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League of Legends skill and IQ are linked, says study

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 1, 2017 3:32 PM CST

A new study from the University of New York's Psychology department finds a direct collaboration between strategy games like League of Legends and high IQ test results.

League of Legends skill and IQ are linked, says study

MOBA skill can be a direct indication on intelligence, or at least that's what the study has found. Previously games like Chess and the Chinese game Go were seen as major brain-building past-times, but the advent of gaming brings yet another: strategy games. According to the study, the rote memory combined with the on-the-fly strategic planning and reactions to countless possibilities are the main drivers to this intelligence growth; gamers must be able to adapt to a number of different situations in order to win, many of which are expanded thanks to the myriad of characters, moves, environments, etc.

"If this was chess, no-one would be surprised by this at all," said Alex Wade, Professor of Psychology at the University of York. "The only surprise here really is that there are some videogames now that are as complicated as chess and people play them all the time. Unlike first-person shooter games where speed and target accuracy are a priority, MOBAs rely more on memory and the ability to make strategic decisions taking into account multiple factors.

Continue reading: League of Legends skill and IQ are linked, says study (full post)

Capcom may reveal new Mega Man game at 30th birthday stream

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 1, 2017 2:18 PM CST

It's been quite a long time since Capcom tapped the beloved Mega Man franchise, but that could change soon.

Capcom may reveal new Mega Man game at 30th birthday stream

In a surprise move (well not that surprising) Japanese games-maker Capcom has teased a special 30th anniversary for the Blue Bomber. The company told IGN that it will hold a live stream on their Twitch channel starting December 4, but exact details were vague. There could be some nice surprises (maybe the Mega Man Collection is finally coming to Switch? or a brand new Mega Man side-scroller?!) during the event.

The invite sent to IGN says "you won't want to miss it," so Capcom could be cooking up something good here. Back in May we reported that Capcom wants to resurrect old franchises and IPs an in effort to bolster game sales on digital and physical platforms, and Mega Man is assuredly a golden oldie in that respect.

Continue reading: Capcom may reveal new Mega Man game at 30th birthday stream (full post)

PUBG runs at 30FPS on all Xboxes, even Xbox One X

Derek Strickland | Gaming | Dec 1, 2017 1:14 PM CST

Despite being a big jump ahead of the original Xbox One model, Microsoft's new Xbox One X owners won't enjoy an FPS boost in PUBG.

PUBG runs at 30FPS on all Xboxes, even Xbox One X

Earlier we reported that PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds--the hottest game on PC right now--will run at a nice smooth 60FPS on the Xbox One X, whereas the older Xbox One and Xbox One S models would be geared more towards 30FPS. Now PlayerUnknown Brendan Greene says the game will run at 30FPS on all Xbox One hardware, likely in an effort to preserve parity across the family and not give Xbox One X users a clear edge. However, it's possible the game could be fine-tuned when it's ready for a full-fledged release in 2018.

"While I previously stated PUBG would run at higher FPS at XGP launch on 12/12, I want to clarify that PUBG will run at 30 FPS across all @Xbox One devices," Greene said on Twitter. "We're constantly refining the game & exploring options to increase FPS, but this early in dev, we're unable to confirm more."

Continue reading: PUBG runs at 30FPS on all Xboxes, even Xbox One X (full post)

Google Home silently updated to learn multitasking

Jak Connor | Mobile Devices | Dec 1, 2017 12:49 PM CST

Google has silently updated all of their Google Home devices this week, giving Google Assistant the ability to be able to perform multiple tasks on-the-fly. Originally a single minded device only capable of performing and completing one mission at a time now has the ability of simultaneously completing two.

Google Home silently updated to learn multitasking

Google has promised the adding of Routines to Google Home, Routines is the creation of predetermined voice commands that cause the device to perform a select amount of actions once heard. This new update from Google allows for two of those actions to be completed on-the-fly without having to pre-load the device.

Unfortunately, Google Home can't take on board more than two commands at once and also won't understand two tasks said in the same sentence, this means that the tasks have to be said separately in order for the device to correctly understand them. This is quite a downside but then again could provide a much more handier experience than pre-loading voice commands to your device.

Continue reading: Google Home silently updated to learn multitasking (full post)

AI can now learn without the need of human help

Jak Connor | Science, Space, & Robotics | Dec 1, 2017 11:09 AM CST

The ability to pass down knowledge from one to another through a repetitive teaching reward system has proven to be one of the pivotal aspects of human life. An example of this would be teaching a dog to sit or roll over, then to reward it with a treat after completion of the desired task.

AI can now learn without the need of human help

This basic principle practice increases the likelihood of the dog performing the same task more efficiently once learned that their is a reward after.

The same principle practice can now be applied to AI robots, being named one of the 10 breakthrough technologies of 2017 by MIT Technology Review, this revolutionary kind of AI learning will mean that AI will be able to adapt and take in new information without human interaction, simply by experimenting.

Continue reading: AI can now learn without the need of human help (full post)

Amazon Alexa now works in Destiny 2 as a real-life Ghost

Jak Connor | Gaming | Dec 1, 2017 9:12 AM CST

Amazon is broadening the spectrum of ways that Alexa can assist its owners, from reading the weather out to you based on your current location, to catching you up with news are just some of the ways Alexa can benefit your day-to-day life.

Amazon Alexa now works in Destiny 2 as a real-life Ghost

Now, thanks to Amazon if you happen to be playing Destiny 2 you have the option downloading your own personal Ghost.

Destiny 2 players will have the option of downloading an Alexa skill called 'Destiny 2 Ghost' which allows your Alexa device to take control of your in-game Ghost granting it access to changing gear presets, checking if friends are online and answering curiosities by just simply asking "Alexa, ask Ghost what I should do next."

Continue reading: Amazon Alexa now works in Destiny 2 as a real-life Ghost (full post)

Star Citizen 3.0 introduces microtransactions

Jak Connor | Gaming | Dec 1, 2017 7:53 AM CST

Star Citizen is currently within 3.0 alpha and the game seems nowhere near close to being complete, developers Cloud Imperium Games have also added microtransactions to the game even though they are the most successfully crowdfunded company to date, they have turned to what every PC gamer currently can't stand.

Star Citizen 3.0 introduces microtransactions

With the amount of ambition Star Citizen has and not to mention the pressure the company is on after receiving so much support, there is a clear fact that Star Citizen would benefit from having microtransactions as an option within the game.

Already, the game contains the option to purchase licenses for land plots on planets, moons and asteroids that are controlled by the United Empire of Earth. The plots are costing $50 for 4km x 4km and 8km x 8km for $100, through in-game currencies these plots can also be earned and will have no advantage when the game is fully released.

Continue reading: Star Citizen 3.0 introduces microtransactions (full post)

Chicago O'Hare Airport could see Elon Musk tunnel connection

Jak Connor | Electric Vehicles & Cars | Dec 1, 2017 6:36 AM CST

The Boring Company owned by Elon Musk plans to use underground pods to create a new way for cars to travel over long distances using underground pods that would avoid traffic congestion.

Chicago O'Hare Airport could see Elon Musk tunnel connection

Musk has already begun the process of getting permission for projects to begin in Maryland and will bid on more projects in Chicago to link downtown Chicago with O'Hare Airport.

The City of Chicago is asking for initial proposals for a high speed rail that will reduce the time it takes travelers to get to the city by 20 minutes, underground or above ground trains are the conventional choice but Musk has other idea's and he plans to carry them out with having proposals due by January 23, 2018.

Continue reading: Chicago O'Hare Airport could see Elon Musk tunnel connection (full post)

Amazon Alexa now has in-skill purchases, the new DLC?

Jak Connor | Mobile Devices | Dec 1, 2017 4:30 AM CST

Amazon's Jeff Bezos has had quite an increase in net worth over the course of the Black Friday sales, mixed in with Alexa sales taking off, Amazon have now added a subscription fee for Alexa's in-skill purchases.

Amazon Alexa now has in-skill purchases, the new DLC?

In-skill purchases is the app store of voice commands for your Alexa device, allowing for third-party developers to contribute to the new platform is setting the foundations for a future mainstream adoption into voice commanded devices.

Games that will be featured on the new subscription side of Alexa will be Match Game, Heads Up and a trivia game from the History Channel. These in-skill purchases and the subscription are currently both in preview and will be made available to a larger number of people sometime next year.

Continue reading: Amazon Alexa now has in-skill purchases, the new DLC? (full post)

Canadian hacker pleads guilty in Yahoo hack, helped Russia

Jak Connor | Hacking, Security & Privacy | Dec 1, 2017 3:29 AM CST

Back in 2014 Yahoo experienced a hack that exposed close to 500 million accounts, and now a Canadian citizen has just recently pleaded guilty to assisting a Russian intelligence officers in the hack. 22-year-old Karim Baratov has been arrested while another three individuals are facing charges back in Russia.

Canadian hacker pleads guilty in Yahoo hack, helped Russia

Prosecutors have stated that two of the Russian hackers are working for the Russian spy agency FSB, while the third is known Russian hacker Alexsey Belan. Dmitry Dokuchaev and Igor Sushchin are believed to have directed the attack and are also the ones that contacted Baratov when their targets were compromised with email accounts outside of Yahoos system. California's U.S Attorney's Office dives deeper into the details of the case, fleshing out the scope of abundant charges.

"According to his plea agreement, Baratov's role in the charged conspiracy was to hack webmail accounts of individuals of interest to the FSB and send those accounts' passwords to Dokuchaev in exchange for money. As alleged in the indictment, Dokuchaev, Sushchin, and Belan compromised Yahoo's network and gained the ability to access Yahoo accounts. When they desired access to individual webmail accounts at a number of other internet service providers, such as Google and Yandex (based in Russia), Dokuchaev tasked Baratov to compromise such accounts."

Continue reading: Canadian hacker pleads guilty in Yahoo hack, helped Russia (full post)

Hulu will be featured on all of Samsung's 2017 Smart TVs

Jak Connor | Displays | Dec 1, 2017 2:21 AM CST

Since its launch back in May this year Hulu have been rolling out its TV service to several different platforms, and now Hulu has plans to be apart of Samsung's TVs.

Hulu will be featured on all of Samsung's 2017 Smart TVs

All of Samsung's Smart TV 2017 models will be universally updated to support the use of the Hulu app, this update will automatically be forced upon users once the next time that they use the Hulu app.

Apple TV, Xbox One, iOS, Android, chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox 360 and even the Nintendo Switch already feature this app, leaving Sony's PlayStation the lone service not featuring Hulu. The holdout from Sony would have to do with PlayStation already featuring a TV service on their console, PlayStation Vue. It is doubtful that Sony will cave into the service being on their console, if they were going to they most likely would of done it by now.

Continue reading: Hulu will be featured on all of Samsung's 2017 Smart TVs (full post)

Apple lease grounds in Arizona for self-driving car tests

Jak Connor | Electric Vehicles & Cars | Dec 1, 2017 1:28 AM CST

Apple boss Tim Cook has not given up on autonomous cars quite just yet, even with recent reports of engineers leaving - autonomous driving is still the main objective coming into the new year for Apples car plans.

Apple lease grounds in Arizona for self-driving car tests

Tim Cook said earlier this year in June that "We're focusing on autonomous systems, It's a core technology that we view as very important." Cook continued by saying that this is "probably one of the most difficult AI projects to work on."

According to Jalopnik, Apple is ready to put these autonomous driving technologies to the test on roads. Reports from Jalopnik say that Apple is set to hire proving grounds in Arizona for road testing, this would include various driving conditions and an array of different scenarios.

Continue reading: Apple lease grounds in Arizona for self-driving car tests (full post)

Galaxy S9 powered by Snapdragon 845, but on 10nm LPE node

Anthony Garreffa | Mobile Devices | Nov 30, 2017 11:56 PM CST

Samsung is expected to unveil its next-gen Galaxy S9 smartphone sometime in early 2018, but what SoC will it be powered with? The company usually goes with its usual one-two punch of outsourcing to Qualcomm for their Snapdragon line of chips, while using their own in-house Exynos processor for different markets.

Galaxy S9 powered by Snapdragon 845, but on 10nm LPE node

But according to the latest rumors, Qualcomm will be providing their Snapdragon 845 processor on the 10nm FinFET LPE node while the Exynos 9810 powered model will be made on the better 10nm LPP process. The difference between LPE and LPP nodes? Around 10% performance, and 15% better power efficiency, which when we're talking about smartphones - is a lot.

The additional performance and savings in battery life will be great, especially for those shooting 4K 60FPS video or smartphone users who are multi-tasking constantly. We will have to wait and see what Samsung does, and what SoC that Qualcomm provides in early 2018.

Continue reading: Galaxy S9 powered by Snapdragon 845, but on 10nm LPE node (full post)

Tesla owner uses his Model S to mine cryptocurrency for free

Anthony Garreffa | Electric Vehicles & Cars | Nov 30, 2017 9:43 PM CST

There might be websites tacking onto users' CPUs to mine cryptocurrency, but now we're seeing electric cars mining cryptocurrency - with the latest story seeing a Tesla owner using his Model S to mine cryptocurrency, inside of his trunk.

Tesla owner uses his Model S to mine cryptocurrency for free

The electricity to mine cryptocurrency is free for this miner, as he's plugging his Model S up to Tesla's Superchargers. If the owner was using a bunch of GTX 1060s the power consumption wouldn't be too bad (150W x 24), but the trunk is small so the heat would be immense, and the airflow would be subpar. As a miner myself, I can't keep my garage cool enough... let alone the trunk of my car.

I don't know anyone who would spend $100K on a car to mine cryptocurrency in the trunk, from free electricity provided by the Tesla Supercharger network... I never thought I'd see the day, but here we are.

Continue reading: Tesla owner uses his Model S to mine cryptocurrency for free (full post)

Nintendo confirms Super Mario Cereal is real, coming soon

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Nov 30, 2017 7:51 PM CST

Nintendo for the first time in 28 years, as officially endorsed the new Super Mario Cereal. Yeah, that's not a typo. The company has teamed up with Kellogg's for Super Mario Cereal, as a limited edition cereal box that will reach the US next month.

Nintendo confirms Super Mario Cereal is real, coming soon

Nintendo explains: "With Super Mario Cereal, Nintendo and Kellogg's have teamed up to take fans on a breakfast odyssey that will continue long after the cereal box is empty. This powered-up partnership with Kellogg's is another exciting way for us to expand the Nintendo brand in unique and creative ways. We are always looking for new opportunities to bring smiles to people of all ages, and this is a fun way to kick off the day".

The company continued: "The limited-edition cereal box will begin hitting store shelves across the US next month. Those playing the Super Mario Odyssey game can tap the cereal box on the Nintendo Switch system, like you would an Amiibo, to receive gold coins or a heart in the game. Even the cereal itself has a Super Mario twist, with colorful power-up marshmallows and a blast of mixed berry flavor in every box".

Continue reading: Nintendo confirms Super Mario Cereal is real, coming soon (full post)

AMD announces Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition drivers

Anthony Garreffa | Graphics Cards | Nov 30, 2017 6:29 PM CST

AMD is teasing its next major graphics driver software update, something the company is calling Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition. The new drivers will be released in December, but we can't say when just yet.

AMD announces Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition drivers

As for the new drivers, AMD says that Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition "is where visible and invisible have been woven together to empower gamers and enrich the visual experience"... or whatever that means. The new drivers should feature OSD performance monitoring which will be a great thing for enthusiasts, and it's something I've wanted for years now.

Once AMD releases their new drivers we'll re-run all of our Radeon RX series graphics cards (RX 480, RX 580, RX Vega 56, RX Vega 64, RX Vega 64 LCE) and see what performance/power/temp differences there are. We shouldn't have too much longer to wait.

Continue reading: AMD announces Radeon Software Adrenalin Edition drivers (full post)

Battlegrounds will run at 60FPS on Xbox One X

Anthony Garreffa | Gaming | Nov 30, 2017 4:54 PM CST

Battlegrounds will be launching exclusively to the Xbox One on December 12, but there will be some Xbox One X specific enhancements that will provide a much smoother chicken dinner experience.

Battlegrounds will run at 60FPS on Xbox One X

During an interview with gamesTM issue 194, Brendan 'PlayerUnknown' Greene said that PUBG will be running at 60FPS on Xbox One. He said: "Xbox is synonymous with gaming, you know what I mean? And there's a huge player base out there that prefer to play on console, so bringing it to the Xbox One systems is just great".

Greene continued: "It's like I can finally say yup, I have a game on Xbox. So I think we could see incredible numbers on console, but again, I don't want to jinx it. We're more focused on getting a good game out. Like, as much as it sounds a bit shitty, we're not focused on player numbers. Sure, from a server point of view we have to be, but that's what our goal here is. It's not to have millions of players, our goal is to put a good game onto both platforms".

Continue reading: Battlegrounds will run at 60FPS on Xbox One X (full post)

SilverStone announce new Primera PM02 mid-tower case

Shaun Grimley | Cases, Cooling & PSU | Nov 30, 2017 6:43 AM CST

In a highly-competitive market of mid-tower cases, its easy to get lost in the vast range of products on offer. SilverStone have added to the sea of products with upcoming release of the Primera PM02 case, this mid-tower case features your typical tempered glass side panel, great connectivity and a hypnotizing front design, but doesn't stand out from the crowd.

SilverStone announce new Primera PM02 mid-tower case

Featuring a mesh-like front, that is both bold yet aesthetically pleasing in appearance, the Primera PM02 is available in two color options- black with red highlights, or white with black highlights. The appearance is finished off with a full-sized tempered glass panel that looks fantastic.

Supporting graphics cards up to 415mm in length, the PM02 also supports CPU coolers up to 167mm and PSUs up to 190mm that is hidden away within the PSU shroud that also can house up to 3 HDD's. Storage support also features an additional three 2.5" drives hidden away behind the motherboard tray. Pre-installed with 3x120mm fans are included up the front and 1x120mm fan in the rear, with SilverStone's latest case allowing the ability to house up to six 120mm fans for excellent ventilation. Whilst on the topic of cooling, the PM02 can support up to 360mm radiator in the front, 140mm radiator in the rear and 2x120mm or up to 1x 280mm radiator up the top.

Continue reading: SilverStone announce new Primera PM02 mid-tower case (full post)

CHERRY release the MC 4900 mouse with fingerprint reader

Shaun Grimley | Peripherals | Nov 30, 2017 5:41 AM CST

CHERRY have added a unique feature to their latest mouse, an integrated fingerprint reader. Aimed at business and public institutions, the MC 4900 is your typical everyday mouse with an exceptional ergonomic design that we've come to expect from CHERRY, but with the addition of an integrated fingerprint reader.

CHERRY release the MC 4900 mouse with fingerprint reader

The MC 4900 utilizes an integrated Crossmatch TouchChip TCS2 sensor based on capacitive sensing technology, with the principle being that this mouse will excel in workstations that requires multiple users within the company or government agency to allow for easy, quick and secure log in identification.

Suitable for both right and left-hand operators, this symmetrical mouse is also features full compatibility with Windows Hellow, 1375 DPI optical sensor and finished off with a 1.8m long USB cable.

Continue reading: CHERRY release the MC 4900 mouse with fingerprint reader (full post)

Amazon goes 1984, uses cloud AI to translate/track people

During the recent Amazon Web Services re:Invent conference in Las Vegas on Wednesday, AWS boss Andy Jassy announced that the company will be enabling a suite of AI-powered tools. Jassy told the audience of over 40,000 people: "We have to solve the problem of making [AI] accessible for everyday developers and scientists".

Amazon goes 1984, uses cloud AI to translate/track people

These new cloud-based AI tools will be capable of measuring sentiment, tracking people in live feeds, translating languages, and much more. The list of things that the new AI enabled services AWS has is scary good, check them out:

Continue reading: Amazon goes 1984, uses cloud AI to translate/track people (full post)

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