Blog

  • Nvidia’s Jensen Huang plans Beijing trip ahead of new China AI chip launch – Financial Times

    Nvidia’s Jensen Huang plans Beijing trip ahead of new China AI chip launch – Financial Times

    1. Nvidia’s Jensen Huang plans Beijing trip ahead of new China AI chip launch  Financial Times
    2. Why the future of AI may be open (and Chinese)  Al Jazeera
    3. China Eyes 115,000 Banned Nvidia AI Chips for Massive Data Centers  TipRanks
    4. OpenAI, Investors Eye Agent Startups Led by Chinese Founders  The Information
    5. Chinese AI scientists, Beijing’s message to Brics: SCMP daily highlights  South China Morning Post

    Continue Reading

  • King Charles is seeing Prince Harry ‘being whipped’

    King Charles is seeing Prince Harry ‘being whipped’

    Prince Harry turning into a ‘whipped’ husband

    Prince Harry has found himself on the receiving end of a big verdict regarding his wife, as well as his status in the US.

    Royal broadcaster Esther Krakue is the one who made this comment about the Duke of Sussex in her interview with The Sun.

    According to the broadcaster, “We know that King Charles said something about him being whipped.”

    For those unversed, she believes the Spare serves under her thumb, and has been this way since they made their move to the US.

    A big reason for this is because “we keep hearing things consistently coming out from courtiers and people that are close to the royal family,” Mr Krakue said.

    Even the Queen, known for not being very vocal in her opinions had a change of heart about the Duchess, in the years leading.

    According to Mr Phil Dampier, who also sat for the same chat alongside the broadcaster, “The Queen’s opinion of Meghan evolved, and it’s much like how the country’s opinion evolved.”

    She is said to have considered Meghan’s actions ‘evil’ at one point.

    Following this admission Ms Krakue also added her two cents into this ‘change’. According to her, “much like the public, I think the Queen thought Meghan was a breath of fresh air. Very intelligent, very well-spoken, obviously from her acting background. And she worked, she welcomed her. I think, like much of the country with open arms, I think where things went wrong was clearly the cultural clash.”

    After all, Meghan is said to have considered Prince Harry a ‘billionaire’ back when they first married. Only later is she to have realized she “was marrying a millionaire with, like, sort of a reduced status.”

    “That might have been not appealing eventually. But also I just, I don’t think she fully understood or was even interested in what the role was supposed to become.”


    Continue Reading

  • Scientists are using AI to invent proteins from scratch

    Scientists are using AI to invent proteins from scratch

    Proteins are the molecular machines that make life work. Each one in your body has a specific task—some become muscles, bones and skin. Others carry oxygen in the blood or get used as hormones or antibodies. Yet more become enzymes, helping to catalyse chemical reactions inside our bodies.

    Given proteins can do so many things, what if scientists could design bespoke versions to order? Novel proteins, never seen before in nature, could make biofuels, say, or clean up pollution or create new ways to harvest power from sunlight. David Baker, a biochemist and recent Nobel laureate in chemistry, has been working on that challenge since the 1980s. Now, powered by artificial intelligence and inspired by living cells, he is leading scientists around the world in inventing a whole new molecular world.

    Continue Reading

  • Copper deposits in Tibet are fueled by an ancient tectonic collision

    Copper deposits in Tibet are fueled by an ancient tectonic collision

    Copper wires snake through every electric motor, power line, and rooftop solar panel on the planet. Demand for the metal is rising so fast that the International Energy Agency projects a 50 percent jump by 2040 in its net‑zero scenario.

    A new study shows that some of Earth’s richest copper troves owe their existence not to ongoing subduction zones, but to the long‑lasting chemical aftershocks of a continental collision in southern Tibet.


    The analysis includes contributions from Dr. Yongjun Lu of the School of Earth and Oceans at the University of Western Australia.

    Copper demand is soaring

    Copper’s unmatched ability to move electrons makes it the backbone of electric vehicles, heat pumps, and sprawling renewable‑energy grids. Two tons of copper may hide inside a utility‑scale wind turbine, while an electric car uses roughly three times more than a gasoline model.

    More than half of the global resource sits in porphyry copper deposit clusters, gigantic ore bodies formed by mineral‑rich fluids rising from cooling magma. They are the workhorses of modern mining because a single district can run for decades.

    Yet many prospective belts lie high in the Andes, Himalayas, or other remote ranges where exploration is costly and climate risks loom. Predicting which mountains hide ore and which hide barren rock has become an urgent economic puzzle.

    Exploration teams scour trace‑element maps, but ore‑forming magmas can emerge tens of millions of years after an oceanic plate vanished. The Tibetan discovery uncovers why that delay happens, and how to spot it.

    Ancient collision sparked copper deposits

    The Gangdese Belt in southern Tibet holds more than 45 million tons of copper spread across Miocene‑age porphyries. Those deposits erupted between 18 and 13 million years ago, long after the Neo‑Tethys seafloor slid beneath Asia and broke off.

    Researchers sampled igneous rocks spanning the entire subduction‑collision cycle. They grouped them into precollisional, syncollisional, and postcollisional suites, then tracked how each generation changed.

    Both vanadium‑to‑scandium ratios and zircon oxygen‑fugacity indicators spiked in the post‑collision magmas. That jump signaled a surge of oxidized material, exactly what copper needs to stay dissolved until the magma reaches the shallow crust.

    “This finding challenges the notion that only oceanic subduction introduces such oxidants into the mantle,” explained Dr. Lu.

    Tracking copper’s rocky origin

    To figure out where the extra oxygen came from, the researchers looked at chemical fingerprints left behind in the rocks.

    They studied mercury isotopes, which hold onto their unique signature even after going through intense heat and pressure. In the post-collision rocks, that signature pointed to surface sediments, not deep mantle sources.

    The team also examined magnesium isotopes in volcanic rocks called ultrapotassic lavas and found unusually light values. This kind of reading is a known sign of recycled carbonate material.

    Together, the results showed that sediments from the Indian plate had sunk deep underground and played a major role in creating the copper-rich magma.

    Mercury‑isotope work on porphyry systems elsewhere has reached similar conclusions, reinforcing the method as a global tracer of recycled surface material.

    Crustal material fuels deposits

    Carbonate layers from the Indian margin, rich in calcium and trapped CO2, rode the downgoing slab. At depths near 60 miles and temperatures above 1,600°F, those carbonates reacted with iron‑bearing mantle minerals.

    The redox exchange turned ferrous iron into ferric iron, pushing the oxidation state of the mantle wedge higher.

    Oxidized mantle melts can carry sulfur as sulfate instead of sulfide. That subtle chemical switch lets copper remain in solution rather than being locked away in early sulfide droplets. When the melt stalls in the mid‑crust, pressure drops and fluids separate, precipitating copper sulfides that build an ore shell.

    “Think of it as a second wind for copper‑forming magmas, even after the oceanic plate is gone, recycled crustal sediments can continue to fuel metal‑rich systems for millions of years,” said Lu.

    Finding copper from ancient collisions

    Most exploration models steer geologists toward active volcanic arcs. The new Tibetan evidence widens the hunting ground to include fossil arcs sitting above former collision zones.

    Provinces such as the Zagros in Iran or the Lesser Caucasus share similar histories of carbonate‑rich continental subduction.

    “It changes the way we think about where and how to look for giant copper deposits and highlights the potential of post‑subduction settings, particularly those involving continent‑continent collision, as important frontiers for exploration,” noted Lu.

    Mercury and magnesium isotope surveys no longer belong only in academic labs. They can flag hidden oxidized corridors before expensive drilling begins, saving both time and shareholder cash.

    What it means for clean energy

    Copper supply already trails projected demand. Without fresh discoveries, shortages could slow grid upgrades or inflate the cost of electric cars.

    By demonstrating that continent‑continent collisions can keep ore‑forming magmas alive long after subduction halts, the Tibetan study offers practical hope.

    Companies willing to brave high‑altitude logistics may unlock deposits that standard models overlook. Nations rich in orogenic belts gain leverage in critical‑minerals diplomacy, while resource-poor regions must double down on recycling and substitution.

    The study shows that plate tectonics still shapes the economics of decarbonization, one oxidized magma batch at a time.

    The study is published in the journal Science Advances.

    —–

    Like what you read? Subscribe to our newsletter for engaging articles, exclusive content, and the latest updates. 

    Check us out on EarthSnap, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

    —–


    Continue Reading

  • Ben Barnes shares honest thoughts on ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ remake

    Ben Barnes shares honest thoughts on ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ remake

    Ben Barnes shares excitement about ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ remake

    Ben Barnes is excited for Greta Gerwig’s new adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia book series for Netflix.

    Barnes played Prince Caspian in the original films and says he’s thrilled for the latest adaptation.

    “With classic literature, there’s no end to the ways they can be adapted as long as it’s being fresh and it’s speaking to a new generation,” Barnes told Variety.

    He continued, “I think that those stories have this one, some fantasy really allows you to tell beautifully allegorical stories about hope and goodness and faith.”

    The Shadow and Bone star added, “I think that it’d be really interesting to see her take on that. I’m thrilled that [“Narnia”] is getting retold.”

    Barnes also likened his character from the Narnia movies and his new TV series The Institute.

    “When I was in my early twenties, I was involved in telling those stories for the next generation,” he said.

    “So, to get back to playing a man with a real firm grasp on his moral compass, who is fighting to stand up for what’s right. It was something that I was really interested in,” he shared.

    The Institute is based on a Stephen King novel of the same name and follows a twelve-year-old genius, Luke Ellis, as he gets abducted and put in an institute which experiments on gifted children.

    The Institute premieres July 13 on MGM+.


    Continue Reading

  • Nvidia becomes first company to reach $4tn in market value | Technology

    Nvidia becomes first company to reach $4tn in market value | Technology

    Chipmaker Nvidia became the first public company in history to scale a $4tn market value on Wednesday as its stock price continues a years-long stratospheric rise.

    Shares of the top chip designer rose roughly 2.4% to $164, benefiting from the ongoing surge in demand for artificial intelligence technologies. Nvidia’s chips and associated software are considered world leaders for building artificial intelligence products.

    Nvidia achieved a $1tn market value for the first time back in June 2023 and the surge continued unabated with its market value – the total value of its shares – more than tripling in about a year, faster than Apple and Microsoft, the only other US firms with a market value of more than $3tn. Apple was the first company to reach a valuation of $3tn, back in 2022.

    Microsoft is the second-biggest US company, with a market value of about $3.75tn. Nvidia’s value is equivalent to 7.3% of the entire S&P 500, Wall Street’s benchmark share index. Apple and Microsoft, account for about 7% and 6%, respectively.

    Nvidia has rebounded about 74% from its April lows, when global markets were jolted by Donald Trump’s tariff volley. US export controls forbid Nvidia from selling its most advanced chips to China, a restriction the company has pushed back on.

    However, optimism around trade partners reaching deals with the US have lifted stocks of late, with the S&P 500 hitting an all-time high.

    Daniel Ives, tech analyst at Wedbush, predicted that more big tech giants will come to join Nvidia in the $4tn market club. “The poster children for the AI revolution are led by Nvidia and Microsoft as both are foundational pieces of building on the biggest tech trend we have seen in our 25 years covering tech stocks on the Street,” he said.

    Microsoft will hit $4tn “this summer”, Ives said, “and then over the next 18 months the focus will be on the $5tn … as this tech bull market is still early being led by the AI revolution.”

    skip past newsletter promotion

    Reuters contributed reporting

    Continue Reading

  • Queen Camilla, Prince William send subtle message to Harry in public moment

    Queen Camilla, Prince William send subtle message to Harry in public moment



    Queen Camilla, Prince William send subtle message to Harry in public moment

    Prince William and Queen Camilla sent a clear message to Prince Harry as they displayed a rare moment of public affection towards each other during French President Emmanuel Macron’s arrival for his state visit to the UK on Tuesday.

    The 77-year-old Queen’s thoughtful gesture towards the future king seems to be message to the Duke of Sussex, who has not on good term with Camilla since she married to King Charles.

    The heir to the throne was photographed planting a tender kiss on his stepmother’s cheek at RAF Northolt.

    Kate Middleton enjoyed the moment when the Prince of Wales carefully dipped his head to avoid knocking Camilla’s emerald-green Philip Treacy hat as he greeted her.

    The stunning moment highlighted the strengthening relationship between William and Camilla, who have grown notably closer during recent family health crisis.

    However, the pair’s gesture could further hurt Harry, who has previously accused Camilla of interfering in his relationship with his father King Charles.

    The warm exchange occurred as William and Kate welcomed President Macron and his wife Brigitte for their three-day visit. The state visit marked the first by an EU head of state since Brexit, underscoring its diplomatic significance.

     The lavish state banquet at Windsor Castle drew numerous high-profile attendees, including Sir Elton John.

    Continue Reading

  • Apple Readies First Upgrade to Vision Pro Headset (AAPL)

    Apple Readies First Upgrade to Vision Pro Headset (AAPL)

    Apple Inc. is planning to introduce its first upgrade to the $3,499 Vision Pro headset as early as this year, aiming to improve the performance and comfort of a device that has been slow to catch on with consumers.

    The updated Vision Pro will include a faster processor and components that can better run artificial intelligence, according to people with knowledge of the matter. There also will be a new strap to make it easier to wear the headset for long periods of time, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans haven’t been announced.

    Continue Reading

  • All digital Xbox games now carry standardized accessibility tags

    All digital Xbox games now carry standardized accessibility tags

    Microsoft just announced that all digital games and experiences are now accompanied by . These Accessible Games Initiative tags are designed to “provide players with clear and consistent information about the accessibility features in video games.”

    They are found on top of the store page. As you can see below, the game South of Midnight . Clicking “More” leads to a description of each. In this case, the game boasts adjustable input sensitivity, multiple volume controls, color alternatives, large subtitles and the ability to play without button holds, among other accessibility-minded features.

    Descriptions of features.

    Microsoft

    Each of these tags can now be used as a filter in the Xbox Store, to make it easier to search for the perfect game. They are also available in the Xbox PC app, Xbox Mobile app and, of course, on the website. Xbox began implementing , but this move marks a transition to the .

    These standardized tags are being managed by the Entertainment Software Association, with input from companies like Nintendo, EA, Ubisoft, Sony and Microsoft. Other big firms like Amazon Games, Riot Games, Square Enix and Warner Bros. Games have since joined the project. All told, , advertising features like text-to-speech and menu narration.

    Despite being involved since inception, Nintendo and Sony have yet to update their store pages with these tags. It looks like Microsoft is the first of the big three to do so.

    While the gaming industry is standardizing this feature, the mobile app industry is playing catch up. Apple recently announced it’s developing its own accessibility tag system, . This feature will be introduced to the App Store later in the year.

    If you buy something through a link in this article, we may earn commission.

    Continue Reading

  • New study identifies four distinct autism subtypes with unique genetic signatures

    New study identifies four distinct autism subtypes with unique genetic signatures

    Autism is classified as a ‘spectrum’ for a reason: Each case is different. Scientists have struggled to parse through the many ways autism can manifest, much less to link these varying observable traits (called phenotypes) to underlying genetics.

    A new study in Nature Genetics from researchers at the Flatiron Institute’s Center for Computational Biology (CCB) and their collaborators leverages data from SPARK, the largest-ever study of autism, to analyze phenotypic and genotypic data from more than 5,000 participants with autism of ages 4–18. The study identifies four groups for which individuals with autism share similar traits and links them to biological processes associated with specific genetic variants. With these classifications and information about the mechanisms that drive them, scientists can work toward more precise and personalized support, such as counseling or physical therapy, and help individuals access appropriate interventions earlier.

    “A clinically grounded, data-driven subtyping of autism would really help kids get the support they need early on,” says study co-lead author Natalie Sauerwald, a CCB associate research scientist. “If you know that a person’s subtype often co-occurs with ADHD or anxiety, for example, then caregivers can get support resources in place and maybe gain additional understanding of their experience and needs.”

    Our study takes a ‘person-centered’ approach, in which we focus on the full spectrum of traits that an individual might exhibit rather than just one trait, like IQ. This approach was key to our discovery of these clinically relevant autism classes and to deciphering the biology that underlies them.”


    Olga Troyanskaya, senior research scientist and deputy director for genomics at CCB, senior author of the study

    “This study is a powerful demonstration of how data from SPARK can lead to new, clinically-relevant insights, and it also underscores the power of leveraging machine learning approaches to analyze the large amount of phenotypic and genotypic data available in SPARK,” says Kelsey Martin, executive vice president of autism and neuroscience at the Simons Foundation. “Participants in SPARK volunteer this data, and we are incredibly grateful for their generosity and their commitment to accelerating research.”

    The study was co-led by Aviya Litman of Princeton University, Sauerwald of the Flatiron Institute, and Troyanskaya, who holds joint appointments at Princeton and the Flatiron Institute, along with Christopher Y. Park and Yun Hao of the Flatiron Institute; LeeAnne Green Snyder and Jennifer Foss-Feig of the Simons Foundation; Chandra L. Theesfeld of Princeton; and Ilan Dinstein of Ben Gurion University in Israel.

    Navigating a treasure trove of data

    The project began after Sauerwald, one of the study’s first authors, spoke with autism researchers about leveraging CCB’s computational tools to analyze phenotypic and genotypic data from SPARK. SPARK, a landmark study supported by the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI), is dedicated to improving the lives of people with autism by identifying the causes of autism and supporting research that informs more effective therapies, treatments, services and support. To date, the study has engaged over 150,000 people with autism and more than 200,000 of their family members.

    “I think [SPARK] is the only cohort that has this combination of extensive phenotypic data as well as genetic data,” says Sauerwald.

    But finding the best way to analyze the data would be a challenge: It includes lots of different measures collected in lots of different ways.

    “Some of our data is simple yes-or-no – does a participant have a particular trait or not?” says Sauerwald. “Other data is more nuanced, like questions that have categorical responses such as language levels, or still others that vary along a spectrum, such as the age at which a child reaches a developmental milestone.”

    The team tried many types of models to see which could best integrate the data and landed on a type called general finite mixture modeling. Mixture modeling is unique because it can handle these different data types individually and then integrate them into a single probability for each person, describing how likely they are to belong to a particular class.

    A mixture model also allowed the team to take what they call a ‘person-centered’ approach to the data. Most studies take a ‘trait-centered’ approach, in which scientists pick a trait and examine everyone who exhibits it. A person-centered approach starts with a person and examines all their traits together, much like a clinician would provide care by attending to the whole individual.

    “Our goal with the person-centered approach is to maintain representation of the whole individual so that we can more fully model their complex spectrum of traits together,” says Litman, the study’s other lead author. “Our model allowed us to do this, and to define groups of individuals with shared phenotypic profiles, which translated to clinically similar presentations.”

    Four distinct classes

    Based on the results of their model, the scientists were able to classify SPARK participants into four main groups.

    • Individuals in the first group, Social and Behavioral Challenges, have many co-occurring traits such as ADHD, anxiety disorders, depression and mood dysregulation. They also tend to display restricted or repetitive behaviors and challenges with communication. However, these individuals don’t show many developmental delays: They tend to hit their developmental milestones at the same pace as children without autism. One of the larger groups, it constitutes around 37% of the participants.
    • The second group, Mixed ASD with Developmental Delay, is the inverse of the Social and Behavioral Challenges group. While these individuals hit many of their milestones later in development than their peers without autism, they typically don’t have the same kinds of issues with anxiety, depression, mood dysregulation or disruptive behaviors. This group represents approximately 19% of the participants.
    • The third group, Moderate Challenges, includes individuals who show challenges in the areas laid out in the Social and Behavioral group, but typically not all of them, and to a lesser degree. This group also does not show developmental delays. Roughly 34% of participants fall into this category.
    • The fourth and final group, Broadly Affected, is characterized by widespread challenges, including restricted and repetitive behaviors, social communication, developmental delays, mood dysregulation, anxiety and depression. This is the smallest group, accounting for around 10% of the participants.

    Importantly, the researchers stress that these classes likely aren’t a definitive, comprehensive grouping, but rather a place to start. “This doesn’t mean that there’s necessarily only four classes,” says Troyanskaya. “I think what this demonstrates is that there are at least four classes. But having the four, which are clinically and biologically relevant, is significant.”

    Uncovering pathways at play

    The classes were established by phenotype; that is, looking only at traits and not at genetics. Then, when the scientists started to study the genetics within each class, they were surprised at the results. Specifically, the genetic variants found in individuals within each class affected biological processes in very distinct ways.

    In one analysis, the team traced how specific genetic changes affect certain genes-and then looked at what those genes actually do by studying which molecular circuits, or pathways, they act in.

    Researchers found that each autism subtype had its own biological signature.

    “There was little to no overlap in the impacted pathways between the classes,” says Litman. “And what was even more interesting is that while the impacted pathways – things like neuronal action potentials or chromatin organization – were all previously implicated in autism, each one was largely associated with a different class.”

    Remarkably, the team discovered that not just which genes were impacted by mutations-but when they were activated-differed by class.

    “In the Social and Behavioral Challenges class, quite surprisingly, the impacted genes were mostly active after birth, and this group also experienced very few developmental delays and the latest average age of diagnosis,” says Litman. “We found the opposite to be true for the ASD with Developmental Delays class, where impacted genes were mostly active prenatally.”

    Big data leads to big insights

    The team hopes this work underscores the importance of large datasets that contain many types of data.

    “I think this work highlights how important it is to have large cohorts with matched phenotypic and genetic data,” says Litman. “This way, we can connect across them and make discoveries that are not apparent by just looking at one modality alone.”

    In the future, the team would like to dive into even more types of data under this lens, including looking at the ‘non-coding’ portion of the genome. These genes constitute more than 98 percent of the genome but are less studied because they do not go on to create proteins. They still play very important roles in regulating gene expression and other cellular processes implicated in autism.

    “The more data, the more discovery,” says Sauerwald. “We know there’s a lot of contribution from the non-coding genome in autism, but we haven’t been able to study it yet in the context of these classes. So a big next step is going to be adding in this other 98 percent.”

    Source:

    Journal reference:

    Litman, A., et al. (2025). Decomposition of phenotypic heterogeneity in autism reveals underlying genetic programs. Nature Genetics. doi.org/10.1038/s41588-025-02224-z.

    Continue Reading