The mystery surrounding Deadlock, Valve’s work-in-progress MOBA shooter, has largely evaporated. Its freely extendable invite system is about as effective at controlling player headcount as a disinterested football steward, meaning pretty much anyone with a clued-in Steam friend can get in and start poking around its secrets. And yet, being a lane-pushing wizard fighter in the Dota 2 vein, it’s already a vast tangle of interplaying abilities, items, strats, and often unspoken rules, of the kind that even experienced gankists will take hundreds of hours to learn. It’s been too much for poor Brendy, at any rate.

Still, Brendy is but one man. What if we had but four men, working in tandem to crush lanes and flatten Patrons just as Gabe intended? To find out if Deadlock is indeed more comprehensible as a team sport, Graham, Ed, Ollie, and James joined forces, promptly getting fucked up yet emerging from the warlock hospital with a deeper understanding of its workings. Or, at least, if anyone would keep playing.

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Ogres, Orcs, and Khorne are all on the way in the upcoming expansion for strategy game Total War: Warhammer 3, and Creative Assembly have just released their latest dev vlog with a few more details on what to expect. There’s still no word on the exact title, although given the established naming convention (Shadows Of Change, Thrones Of Decay), I’m tentatively calling it “Sniffers Of Glue” in honour of the No Think, Only Krump faction selection.

You’ll find the vlog in its full glory below. What’s interesting about this one is that vlog mainstay director Rich Alridge has brought along some new faces: battle designer Josh King and audio director Chris Goldsmith. And, yes, so no-one can accuse me of burying the lede: that audio design involved the enthusiastic, deeply disgusting slurping of porridge and yoghurt, and the jangling of real bones. The source of the bones is not revealed.

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Amplitude Studios, developers of many a game with "Endless" in the name, have split with publisher Sega to become independent again, with ownership of the studio reverting to its original founders and "other members of the team". The developers say everyone is parting "on good terms" and that the last eight years of getting published under Sega has been "amazing". But there are other businessy reasons, of course. Namely, Sega have been trying to trim down their European studios for the past year, and Amplitude is just the latest bunch of devs affected by that.

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The Rise Of The Golden Idol will crack its new case wide open on November 12th, but the detective sequel is just the beginning. Color Gray Games are planning another tranche of DLC akin to that received by the first game, The Case Of The Golden Idol: four standalone mysteries that introduce more mysteries to solve.

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A Labour minister confirmed that the application process for Personal Independence Payment is being 'kept under review'

I have a confession to make. After taking a handful of autonomous taxi rides, I have gone from a hater to a friend of robot cars in just a few weeks, says Annalee Newitz

This is a sponsored article brought to you by Khalifa University of Science and Technology.

Abu Dhabi-based Khalifa University of Science and Technology in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will be hosting the 36th edition of the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2024) to highlight the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s rapidly advancing capabilities in the robotics and intelligent transport systems.

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Themed “Robotics for Sustainable Development,” the IROS 2024 will be held from 14-18 October 2024 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Center (ADNEC) in the UAE’s capital city. It will offer a platform for universities and research institutions to display their research and innovation activities and initiatives in robotics, gathering researchers, academics, leading corporate majors, and industry professionals from around the globe.

A total of 13 forums, nine global-level competitions and challenges covering various aspects of robotics and AI, an IROS Expo, as well as an exclusive Career Fair will also be part of IROS 2024. The challenges and competitions will focus on physical or athletic intelligence of robots, remote robot navigation, robot manipulation, underwater robotics, as well as perception and sensing.

Delegates for the event will represent sectors including manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, agriculture, defense, security, and mining sectors with 60 percent of the talent pool having over six years of experience in robotics. A major component of the conference will be the poster sessions, keynotes, panel discussions by researchers and scientists, and networking events.

Khalifa University will be hosting IROS 2024 to highlight the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s rapidly advancing capabilities in the robotics and intelligent transport systems.Khalifa University

Abu Dhabi ranks first on the world’s safest cities list in 2024, according to online database Numbeo, out of 329 global cities in the 2024 standings, holding the title for eight consecutive years since 2017, reflecting the emirate’s ongoing efforts to ensure a good quality of life for citizens and residents.

With a multicultural community, Abu Dhabi is home to people from more than 200 nationalities and draws a large number of tourists to some of the top art galleries in the city such as Louvre Abu Dhabi and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, as well as other destinations such as Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi.

The UAE and Abu Dhabi have increasingly become a center for creative skillsets, human capital and advanced technologies, attracting several international and regional events such as the global COP28 UAE climate summit, in which more than 160 countries participated.

Abu Dhabi city itself has hosted a number of association conventions such as the 34th International Nursing Research Congress and is set to host the UNCTAD World Investment Forum, the 13th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC13), the 12th World Environment Education Congress in 2024, and the IUCN World Conservation Congress in 2025.

Khalifa University’s Center for Robotics and Autonomous Systems (KU-CARS) includes a vibrant multidisciplinary environment for conducting robotics and autonomous vehicle-related research and innovation.Khalifa University

Dr. Jorge Dias, IROS 2024 General Chair, said: “Khalifa University is delighted to bring the Intelligent Robots and Systems 2024 to Abu Dhabi in the UAE and highlight the innovations in line with the theme Robotics for Sustainable Development. As the region’s rapidly advancing capabilities in robotics and intelligent transport systems gain momentum, this event serves as a platform to incubate ideas, exchange knowledge, foster collaboration, and showcase our research and innovation activities. By hosting IROS 2024, Khalifa University aims to reaffirm the UAE’s status as a global innovation hub and destination for all industry stakeholders to collaborate on cutting-edge research and explore opportunities for growth within the UAE’s innovation ecosystem.”

“This event serves as a platform to incubate ideas, exchange knowledge, foster collaboration, and showcase our research and innovation activities” —Dr. Jorge Dias, IROS 2024 General Chair

Dr. Dias added: “The organizing committee of IROS 2024 has received over 4000 submissions representing 60 countries, with China leading with 1,029 papers, followed by the U.S. (777), Germany (302), and Japan (253), as well as the U.K. and South Korea (173 each). The UAE with a total of 68 papers comes atop the Arab region.”

Driving innovation at Khalifa University is the Center for Robotics and Autonomous Systems (KU-CARS) with around 50 researchers and state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, including a vibrant multidisciplinary environment for conducting robotics and autonomous vehicle-related research and innovation.

IROS 2024 is sponsored by IEEE Robotics and Automation Society, Abu Dhabi Convention and Exhibition Bureau, the Robotics Society of Japan (RSJ), the Society of Instrument and Control Engineers (SICE), the New Technology Foundation, and the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society (IES).

More information at https://iros2024-abudhabi.org/

The Tablelands in Gros Morne National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the most unique landscapes in the world — and its orange peridotite rocks could hold the secret to finding life on Mars.

President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East, marking another key position for his incoming administration.

The Adison Vein Locator gives medical professionals Superman-like X-ray vision for finding patients' veins for easy insertion of needles.

A Good Bundle is a rag-tag alliance of a great many indie game devs, from big dogs to folks with one smallish title to their name. It’s a game bundle, sure, but it’s not your typical bundle. There are 151 games (& tools) by 115 devs in here, and it’s all for charity: split 50/50 […]

Jill Parton, 46, suffered fatal injuries when she was hit by a freight train in Heaton Chapel in the early hours of June 3 this year, an inquest heard

When the fever, pains and pus-filled lesions of an mpox infection strike, how dangerous is it and how can it be treated?

Narratives around addiction often reduce it to a series of poor choices, lack of values and weakness. This has real-world consequences, warns Anna Wolfe

Despite his own isolationist musings, the first picks of President-elect Donald Trump's incoming administration hail from a decidedly more traditionalist wing of the Republican Party.

President-elect Trump announced that he had picked real estate investor and campaign donor Steve Witkoff to be his special envoy to the Middle East.

In physical books, yellowing pages are usually a sign of age. But brand-new users of Amazon’s Kindle Colorsofts, the tech giant’s first color e-reader, are already noticing yellow hues appearing at the bottoms of their displays.

Since the complaints began the trickle in, Amazon has reportedly suspended shipments and announced that it is working to fix the issue. (As of publication of this article, the US $280 Kindle had an average 2.6 star rating on Amazon.) It’s not yet clear what is causing the discoloration. But while the issue is new—and unexpected—the technology is not, says Jason Heikenfeld, an IEEE Fellow and engineering professor at the University of Cincinnati. The Kindle Colorsoft, which became available on 30 October, uses “a very old approach,” says Heikenfeld, who previously worked to develop the ultimate e-paper technology. “It was the first approach everybody tried.”

Amazon’s e-reader uses reflective display technology developed by E Ink, a company that started in the 1990s as an MIT Media Lab spin off before developing its now-dominant electronic paper displays. E Ink is used in Kindles, as well as top e-readers from Kobo, reMarkable, Onyx, and more. E Ink first introduced Kaleido—the basis of the Colorsoft’s display—five years ago, though the road to full-color e-paper started well before.

How E-Readers Work

Monochromatic Kindles work by applying voltages to electrodes in the screen that bring black or white pigment to the top of each pixel. Those pixels then reflect ambient light, creating a paper-like display. To create a full-color display, companies like E Ink added an array of filters just above the ink. This approach didn’t work well at first because the filters lost too much light, making the displays dark and low resolution. But with a few adjustments, Kaleido was ready for consumer products in 2019. (Other approaches—like adding colored pigments to the ink—have been developed, but these come with their own drawbacks, including a higher price tag.)

Given this design, it initially seemed to Heikenfeld that the issue would have stemmed from the software, which determines the voltages applied to each electrode. This aligned with reports from some users that the issue appeared after a software update.

But industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo suggested in a post on X that the issue is due to the e-reader’s hardware. Amazon switched the optically clear adhesive (OCA) used in the Colorsoft to a material that may not be so optically clear. In its announcement of the Colorsoft, the company boasted “custom formulated coatings” that would enhance the color display as one of the new e-reader’s innovations.

In terms of resolving the issue, Kuo’s post also stated that “While component suppliers have developed several hardware solutions, Amazon seems to be leaning toward a software-based fix.” Heikenfeld is not sure how a software fix would work, apart from blacking out the bottom of the screen.

Amazon did not reply to IEEE Spectrum’s request for comment. In an email to IEEE Spectrum, E Ink stated, “While we cannot comment on any individual partner or product, we are committed to supporting our partners in understanding and addressing any issues that arise.”

The Future of E-Readers

It took a long time for color Kindles to arrive, and the future of reflective e-reader displays isn’t likely to improve much, according to Heikenfeld. “I used to work a lot in this field, and it just really slowed down at some point, because it’s a tough nut to crack,” Heikenfeld says.

There are inherent limitations and inefficiencies to working with filter-based color displays that rely on ambient light, and there’s no Moore’s Law for these displays. Instead, their improvement is asymptotic—and we may already be close to the limit. Meanwhile, displays that emit light, like LCD and OLED, continue to improve. “An iPad does a pretty damn good job with battery life now,” says Heikenfeld.

At the same time, he believes there will always be a place for reflective displays, which remain a more natural experience for our eyes. “We live in a world of reflective color,” Heikenfeld says.

This is story was updated on 12 November 2024 to correct that Jason Heikenfeld is an IEEE Fellow.

Humans perfected how to identify wild animals over millennia, and now biologists are rediscovering the exceptional worth of the tracks and marks left behind

Broadcom acquisition was a "wake-up call" for VMware-dependent SMBs.

Prince Turki bin Faisal al-Saud, former Saudi ambassador to the United States, has written an open letter to President-elect Donald Trump asking him to “finish what you started the last time you occupied the White House” with respect to Middle Eastern affairs.

The post Saudi Royals Ask Trump to ‘Finish What You Started’ in Middle East appeared first on Breitbart.

President-elect Donald Trump announced that he has picked businessman and real estate investor Steven Witkoff to serve as Special Envoy to the Middle East.

The post President-Elect Donald Trump Picks Businessman Steven Witkoff to Be Special Envoy to Middle East appeared first on Breitbart.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) weighed in on reports regarding President-elect Donald Trump's choice for secretary of state.

The post Fetterman Calls Rubio ‘Strong Choice’ as Trump Reportedly Considers Him for Secretary of State appeared first on Breitbart.

A Kenora, Ont., resident says she wants to see more resources for people who encounter sick or injured animals after seeing a deer in her yard with a tomato cage stuck on its head. Here's how the community has responded to the incident, and what we know about the deer's status.

All the kit balancing, squad leading, and lore you could want, if you want it.

‘Idli Kadai,’ Dhanush’s fourth directorial project, has music scored by GV Prakash Kumar

Set in a near future where an unknown disease has ravaged American society, the story follows a civilian pilot living a solitary life on an abandoned Colorado airbase with his dog and a tough ex-Marine

Singles star Leylah Fernandez and doubles specialist Gabriela Dabrowski will anchor Canada's five-player lineup this week when the team tries to defend its Billie Jean King Cup title in Malaga, Spain.

When thinking about the classics or games I’d recommend people play on mobile, Mini Metro is one of the best …

Continue reading "Exclusive: Dinosaur Polo Club Interview – CEO Amie Wolken on Mini Metro, Mini Motorways, the Team, Free DLC, Working With Apple, Ports, and More"

When Square Enix released the monster collecting RPG Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince on Switch last year, I loved …

Continue reading "‘Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince’ Is Coming to iOS, Android, and Steam on September 11th With All DLC Included From the Switch Release"

Among Us (Free) has done loads of crossovers and collaborations over the years, but one I didn’t expect at all …

Continue reading "‘Among Us’ Is Collaborating With ‘Ace Attorney Investigations’ for Its Newest Free Cosmetic DLC Out Next Week"

Apple just announced October 2024’s new Apple Arcade games with NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition as the headliner. Following yesterday’s news …

Continue reading "‘NBA 2K25 Arcade Edition’ Headlines October 2024’s New Apple Arcade Releases With Three App Store Greats"

Can’t do global work if the White House is forcing sale of US business, Mayer said.

Throughout the fall, unusual white blobs have been washing ashore on beaches in eastern Newfoundland. A Memorial University chemist says the substance is a type of pollution that shouldn't have been in the ocean in the first place.

Amazon is reportedly developing smart glasses for its delivery drivers, according to sources who spoke to Reuters. These glasses are intended to cut “seconds” from each delivery because, well, productivity or whatever. Sources say that they are an extension of the pre-existing Echo Frames smart glasses and are known by the internal code Amelia.

These seconds will be shaved off in a couple of ways. First of all, the glasses reportedly include an embedded display to guide delivery drivers around and within buildings. They will allegedly also provide drivers with “turn-by-turn navigation” instructions while driving. Finally, wearing AR glasses means that drivers won’t have to carry a handheld GPS device. You know what that means. They’ll be able to carry more packages at once. It’s a real mitzvah.

I’m being snarky, and for good reason, but there could be some actual benefit here. I’ve been a delivery driver before and often the biggest time-sink is wandering around labyrinthine building complexes like a lost puppy. I wouldn’t have minded a device that told me where the elevator was. However, I would not have liked being forced to wear cumbersome AR glasses to make that happen.

To that end, the sources tell Reuters that this project is not an absolute certainty. The glasses could be shelved if they don’t live up to the initial promise or if they’re too expensive to manufacture. Even if things go smoothly, it’ll likely be years before Amazon drivers are mandated to wear the glasses. The company is reportedly having trouble integrating a battery that can last a full eight-hour shift and settling on a design that doesn’t cause fatigue during use. There’s also the matter of collecting all of that building and neighborhood data, which is no small feat.

Amazon told Reuters that it is “continuously innovating to create an even safer and better delivery experience for drivers” but refused to comment on the existence of these AR glasses. "We otherwise don’t comment on our product roadmap,” a spokesperson said.

The Echo Frames have turned out to be a pretty big misfire for Amazon. The same report indicates that the company has sold only 10,000 units since the third-gen glasses came out last year.

Disclosure: I sit on the Planning Committee for the FDLI Ad-Promo conference. This is an unpaid, volunteer position. The contents of this post were not discussed with or influenced by any member of the FDLI staff.

This post provides some of the highlights from FDLI's ad-promo conference. An on-demand version of the conference presentations is available on-demand at: https://www.fdli.org/2023/11/advertising-promotion-for-medical-products-conference-on-demand/

The Food and Drug Law Institute's (FDLI) Advertising & Promotion for Medical Products conference wrapped up last week. I attended the conference and also moderated a panel on data privacy and concerns about the use of health data for the targeting of advertising.

The first day kicked off with a fireside chat with Arun Rao from the Department of Justice (DOJ), Lauren Roth from the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), and Serena Viswanathan from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), led by Christine Simmon of FDLI.

FDA and FTC both noted their recent guidance updates. For FDA, that means the new Communications From Firms to Health Care Providers Regarding Scientific Information on Unapproved Uses of Approved/Cleared Medical Products Questions and Answers Guidance for Industry (SIUU) and the newly finalized Presenting Quantitative Efficacy and Risk Information in Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Promotional Labeling and Advertisements. 

FTC has also been busy, providing updated guidance on endorsements, reviews and testimonials, and a distinct Health Products Compliance Guidance.

DOJ, FDA, and FTC also mentioned the extent to which they are still very much digging out from the backlog created by the pandemic. More than three years after COVID-19 first came to our shores, its effects are very much still being felt.

Rao also mentioned a new policy from DOJ to create a safe harbor for self-reported disclosures made in connection with a merger or acquisition. Under this new policy, companies that learn of wrongdoing at a company they have acquired can be protected from later liability if they report the wrongdoing to DOJ within six months of closing the merger or acquisition. This is as Rao described it a "very big juicy carrot" to encourage self-reporting of wrongdoing, and it also ramps up the need for effective due diligence during the M&A to ensure that all wrongdoing is uncovered and can be reported.

One final point mentioned by Roth is the importance to FDA of combatting misinformation about medical products. Commissioner Califf has repeatedly warned about the need to combat misinformation, and it is not a stretch to see FDA's SIUU guidance as one small step in that direction. By providing further guidance about exactly how sponsors can share truthful, not misleading information about unapproved uses, FDA is enabling efforts to get good information from the people who should be seen as the most reliable source of that information, the product's sponsors.

The next session of the day included an update from OPDP, APLB, CDRH, and CVM related to advertising and promotion.

Katie Gray from OPDP gave a detailed presentation on the Recorlev enforcement action from earlier this year and an overview of the SIUU guidance. Lisa Stockbridge from APLB provided a reminder on reminder advertising, indicating that this well-established category of communication continues to cause firms difficulties. Debra Wolf of CDRH emphasized that although there has not been a significant amount of publicly available enforcement actions from CDRH, the Agency continues to have many private communications with firms about their marketing efforts.

The next plenary session covered scientific exchange and pre-approval communications. Elisabethann Wright of Cooley provided particular insight into the EU's approach, which of course varies widely by country, and has been especially active on platforms such as LinkedIn. Of note is the extremely active role played by the industry's own associations in not merely promulgating guidance and establishing codes of conduct but in regularly enforcing violations of those codes against member companies.

After lunch, the first set of breakout sessions occurred including the panel I moderated on data privacy. I found the discussion very lively and enjoyed hearing from Elisa Jillson from the FTC, Lyra Correa from HHS's Office of Civil Rights, and Nancy Perkins from Arnold & Porter. I have previously opined that the 2020s will be most known for its focus on privacy, and while the cookie-less future we keep hearing about gets pushed back once again, there's growing awareness and concern about how much deeply personal information has been given up and on how companies are using (or misusing) that data.

Simultaneous sessions looked at the recently finalized guidance from the FDA on Presenting Quantitative Efficacy and Risk Information in Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Promotional Labeling and Advertisements while another session looked more into the promotion of veterinary products. Because I was leading another session, I couldn't attend either, but I'm looking forward to using that link provided earlier to view the recordings. 

The afternoon plenary sessions resumed with a look at FTC's role in enforcement of healthcare advertising and closed out with a session on that perennial chestnut of social media usage.

Day two of the conference kicked off with an enlightening discussion of so-called CFL (Consistent with FDA-Labeling) claims. Torrey Cope of Sidley Austin provided an insightful look not just at FDA's enforcement post-guidance for claims that failed to meet the CFL standard, but also for taking the time to examine the nature and wording around the acceptance by FDA of so-called Real-World Evidence (RWE) in the context of product approvals. RWE is not the sole source of CFL claims, but Cope was able to provide some valuable lessons.

The afternoon's breakout sessions included one on artificial intelligence (which I attended), promotional challenges in rare disease treatments, and navigating accelerated approval promotion.

The closing session focused on other avenues for enforcement, including of course, the Better Business Bureau National Advertising Division's (NAD), as well as general counsel to general counsel complaint letters, filing complaints with the FDA, and perhaps even bringing a Lanham Act case.

The NAD's finding against Novartis earlier this year was of course a hot topic. But it is worth noting that in a more recent case, Viiv simply declined to participate in the NAD process. NAD referred the matter to FDA and FTC noting that decision, but as of the writing of this post, no further action by the government has been seen.

Alan Minsk of Arnall Golden Gregory noted the importance of determining your goal when looking at the appropriate path. If your goal is get a competitor in trouble then you really need to rely on the government or the courts, but if your goal is primarily to just get the company to stop the use of misleading promotion, then NAD or a direct complaint letter might be a far more cost-effective solution.

Overall, the conference was a huge success, though my opinion should be viewed as biased because I sit on the conference planning committee. FDA is definitely digging itself out from the pandemic backlog. I fully expect we'll see more from the Agency, as a very active 2023 has already demonstrated.

For people with diabetes, glucose monitors are a valuable tool to monitor their blood sugar. The current generation of these biosensors detect glucose levels with thin, metallic filaments inserted in subcutaneous tissue, the deepest layer of the skin where most body fat is stored.

Medical technology company Biolinq is developing a new type of glucose sensor that doesn’t go deeper than the dermis, the middle layer of skin that sits above the subcutaneous tissue. The company’s “intradermal” biosensors take advantage of metabolic activity in shallower layers of skin, using an array of electrochemical microsensors to measure glucose—and other chemicals in the body—just beneath the skin’s surface.

Biolinq just concluded a pivotal clinical trial earlier this month, according to CEO Rich Yang, and the company plans to submit the device to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for approval at the end of the year. In April, Biolinq received US $58 million in funding to support the completion of its clinical trials and subsequent submission to the FDA.

Biolinq’s glucose sensor is “the world’s first intradermal sensor that is completely autonomous,” Yang says. While other glucose monitors require a smartphone or other reader to collect and display the data, Biolinq’s includes an LED display to show when the user’s glucose is within a healthy range (indicated by a blue light) or above that range (yellow light). “We’re providing real-time feedback for people who otherwise could not see or feel their symptoms,” Yang says. (In addition to this real-time feedback, the user can also load long-term data onto a smartphone by placing it next to the sensor, like Abbott’s FreeStyle Libre, another glucose monitor.)

More than 2,000 microsensor components are etched onto each 200-millimeter silicon wafer used to manufacture the biosensors.Biolinq

Biolinq’s hope is that its approach could lead to sustainable changes in behavior on the part of the individual using the sensor. The device is intentionally placed on the upper forearm to be in plain sight, so users can receive immediate feedback without manually checking a reader. “If you drink a glass of orange juice or soda, you’ll see this go from blue to yellow,” Yang explains. That could help users better understand how their actions—such as drinking a sugary beverage—change their blood sugar and take steps to reduce that effect.

Biolinq’s device consists of an array of microneedles etched onto a silicon wafer using semiconductor manufacturing. (Other glucose sensors’ filaments are inserted with an introducer needle.) Each chip has a small 2-millimeter by 2-millimeter footprint and contains seven independent microneedles, which are coated with membranes through a process similar to electroplating in jewelry making. One challenge the industry has faced is ensuring that microsensors do not break at this small scale. The key engineering insight Biolinq introduced, Yang says, was using semiconductor manufacturing to build the biosensors. Importantly, he says, silicon “is harder than titanium and steel at this scale.”

Miniaturization allows for sensing closer to the surface of the skin, where there is a high level of metabolic activity. That makes the shallow depth ideal for monitoring glucose, as well as other important biomarkers, Yang says. Due to this versatility, combined with the use of a sensor array, the device in development can also monitor lactate, an important indicator of muscle fatigue. With the addition of a third data point, ketones (which are produced when the body burns fat), Biolinq aims to “essentially have a metabolic panel on one chip,” Yang says.

Using an array of sensors also creates redundancy, improving the reliability of the device if one sensor fails or becomes less accurate. Glucose monitors tend to drift over the course of wear, but with multiple sensors, Yang says that drift can be better managed.

One downside to the autonomous display is the drain on battery life, Yang says. The battery life limits the biosensor’s wear time to 5 days in the first-generation device. Biolinq aims to extend that to 10 days of continuous wear in its second generation, which is currently in development, by using a custom chip optimized for low-power consumption rather than off-the-shelf components.

The company has collected nearly 1 million hours of human performance data, along with comparators including commercial glucose monitors and venous blood samples, Yang says. Biolinq aims to gain FDA approval first for use in people with type 2 diabetes not using insulin and later expand to other medical indications.

This article appears in the August 2024 print issue as “Glucose Monitor Takes Page From Chipmaking.”

The quest for realism in Thai drama The Empress of Ayodhaya went too far when a cat was reportedly drugged in a poisoning scene. In episode five of the show, the character Indravedi (Fern Nopjira Lerkkajornnamkul) suspects her drink has been drugged, so she asks nanny Thongdee (Ja Molywon Phantara) to test it out on the black feline. The cat can be seen convulsing and retching, and the camera moves to show Indravedi looking concerned, while Thongdee declares that it is dead. The scene caused public outrage with fears that the cat had actually been killed, and calls to ban the period drama were trending on X. On Nov 7, a now-deleted X account reportedly belonging to Ja posted: "The cat didn't actually die. We put it under anaesthesia, but while filming, the cat retched and seized." She and Fern initially thought the cat had actually died while filming and their faces "turned pale", she added.

Feb 10, 2024

Assaf Zoran argues that it is crucial to hold Iran accountable and convey the cost associated with arming, training, financing, and promoting violence through proxies.

Mar 12, 2024

What are the drivers of citizens’ support for electoral gender quotas in transitioning and authoritarian states? Despite extensive research examining public support for women in politics in democracies, we know little about how the public perceives them in less democratic settings. To address this shortcoming, we use original survey data from authoritarian Morocco and transitioning Tunisia – two Arab countries hailed for their progressive gender policies. We argue that in these countries where citizens lack political information, they instead rely on their assessment of the government’s performance to form attitudes toward gender quotas. Furthermore, electoral legitimacy plays an important role in shaping citizens’ support for quotas, which are closely linked to how elections and legislatures operate. The findings offer strong support for our theoretical expectations and uncover important gender differences.

Apr 25, 2024

On April 23, the final session examined healthcare access policies and public health initiatives across Africa. In our discussions, we explored the politics of health and healthcare policy, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. We identified political barriers to expanding healthcare coverage and access, and the dialogue centered on areas of progress in addressing infectious and chronic diseases. Beyond focusing on the challenges in implementing effective healthcare policies, in this session we invited participants to propose policy solutions as we look towards the future. The study group counted with the presence of external expert guest Dr. Salma Abdalla. Dr. Abdalla is a Sudanese medical doctor and Assistant Professor in Global Health and Epidemiology at Boston University School of Public Health. She was the Director of the Rockefeller-Boston University 3-D Commission on Determinants of health, Data science, and Decision making. She also served as a secretariat member for the WHO Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, Katie Chen, Master in Public Administration/ International Development Candidate at Harvard Kennedy School, delivered a memo briefing on how to boost childhood immunization rates in African countries, including through increased vaccine manufacturing, drone delivery., and behavioural interventions to combat vaccine hesitancy.

Dec 24, 2023

Juliette Kayyem argues that the sooner President Joe Biden acknowledges that the United States will likely be drawn into a fight to protect shipping traffic through the Suez Canal, the more time the U.S. military has to plan, and the less severe the harm will be to the global economy.

Apr 15, 2024

Stephen Walt argues that the tragic irony is that the individuals and organizations in the United States that have been the most ardent in shielding Israel from criticism and pushing one administration after another to back Israel, no matter what it does, have in fact done enormous damage to the country that they were trying to help.

Jun 14, 2024

Dr. Gloria Ayee led a study group over the course of five sessions during the Spring of 2024, exploring the current pivotal moment on the African continent. Participants of the study group were invited to reflect on the role that international cooperation must play in supporting inclusive, sustainable development in Africa, as well as to move beyond outdated perspectives and learn about Africa’s profound transformation through trade, investments in clean energy and health, and youth empowerment initiatives.

Jun 21, 2024

Dr. Gloria Ayee led a study group over the course of five sessions during the Spring of 2024, exploring the current pivotal moment on the African continent. Reflecting back, Dr. Ayee highlights the key takeaways from the study group.

Aug 5, 2024

This original primer, conducted as research for The Africa Futures Project, is an initial exploration into the evolving roles and increasing influence of “middle powers” in Africa. It covers a diverse array of existing and aspiring middle powers, presenting key points for each nation under four distinct analytical lenses.

Born on May 28, 2015, Obi was the first of Zoo Knoxville�s gorilla babies. She�s a natural gymnast who loves to climb. Obi�s name means �heart.� Ubuntu arrived on June 2, 2015. He's all boy and particularly enjoys pestering his half-sister Obi.

hello products are a solution to the struggle at the sink. This advertisement shows the frustrations moms and dads can face when it�s brush time and they need to negotiate with their kids to brush.