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To support the launch of next-generation server platforms from AMD and Intel, Samsung plans to introduce a lineup of all-new DDR5 server memory modules topped by the industry's first 512GB RDIMM/LRDIMM and based on 16Gb and 24Gb DDR5 devices. The next step in Samsung's DDR5 innovation — a 32Gb IC — will come in early 2023 and enable the company to build a 1TB memory module in late 2023 or early 2024. Meanwhile, in two years, Samsung intends to release ICs with a 7200 MT/s data transfer rate. 1TB DDR5 RDIMMs in 2024, 2TB Modules on Horizon JEDEC's DDR5 specification presents enormous benefits for server platforms. In addition to enhanced performance scalability, they introduce new ways to increase per-chip and per-module capacities along with enhanced reliability and yield-improving techniques. Furthermore, the spec allows to build up to 64Gb monolithic DDR5 memory devices and to stack up to 16 DDR5 ICs into a chip (up to 16 ICs whose capacity is lower than 64Gb). Therefore, the emergence of 32Gb DDR5 ICs should not come as a surprise. "32Gb DDR5 [IC] is now under development on a new [under-14nm] process node and is scheduled to be introduced early next year," said Aaron Choi, staff engineer at Samsung's DRAM planning department, at AMD's and Samsung webinar (see Samsung's presentation in a gallery below). "32Gb-based UDIMMs will be available from the end of next year or early in 2024." Samsung intends to formally introduce 32Gb DDR5 devices sometime early next year to celebrate the finalization of its development. These chips will ramp towards the end of 2023, when Samsung might officially unveil the first products on their base — 32GB unbuffered DIMMs for client PCs. Later, the company will reveal its 1TB DDR5 memory modules that will use 32 8-Hi 32GB stacks and will be aimed at server platforms arriving in the 2024 – 2025 timeframe. For now, DRAM makers like Samsung use 8-Hi stacks with up to eight memory devices, but several years later, they will move to more enormous stacks. For example, squeezing 16 32Gb DRAM ICs or eight 64Gb DRAM ICs into a stack will enable Samsung to build 2TB server-grade DDR5 modules and allow machines with tens of terabytes of memory per socket (e.g., a 12-channel memory subsystem supporting two DIMMs per channel might get up to 48TB of memory). DDR5-7200 in 2025 Once yields of Samsung's 32Gb DDR5 memory devices get to levels comparable to those of 16Gb ICs, these chips will allow the building of very decently priced single-sided 32GB DIMMs, enabling desktop enthusiasts to equip their systems with 128GB of memory without breaking the bank. But while capacity matters, high speeds are also important for enthusiasts, so Samsung is working hard to improve the performance of DDR5 devices. The company is about to introduce ICs officially rated at 5200 MT/s – 5600 MT/s and aimed at the upcoming client PC platforms. We expect these chips to be used by module houses like Corsair and G.Skill to build modules rated for 6800 MT/s – 7000 MT/s and beyond, but those will require increased voltages. Samsung envisions DDR5 chips capable of a 7200 MT/s data transfer rate at JEDEC-standard 1.1 Volts only in 2025. DDR5-7200 is a speed bin that Samsung has been talking about for some time, but without disclosing when it expects to produce appropriate devices. At the webinar, the company finally demonstrated a slide that attributes 'DDR5-7200+' to 2025. So expect memory module experts to hit speeds of 10,000+ MT/s (and higher) with such ICs. Samsung's DDR5 Server Lineup Ready for Next-Generation Server Platforms. Samsung and its industry peers have been talking about their server-grade DDR5 memory modules for quite some time now. Still, since there were no server platforms to support the new type of memory, those announcements were more about promised advantages of DDR5 memory (or bragging rights for DRAM companies, if you wish) than practical use cases. But now that AMD's and Intel's next-generation server platforms are approaching, these modules will finally be used. AMD Samsung formally introduced its 512GB DDR5 registered DIMM (RDIMM) memory module in mid-2021 and had started sampling the product even before that. That module uses 32 16GB stacks based on eight 16Gb DRAM devices and represents a pinnacle for today's DRAM industry. These modules will be available in time for next-generation AMD EPYC 'Genoa' and Intel Xeon Scalable 'Sapphire Rapids' server platforms late in 2022 or early 2023. But not everyone needs 512GB memory modules, even for servers, so Samsung introduced 24Gb DDR5 ICs last July to support modules with capacities like 24GB, 48GB, 96GB, and potentially higher. For now, Samsung does not disclose plans to make 384GB and 768GB based on 24Gb devices. Still, its lineup of DDR5 modules for this year includes everything from 16GB to 512GB, which is good enough to address next-generation AMD EPYC 'Genoa' and Intel Xeon Scalable 'Sapphire Rapids' platforms in the foreseeable future. "Last year, Samsung introduced 14nm DDR5 DRAMs, and they are now ramping up," said Choi. "14nm allows to make another bigger [DRAM] die, which is 24Gb, and it is almost ready to launch along with AMD's server milestones. […] This year Samsung will provide multiple lineups [based on] 24Gb dies." Samsung While a 24GB, 48GB, or 96GB module capacity may not sound as impressive as a 512GB capacity, these memory sticks may be helpful for next-generation servers based on AMD's EPYC 'Genoa' and 'Bergamo' processors. Since AMD's next-generation server platform supports 12 memory channels, the modules will enable machines with 288MB, 576GB, or 1152GB of DDR5 memory per socket, which is very impressive. Meanwhile, since 24GB, 48GB, and 96GB modules do not need such sophisticated chip-level packaging as Samsung's 512GB RDIMM (which uses 8-Hi 3DS stacks), they may provide an impressive combination of capacity, performance, and price. Summary Samsung is ready with a lineup of server-grade DDR5 memory modules based on its monolithic 16Gb and 24Gb DRAM ICs. Those memory sticks will feature capacities between 16GB and 512GB and will support speed bins supported by AMD's Genoa/Bergamo as well as Intel's Sapphire Rapids platforms. Samsung's next step will be introducing a 32Gb monolithic DDR5 die in early 2023 and bringing it to market by late 2023 or early 2024. These chips will enable the company to build 1TB DDR5 memory modules for future server platforms and inexpensive 32GB UDIMMs for client PCs. As for speeds, Samsung is looking forward to launching DDR5-7200+ at 1.1V ICs in circa 2025, which will allow producers of memory modules for overclockers to build memory sticks rated for operation at 10,000 MT/s and beyond. But while capacity matters, high speeds are also important for enthusiasts, so Samsung is working hard to improve the performance of DDR5 devices. The company is about to introduce ICs officially rated at 5200 MT/s – 5600 MT/s and aimed at the upcoming client PC platforms. We expect these chips to be used by module houses like Corsair and G.Skill to build modules rated for 6800 MT/s – 7000 MT/s and beyond, but those will require increased voltages. Samsung envisions DDR5 chips capable of a 7200 MT/s data transfer rate at JEDEC-standard 1.1 Volts only in 2025. DDR5-7200 is a speed bin that Samsung has been talking about for some time, but without disclosing when it expects to produce appropriate devices. At the webinar, the company finally demonstrated a slide that attributes 'DDR5-7200+' to 2025. So expect memory module experts to hit speeds of 10,000+ MT/s (and higher) with such ICs. Samsung's DDR5 Server Lineup Ready for Next-Generation Server Platforms. Samsung and its industry peers have been talking about their server-grade DDR5 memory modules for quite some time now. Still, since there were no server platforms to support the new type of memory, those announcements were more about promised advantages of DDR5 memory (or bragging rights for DRAM companies, if you wish) than practical use cases. But now that AMD's and Intel's next-generation server platforms are approaching, these modules will finally be used. Samsung formally introduced its 512GB DDR5 registered DIMM (RDIMM) memory module in mid-2021 and had started sampling the product even before that. That module uses 32 16GB stacks based on eight 16Gb DRAM devices and represents a pinnacle for today's DRAM industry. These modules will be available in time for next-generation AMD EPYC 'Genoa' and Intel Xeon Scalable 'Sapphire Rapids' server platforms late in 2022 or early 2023. But not everyone needs 512GB memory modules, even for servers, so Samsung introduced 24Gb DDR5 ICs last July to support modules with capacities like 24GB, 48GB, 96GB, and potentially higher. For now, Samsung does not disclose plans to make 384GB and 768GB based on 24Gb devices. Still, its lineup of DDR5 modules for this year includes everything from 16GB to 512GB, which is good enough to address next-generation AMD EPYC 'Genoa' and Intel Xeon Scalable 'Sapphire Rapids' platforms in the foreseeable future. "Last year, Samsung introduced 14nm DDR5 DRAMs, and they are now ramping up," said Choi. "14nm allows to make another bigger [DRAM] die, which is 24Gb, and it is almost ready to launch along with AMD's server milestones. […] This year Samsung will provide multiple lineups [based on] 24Gb dies." While a 24GB, 48GB, or 96GB module capacity may not sound as impressive as a 512GB capacity, these memory sticks may be helpful for next-generation servers based on AMD's EPYC 'Genoa' and 'Bergamo' processors. Since AMD's next-generation server platform supports 12 memory channels, the modules will enable machines with 288MB, 576GB, or 1152GB of DDR5 memory per socket, which is very impressive. Meanwhile, since 24GB, 48GB, and 96GB modules do not need such sophisticated chip-level packaging as Samsung's 512GB RDIMM (which uses 8-Hi 3DS stacks), they may provide an impressive combination of capacity, performance, and price. Summary Samsung is ready with a lineup of server-grade DDR5 memory modules based on its monolithic 16Gb and 24Gb DRAM ICs. Those memory sticks will feature capacities between 16GB and 512GB and will support speed bins supported by AMD's Genoa/Bergamo as well as Intel's Sapphire Rapids platforms. Samsung's next step will be introducing a 32Gb monolithic DDR5 die in early 2023 and bringing it to market by late 2023 or early 2024. These chips will enable the company to build 1TB DDR5 memory modules for future server platforms and inexpensive 32GB UDIMMs for client PCs. As for speeds, Samsung is looking forward to launching DDR5-7200+ at 1.1V ICs in circa 2025, which will allow producers of memory modules for overclockers to build memory sticks rated for operation at 10,000 MT/s and beyond. "Tom'sHardware"

Name of the game: F1® Manager 2022 Price: $51.99 $49.49 Link Store: F1® Manager 2022 on Steam Offer ends up after X hours:- Requirements: MINIMUM: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system. OS: Windows 10 64-bit Processor: Intel Core i5-4590 or AMD FX-8370 Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 960 or AMD R9 280x (3GB VRAM) Storage: 30 GB of available space RECOMMENDED: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system. OS: Windows 10, 11 64-bit Processor: Intel Core i7-7700 or AMD Ryzen 7 2700 Memory: 16 GB RAM Graphics: GeForce GTX 1080 or Radeon RX 580 (4GB VRAM) Storage: 30 GB of available space

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Episodic visual novel We Are OFK has a really cool premise. This five-part adventure mixes in notes of a biopic to detail the origin of a real band known as OFK, a group entirely composed of virtual members. It's a fictional story about a real band made of fictional people who make real music because they're tired of working for fictional companies. It's like if there was a game about Hatsune Miku or K/DA that detailed their lives prior to their rise to fame. All told, it's a great story, and though I do wish that the dialogue choices had been more impactful, We Are OFK is an emotionally rewarding tale that explores the fraught and oftentimes cutthroat nature of Los Angeles' music industry through the lens of easily digestible themes and relatable characters. We Are OFK follows pianist Itsumi Saitō, singer/songwriter Luca Le Fae, audiovisual artist Carter Flores, and producer Jey Zhang, and depicts how their lives come to intersect. The point A to point B throughline of the story culminates in Itsumi, Luca, Carter, and Jey forming a band. You know going in that this is the outcome you'll see. But on the way to that destination, the story takes regular detours into Itsumi's love life, Luca's writer's block, Carter's existential crisis, and Jey's familial pressures. It's in these other storylines that We Are OFK adopts a more slice-of-life style of storytelling, concluding with most of these issues left partially unresolved. If anything, that only makes the conclusion to We Are OFK all the more satisfyingly believable and wonderful to reach. There are no typical bad guys here for the group to overcome and get their happily-ever-after ending. This is a story of what it means to grow, both as a person and as a group, and how that can come in many different forms and also occur at a different pace person-to-person. Carter's arc is notably exceptional in its execution and probably my favorite storyline of the four. The arc sees them grappling with grief and coming to terms with what it means to leave a mark on the world while working within an industry where your work can be quickly forgotten. Itsumi has a similarly strong narrative path from the first episode to the last, which largely digs into her feelings of inadequacy and fear of being alone. Both characters resonated with me in a way that Luca and Jey did not--both do have strong storylines, but they don't feel as compelling as Itsumi or Carter. You don't get to control Itsumi, Luca, Carter, and Jey's actions or thoughts on their respective journeys--Itsumi's life will always be adrift following a break-up and she will always experience a loss of passion for the piano, for example, and you can't prevent Luca from reaching out to an emotional support tipline after his job leaves him feeling isolated and creatively parched, but We Are OFK allows you to guide how the four express themselves in their conversations with one another. Dialogue choices represent a bandwidth of how a character can express themselves in a given moment. For instance, when Itsumi is being hit on by a creepy guy at a bar, she thinks about different ways she can say, "Go away," to get out of the conversation. This does allow you to color We Are OFK's story with your own brush, but it's not very rewarding, as the game simply provides you with different shades of the same color. Regardless of whether you try to ignore the guy or change the subject, it all boils down to Itsumi trying to leave the conversation without making too much of a scene. There's not much meaning behind the choices you pick as a result, as you're more or less just getting different flavors of the same response. In the case of this example, Jey ultimately always has to step in because the guy isn't taking a hint. A few times, We Are OFK does include a fun callback to a previous moment in its story and makes reference to a dialogue choice you made. These moments are few and far between, however, and only occur within the same episode--your choices in Episodes 1 and 2 have no effect on what occurs in Episodes 3, 4, and 5. There are jokes, references, and callbacks that span multiple episodes, such as Itsumi and Carter changing one another's names in their phone contacts list in Episode 5 to reflect a heart-to-heart conversation they had in Episode 4, but these narrative payoffs are in reference to scripted moments you have no control over. They're fun to notice and add an extra bit of authenticity to the character development of the core cast--I know at least a dozen people who list their closest friends on their phone by dumb nicknames or pun-inspired titles, so seeing Itsumi and Carter do it made me laugh--but they're a reminder that you don't have much sway on this story. You're more a passive observer than an active part of the group. It's odd--We Are OFK features more opportunities for player input than what I largely expect of a visual novel, but that increase in interactivity does not then translate into the potential to make a meaningful difference in the story. The game feels at odds with whether it wants the player to participate or just watch. Between the two, We Are OFK feels like it's most leaning towards the latter, as its episodic format more closely resembles a TV show than a video game. Each episode is about an hour long (the longest is closer to an hour and a half), features an intro sequence and credits, and--after the simultaneous release of Episodes 1 and 2--will release on a weekly schedule. Each episode concludes with an intriguing setup for whatever is next, working as a good draw to entice folks to tune in the following week. However, Episodes 2 and 3 are noticeably weaker than the rest of the game, as they, respectively, focus on Luca and Jey's less interesting narrative arcs. Having all five episodes available at once allowed me to easily push through these rougher patches, but some players might not be motivated to return if they're forced to wait a couple of weeks to get to Episode 4. The most interactive elements of We Are OFK occur near the end of each episode when you play through a music video. Each video features one of the singles included in OFK's first EP. There's no way to fail these segments; instead, they allow you to inject a bit of creativity into the construction of the video. For example, near the end of Episode 1, you control Itsumi as she completes various tasks, chases her phone, and pushes people away from her during OFK's debut song, Follow/Unfollow. The song sees Luca singing about moments of self-sabotage following an especially heartbreaking end to a relationship, and, up to that point, Episode 1 largely focuses on Itsumi as she struggles with those very feelings. So as her internal conflict reaches a climax, you can interpret how she'd react to the words Luca is singing. Maybe you think she'd do everything at a frantic pace, or perhaps she'd carefully move through the scene, or even keep messing up at the task at hand and get nothing done. I really like these moments, especially the ones when the interactive elements are mechanically minimalist and allow you to better react to the music and exist within the flow of the song. Episode 4's music video suffers in this regard, as it sees you playing as Carter and needing to skateboard through virtual reality, steering and jumping to collect tokens. There's also a building segment interspersed between the skateboarding parts, where you can place hills, trees, rocks, and other decorations onto a spinning environment to create your own custom island. It's a lot, which makes it trickier to also pay attention to the song itself. You can replay each episode or music video after completing them once, so you can easily go back and redo any segments of the story or songs that you missed the first time, but the initial amazement of that first time is lost on subsequent playthroughs. A great deal of the enjoyment that comes with the music videos is related to being thrust into a new chorus or verse and being handed new mechanics, encouraging you to adapt and exist within the tone of the song and the narrative themes that lead up to it. There's less surprise and, consequently, less enjoyment on repeated runs That said, I did still replay certain music video segments a few times if only to listen to specific songs again. OFK's first EP is a banger from start to finish. The band's first five songs all fall into alternative indie, but tonally cover a wider spectrum of emotions, ranging from celebratory and high-energy to more melancholy and dream-like. The songs that play near the end of Episodes 2 and 5 are notable stand-outs--the former has been stuck in my head all week, while the latter is a great get-up-and-dance-right-now track. The game's visuals complement the music style, dressing the characters and environments in vibrant colors. Though this style most comes alive during the music video segments to visually illustrate each song with flashing color, it's used to great effect throughout the entire visual novel. We Are OFK's Los Angeles is detailed with all the sun and glamour of possibility that the city is often idealized as having, especially in the early chapters. It almost seems like a dream, with how colorful and exciting everything is. And that's exactly what that preconception is: a figment of the imagination. The real LA is alive with possibility, but--as the cast of young creators quickly learns--there's a harsh reality of bills to pay, expectations to meet, and heartbreak to work through that's hidden beneath that glittering glam. And in those moments, when the facade of LA falls away, the color of the game shifts from bright pinks, yellows, purples, and blues to more somber shades of brown, red, orange, and black. It's great for setting the tone of a scene. All in all, I enjoyed my time with We Are OFK. Even for a visual novel, the storyline can feel a bit too on the rails at times, but Itsumi, Carter, Luca, and Jey's journey is poignant in its relatability and powerful in its narrative exploration through music. This is best expressed in the interactive music video segments, especially when they allow you to fully lose yourself in the song and respond to the vocals, rhythm, or accompanying visuals in your own way. It's a good opening track for OFK's career, and I can't wait to see what's in store for the virtual group. "GameSpot"

Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, who since the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol has become the Republican Party's most forceful critic of former President Donald Trump, was ousted from her House seat by Trump-backed Harriet Hageman, CNN projected Tuesday. In Alaska, voters cast ballots in another race the former President is focused on, with Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski squaring off in the first of two rounds against the Trump-endorsed Kelly Tshibaka. Former Gov. Sarah Palin, meanwhile, is attempting a political comeback in a special election for the state's lone House seat. Here are six takeaways from Tuesday's contests in Wyoming and Alaska: Trump caps his purge of intraparty rivals Trump and his allies have spent the spring and summer turning Republican primaries across the political map into bitter fights in which loyalty to the former President was the central factor. He lost some high-profile battles, including in Georgia, where Gov. Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger held off Trump-back challengers. But in most open-seat races, Trump's candidates triumphed. And on Tuesday in Wyoming, Trump, who had endorsed Hageman on the day she entered the race against Cheney, claimed his biggest victory yet. Cheney is now the eighth of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol to exit the House. Four have opted not to seek reelection, and four more have lost GOP primaries. But her strategy -- attempting to convince the Republican electorate in a state the former President won by a margin of 43 percentage points in 2020 to turn on him -- suggests she'd made a different choice: to go down swinging. She infuriated Republicans by urging Wyoming Democrats and unaffiliated voters to switch their party registration and vote in Tuesday's GOP primary. Surrounded by US Capitol Police officers on the campaign trail, Cheney opted for small, private events over rallies. She lambasted Trump in television interviews. Her campaign's closing message was a TV ad featuring her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, calling Trump a "coward" who lies to his supporters and "tried to steal the last election" using violence. Her election night event, on a ranch in Jackson Hole with the sun setting over the Grand Tetons in the background, didn't feature any television screens for supporters to watch results tabulated in a race Cheney was all but certain to lose. She told supporters that she could have cozied up to Trump and did what she'd done in the primary two years earlier: win with 73% of the vote. "That was a path I could not and would not take," Cheney said. "No House seat, no office in this land, is more important than the principles that we are all sworn to protect. And I well understood the potential political consequences of abiding by my duty." Cheney's decision to use the spotlight of her high-profile House primary to tee off on Trump was never a winning one in Wyoming. But it did endear her to a segment of anti-Trump donors and position her as the GOP's most strident critic of Trump. What's next for Cheney? The three-term congresswoman has not been definitive about her next political moves. On Wednesday, she told NBC's "Today" show that she is "thinking about" running for president and will make a decision in "the coming months." And following her loss, her campaign filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission creating a leadership PAC to be called "The Great Task" -- a nod to Abraham Lincoln, who spoke at Gettysburg of the "great task" facing the country. Cheney used her election night speech to preview a continued fight against Trump, without laying out exactly what that means. "I have said since January 6 that I will do whatever it takes to ensure that Donald Trump is never again near the Oval Office, and I mean it. This is a fight for all of us, together," she said. "I'm a conservative Republican. ... But I love my country more. So I ask you tonight to join me: As we leave here, let us resolve that we will stand together, Republicans, Democrats and independents, against those who would destroy our republic." As she left the stage, Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down" blared over the event's speakers. Waiting on Alaska special election result Palin, the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee who has not run for office since then, is attempting a political comeback in the special House election to fill the remaining months of the late GOP Rep. Don Young's term. But it will take weeks to sort out whether she wins the runoff election against businessman and fellow Republican Nick Begich III and Democratic former state lawmaker Mary Peltola. he special election is Alaska's first using the state's new ranked-choice voting system. CNN projected that none of the three candidates will receive more than 50% of the vote in the first round, meaning that the state will tabulate second-choice votes on August 31. The ranked-choice system could prove problematic for Palin, whose decision to quit midway through her one term as governor, in 2009, still angers many of the state's voters. Begich III, the Republican scion of Alaska's most famous Democratic political family -- his grandfather Nick Begich was the state's congressman until his plane disappeared in 1972, and his uncle Mark Begich was a senator -- is seeking to capitalize on that hardened opposition to Palin. The top four candidates from a wide-open June special primary advanced to the runoff. But one of those candidates, independent Al Gross, later dropped out of the race, a decision that likely boosted Peltola, who is seeking to make history as the state's first Alaska Native in Congress. A second race for the same seat At the same time that Alaska was filling its at-large House seat in Tuesday's special election, the state held a primary for November's general election for a full term for the same seat. Palin, Begich III and Peltola will all advance to another top-four runoff, CNN projected, along with Republican Tara Sweeney, an Alaska Native backed by the state's powerful Native-owned corporations who served as assistant secretary for Indian affairs at the US Interior Department during the Trump administration. Other key races to watch in Alaska Trump has also set his sights on Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who was among the seven Republican senators who voted to convict him during his second impeachment trial. Trump is backing former Alaska Department of Administration commissioner Kelly Tshibaka; he traveled to the state to hold a rally for Tshibaka in July. However, Alaska's nonpartisan primary system -- like the House race, the top four finishers, regardless of party, advance to the general election -- means that both Murkowski and Tshibaka will advance to the general election, CNN projected. Democrat Patricia Chesbro will also advance, and a fourth candidate has not yet been projected. In another competitive top-four primary in Alaska, the current governor, Republican Mike Dunleavy, and his independent predecessor, Bill Walker, will both advance to the general election, alongside Democrat Les Gara, CNN projected. The fourth candidate has not yet been projected. Walker, who was elected in 2014 but dropped his 2018 reelection bid to back a Democrat who lost to Dunleavy, is supported by some Democrats and moderate Republicans who tout his decision to expand Medicaid and his opposition to restrictions on abortion rights. "CNN"

Today, Dodge unveiled what it's calling "the future of electrified muscle." The Charger Daytona SRT is an electric performance coupe meant to carry the torch passed by the outgoing Charger and Challenger. The Daytona SRT will have an 800-volt electrical architecture called Banshee. Powertrain specs aren't available, but Dodge claims it will be faster than a Hellcat. Other features meant to enhance the muscle-car experience include a multi-speed transmission, a temporary horsepower boost button, and an "exhaust" system meant to make the Daytona SRT just as loud as a Hellcat. It seems like the days of proud American muscle cars with forceful V-8 engines and growling exhausts will soon slip gracefully into the past. Dodge's Charger and Challenger models will take their final bow after 2023, and electric models are encroaching on classic nameplates such as the Chevy Camaro and the Ford Mustang, too. Still, Dodge doesn't want you to mourn the muscle car just yet. The new Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept is an electric performance coupe set to carry Dodge's brash legacy forward and become "the future of electrified muscle." The heart of the Daytona SRT is its 800-volt electrical architecture christened Banshee. This is double the voltage of the 400-volt architecture used by many other EVs and allows for faster charging, better cooling for the electric motors, and lighter wiring. The Porsche Taycan, Audi e-tron GT, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Kia EV6 also use 800-volt architectures. Though Dodge hasn't yet shared any performance or powertrain details for the concept, it claims that the Daytona SRT will be faster than its Hellcat V-8–powered cousins "in all key performance measures." We assume this means both acceleration and top speed. For reference, the 2023 Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye with the Jailbreak package has a monstrous 807 horsepower, and the Redeye we tested raced to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. A push-to-pass button called PowerShot will provide a temporary power boost. Unlike its ICE-powered, rear-wheel-drive predecessor, the Daytona SRT is all-wheel drive, demonstrated in true Dodge fashion with a four-wheel burnout from a teaser video posted in July of last year. It will also get six-piston brakes, and regenerative braking will surely be incorporated as well. To give drivers the feeling of "distinctive shift points", Dodge has bestowed the Daytona SRT with a multi-speed transmission. Not many details are available beyond that, but a look at a concept image for the interior tells us it's likely an automatic. The Daytona SRT is also not the first electric car to depart from traditional direct-drive systems; the Taycan and e-tron GT both utilize a two-speed automatic gearbox. Though we can't say for sure, it seems likely that the Daytona SRT will use a two-speed transmission for improved acceleration and efficiency. However, the most unique aspect of the Daytona SRT—and the most brazenly gratuitous—is its exhaust. No, Dodge hasn't found a way for an electric car to pump equal parts engine noise and CO2 into the air, but it did design its Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust to amplify the electric motors' near silent hum into a 126-decibel cacophony worthy of the SRT badge. The name "Fratzonic" is a variation on Fratzog, the moniker given to the logo featured on Dodge muscle cars in the '60s and '70s. That logo makes its return on the Daytona SRT, one of the many ways Dodge has tried to instill the concept with the brand's history. Inspired by the tall wing of the original 1969 Charger Daytona, the first NASCAR vehicle to hit 200 mph, the Daytona SRT has a front opening called the R-Wing. The R-Wing is meant to provide better aerodynamics and enhance downforce, assisted by four intakes on the car's front and rear. The rest of the exterior, evocative of the original Charger's shapely silhouette, builds on smooth lines and an athletic stance, though the Daytona SRT's front and rear lights and overall profile are clearly still an evolution of the current Charger and Challenger. Despite an unmistakable emphasis on performance and muscle, the Daytona SRT aims to be somewhat practical, too. The interior mockups look sleek and modern, and a hatchback design with fold-flat rear seats should provide ample cargo space. Paddle shifters on either side of the squared-off steering wheel control the PowerShot feature and select one of the Daytona SRT's multiple drive modes. The Daytona SRT is an ambitious concept, but whether it can live up to all the missions it claims to fulfill remains to be seen. A production version of the car could come as early as 2024, and only then will we know whether an electric car can also be a muscle car. "CarandDriver"

Chinese planes are firing rods into the sky to bring more rainfall to its crucial Yangtze River, which has dried up in parts, as swaths of the nation fall into drought and grapple with the worst heat wave on record. Several regions on the Yangtze have launched weather modification programs, but with cloud cover too thin, operations in some drought-ravaged parts of the river's basin have remained on standby. The Ministry of Water Resources said in a notice on Wednesday that drought throughout the Yangtze river basin was "adversely affecting drinking water security of rural people and livestock, and the growth of crops." On Wednesday, central China's Hubei province became the latest to announce it would seed clouds, using silver iodide rods to induce rainfall. The silver iodide rods -- which are typically the size of cigarettes -- are shot into existing clouds to help form ice crystals. The crystals then help the cloud produce more rain, making its moisture content heavier and more likely to be released. Cloud seeding has been in practice since the 1940s and China has the biggest program in the world. It used seeding ahead of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 to ensure dry weather for the event, and the technique can also be used to induce snowfall or to soften hail. At least 4.2 million people in Hubei have been affected by a severe drought since June, Hubei's Provincial Emergency Management Department said Tuesday. More than 150,000 people there have difficulties accessing drinking water, and nearly 400,000 hectares of crops have been damaged because of high temperatures and drought. The Yangtze is just one of many rivers and lakes across the northern hemisphere that are drying up and shrinking amid relentless heat and low rainfall, including Lake Mead in the US and the Rhine River in Germany. These extreme weather conditions have been supercharged by the human-induced climate crisis, driven by burning fossil fuels. Communities often rely on these bodies of water for economic activity and governments are having to intervene with adaptation measures and relief funds, costing huge amounts of money. China is deploying such funds and developing new supply sources to deal with the impacts on crops and livestock. Some livestock has been temporarily relocated to other regions, the Ministry of Finance said earlier this week, adding it would issue 300 million yuan ($44.30 million) in disaster relief. 'Longest' and 'strongest' heat wave on record China issued its highest red alert heat warning for at least 138 cities and counties across the country on Wednesday, and another 373 were placed under the second-highest orange alert, the Meteorological Administration said. As of Monday, China's heat wave had lasted 64 days, making it the longest in more than six decades, since full records began in 1961, the National Climate Center said in a statement. It also said it was the "strongest" on record and warned that it could worsen in the coming days. "The heat wave this time is prolonged, wide in scope, and strong in extremity," the statement read. "Taken all signs together, the heat wave in China will continue and its intensity will increase." The heat wave has also registered the largest number of counties and cities exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) since records began, according to the statement. The number of weather stations recording temperatures of 40C and above has reached 262, also the highest. Eight have hit 44C. Persistently high temperatures are forecast to continue in the Sichuan Basin and large parts of central China until August 26. A "special case" of high pressure from the West Pacific subtropical high, stretching across much of Asia, is likely to be the cause of the extreme heat, said Cai Wenju, climate researcher with CSIRO, Australia's national scientific research institute. "CNN"

Yes! @-AndreeA?

What lies beyond the edges of the observable universe? Is it possible that our universe is just one of many in an even larger multiverse? Movies never tire of exploring these questions. The recent release of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is a clear example of how science fiction stories are full of creative interactions between alternate realities. And depending on the cosmologist you ask, the concept of multiverse can be an interesting storytelling tool or something deeper than just a fantasy. Humanity's ideas about alternate realities are old and varied: Edgar Allan Poe wrote a prose poem in 1848 in which he imagined the existence of "an unlimited succession of universes." But the concept of the multiverse really took hold when modern scientific theories attempting to explain the properties of our universe predicted the existence of other universes where events happen outside our reality. "Our understanding of reality is by no means complete," comments Andrei Linde, a physicist at Stanford University. "Reality," he adds, "exists independently of us." If they exist, those universes are separate from ours and unreachable and undetectable by any direct measurement (at least so far). And that makes some experts wonder whether the search for a multiverse can be truly scientific. Will scientists ever know if our universe is the only one? We break down the different theories about a possible multiverse (including other universes with their own laws of physics) and whether there could be many versions of you out there. What is a multiverse? The multiverse is a term scientists use to describe the idea that beyond the observable universe, other universes may also exist. Multiverses have been predicted by various scientific theories that describe different possible scenarios, from regions of space on different planes than our universe, to universes in separate bubbles that are constantly bubbling up. The one thing that all these theories have in common is that they suggest that the space and time we can observe is not the only reality. Why do scientists think there might be more than one universe? "We can't explain all the features of our universe if there is only one," says science journalist Tom Siegfried, whose book The Number of the Heavens investigates how conceptions of the multiverse have evolved over the millennia. "Why are the fundamental constants of nature what they are?" asks Siegfried. "Why is there enough time in our universe to create stars and planets? Why do stars shine the way they do, with just the right amount of energy? All of those things are questions that we don't have answers for in our physical theories." Siegfried says there are two possible explanations: First, that we need newer and better theories to explain the properties of our universe. However, he adds, it is possible that "we are just one of many universes that are different and we happen to live in the one that is nice and comfortable." What are some of the most po[CENSORED]r theories about the multiverse? Perhaps the most scientifically accepted idea comes from what is known as inflationary cosmology, which is the notion that in the tiny moments after the Big Bang, the universe expanded rapidly and exponentially. Cosmic inflation explains many of the observed properties of the universe, such as its structure and the distribution of galaxies. "This theory at first seemed like a piece of science fiction, albeit a very imaginative one," says Linde, one of the architects of cosmic inflationary theory. "But it explained so many interesting features of our world that people began to take it seriously." One of the theory's predictions is that inflation could occur over and over again, perhaps infinitely, creating a constellation of bubble universes. Not all of those bubbles would have the same properties as ours; they could be spaces where physics behaves differently. Some of them might be similar to our universe, but all of them would exist beyond the dimension we can directly observe. What are some of the other ideas? There is another type of multiverse that is scientifically compelling, explained as a many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, which is the theory that mathematically describes how matter behaves. Proposed by physicist Hugh Everett in 1957, the many-worlds interpretation predicts the presence of branching timelines or alternate realities in which our decisions play out differently, sometimes producing very different outcomes. "According to Hugh Everett, there are actually an infinite number of parallel Earths and when you do an experiment and get the probabilities, basically all it shows is that you live on the Earth where that was the outcome of that experiment," explains physicist James Kakalios of the University of Minnesota, who has written about how physics interacts (or doesn't) in superheroes. Therefore, he continues, "on other Earths, there are different results." According to this interpretation, different versions of you could be living the many different possible lives you could have had if you had made different choices. However, the only reality that is perceptible to you is the one you inhabit. Where would all these alternate Earths exist? They all overlap in dimensions that we cannot access. Max Tegmark of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) refers to this type of multiverse as a Level III multiverse, where multiple scenarios play out in branching realities. "In the many-worlds interpretation, you still have an atomic bomb, you just don't know exactly when it's going to go off," Linde comments. And maybe in some of those realities, it never will. But the multiple universes predicted by some cosmic inflation theories, by contrast, would be what Tegmark labels a Level II multiverse, where the fundamental physics may be different across universes. In an inflationary multiverse, says Linde, "it is not even known whether, in some parts of the universe, atomic bombs are even possible." Can we travel through the multiverse? Unfortunately, no. Scientists don't think it's possible to travel between universes, at least not yet. "Unless a lot of the science of physics that we know is solidly established turns out to be incorrect, you can't travel to other universes," Siegfried says. "But who knows? A thousand years from now, I'm not saying someone might not discover something you never would have imagined." Is there any direct evidence to suggest that the multiverse exists? Although certain features of the universe seem to require the existence of a multiverse, nothing has been directly observed to suggest that it actually exists. So far, the evidence supporting the idea of a multiverse is purely theoretical and, in some cases, philosophical. Some experts argue that it may be a great cosmic coincidence that the Big Bang forged a perfectly balanced universe that is ideal for our existence. Other scientists think it is more likely that any number of physical universes exist and that we simply inhabit the one that has the right characteristics for our survival. An infinite number of small alternative universes, or bubble universes, some of which have different physical laws or different fundamental constants, is an attractive idea, Kakalios confesses. "That's why some people take these ideas seriously, because it helps address certain philosophical problems," he adds. Scientists even argue about whether the multiverse is an empirically testable theory. Some would say no, since by definition a multiverse is independent of our own universe and impossible to access. But perhaps we simply haven't discovered the right test. Will we ever know if our universe is just one of many? Maybe not. But multiverses are among the predictions of various theories that can be tested in other ways, and if those theories pass all the tests, then maybe the multiverse theory will hold up as well. Or maybe some new discovery will help scientists figure out if there really is something beyond our observable universe. "The universe is not limited by what some blobs of protoplasm inhabiting a small planet can discover or prove," says Siegfried (referring to humanity). "We can say: this is not testable, therefore it can't be real, but that just means we don't know how to test it. And maybe someday we do figure out how to prove it, although we may never do so. But, in reality, the universe can do whatever it wants."

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Emergency services in France are facing a race against time to save a beluga whale that has swum into the River Seine and is heading south toward Paris. “It is puzzling for sure,” Emmanuel Pasco-Viel, the operations coordinator in Normandy’s l’Eure prefecture, told NBC News Friday. The beluga, an endangered species that is better suited to freezing arctic and subarctic waters, was first spotted Tuesday, said Pasco-Viel, who is responsible for monitoring it. He added that firefighters, police officers and members of the military have been brought in to help guide the whale back into its natural saltwater habitat, along with the coast guard. “We had a helicopter fly over the waters to help us track the beluga,” he said. “Even drones are used. We will decide what is the best way to help the beluga, and how to guide it back to sea.” He added that on Wednesday the creature had been “stationary for three-four hours and I was able to observe it from the boats when it emerged to breathe.” Locals have been warned to give a wide berth to the beluga to avoid stressing it further, he said. Lamya Essemlali, the head of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, which is helping with the rescue effort, said they were concerned because the whale was “extremely skinny.” “If we don’t feed him quickly, it’s hopeless,” she said. “He will die.” She added that they were trying to lure the mammal back to the mouth of the Seine with a diet of fresh fish. “If we just drive him to the sea from the Seine, his chances of survival are weak,” she said, adding that scientists will try to get DNA samples to work out where the whale is from — likely Canada, Norway or Russia. Once that is determined, she said she hoped they could transport him home by plane. Recognizable by their white skin and bulbous heads, beluga whales are normally between 13 to 20 feet long, according to the U.S.’ National Ocean Service, which also notes they are sociable and friendly creatures that normally travel in pods. However, lone ones sometimes venture farther south and can temporarily survive in freshwater. "NBC"

Former President Donald Trump invoked his Fifth Amendment rights and declined to answer questions from the New York attorney general at a scheduled deposition Wednesday. "Under the advice of my counsel and for all of the above reasons, I declined to answer the questions under the rights and privileges afforded to every citizen under the United States Constitution," Trump said in a statement. Trump was to be deposed by lawyers from New York Attorney General Letitia James' office as part of a more than three-year civil investigation into whether the Trump Organization misled lenders, insurers and tax authorities by providing them misleading financial statements. Trump said in a post on Truth Social earlier Wednesday morning that he would be "seeing" James "for a continuation of the greatest Witch Hunt in U.S. history! My great company, and myself, are being attacked from all sides. Banana Republic!" Trump was seen leaving Trump Tower in New York City on Wednesday morning, and his motorcade arrived at the New York attorney general's office shortly after. The scheduled deposition comes during an extraordinary legal week for the former President. On Monday, the FBI executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago, his primary residence in Florida, in connection with an investigation into the handling of classified documents. On Tuesday, a federal appeals court denied his long-running effort to block a House committee from obtaining his tax returns. Some Trump advisers had advocated that the former President answer questions since he previously testified about his financial statements under oath, while others warned him against providing any answers because of the potential legal jeopardy he may face, people familiar with the matter tell CNN. The Manhattan district attorney has a separate ongoing criminal investigation into the Trump Organization. Another consideration that had been discussed, the people familiar say, is the political implications of not answering questions as Trump is widely expected to announce that he will run for president in 2024. While campaigning in 2016, Trump suggested not answering questions was a sign of guilt. At a campaign stop in Iowa in 2016, Trump said, "If you're innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?" In his statement Wednesday, Trump said, "Now I know the answer to that question" and decried James' investigation. The former President and the Trump Organization have previously denied any wrongdoing. "When your family, your company, and all the people in your orbit have become the targets of an unfounded, politically motivated Witch Hunt supported by lawyers, prosecutors, and the Fake News Media, you have no choice," the former President stated. The Fifth Amendment guarantees that an individual cannot be compelled by the government to provide information that might be incriminating against themselves. When an individual declines to answer a question by "taking the Fifth," he or she invokes that right. It is not an admission of guilt. "No person shall ... be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself," the Fifth Amendment states. Investigation and previous depositions In January, James' office said it found "significant" evidence indicating the Trump Organization used false or misleading asset valuations in its financial statements to obtain loans, insurance and tax benefits. The attorney general's civil investigation is nearing the end and a decision over an enforcement action may come soon. The showdown follows Trump's failed attempt to block subpoenas for depositions from him and his children, Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump. Ivanka Trump's deposition took place last week and Trump Jr. had his deposition in late July, people familiar with the matter said. Trump Jr., who runs the Trump Organization with his brother Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump did not assert their Fifth Amendment rights and answered the state's questions, the people said. It is not clear what they were specifically asked or what they said. Their decision breaks with Eric Trump and former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, who both asserted their Fifth Amendment rights more than 500 times when deposed in 2020. Trump has testified under oath in civil lawsuits over the past decades and since leaving office he has also been deposed. Last year he provided videotaped testimony for a lawsuit involving an assault outside of Trump Tower. The case is set to go to trial in the fall. Trump has denied any wrongdoing. Questions about Trump's net worth Trump has been questioned about the accuracy of his net worth and financial statements in previous lawsuits, something some advisers say is one reason why he should answer questions in the current investigation. In a 2007 deposition in a defamation lawsuit, Trump once said he calculated his net worth, to a degree, on his "feelings," and that he put the "best spin" on some of the assets. "I think everybody" exaggerates about the value of their properties, he testified, adding: "Who wouldn't?" Did he inflate values? "Not beyond reason," Trump said. In the past Trump has tried to push responsibility for his valuation decisions onto Weisselberg, while at the same time, documents and depositions appear to show that, even as Trump claimed that he left those valuation decisions to others, he was also deeply involved in running his business. Trump said in the 2007 deposition that the only person he dealt with in preparing the statements of financial condition was Weisselberg. "I would give my opinion," Trump said in the deposition. "We'll talk about it," he said, adding that "ultimately" and "predominately" it was Weisselberg who came up with the final values, which Trump said he viewed as "conservative." When questioned specifically about swings in values from one year to the next Trump had ready explanations. During the deposition, Trump was questioned over the family compound in Westchester County, New York, called Seven Springs where its value nearly doubled in one year from $80 million in 2005 to $150 million in 2006. "The property was valued very low, in my opinion, then and it became very -- it just has gone up," Trump said. He was asked if he had any basis for that view, other than his own opinion. "I don't believe so, no," he said. In addition to Weisselberg, two others involved in the preparation of the financial statements, Jeff McConney, the Trump Organization's controller, and Donald Bender, the real estate firm's external accountant, have both been interviewed by the attorney general's office and Manhattan district attorney. Trump's lawyers are likely to argue that the financial statements were not audited so anyone relying on them would be on notice. The financial statements reviewed by CNN show they have numerous disclosures indicating that they did not conform with generally accepted accounting principles. In addition, none of the lenders lost money on the transactions, which could make it harder to allege that they were defrauded or misled. The appraisals underlying the property values were in many cases provided by Trump's longtime appraiser Cushman & Wakefield, which is also under investigation. Cushman, which broke ties with Trump after the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, has denied any wrongdoing and stands by its work. Legal risks to Trump The depositions pose significant legal risks to the Trumps. If Trump is sued by James and the case goes to trial, the jury can draw an "adverse inference" against him for not answering questions, which could result in a higher judgment against him if he's found liable. If he answers questions, it could open the door to potential civil and criminal liability. The criminal investigation, led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, has slowed but not stopped. Earlier this year, Bragg would not authorize prosecutors to present evidence before a state grand jury after raising concerns about the strength of the case, CNN has reported. A special grand jury hearing evidence in the case expired in April, but a new one could be seated in the future. Bragg told CNN in an interview in April: "Anytime you have a parallel civil, criminal investigation, if there's testimony in that proceeding, obviously we will look at it." This story has been updated with additional developments. "CNN"

The Lamborghini Urus has set the production-SUV record at Pikes Peak with a 10:32.064 time. That beats the previous record of 10:49.902 set by a 2018 Bentley Bentayga. The record-breaking Urus, disguised in camouflage, is a new model that Lamborghini will reveal on August 19. When it comes to production SUVs racing up Pikes Peak, there's a new king of the mountain. It's the supercar-bred Lamborghini Urus that recently posted a 10:32.064 time. That's almost 18 seconds quicker than the 2018 Bentley Bentayga that previously held the production-SUV record with a time of 10:49.902. While the Lambo didn't compete in the official event that was held at the end of June, its time was recorded by Pikes Peak's official timekeepers. Lamborghini conducted the timed runs over the course of three days in late July, and we were invited to observe the second day of those attempts. Since the runs had to be done before 7:30 a.m. when the gates to Pikes Peak open up to the public, it required the R&D team to start prepping the Urus before dawn. And it was just before 6 a.m. when driver Simone Faggioli positioned the camoed Lambo (more on that below) at the starting line for the first run of the day. Shortly after take-off, it must've been obvious that the Urus wasn't running properly because Faggioli promptly returned to the prep area to address what was apparently a faulty sensor. Whatever the team fixed worked because the super ute went on to beat the Bentley's record before their allotted time that day was done. However, it actually wasn't until the following day after we left that the Urus set its best time. Still, we got to see Faggioli and the entire team celebrate breaking the previous record. Rouven Mohr, Lamborghini's chief technical officer, was among those who first proposed the Pikes Peak attempt. He's also someone who has been a huge fan of the historic hill climb since he was young, back before the road was paved and when Group B rally cars were still racing. "For me, Pikes Peak is magic," Mohr said. "There are only a few places [around] the world that give so much input, from my point of view, on the car culture. For sure Nürburgring is one and Pikes Peak is the second one." As seen in the photos, the record-breaking Urus was wrapped in orange camouflage with the phrase "Keep Raising the Bar" on its flanks. It's Lamborghini's thinly veiled attempt to disguise the fact that it wasn't just any old 641-hp Urus that broke the record. Rather, it's a new model that will be revealed on August 19. Although major details about the upcoming Urus remain under wraps until then, Lamborghini does reveal a few things about the machine that conquered the storied hill-climb course. Apart from the required safety equipment, which primarily includes a roll cage and a racing seat with a six-point harness, the Urus is essentially what folks will get with the production version. That includes the standard twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 as well as Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R tires, size 285/40R-22 front and 325/235R-22 rear. Lamborghini says it was involved in the development of that specific rubber, which is said to be the first time Pirelli has offered semi-slick tires designed for an SUV. Another thing worth noting about the Urus's new rubber is that it's a step up from the Pirelli P Zero Corsa PZC4s found on the Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT coupe. Why is that relevant? Well, ardent readers might recall that the Porsche recently stole the Lambo's crown as the quickest SUV we've ever run at Lightning Lap, posting a sizzlin' 2:52.6 time at last year's event. With even stickier shoes that are also 10mm wider in the back (same size up front), the new Urus variant could very well reclaim the LL title it originally set back in 2019. As mentioned earlier, the man responsible for setting the Pikes Peak record in the Lambo is driver Simone Faggioli. Along with being a Pirelli test driver, he's also a hill-climb champion who still holds the rear-wheel-drive record that he set during the 2018 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. After breaking the record on the second day, we asked Faggioli about how he deals with the pressure that comes with not only attempting such a feat but doing it for such a famous brand. Speaking through a translator he said, "The pressure, of course, is there, and you feel it. This is clear. Because in the end all the preparation has been done. But it comes down to the moment when it’s the machine and you and you have to deliver." And deliver is exactly what he did. This content is imported from {embed-name}. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. "CarandDriver"

Promises of freedom and riches are made to convicts in cramped jail cells. Frantic phone calls ensue between relatives and inmates weighing the offer. Then prisoners vanish, leaving their loved ones to sift through reports of the wounded arriving in hospitals. This scene is playing out in the convict communities across Russia. With a regular army stretched thin after nearly six months of a disastrously executed and bloody invasion of Ukraine, there's increasing evidence that the Kremlin is making ugly choices in its ugly war and recruiting Russia's prisoners to fight. Over a month-long investigation, CNN has spoken to inmates caught up in Russia's newest recruitment scheme, along with their relatives and friends. Activists believe hundreds have been approached in dozens of prisons across Russia -- from murderers to drug offenders. Some have even been taken from the prison where one high-profile American jailed in Russia, Paul Whelan, is held. His brother David said in a statement in July he had heard ten volunteers had left IK17 in Mordovia for the frontlines in Ukraine Dozens of chat messages between relatives, reviewed by CNN, detail the tempting rewards offered to fight in Ukraine, where the risk of death is high. The latest Western assessments suggest up to 75,000 Russian troops have been killed or injured since the invasion began (a claim the Kremlin has denied). One prisoner spoke to CNN from his cramped jail cell, a cat crawling across bunk beds, and a fan clamped on top of an ageing television tried to cool the air between heavily barred windows. Imprisoned for multiple years for drugs offenses, he spoke on condition of anonymity using a contraband smartphone -- quite common in Russia's prison system -- to outline the conditions on offer. "They will accept murderers, but not rapists, pedophiles, extremists, or terrorists", he said. "Amnesty or a pardon in six months is on offer. Somebody talks about 100,000 rubles a month, another 200,000. Everything is different." He said the offer was made when unidentified men, believed to be part of a private military contractor's firm, came to the prison in the first half of July, and that acceptance into the program would lead to two weeks of training in the Rostov region in southern Russia. While he had two years' service in the military, he said the recruiters did not seem to insist on military experience. "In my case, if it's real, then I'm all for it," the prisoner said. "It can make a real difference for me: be imprisoned for nearly a decade, or get out in six months if you're lucky. But that's if you're lucky. I just want to go home to the children as soon as possible. If this option is possible, then why not?" The prisoner said 50 inmates had already been selected for recruitment and placed into quarantine in the prison, but he had heard that 400 applied. Rights activists working in the Russian prison system said since the start of July they had been flooded with reports from across Russia from anxious relatives, concerned of the fate of their inmates. "In the last three weeks [in July], there is a very big wave of this project to recruit thousands of Russian prisoners and send them to the war," said Vladimir Osechkin, head of Gulagu.net, a prisoner advocacy group. Osechkin said some were promised a pay-out to their families of five million rubles ($82,000) if they died, but all the financial rewards might never be honored. "There is no guarantee, there's no real contract. It is illegal", he said. "It can make a real difference for me: be imprisoned for nearly a decade, or get out in six months if you're lucky. But that's if you're lucky." Some of the prisoners and their family members appeared keen for the recruitment to go ahead, Osechkin said, echoing the responses of some inmate families seen by CNN. Osechkin speculated the prisoners were used effectively as bait, to attract the fire of Ukrainian positions and enable the regular Russian military to strike accurately back. "They go first, and when the Ukrainian army sees them, and they strike. Then Russian soldiers see where the Ukrainians are, and bomb the place". CNN reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry and penitentiary service (FSIN) for comment on allegations that prisoners are being recruited to fight in Ukraine. Neither responded. While recruitment is in its early days, the first reports have emerged among family members of injured prisoners being hospitalized in the Russian-backed separatist area of Luhansk. CNN has viewed chat messages exchanged between relatives of inmates already apparently sent to the frontline. One wife details how she contacted her husband, who lay injured in one Luhansk hospital. The wife said only three prisoners from her husband's unit of ten were still alive. CNN is aware of the identity of the injured prisoner, but has been unable to confirm his hospitalisation, as separatist medical facilities are veiled in secrecy. Other messages between relatives also detailed the quiet desperation of prisoners, caught up in a Russian justice system where 99% of cases brought to trial result in conviction, and corruption weighs heavy on an over-burdened penal system. This month, one prisoner messaged his brother on WhatsApp about his decision to go. time Moscow's manpower options have ebbed over five-plus months of clumsy and gruelling invasion. Russian President Vladimir Putin initially stated no conscripts had been deployed in the war, before his ministry of defense admitted they had withdrawn some from the frontlines after their deployment in apparent error. The Kremlin has said there will be no general mobilization in Russia, perhaps fearing the policy would prove unpo[CENSORED]r, especially if losses spread across the po[CENSORED]tion did not significantly alter the battlefield dynamic. Prison recruitment is, activists and prisoners said, under the auspices of the Wagner private military contractor, which is not subject to the Russian military's ban on employing convicts. The prisoners have not shared any copies of their contracts with their relatives or activists, so the precise terms or employer remain unclear. Wagner -- which works globally and is run by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a man known as Putin's chef -- is Russia's most ubiquitous military contractor. Prigozhin denies ties to Wagner. The lack of clarity, coupled with the silence of their loved ones, only adds to relative's anxieties. Oksana, the half-sister of a Russian prisoner who had been offered deployment, said his mother had initially been keen to receive the salary from her son's service, but, since he vanished from their messaging apps, was beside herself with worry. "These are the least protected part of the po[CENSORED]tion. Putin said no conscripts would be sent, but they were. With convicts, it will be very hard to reveal they have been sent." "We know he was in Rostov Oblast," Oksana said, adding he had claimed he was in another prison's factory. "He rang her on a new WhatsApp number on 10th July and asked her to send a copy of her passport so she would get his wages," she said. This meant it was less likely he was in prison, she said, as an inmate's wages from prison labor are usually paid into their own account. "I am in contact with many relatives and they all have the same scenario: Send passport details. No contact," she said. "These are the least protected part of the po[CENSORED]tion. Putin said no conscripts would be sent, but they were. With convicts, it will be very hard to reveal they have been sent." Oksana's name has been changed due to security concerns. In late July, the mother received a message from another new number, familiarly written in her son's broken Russian. It insisted he was healthy, and OK, but gave no details as to his whereabouts. "There is some time left but it is going quickly", he wrote. "When I can I will call you." The mother was later rang by a person introducing themselves as an "accountant," who pledged to bring her son's salary in cash to her a week later. "CNN"

MultiVersus' season one has been delayed to an as-of-yet unconfirmed date, as well as the game's next character Morty. Season one of the Super Smash Bros. inspired, Warner Bros. IP-filled platformer was meant to kick off next Tuesday, August 9, and was meant to introduce Morty of Rick and Morty fame into the roster. Rick was almost meant to join some time during season one, but obviously will likely also be delayed. Following a tweet thanking fans for enjoying the open beta of MultiVersus, the official account wrote "We want to let everyone know that we are delaying the start of Season 1 & the release of Morty to a later date. We know this might be disappointing for some and want to assure our Community that we are dedicated to delivering new and exciting content that delights players." "We want to let everyone know that we are delaying the start of Season 1 & the release of Morty to a later date. We know this might be disappointing for some and want to assure our Community that we are dedicated to delivering new and exciting content that delights players." — MultiVersus (@multiversus) August 4, 2022 In another tweet paired with the announcement, the account said that it will let fans know the timing as soon as it can, and noted it appreciates everyone's patience. The open beta for the game officially started July 26, starting with 17 characters including Superman, Shaggy, The Iron Giant, Bugs Bunny, and more (which GameSpot has conveniently ranked for you here). Basketball player and real human being LeBron James also joined the roster as part of the open beta launch. In GameSpot's MultiVersus review, we gave the game an 8/10 saying, "The team-based mechanics are truly beyond anything else offered in a platform fighter, while the classic 1v1 format also impresses. The roster offers plenty of variety, though unlocking all of the characters without having to dip into the real-world wallet will definitely be a chore." MultiVersus is currently available in open beta on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and PC, complete with cross-play and cross-progression that works across all platforms. "GameSpot"

MultiVersus frames itself as the ultimate crossover fighter, a sort of "dream come true" scenario where anyone can face off against anyone else. It's a bold proclamation challenging the reign of Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, a game that features an unmatched all-star cast of video game characters duking it out. Many pretenders to that throne have come and gone but, surprisingly, MultiVersus makes a compelling claim. The game, which is in open public beta, has strong fundamentals, charm, and attention to detail that Smash clones that came before sorely lacked, making it one of the best platform fighting games ever made. MultiVersus follows the basic Smash Bros format: up to four players meet on a single battlefield and fight it out, with the goal of increasing damage enough to knock their opponents out of bounds. The first team to score four knockouts in a match--or the first fighter to score two knockouts in a 1v1 match--wins. So far, so Smash. However, MultiVersus puts far more emphasis on the 2v2 format, quickly establishing its own identity in the process. Mechanically, every fighter on the roster has moves that negatively affect opponents, while simultaneously having positive effects on teammates. For example, whenever Shaggy charges to full power--a brilliant use of the Ultra Instinct Shaggy meme--his partner also receives a power bump for their next attack. One of Wonder Woman's special attacks gives her a layer of special armor for added defense, and if she's close enough to her partner, she'll immediately jump to them and give them the buff too. This idea of teamwork and synergy being baked into the fundamentals of MultiVersus is a fresh and welcome change to the format, with no two matches ever feeling the same. The partner dynamic also strengthens the 2v2 mode, making it feel like the core format developers intend people to play. Part of that synergy also comes through the perk system, with characters earning permanent buffs that can be equipped before a match and stacked between two teammates. The Wildcat Brawler perk, for instance, increases the damage of all grounded melee attacks for a team by five percent when equipped by one player, with that percentage doubled if both players equip it. As you level up characters, you can also borrow perks from teammates before a match begins--guaranteeing stacks if planned correctly--or even train a character to learn new perks using in-game gold. It's an ingenious system with multitudes of permutations, especially when borrowing and training come into the mix, and it achieves a level of strategic planning unlike anything a platform fighter has ever seen before. More impressively, the bulk of MultiVersus's modes also feature online play. In free for all pitting up to four human players against each other, and cross-play capabilities allowing consoles and PC to intermingle. There have been a few stutters here and there, and the occasional "now you see me, now you don't" moments when a bad connection causes an opponent to spontaneously teleport around a map instead of walking, but the bulk of the matches played have been smooth sailing. Accomplishing this when there's only two players in a match is an achievement by itself, but making the network function with four people across any number of environments--console or PC--is a herculean task, and for the majority of the time, MultiVersus holds its own. "MultiVersus has strong fundamentals, charm, and attention to detail that Smash clones that came before sorely lacked, making it one of the best platform fighting games ever made" The roster isn't quite as large as the more established Smash Bros. Ultimate cast, but it's off to a terrific start. Velma Dinkley joins the aforementioned Shaggy from the Scooby-Doo franchise, while Wonder Woman reps DC Comics with Batman, Superman, and Harley Quinn. Steven Universe's Steven and Garnet made the cut, as did Bugs Bunny and Taz from Looney Tunes, and Jake the Dog and Finn the Human from Adventure Time. The 17-character roster is rounded out by Arya Stark from Game of Thrones, iconic cat and mouse duo Tom and Jerry, the Iron Giant, Space Jam's version of Lebron James, and Reindog, an original creation by developer Player First Games; he's the goodest of good boys. The majority of the roster will not be available to most players when they first log on. This is a free-to-play game after all, and with that distinction also comes microtransactions complete with multiple currencies. The game does offer a rotating list of four trial characters, but the bulk of the fighters will be locked. Luckily you can earn these fighters with in-game gold along with the premium currency called Gleamium, which is purchased with real money. However, the grind to unlock every character through gold is longer than it should be. Case in point: When the trial character rotation changed after the early access period ended, I had earned enough gold through playing the game to purchase three of the four characters from the previous rotation, with the fourth coming only one day later. Around 10 hours of gameplay for four characters might sound fine to the most dedicated players, but that means it will take around 40 hours to unlock the entire roster--and by that time, at least 1-2 more fighters will be added. This also doesn't include the cosmetics that are only available for purchase with Gleamium, including costume variants for the cast, special announcer packs where the game's characters serve as the match announcer, and more. Tack on a battle pass with both free and premium tiers and the monetization is strong in MultiVersus. While the free-to-play grind here isn't a complete turn-off, more generosity with in-game gold--or the option to purchase everything with gold or Gleamium--would lessen the sting. That said, the game does prove that free-to-play can work with fighting games, positioning it as a trendsetter for the entire genre. The announcer packs do a great job of highlighting the voice acting in MultiVersus, which ranks among the best we've ever heard. Every one of the characters is brimming with personality thanks to an all-star cast of performers returning to characters they helped po[CENSORED]rize, including Matthew Lillard as Shaggy, Tara Strong as Harley Quinn, and Kevin Conroy as Batman. These aren't random one-off lines that repeat ad nauseum either; there is a level of care and detail in some of the dialogue that goes above and beyond what we'd expected. Characters will address the other combatants before, during, and after battles with witty banter that simply can't be heard anywhere else. Hearing Bugs Bunny call Arya Stark "the belle of Winterfell" will never not earn a smile, just as hearing Superman say "let's see how iron stacks up against steel" to the Iron Giant will never not sound surreal. "Surreal" is actually a perfect word to describe MultiVersus, a game that brings together iconic characters and makes them fight. These characters are as authentic as they come, feeling as if they've been ripped straight from their source material thanks to excellent voice work. The team-based mechanics are truly beyond anything else offered in a platform fighter, while the classic 1v1 format also impresses. The roster offers plenty of variety, though unlocking all of the characters without having to dip into the real-world wallet will definitely be a chore. We don't know how much of its power MultiVersus has tapped into yet--the open beta will soon give way to Season 1--but as it stands now the game has smashed any and all expectations. Even if MultiVersus doesn't unseat the king, it is more than ready to rule its own little corner of the kingdom. "GameSpot"

V1 the best, better effects and text i like the blur