BirSaNN

This is the first big, coordinated wave of Russian attacks on Ukraine's power infrastructure in almost a month. While there has been some targeting of power facilities in recent weeks, this has been the longest gap since the attacks began in early October. A much-anticipated wave of strikes to mark the first anniversary of Russia's full scale invasion on 24 February failed to materialise - though this probably said more about media expectations than Russia's actual strategy. But the increasingly sporadic nature of Russia's infrastructure attacks is notable. Western officials believe this indicates a shortage of the kind of precision-guided weaponry - especially missiles - needed to carry out such attacks with any measure of effectiveness. "It takes them that long to get a number of precision weapons together before they can mount a packaged event strike," was how one official put it earlier this week. Ukraine's military has also become quite adept at intercepting incoming missiles and drones. Preliminary data suggests that a significant proportion of the weapons used today were shot down, including more than 70% of the cruise missiles and half the drones. According to Valerii Zaluzhnyi, commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, another eight missiles were thwarted by what he described as "organized countermeasures". But clearly, judging by reports from all over the country, others found their mark. Some weapons, like the long range Kh-22 anti-ship missile, which dives steeply onto its target from an extremely high altitude, are hard to intercept. The same goes for the S-300 anti-aircraft missile, which was never designed to attack targets on the ground but which has been increasingly used in this role over the course of the past six months. Military analysts will pore over the latest data, looking for what Russia's choice of weapons indicates about Moscow's tactics and remaining stocks. Before today's attacks, observers had begun to wonder whether Russia would persist with a strategy that doesn't appear to be working. Ukraine in maps: Russia launches new missile attacks Ukraine nuclear plant loses power after strikes Despite the enormous damage inflicted on Ukraine's power grid over the past six months, the country has not been brought to its knees and most Ukrainians have long since become accustomed to power cuts, inconvenience and the occasional danger. Ukraine's engineers have successfully kept power flowing across the country, despite losing scores of transformers, switches and other key components of the country's infrastructure. In Kyiv and other cities, street lights have recently been switched back on, offering relief to pedestrians used to making their way along darkened pavements with only their mobile phones to light the way. But the situation remains precarious and officials know that Russia is still able to cause immense damage. The question is: For how long? link: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64900098

Spain’s Ministry of Industry claims there has been a loss of around 930 million euros due to the boycott, within the seven-month gap alone. Rabat- Algeria’s blockade on Spanish imports and exports has been ongoing for the past nine months, and Madrid is now turning to the EU for financial aid to compensate for its losses. Algeria blocked all trade with Spain after the Spanish government endorsed Morocco’s Autonomy Plan as the most serious and credible basis to end the Western Sahara dispute. Brussels and Madrid are in talks to launch an aid package that will support the Spanish companies affected by the Algerian blockade. Trade between Algeria and Spain has dropped by 84% since December 2022, resulting in a major blow to the Spanish companies that once had major markets in Algeria, Spanish outlet El Periodico reported. Spain’s Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Tourism has initiated contact with the European Commission to put a plan in place and help the businesses that are being directly impacted by the situation. In addition to the aid plan, the Spanish government is coming up with new ways to diversify their markets and become less dependent on Algeria, El Periodico added. Eye-watering losses Spain’s exports to Algeria amounted to 176.2 million euros between June and November 2022, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade within the Ministry of Industry has said, noting there has since been a loss of around 930 million euros due to the boycott. The blockade is particularly affecting businesses in Spain’s Valencia region which had the most substantial exports to Algeria in the whole of the European country. The President of the Catalonian Parliament, Ximo Puig, has publicly requested for the EU’s high representatives to take a stand on the issue. However, the ongoing situation of the Russia-Ukraine war, a deepening financial crisis across the EU, and most EU countries’ keenness to secure gas deals with Algeria suggest Brussels is unlikely to pick up a diplomatic fight with Algeria. Since the blockade began in June 2022, Spain has dropped from being Algeria’s second-largest foreign supplier to the ninth, with Spanish companies now supplying just 2% of Algerian imports. While the knock-on effect is being felt in Spain's exports to Algeria, there is no sign of a negative impact on imports, as Algeria continues to supply gas to the Spanish market. In fact, the gas supply accounts for nearly all of the purchases by Spain in the North African country. Calls for help Spain has long-expressed growing concerns over the situation with Algeria. In January, Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told Europa Press that the blockade was ongoing and it was down to the EU to fix the issue. Spanish government sources say that this blockade is not only affecting Spain but other European countries as well, because of how the supply and production chains are integrated. In his comments to Europa Press, Albares insisted that Spain has not done anything to receive the blockade or the frozen friendship treaty between Algeria-Spain. The 20-year treaty, which ensured the two countries’ cooperation on migrant flows, trade, and other sectors, was unilaterally discarded by Algeria after Madrid mended ties with Rabat and unequivocally embraced Morocco’s plan for a lasting settlement of the Western Sahara dispute. link: https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2023/03/354380/algerian-blockade-costs-spain-euro-lrm-930-million

Arctic rolls are back on the menu, with sales up more than 140% at Ocado. But which other retro delights deserve a comeback? We taste-test some old favourites Simon Hattenstone Coco Pops I loved Rice Krispies because of the Snap! Crackle! Pop! I loved Ricicles more because they were Rice Krispies with extra sugar. And I loved Coco Pops most because they were Rice Krispies with extra sugar and chocolate. Chocolate for breakfast – dreamy! The great thing about Coco Pops is you get two meals for the price of one. Eat them immediately and you’ve got a fabulously feisty, crunchy breakfast. Wait a minute till they’re drenched in the milk, and you get the yummiest soothing, soggy mush. I didn’t eat them for decades because I (kind of) grew up, and Coco Pops are for kids, right? Wrong. A few weeks ago I picked up a pack of Coco Pops and got straight back into the habit. Not only do they taste just as good, but they have nostalgia value these days. Who needs a time machine? I can travel back to childhood on my Coco Pops. I’ve also discovered they work equally well for lunch, tea and late-night feasts. So if you’re feeling lazy or self-indulgent, just stick to Coco Pops. A word of warning, though: only Kellogg’s understand the magic of what makes a true crispy. Resist Choco Pops, Coco Drops, Cacky Slops, whatever the supermarkets choose to call their own-brand fakes. Rest assured they won’t crunch, sog or taste like a true Coco Pop. Emma Beddington Tinned fruit cocktail I had a violently sweet tooth as a child. In primary school I was once caught trying to organise an illegal raffle to buy myself more McCowan’s Highland Toffee. I don’t know where that early entrepreneurial spirit or audacity went, but the sweet tooth stuck, so I’m hopeful tinned fruit cocktail will still be the exotic delight I first discovered at Brownie camp. I fell hard for its tropical promise and lobbied to have it at home as often as I could persuade my reluctant mother. The warm orange peach pieces, pretty pale pear, extra-sweet pineapple chunks and the glow of jewel-like glacé cherries (two precious halves per serving): it all felt so sophisticated. Opening the tin, I realise I had forgotten the grapes, which are a bit spooky, and everything seems smaller. Peach dominates and there’s hardly any pineapple (supply chain issues?), but pleasingly, the cherry ratio is still observed. I pour it into a nice bowl (a sophisticated dessert deserves respect) and dig in. Much like a bag of Revels, there’s an order for eating fruit cocktail. It returns to me instantly after 40-odd years: grape, pear, peach, pineapple and cherries saved for last. I don’t even like glacé cherries, but respect the rules to the letter. How is it? Amazing. It tastes of nothing more than a whisper of fruitiness – and I can only tell which chunk I’m eating by texture – but it’s a cosseting, delicious almost-nothing and I smash through the whole thing in seconds. Then I drink the “light syrup” as if my molars and pancreas mean nothing to me and enjoy a wild half-hour sugar rush before crashing into deep torpor. I thought adulthood would taste like this; I wish it did. Chitra Ramaswamy Findus french bread pizza This may have been my introduction to the baguette (sorry, France). Or, rather, to a wan frozen truncheon constructed out of cardboard and bad breath, sliced down the middle and slathered with tomato sauce, cheddar cheese and a thousand terrifying cubes of tomato and green pepper. My sister and I, as major Roald Dahl fans, dubbed these cubes “vermicious knids” and they became our gateway to vegetable refusal. We took immense pleasure in tweezing each one off like small but entitled Michelin-starred chefs. All those hours playing Operation must have steadied our hands. I recall my teeth sinking into the bread pillow, molten cheese burning the roof of my mouth. And the crap crunch, which like everything in childhood was nothing like it was on the advert. Roughly 40 years later, Findus french bread pizzas are, like tomatoes and hope, no more. In Lidl I find the 2023 equivalent: two Chicago Town cheese and tomato subs for £1.25. Even the picture is right: the subs teem with vermicious knids. Back home I pop one in the oven and the smell of the 1980s – essentially over-sweetened tomato sauce and really bad cheese – fills the room. Once it’s out, I can’t help myself. I pick off the vermicious knids and let the ensuing Proustian flood wash over me. Here she is, my beloved mum, who died three years ago, presenting these new-fangled Findus pizzas to us with excitement. Who knew a Chicago Town sub would make me cry? Sam Wollaston Angel Delight My childhood was, on the whole, reasonably happy. I won’t go as far as to say that Angel Delight was the reason for this, but it certainly played a part. Never strawberry (tasted pink), only occasionally butterscotch (too vommy), generally chocolate (perfect). It was probably the first food I ever prepared. It’s not hard to add a sachet of powder to milk, but I learned that it paid to whisk longer for a lighter, bubblier mix. And I would pour it into a glass to set, like the picture on the packet, for a more sophisticated dessert. Sometimes I – whisper it – crumbled a Flake over the top, for extra decadence. It’s reassuring to find, in an age of bitter dark salted Belgian nonsense, that chocolate Angel Delight still exists, even if the glass on the packet has gone. Ingredients: sugar, modified starch, palm oil, fat-reduced cocoa powder, gelling agents (diphosphates, sodium phosphates) … OK, so maybe we don’t need to look too closely at the ingredients. Quick, tear open the sachet and inhale … mmm, straight back to the 70s. Then sprinkle into milk, whisk, leave for five minutes, and here goes … I remember it having more texture. Maybe there’s too much milk; probably I under-whisked in my eagerness for time travel. But it just sort of oozes around the mouth and slides down without requiring much swallowing. Tastewise, I’m getting more sugar than cocoa, maybe a hint of the palm oil – not quite the chocolatey heaven I remember. I need to try it on the next generation; here’s one of my own delightful little angels. He takes a spoonful, then another. “It’s OK,” he says, which might not sound like a ringing endorsement, but that’s about as effusive as he gets. The proof is quite literally in the pudding, a bowlful of which soon disappears. You know those things you only get to appreciate as an adult – coffee, shellfish, smelly cheese, bitter dark salted Belgian nonsense? Well, I think Angel Delight is the opposite of them. For me that means: best before 1984. Morwenna Ferrier Smash I discovered Smash in Morrisons in Leeds, where I was at university. When I arrived, I had barely drunk, had never had a takeaway, been to a gig or smoked a cigarette. The idea that you could make mashed potato in minutes from a desiccated powder was pure alchemy. And it was the perfect dinner carbohydrate when you had seven minutes between lectures and pubs, and had spent most of your loan on Diesel clothes and Unkle LPs. I was too embarrassed to buy the tin so I bulk-bought the sachets. I stored them upright in my cupboard, lined up like a little library. I often ate them late at night. My friend Roz and I would mix the ingredients with boiling water, a little milk, some butter and some salt while we defrosted peas in the halls microwave. We then sprinkled the peas on top, like so, before adding something Roz, a vegetarian, had discovered in the Arndale centre, which I can only describe as “imitation meat”. A well-rounded meal, we thought, night after night. I didn’t know you could still buy it, but you can! I’m writing this from a small hotel room in Paris, during fashion week, where I prepared my Smash in a mug using the free hot water provided in reception, and a pack of demi-sel butter snaffled from a restaurant. I don’t have a whisk so I’m using a wooden takeout spoon I stole from Carrefour. But the result looks the same: off-yellow. The consistency is just as I remember it, too: wet, slightly too thick. But it tastes as fine and potato-like as it ever did, at worst a little cloying. Et voilà, Le Smash. Arifa Akbar Batchelors Super Noodles When I was growing up, my mother cooked the most amazing fresh south Asian food for us on very little money, but refused to teach me or my siblings to cook because she wanted us to have bigger, less domestic, lives than she’d had. So I ended up with zero kitchen skills and a utilitarian approach to meals. Batchelors Super Noodles appealed for their wartime bunker convenience: cheap, hot and made inside of six minutes. I ate them religiously from my late teens until, shamefully, my early 30s. link: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/mar/09/mmm-straight-back-to-the-70s-writers-revisit-the-foods-they-loved-as-kids-from-smash-to-angel-delight

Nick Movie: Past Lives Time: February 22 / 2023 Netflix / Amazon / HBO?: ? Duration of the movie: 1h 46m Trailer:

Live Performance Title: Hans Zimmer Live Concert in Dubai | 27th January 2023 | Coca-Cola Arena (with time-stamps) Signer Name: Hans Zimmer Live Performance Location: - Official YouTube Link: Your Opinion About the Track (Music Video): 10/9

Music Title: Music Mix 2023 🎧 EDM Remixes of Po[CENSORED]r Songs 🎧 EDM Gaming Music Mix Signer: - Release Date: 09/03/2023 Official Youtube Link: Informations About The Signer: - Your Opinion About The Track (Music Video): 10/9

happy birthday brother we are glad to have you here ... all the best in your life .. @Akrapovic

happy birthday brother we are glad to have you here ... all the best in your life .. @𝓐𝓵𝓲𝓮𝓷-

Voted.

Apple's Emergency SOS via satellite feature can be used in conjunction with the Find My app to share location with friends and family. Apple will extend its Emergency SOS via satellite feature will to six new countries within this month. Emergency SOS via satellite can assist users in connecting with emergency services when no other means of reaching emergency services are available. If users call or text emergency services and are unable to connect because they are outside the range of cellular and Wi-Fi coverage, the supported iPhone attempts to connect the user to the assistance they require via satellite. Users can access Emergency SOS via satellite on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models running iOS 16.1 or later. The feature was first launched only in the US and Canada. The Cupertino-based company then expanded it to the UK, France, Germany, and Ireland. The company said they will extend the feature to users in Austria, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, and Portugal this month, in a press release announcing the launch of the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus in a new yellow colour variant on Tuesday. Emergency SOS via satellite allows users outside of cellular or Wi-Fi coverage to communicate with emergency services and it can also be used to find your own location and share it with friends and family using the Find My app. Apple Could Limit These Features to High-End iPhone 15 Pro Models Because it takes some time to establish a connection with the satellites, the iPhone will prompt users with a few pre-programmed questions while it searches for a signal. If a user is heading to a location with limited cellular and Wi-Fi coverage, Apple suggests that they create a Medical ID, add emergency contacts, and test the Emergency SOS demo beforehand. Apple also notes that to try to connect to a satellite, users can keep their iPhone in their hand naturally - without raising their arm or holding it up, but they advise against putting it in a pocket or backpack. The company adds that users may be unable to connect to a satellite if they are surrounded by dense foliage or other obstructions. Because bandwidth is limited on cellular networks, Apple developed a compression algorithm that reduces text messages three times in order to improve communication speed. Satellite connectivity is also included as default with the Crash Detection feature. link: https://www.gadgets360.com/mobiles/news/iphone-14-emergency-sos-satellite-six-new-countries-outdoor-use-apple-3843965

NVIDIA responded to an issue of heightened CPU usage on specific systems with its latest driver update (version 531.18). In that update, one of the stated known issues by the company with CPU usage. Within a few days of installation, users were coming forward on the internet on several public social media platforms and the NVIDIA forums that their systems were experiencing higher-than-normal CPU usage issues. Today, the company issued a hotfix to fix the problem temporarily. NVIDIA "hotfixes" heightened CPU usage issues with the newest driver update, warning users that it is a "beta" level fix and not finalized NVIDIA wants users to understand that the current hotfix driver (version 531.26, the link will download the EXE file) is in its "beta" stages and is not considered a final fix by the company. With this new hotfix, the following issues have been addressed: This hotfix addresses the following issues: Higher CPU usage from NVIDIA Container might be observed after exiting a game [4007208] [Notebook] Random bug check may be observed on certain laptops with GeForce GTX 10/MX250/350 series GPUs [4008527] The company responded with an official statement in their NVIDIA forums about the higher CPU issue reported and a "random bug check" happening to certain NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10/MX250/350 series graphics cards. A GeForce driver is an incredibly complex piece of software. We have an army of software engineers constantly adding features and fixing bugs. These changes are checked into the main driver branches, which are eventually run through a massive QA process and released. Since we have so many changes being checked in, we usually try to align driver releases with significant game or product releases. This process has served us pretty well over the years but it has one significant weakness. Sometimes a change that is important to many users might end up sitting and waiting until we are able to release the driver. The GeForce Hotfix driver is our way to trying to get some of these fixes out to you more quickly. These drivers are basically the same as the previous released version, with a small number of additional targeted fixes. The fixes that make it in are based in part on your feedback in the Driver Feedback threads and partly on how realistic it is for us to quickly address them. These fixes (and many more) will be incorporated into the next official driver release, at which time the Hotfix driver will be taken down. To be sure, these Hotfix drivers are beta, optional and provided as-is. They are run through a much abbreviated QA process. The sole reason they exist is to get fixes out to you more quickly. The safest option is to wait for the next WHQL certified driver. But we know that many of you are willing to try these out. These HotFix drivers represent a lot of additional work by our engineering teams, I hope they provide value for you. We’ll try it out and see if people like the idea and want us to continue. As recommended by NVIDIA, it might be wise for users to wait for the official WHQL-certified driver than install this current hotfix from the company. However, as the reader, it is up to you how long you will wait. As we have stated numerous times before, if you choose to install this update, please ensure that you back up your system so that you do not lose data or render your system inoperable. Here is the list of product compatibility for this update: Driver Compatibility DESKTOP GeForce RTX 40: GeForce RTX 4090, GeForce RTX 4080, GeForce RTX 4070 Ti NVIDIA TITAN: NVIDIA TITAN RTX, NVIDIA TITAN V, NVIDIA TITAN Xp, NVIDIA TITAN X (Pascal), GeForce GTX TITAN X GeForce RTX 30: GeForce RTX 3090 Ti, GeForce RTX 3090, GeForce RTX 3080 Ti, GeForce RTX 3080 (10GB/12GB), GeForce RTX 3070 Ti, GeForce RTX 3070, GeForce RTX 3060 Ti (GDDR6 & GDDR6X), GeForce RTX 3060 (12GB & 8GB), GeForce RTX 3050 GeForce RTX 20: GeForce RTX 2080 Ti, GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2080, GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2070, GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2060 12GB, GeForce RTX 2060 GeForce 16: GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER, GeForce GTX 1650 SUPER, GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, GeForce GTX 1660, GeForce GTX 1650 GeForce 10: GeForce GTX 1080 Ti, GeForce GTX 1080, GeForce GTX 1070 Ti, GeForce GTX 1070, GeForce GTX 1060, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, GeForce GTX 1050, GeForce GT 1030, GeForce GT 1010 GeForce 900: GeForce GTX 980 Ti, GeForce GTX 980, GeForce GTX 970, GeForce GTX 960, GeForce GTX 950 GeForce 700: GeForce GTX 750 Ti, GeForce GTX 750, GeForce GTX 745 (All Maxwell GPUs) MOBILE GeForce RTX 40: GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU GeForce RTX 30: GeForce RTX 3080 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3080 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3070 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3070 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3060 Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Laptop GPU, GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU GeForce RTX 20: GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2080, GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER, GeForce RTX 2070, GeForce RTX 2060 GeForce MX: GeForce MX450, GeForce MX350, GeForce MX330, GeForce MX250, GeForce MX230, GeForce MX150, GeForce MX130, GeForce MX110 GeForce GTX 16: GeForce GTX 1660 Ti, GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, GeForce GTX 1650 GeForce 10: GeForce GTX 1080, GeForce GTX 1070, GeForce GTX 1060, GeForce GTX 1050 Ti, GeForce GTX 1050 GeForce 900M: GeForce GTX 980, GeForce GTX 980M, GeForce GTX 970M, GeForce GTX 965M, GeForce GTX 960M, GeForce GTX 950M, GeForce 945M, GeForce 940MX, GeForce 930MX, GeForce 920MX, GeForce 940M, GeForce 930M GeForce 800M: GeForce GTX 860M, GeForce GTX 850M, GeForce 845M, GeForce 840M, GeForce 830M link: https://wccftech.com/nvidia-geforce-game-ready-driver-531-26-hotfix-now-available-for-download-addresses-cpu-usage-bug/

Intel has reportedly finished the development of its planned 18A & 20A fabrication processes that will be used internally and by Intel Foundry Services (IFS) clients. The new 1.8nm and 2nm process nodes will be ready for manufacturing as soon as the first half of next year. Intel is readying 18A & 20A process nodes ahead of schedule, now releasing sooner than first reported Now that the company has finalized the specifications of the new process node technologies, Intel can begin to determine when the two fabrication processes will begin production during the first half of 2024. We have an active pipeline of engagements with seven out of the 10 largest foundry customers coupled with consistent pipeline growth to include 43 potential customers and ecosystem partner test chips. Additionally, we continue to make progress on Intel 18A, and have already shared the engineering release of PDK 0.5 (process design kit) with our lead customers and expect to have the final production release in the next few weeks. — Pat Gelsinger, Chief Executive Officer, Intel The 18A and 20A (the "A" standing for "angstroms") will utilize new technologies beginning with the 20A's use of RibbonFET transistors. This introduction of RibbonFET and PowerVia will accelerate backside power delivery, with the company anticipating that it will surpass its competitors in the semiconductor fabrication processes. The two most significant competitors for Intel now are Samsung and TSMC. Intel's 18A process will build off of the 20A process by reducing the size of the transistor while maintaining the power of the process node. The original set time frame the company selected for this introduction was 2025. The company has adjusted the release to the second half of 2024. Intel also changed the utilization of the ASML Twinscan EXE scanners for developing the 18A process node to the current Twinscan NXE scanners. The difference between the two machines is that the latter uses 0.33 numerical aperture (NA) optics to develop the process nodes, while the former uses 0.55 NA optics. Additionally, Intel will utilize extreme ultraviolet (EUV) double patterning lithography. It is unknown what chip series 18A will be incorporated within, but the company has officially confirmed that the 20A process technology will be used for the codename "Arrow Lake." Intel 18A is shown to be incorporated into future client-based "Lake" series chips, "Rapids" series data center chipsets, and foundry chips for Intel clients. It is also reported that Intel has already produced the first test chips on the 20A and 18A process nodes, but it is not mentioned if these chips are internally designed by Intel or for a 3rd party client. link: https://wccftech.com/development-of-intel-18a-20a-process-nodes-completed-expected-first-half-of-2024/

Nickname: @BirSaNN Video author: Fearless Gaming Zone Name of the game: PUBG Mobile Link video: Rate this video 1-10: 10/10

Everything we know so far about Fable 4 on Xbox Series X Fable 4 is the next mainline entry into the beloved RPG series. It was announced a couple of years back alongside a cinematic trailer, and for now is simply called Fable. Since the announcement, there hasn't really been an update on development. For now, we're waiting on the basic details like gameplay and release date. The next entry into the beloved fantasy franchise is being worked on over at Playground Games, the team behind the Forza Horizon series. While this may be an odd fit at first thought, Playground Games is a great studio with a real knack for creating realistic and dynamic environments. This is surely something that the Fable series can benefit greatly from. As we get closer to a potential release date for Fable 4, Microsoft will hopefully reveal more on the game. As new info is released, this page will be updated. For now, here's what we know about Fable 4, including all of the latest news and rumors. You'll also find the reveal trailer below, which helps give a glimpse at what the tone could be for the game when it finally launches. Fable 4: cut to the chase What is it? The fourth installment in the mainline Fable franchise When can I play it? There's no release date yet but don't expect it soon What can I play it on? TBC, but it's an Xbox exclusive FABLE 4 RELEASE DATE AND PLATFORMS No release date or release window has been set for Fable 4 yet. The earliest we'd expect it is late 2023, though 2024 is more likely. At the very least, Phil Spencer hinted during an IGN podcast(opens in new tab) that we'll get it before The Elder Scrolls 6, though that game doesn't have a release date yet either and isn't expected to land until sometime after Starfield's release (which has since been delayed to 2023). That's backed up by the June 2022 Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase focusing on games launching "in the next twelve months," and Fable wasn't present. We do, however, know the platforms we can expect Fable 4 to land on. As an Xbox exclusive, Fable 4 will release for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PC, where it'll be available on Xbox Game Pass from day one. It's unknown if it'll arrive on Xbox One consoles, but we're not holding out hope as Microsoft hasn't confirmed anything. FABLE 4 TRAILER Latest trailer Right now, only one Fable trailer has been released: the world premiere announcement trailer. The trailer doesn't reveal a whole lot, but does suggest that the game could be set well before the later entries in the series as we don't get as much of a sense of a Victorian-style industrial revolution as we did in Fable 3's setting. Instead, it appears that Fable 4 will have a medieval fantasy setting perhaps more like the original game, with the trailer showing a sword, fairies, overgrown toadstools and greedy toads. Check it out below: FABLE 4 NEWS A frog eats a flying princess in Fable (Image credit: Microsoft) Xbox boss explains lack of news Development is still underway on Fable 4 but after the game didn't make any appearances during the Xbox showcases at both Summer Game Fest and Gamescom 2022 fans have been wondering when they'll hear more. Head of Xbox Game Studios, Matt Booty, acknowledged the lack of news during an interview at PAX West 2022(opens in new tab) but explained that the game will only be shown when developer Playground Games is ready to show it. "Every time I see something, I say 'We should show this'… because there's a lot of cool stuff," said Booty. "The team has made it very clear that I'm not going to be able to show anything until it's ready." Booty went on to express support for Playground Games, saying that while choosing the studio predominantly known for Forza Horizon to work on Fable 4 might seem like "a little bit of a head scratcher", they "get it" and he's "excited for when the time comes to be able to show more." link: https://www.techradar.com/news/fable-4-on-xbox-series-x-trailer-release-date-game-pass-and-what-we-know

Developer Rovio recently removed the title from Google Play and renamed it on iOS due to its impact on the studio's "wider games portfolio." The original Angry Birds could return to Google Play in the future, developer Rovio says in a new statement, but only if the studio's experiment of renaming the game on iOS is a success. Rovio in February removed the title from Google Play and renamed it to Red's First Flight on iOS. At the time, Rovio said the decision was due to the classic game's "impact on our wider game portfolio," and in its statement, pointed disappointed fans towards other Angry Birds titles like Angry Birds 2, Angry Birds Friends, and Angry Birds Journey. Fans have been critical of the move, with many taking Rovio's statement to mean that the po[CENSORED]r $1 remake of the original (which was released last year due to po[CENSORED]r demand, according to Rovio's CEO) was having a negative financial impact on the developer. Fans assumed that those who bought the remake of the original Angry Birds wouldn't spend time or money downloading and playing the various free-to-play, and microtransaction-filled, Angry Birds sequels, something that would ultimately hurt Rovio's bottom line. That assumption is partially right. The choice to pull the game from Google Play and rename it on iOS was due more specifically to the original Angry Birds creating a search problem for the company's game portfolio, resulting in fewer downloads of all Angry Birds titles, Rovio says. In a statement to Axios, Rovio says its decision has been misunderstood. Rovio says it first tried to rename Angry Birds on Google Play to improve the situation, but nothing seemed to help improve the download rate for other Angry Bird titles on the platform. That forced the team "to do something a little more drastic," and delist the game entirely, Rovio's head of Angry Birds strategy Ben Mattes says. If Rovio's strategy of renaming Angry Birds on iOS pans out, the title could return to Google Play under the name Red's First Flight. However, if delisting the title proves to be more effective, it could also be removed from iOS, too. Rovio says it currently isn't sure if the decision to remove and rename the game will fix the franchise's search results problem. link: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/original-angry-birds-could-return-to-google-play-or-might-just-vanish-from-ios-too/1100-6512121/

The original game let you build on 9 tiles and a mod unlocked all 81. Cities: Skylines will let you build on 150. Sounds big. One of the biggest shortcomings in 2015's city builder Cities: Skylines was the number of map tiles players were allowed to build on. The buildable space on a map was a grid of 5x5 tiles (25 in total), and of those available tiles players could only unlock a total of nine to build their cities on. Just nine! At least at first. Modders were quick to remove that restriction, allowing all of the tiles on the map (which was 9x9) to be built on, for a total of 81 tiles. Cities: Skylines 2 was announced(opens in new tab) today, and it looks like modders can stand down: The maps in Cities: Skylines 2 will allow you to unlock a whopping 150 map tiles, quite a leap over the original game. Granted, we don't know the size of those tiles, so they may be smaller than in the original. But it still sounds like a hell of a lot more room to build without having to install a mod. This information comes from the Xbox achievement list for Cities: Skylines 2, which was also released today (perhaps accidentally). Several sites like Xboxachivements(opens in new tab) and Trueachievements(opens in new tab) are displaying the full list of 40 achievements, which combine to award 1,000 points toward your gamerscore. One of those achievements, "Everything the Light Touches," awards 50 points for unlocking 150 map tiles in a single city. Based on the name of the achievement it sounds to me like that's the entire map, and the amount of points awarded makes it seem like it's a late-game sort of cheevo. Rest assured, if there are more map tiles in an area you can't build on, modders will find a way to unlock those too. Among the rest of the achievements there are plenty of routine-sounding accomplishments, like for building an airport, creating a district, having various numbers of citizens and happiness ratings, unlocking every building in the game, and things like that. But there are a few more interesting ones: "Things Are Not Looking Up" - Experience a rat infestation "The Size of Golf Balls!" - Experience a hailstorm "You Little Stalker!" - Follow a citizen's lifepath from childhood to old age Boy, rats and hailstorms? Are we sure this isn't a survival city builder? I guess the rat problem could be an event if you have sanitation issues, trash buildup, or sewage problems in your city, and hail sounds interesting because unlike rain or snow it could do damage to buildings or vehicles. There are also more classic disasters like tornadoes and forest fires shown in the achievements. As for following a citizens "lifepath" from childhood to old age, well, been there done that(opens in new tab). But it could be fun to do it again in Cities: Skylines 2. Here's the full list of achievements(opens in new tab). link: https://www.pcgamer.com/cities-skylines-2-will-have-hailstorms-rat-infestations-and-150-map-tiles-in-a-single-city/

The Help to Buy scheme for the purchase of new build houses will be extended in Wales until 2025. The Finance Minister, Rebecca Evans, confirmed that the Welsh government will spend £63m to keep the shared equity scheme going. Ministers plan to increase the cap on the purchase price on homes it can be used for from £250,000 to £300,000. Meanwhile Ms Evans indicated the Welsh government will not be capping council tax rises. She said the rises so far had not been "palpably excessive". The average hike is 5.5% but one council, Conwy, saw an annual rise of almost 10%. Plans to extend Help to Buy are confirmed in the Welsh government's final budget for the year from April, which was agreed in a vote of the Senedd on Tuesday. The measure passed because of abstentions from Plaid Cymru as part of the Welsh government's co-operation deal with the party. Buying a home an 'unachievable dream' for many Help to Buy scheme's impact revealed Help to Buy, which has been scrapped in England, provides a shared equity loan of 20% on new build properties. It means homebuyers can provide a minimum deposit of 5%. The loan has to be repaid over 25 years. The Welsh government says that all homes sold through the scheme will need to meet a minimum of the EPC B energy efficiency rating from 1 April, when the price cap will also rise to £300,000. Ms Evans told a press conference that the funding "will assist Help to Buy to adapt to changes in the housing market and address the impact of the current economic climate on potential homeowners". The final budget also says that "close to £100m" will be allocated towards measures "to help people stay in their homes and also to support social housing which aim to help people avoid homelessness, prevent repossession and create more social housing". At the press conference Ms Evans said the Welsh government would only look to cap council tax rises "were they to be palpably excessive". "The sums which I'm hearing at the moment aren't really coming into that palpably excessive range." She added that interfering in council tax would "be difficult because it's an important part of local democracy", and that there are lots of people who are eligible for support for council tax and are not claiming it. Debate Members of the Senedd (MSs) debated the Welsh government's final budget plans for 2023/24 in the Welsh Parliament on Tuesday. Conservative finance spokesman Peter Fox told the Senedd that "too much of this budget simply misses the mark". He accused Labour ministers of being "distracted by new powers and pet projects" and said more money should have been directed towards the cost of living crisis, healthcare services and schools. Plaid Cymru finance spokesman Llyr Gruffydd said there were serious concerns about the lack of any increase in funding for the housing support grant, and said the decision not to continue the Welsh fuel support scheme beyond April was "alarming". He said concessions agreed in the his party's co-operation deal with the Welsh government would "go at least some of the way to alleviate some of the challenges facing the people of Wales today". Ms Evans replied to the debate accusing the Conservatives of "epic amounts of brass neck", saying they had "ignored or forgotten the fact that our Welsh government budget in the next financial year will be worth a billion pounds less". link: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-politics-64875299

In a series of new experiments, Goffin's cockatoos were able to use a set of different tools to complete complex tasks. The brainy birds can decide which gadget works best and carry their varied equipment around with them. Cockatoos can combine multiple tools to complete a complex task, a feat scientists previously thought only chimpanzees and humans could do, a new study reveals. Tool use has been observed in a handful of animals including chimps, gorillas, orangutans, sea otters, dolphins, octopuses and crows, as well as some cockatoos. But in most cases, these animals can only use a single tool to complete simple tasks. Scientists first discovered that Goffin's cockatoos (Tanimbar corella) could use tools by accident, when captive cockatoos used sticks to reach nuts trapped behind fencing in a laboratory setting. Since then, the brainy birds have been taught to play a rudimentary game of golf, where they use a stick to sweep a ball into a hole. In a 2021 study published in the journal Current Biology(opens in new tab), researchers found that wild-caught Goffin's cockatoos used up to three different tools to extract seeds from a particular fruit. However, it was unclear if the avian Einsteins thought of the tools as individual items or a set. In the new study, published Friday (Feb. 10) in the journal Current Biology(opens in new tab), a separate team of researchers showed that wild-caught Goffin's cockatoos could use tools as a set, and can even carry the tools around with them when the situation calls for it. Related: Tenacious 'trash parrots' locked in escalating 'arms race' with humans Down Under In the new experiments, the birds had to retrieve cashew nuts from behind a clear sheet by using a short, pointy stick to break open the barrier, before fishing out the nuts with a long plastic straw. This is unlike any known cockatoo behavior, so the researchers were confident that the task could not be carried out using previously learned behavior. Seven out of the 10 cockatoos in the study successfully extracted the nuts, and two of those seven (named Figaro and Fini) completed the task within 35 seconds on their first attempt, which stunned researchers. "With these experiments, we can say that, like chimpanzees, Goffin's cockatoos not only appear to be to using toolsets, but they "know" that they are using toolsets," study lead author Antonio Osuna-Mascaró(opens in new tab), an evolutionary biologist at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna in Austria, said in a statement(opens in new tab). "Their flexibility of behavior is stunning." Next, the team switched up the task. They repeated the experiments using separate boxes with and without a membrane. "The cockatoos had to act according to the problem; sometimes the toolset was needed, and sometimes only one tool was enough," Osuna-Mascaró said. During the second experiments, some of the birds picked up one tool, released it, then picked up a second tool before returning to the first. The individuals that displayed this "switching" behavior performed better overall in this specific test, he added. Finally, the team wanted to find out if the cockatoos could transport their toolset with them. To do this, the birds had to carry the two tools together in their beaks and either climb a short ladder or fly from another platform. The cockatoos were able to do this by jamming the stick inside the straw and carrying it as a single item. "We really did not know whether the cockatoos would transport two objects together," study co-author Alice Auersperg(opens in new tab), a cognitive biologist at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, said in the statement. "It was a little bit of a gamble because I have seen birds combining objects playfully, but they very rarely transport more than one object together in their normal behavior." Just like before, only some of the boxes had a membrane barrier, so the birds had to decide whether the problem required them to decide in advance to transport one of the tools or both of them. Most of the cockatoos transported the toolset on an as-needed basis, further indicating that they knew ahead of time when two tools were required, though some had to make two trips if they made a mistake. The results show that "there's a lot more to be learned about cockatoo tool use," the researchers wrote in the statement. Next, the team plans to continue studying the cockatoos' decision-making and metacognition, the ability to recognize their own knowledge. link: https://www.livescience.com/cockatoos-join-humans-and-chimps-as-only-species-that-can-use-a-set-of-tools

Set up for the GT2 class, the MC20 supercar will hit the track with extreme aerodynamics, a reworked suspension, and lightweight quick-release bodywork. Maserati is returning to grand tourer racing with the GT2, a modified version of the MC20 supercar. The same twin-turbocharged V-6 sits behind the race driver, but it'll likely make more than the road-legal car's 621 hp. The GT2-spec MC20 features adjustable dampers and anti-roll bars as well as a huge rear wing to go with plenty of carbon fiber. Maserati will enter the GT2 European Series with a track-ready version of its MC20 supercar. The automaker today revealed the first images of the race car, simply dubbed GT2; a full reveal will take place in June at the 24 Hours of Spa. The GT2 class, confusingly, slots between the GT4 and GT3 cars in terms of performance, and other homologated GT2 cars include versions of the Mercedes-AMG GT, KTM X-Bow, and Brabham BT63. The GT2-spec MC20 will share the Nettuno twin-turbocharged V-6 engine with the road-going version. In the production MC20, the engine pumps out 621 horsepower and 538 pound-feet of torque, but Maserati says the race car takes it "to a higher level." Maserati also highlights the carbon-fiber central monocoque and lightweight, full-composite bodywork, which has quick-release panels in case they need replacing mid-race. The MC20's suspension has also been revised for GT2 competition, with adjustable dampers and anti-roll bars front and rear. The GT2 receives electric power steering and a six-speed sequential paddle-shift gearbox, while the extreme aerodynamic package includes dive planes on the front bumper and a gigantic rear wing. Inside, the carbon-fiber dashboard has an integrated 10-inch display but is otherwise fairly bare bones. The arrival of the MC20-based GT2 continues Maserati's return to motorsports, which started with the brand's entry into Formula E this year. So far, the Maserati Formula E team has scored three points and suffered four retirements over the first five rounds. link: https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a43238415/maserati-mc20-supercar-gt2-racing/

‘It feels unconditional’: the secrets of lifelong friendships - according to lifelong friends Friends are essential to our health and happiness, and even affect how long we live. But how do you keep a relationship alive when you are living in different places and can barely make time for yourself? Emma Beddington Trish and Mick started chatting about music on a staircase in 1970, when Trish and her flatmates (“strange, slightly hippy people,” Mick laughs) were trying to stop a neighbour’s party guests, including Mick, from getting into their flat. Julia and Susan found friendship when they became neighbours at the age of seven. Susan’s parents disapproved of Julia’s single mother’s lifestyle and forbade them to meet: “We developed a system of sound signals, found a place to hide notes to each other and met secretly in the local park,” Susan says. Ian and Roger bicker gently over which was the first Nottingham gig where they shared a bill in 1965, but say that Roger persuaded their bands (Tony D and the Shakeouts for Ian; The Sons of Adam for Roger) to jam together on stage. Friendships start with these accidents – choosing a locker at school, who’s in the next room in your hall of residence, or attending the same protest – but staying friends over a lifetime can’t be accidental. “Friendships are a voluntary type of relationship,” says Mahzad Hojjat, a professor of psychology and friendship researcher at the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth. “In some ways they are the weakest tie, because you could just disconnect.” What stops friends from doing this? As new research shows that socialising helps people to live longer, I spoke to friendship lifers who have stayed close over decades of good and bad times and everything in between. Are there any secrets, and do they have advice for the rest of us? We become friends with one another because there is something we like and have in common with someone: this is homophily, or the “birds of a feather” phenomenon. “These are relationships that are seen as ‘clicking’ from the start,” says Robin Dunbar, an emeritus professor of evolutionary psychology at the University of Oxford. Dunbar defines the “seven pillars of friendship” as similarities that predispose people to become friends: language or dialect, geography, educational experiences, hobbies and interests, moral or spiritual viewpoints, political views, sense of humour and taste in music. That holds for the lifelong friends I spoke to. Trish and Mick bonded over west coast American music; vocal harmony fans Roger and Ian went on to form a band together. For Susan and Julia, it was simply chatting: “We were able to have very long conversations and talking is one of my favourite things,” says Susan. This is partly why many long-lasting friendships form in your late teens and early 20s, at a time of intense firsts and memorable experiences, shared circumstances and enthusiasms. That’s when Roger and Ian were gigging around the country in a Ford Transit van. Mick and Trish both had adventurous leanings. “We had an interest in travel, adventure, doing something different,” says Mick. In their 20s, Mick coupled up with Trish’s best friend, Sue; along with Trish and her then partner, Chris, they formed a tight friendship foursome, frequently travelling together. “We’d get in our old Morris Minor, drive to north Wales and end up in a field in the middle of nowhere,” Mick reminisces. But life pulls friends in different directions, as a tight-knit group of friends told me. Patricia and Tracy went to nursery together, Zerlina joined them at school and Yvonne was their netball and track rival (“A fantastic little sprinter,” says Patricia; “Those days are long gone,” counters Yvonne). Patricia had already spotted her in town, as one of the few other Black girls in 1980s Doncaster. “We weren’t the po[CENSORED]r kids at school,” says Tracy. “We went against the grain, our youth culture was formed together.” They bonded, Zerlina notes, over not just hip-hop, but also their shared ambition and desire to get away: “Although we had great joy in that place – there was lots of fun and good times – we all had a hunger to leave. That was always on the cards.” They scattered to university and beyond, but have stayed very close. Zerlina says the strength of their bond means it has weathered waves of greater and lesser intensity of contact: “It feels unconditional, so it allows for space.” link: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/mar/08/it-feels-unconditional-the-secrets-of-lifelong-friendships-according-to-lifelong-friends

Ukraine has denied any involvement in September's attack on the Nord Stream pipelines, which were built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany. The denial follows a report from the New York Times, which cites anonymous US intelligence officials who suggest a pro-Ukrainian group was to blame. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian president, said Ukraine "was absolutely not involved". Moscow rejected the report as a "co-ordinated fake news media campaign". Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov questioned how the US could make assumptions without an investigation. "Clearly, the authors of the attack want to divert attention," he told state news agency Ria-Novosti. German media say investigators believe they have identified the boat used to plant the explosives. Russian gas deliveries had been suspended before the blasts. Russia shut down the Nord Stream 1 pipeline in August last year, saying it needed maintenance. Nord Stream 2 had never been put into service. The exact cause of the 26 September blasts that hit the natural gas pipelines is unknown, but it is widely believed they were attacked. Moscow has blamed the West for the explosions and called on the UN Security Council to independently investigate them. Nato and Western leaders have stopped short of directly accusing Russia of attacking its own pipelines, although the EU has previously said Russia uses its gas pipelines as a weapon against the West. A journey to the site of the Nord Stream explosions On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that new intelligence reviewed by US officials suggested that a pro-Ukrainian group had carried out the attack on the Nord Stream pipelines. Citing anonymous US officials, the report said there was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or his top lieutenants were involved in the operation. The US newspaper reported that the officials declined to disclose the nature of the intelligence, how it was obtained or "any details of the strength of the evidence it contains". It added: "Officials who have reviewed the intelligence said they believed the saboteurs were most likely Ukrainian or Russian nationals, or some combination of the two." Responding to the New York Times report, Mr Podolyak added that Kyiv had no information about what had happened. Also on Tuesday, German newspaper Die Zeit reported that German authorities had made a breakthrough in their investigation into the cause of the attacks. According to joint research published by the paper and other German media organisations, the boat used to plant the explosives was a yacht hired from a firm based in Poland, which reportedly belonged to two Ukrainians. The nationalities of those who carried out the attack were unclear. Germany's public prosecutor declined to comment on the report but Defence Minister Boris Pistorius warned against jumping to conclusions. It could be a false-flag operation aimed at pinning the blame on pro-Ukrainian groups, he told German radio: "The likelihood of one [theory] or the other is just as high." At least 50m (164ft) of the underwater Nord Stream 1 pipeline bringing Russian gas to Germany is thought to have been destroyed by September's blast. Danish police believe "powerful explosions" blew four holes in the pipe and its newer twin, Nord Stream 2. German, Danish and Swedish authorities have all been investigating the incident. Mr Peskov said Nord Stream shareholder countries should insist on an urgent, transparent investigation. "We are still not allowed in the investigation," he said. "Only a few days ago we received notes to that effect from the Danes and Swedes. This whole thing is not just weird. It reeks of a heinous crime." For decades, Russia supplied huge amounts of natural gas to Western Europe. But after the war in Ukraine began in February of last year, most EU countries drastically reduced their reliance on Russian energy. link: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64877979