,156 up front, and would give the family 12 months to pay the $284 billion bill. Mary's son contacted the utility company, where they were quick to fix the bill which eventually came down to a respectable $284.46.

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Bitcoin could be worth $0, according to Morgan Stanley

Anthony Garreffa | Cryptocurrency & Mining | Dec 26, 2017 7:29 PM CST

Bitcoin might have skyrocketed from its price of $1000 at the start of the year all the way up to $20,000 - but there are professional analysts that think the cryptocurrency has zero value.

Bitcoin could be worth $0, according to Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette says that Bitcoin might be worth $0, where Business Insider spotted a research note from the analyst, where he said: "If nobody accepts the technology for payment then the value would be 0".

Faucette said that he addressed the "very difficult" question of what the real value of Bitcoin really is, but said that the value of BTC could drop as it is rerliant on the "network effect", and that is no one wants to buy it, Bitcoin could become totally worthless.

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Breath of the Wild's spot on Zelda timeline? Its complicated

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 6:31 PM CST

Any Zelda fan will know about the rather labyrithine Zelda timeline that's full of inconsistencies and errors (I am Error), and AVGN even made a video about it way back when. But surely Nintendo has cleared everything up and has an idea where Breath of the Wild fits. Right?

Breath of the Wild's spot on Zelda timeline? Its complicated

Breath of the Wild is one of the best games of 2017--it might even be the best game of the year--because of its storytelling, its amazing open-world, and all of the complex pieces that come together as a wonderful whole. But there's just one question that's been bugging die-hard Zelda fans: where does BOTW fit in with the timeline? Does it fit in? Nintendo's Hidemaro Fujibayashi and Eiji Aonuma weigh in on the matter...but not in the way we'd hoped.

"I wouldn't say that we're not concerned with the timeline. It's obviously something that we know is very important to people, and they do a lot of research on," Fujibayashi told GamesRadar. "But I think at this point, we're not really at the stage where we want to talk about where Breath of the Wild is in the timeline. I think, as with the pixelated food, it's something that at this point we want to leave up to people's imaginations."

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Death Stranding development coming along at brisk pace

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 4:42 PM CST

The creation, development, and iterative process of Hideo Kojima's new game is well on schedule--in fact KojiPro is making such progress that Sony is very surprised.

Death Stranding development coming along at brisk pace

Just yesterday it feels like I was covering the Konami vs Kojima debacle, and chronicling how Hideo Kojima broke his bonds to find a new home at his self-started Kojima Productions studio. Fast-forwarding to months and months later, the Metal Gear Solid creator's new bizarre and absolutely intriguing game Death Stranding is rapidly progressing in its development. Last month we reported that Death Stranding is in a playable state, and that the game is progressing on schedule...but now Kojima himself shared a neat little tidbit on what's next.

"Development on Death Stranding is going well enough that SIE told us, 'We have never before seen a game being created at such a fast pace.' We are planning an announcement that will further surprise everyone in 2018," Hideo Kojima said in a recent interview with Japanese game publication Dengeki PlayStation.

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After EA, Destiny 2 players push back against Eververse

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 3:16 PM CST

Battlefront II's dreaded lootbox controversy is starting to bleed over into other games, namely Destiny 2, whose players are tired of the Eververse in-game purchase storefront.

After EA, Destiny 2 players push back against Eververse

I'd say this has been brewing for some time, the push-back against microtransactions, lootboxes, and other strategies employed by publishers to get gamers to spend money on live service games. When done right, it can be a boon; cosmetic MTx is mostly seen as acceptable when it doesn't affect the game. But when handled badly, as with Battlefront II's skewed progression system and ultra-grindy launch state, it's a bane and can have a big effect on a playerbase. After gamers got EA to change up Battlefront II, players are taking aim at another big service game: Destiny 2.

I've long thought Destiny 2 is a great game...but only when played sparingly. If you play it a lot, prepare to be disappointed. The game's progression has been stagnant for a while, and the new Curse of Osiris expansion did little to alleviate this. Pressure has been building since September over the Eververse microtransaction system, which peddles randomized cosmetics/skins as well as mods to players for a fee (but Bright Engrams can be earned without paying too). Gamers initially were perturbed by it, but thought that the extra cash would help pay for bigger and better DLC and expansions, which is something Activision outright promised.

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New Devil May Cry game announced...for mobiles

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 1:41 PM CST

When you think of Dante's superhuman feats and slice-and-dice action in Devil May Cry, you probably don't associate the game with mobile phones. But in true modern day fashion, even DmC is getting a mobile game.

New Devil May Cry game announced...for mobiles

According to reports from MMO Culture, the new Devil May Cry: Pinnacle of Combat game is being developed by Chinese dev Yungchang Game, not Capcom. Interestingly enough the Chinese game dev apparently acquired the rights to DmC to make a smartphone port, which seems to counter Capcom's plans to embrace more platforms directly--however we're still not sure what the contractual terms are.

The new DmC mobile game is powered by Unity and will be an action-based title...but I'm curious how well users can control Dante's acrobatic escapades via a touchscreen. Hey, if they can make a battle royale mobile game, this should be possible too. Other features include an online mode of play with PVP and team action (which makes a lot of sense for the Chinese mobile market), and it's probable the game will have some sort of in-game purchases or microtransactions to monetize the online modes.

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Analyst: PS4 to hit 100 million in 2019, PS5 launch in 2021?

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 12:33 PM CST

Sony's PS4 has continued massive sales throughout its 4-year timeline, and according to an IDC analyst, the console could hit 100 million sales by 2019. But what about Sony's next-gen plan? The PS5, or whatever it may be called, could launch in 2021.

Analyst: PS4 to hit 100 million in 2019, PS5 launch in 2021?

This month Sony reported that the PS4 has sold-through 70.6 million units since the console launched back in 2013, up a mighty 10.2 million units from its figures from June. According to senior IDC analyst Lewis Ward if these numbers continue the PS4 could hit 100 million total global sales by 2019, tacking on 29.4 million units in about two years time. "I think the PS4 will probably get [to 100 million] in 2019," Ward said in a recent interview with GamingBolt.

These predictions would put the PS4's total sales at about 66% of the PS2's 151 million lifetime sales in a span of about six years.

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Wii U emulator CEMU v1.11.3 now supports multi-threaded CPUs

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Dec 26, 2017 12:27 AM CST

The latest version of Wii U emulator CEMU now supports multi-threaded CPUs, with CEMU v1.11.3 adding support for multi-threaded CPU emulation, amongst other new features and improvements.

Wii U emulator CEMU v1.11.3 now supports multi-threaded CPUs

CEMU v1.11.3 also features other optimizations that include cache drawcall index data across frames if the GPU buffer cache accuracy is set too low, a new graphics pack texture rule options, and adds task and task settings API. The new CEMU v1.11.3 is available to Patreon backers, and then to the public next week.

CEMU v1.11.3 Release Notes:

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Continue reading: Wii U emulator CEMU v1.11.3 now supports multi-threaded CPUs (full post)

Facebook Messenger malware mines Monero on users' PCs

Anthony Garreffa | Cryptocurrency & Mining | Dec 25, 2017 9:46 PM CST

Hackers are using any means necessary these days to make money, so hacking PCs and getting them to mine cryptocurrency is the new thing, something that has now reached the huge user base of Facebook Messenger.

Facebook Messenger malware mines Monero on users' PCs

The cybercriminals are using Messenger to infect users' PCs with malware dubbed 'Digmine' that targets as many PCs possible, mining Monero, but the malware can get much worse. Trend Micro, a major cyber security firm, says that these hackers could get into, and takeover your Facebook accoun

Users that are on Google Chrome and use the desktop version of Messenger have been targeted by hackers to mine Monero on their PCs, but with their Facebook accounts under threat, it could get much worse. The researchers added: "If the user's Facebook account is set to log in automatically, Digmine will manipulate Facebook Messenger in order to send a link to the file to the account's friends".

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Fresh case renders tease next-gen Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+

Anthony Garreffa | Mobile Devices | Dec 25, 2017 8:18 PM CST

Samsung is only a couple of months away from the launch of their new Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones, but we're getting drip-fed images through case renders of their new 2018 flagship smartphone.

Fresh case renders tease next-gen Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+

The new Galaxy S9 will see a slightly redesigned rear, with the dual cameras on the Galaxy S9+ seeing the second camera placed under the first camera, compared to the side-by-side dual cameras on the Galaxy Note 8. The Galaxy S9 on the other hand will rock a single rear-facing camera, with both handsets seeing a repositioned rear fingerprint sensor.

Samsung should sell two different variants of the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ smartphones depending on the country their sold in, with their in-house next-gen Exynos processor powering some of the new handsets while Qualcomm's next-gen Snapdragon 845 will power the others.

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X470 motherboards teased, will arrive with next-gen Ryzen

Anthony Garreffa | Motherboards | Dec 25, 2017 5:38 PM CST

AMD is preparing their next-gen Ryzen processors for 2018, but we're already hearing about the new 400-series chipset that will power next-gen motherboards thanks to a new post on PCI-SIG.

X470 motherboards teased, will arrive with next-gen Ryzen

The upcoming Zen+/Ryzen 2000 range is also known as Pinnacle Ridge, and will be an upgrade of Zen 1 made on 12nm. AMD will give us higher clock speeds and improved power efficiency, which is always welcomed. Zen 2 will be saved for the Ryzen 3000 series of processors, which will offer even more improvements over Zen as it will be baked onto the super-delicious 7nm node.

AMD's upcoming Summit Ridge 300 series chipset was listed on PCI-SIG in January 2016, but now we have the new codename Promontory chipset listed on PCI-SIG, which was added on December 19, 2017. This new chipset teased "AMD 400 Series Chipsets" which will include X470, B450, and A420 series motherboards.

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Continue reading: X470 motherboards teased, will arrive with next-gen Ryzen (full post)

Psychonauts 2 delayed until at least 2019

Jak Connor | Gaming | Dec 23, 2017 5:53 AM CST

Psychonauts 2, Double Fine's anticipated platformer has sadly been delayed as the developer has realized the scope of the game they are making and how much time the project they had in mind will actually take.

Psychonauts 2 delayed until at least 2019

The news was broke on Psychonauts 2's Fig page, Double Fine discussed the production of the upcoming title stating that the development team consists of "five full level teams" which are "working on the real-world locations and brand new mental worlds." Even though the teams are ramping up with the development of the game questions have begun to surface for the company as to how long the game is going to take to fully develop and is it going to be same vision they originally intended.

Within the production section of the blog post, Double Fine admit that they have learned through predicting when the finished product will be completed that Psychonauts 2 will not be seeing the light of day through 2018, but will have a more likely chance of a completion and release in 2019.

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Google expands developer kit for Google Assistant

Jak Connor | Business, Financial & Legal | Dec 23, 2017 3:49 AM CST

Google has upgraded their AI service Google Assistant but this time not silently, new languages and device actions have been added and will allow for further customization across SDK devices.

Google expands developer kit for Google Assistant

Google has expanded their Google Assistant SDK toolkit, it now supports additional languages and locations which grants users the ability to change their settings to the following languages English (Australia, Canada, UK, US), French (Canada, France), German, and Japanese.

Google has said that "one of the most prominent questions we received was "how can I ask the Assistant to control my device?" and to answer this question Google has updated the SDK with a new utility called 'Device Action' which has the functionality to be able to build user created actions and implement them straight into a Assistant-enabled device.

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'Fake news' will no longer be flagged by Facebook

Jak Connor | Internet & Websites | Dec 23, 2017 1:35 AM CST

'Fake news' has become an abundant term used throughout modern-day society, Facebook being the largest social media network in the world has had fake news spread across its platform. To combat this third-party "fact checkers" were implemented to flag articles that fell under the fake news category but now Facebook has decided to announce the discontinuing of the flagging of articles.

'Fake news' will no longer be flagged by Facebook

Accused of posting 'fake news' articles throughout the Presidential campaigns in 2016, Facebook waged war against 'fake news' but now a new study from Yale University has suggested that the flagging of specific news articles that have been classified as 'fake news' holds no value at all and can actually "can backfire and further entrench someone's beliefs."

The study suggests that the flagging of specific articles only caused 3.7% of people to identify the flagged article as 'fake news' which has made Facebook question its implication of the third-party fact checkers which has now resulted in a decision to remove them.

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Starcrafts Firebat unit will 'light up' Heroes of the Storm

Jak Connor | Gaming | Dec 23, 2017 12:25 AM CST

Heroes of the Storm has taken to Twitter today to announce their next Hero, which is scheduled for release in January next year. 'Blaze', the Veteran Firebat has been selected as the next Hero that will be stepping onto the battlefield, originally from the very first Starcraft games and a pivotal unit throughout the Starcraft universe, Blaze has been given a quick teaser video confirming his debut to Heroes of the Storm.

Starcrafts Firebat unit will 'light up' Heroes of the Storm

Blizzard have taken the original Firebat unit and will implement him into their MOBA but have also given us no knowledge of what Blaze's abilities are, or where he fits in on the battlefield. Since there is no knowledge of his abilities all that can be done is educated guessing based off the unit within the Starcraft universe. Firebats within the Starcraft universe are AOE (area of effect) masters mostly used for defensive purposes due to their dual arm-mounted flame throwers.

Firebats also use armored plating, to complement this Firebats also have a upgrade to their armor called 'Juggernaut Plating' which increases the Firebats health and base armor. This is not a lot to go on as Blaze could very well be changed before his release but from what is known about Firebats already, it could very well could be implemented into Heroes of the Storm.

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