American military backs an entirely new kind of processor

Virtually every processor you see is based on the same basic (Von Neumann) computing model: they’re designed to access large chunks of sequential data and fill their caches as often as possible. This isn’t the quickest way to accomplish every task, however, and the American military wants to explore an entirely different kind of chip. DARPA is spending $80 million to fund the development of the world’s first graph analytic processor. The HIVE (Hierarchical Identify Verify Exploit) accesses random, 8-byte data points from the system’s global memory, crunching each of those points individually. That’s a much faster approach for handling large data, which frequently involves many relationships between info sets. It’s also extremely scalable, so you can use as many HIVE chips as you need to accomplish your goals.

The agency isn’t alone in its work: Intel, Qualcomm and Northrop Grumman are involved, as are researchers at Georgia Tech and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

It’s going to take a long time before you see a HIVE chip in service — DARPA and its allies are effectively reinventing the wheel. If the concept works as promised, though, it could quickly spot problems before they become especially dire. The military could catch the first signs of a cyberattack, while disease control experts could detect an imminent outbreak. Simply speaking, massive amounts of data shouldn’t be quite so intimidating — you could just ask a computer to connect the dots.

Via: EETimes

Source: DARPA (1), (2)

For ‘NBA Live 18,’ it’s about bringing ‘the magic’ back

Long after its groundbreaking launch in 1995, EA’s flagship basketball game has had a troubled run this decade but NBA Live 18 shows that it may be able to turn things around. After missing last year entirely (following a hiatus between the 2010 and 2014 editions), its return is based on both revamped gameplay and a new story mode titled The One. Each element takes aim at some of the best features its competition, NBA 2K, has refined over the last few years, while trying to bring back what producer Mike Mahar called “the magic” of previous games.

As Mahar explained in an interview with Engadget, by upgrading the technology underpinning the game, “We’ve added a lot more physicality, both on defense around the perimeter, and in the post, and around the rim, a lot of collisions, dunk ons, really cool stuff that you’d expect to see in the NBA. And we’ve added a game mechanic that will essentially, allows you to play, I guess the best metaphor I can come up with is almost like a fighting game on the perimeter. If you’re the offensive player, your timing, your skill and the character you’re controlling, your success in getting to the rim and dunking it, or taking it to the hole is predicated on your twitch skills and the skills of your character versus my defensive player. My twitch skills, and my ability to cut you off and shut you down open up timing windows for me to steal the ball or kind of make you pick the ball up.”

The improved animations and control were apparent in the demo I played and were enough to make the players feel more like their real life counterparts. I couldn’t help but compare it to 2K, where despite its depth and realistic feel, I’ve rarely mastered the controls well enough to regularly pull off player-specific highlights like the ones you see in Momentous trailers. Here, Lebron’s between the legs dribble, Klay’s three-point celebration or Draymond flexing were just a bit more accessible than I’ve become accustomed to and felt like they were pulled right out of the real NBA game.

That said, not everything felt perfect right away. The jump shot meter seemed like something pulled from Madden’s kicking game and was tough for me to get a read on right away, and while the system for switching players or passing was generally intuitive, the process of holding down a bumper while also selecting a button to choose a specific player wasn’t as smooth as other games.

In the demo I got to try an NBA finals game featuring the Cavaliers vs. Warriors, and a Drew League game featuring all-star squads, but the other highlight feature of NBA Live 18 is its new “The One” mode, which allows players to take a player through the ranks of streetball pro-am competitions and (hopefully) the NBA. By including both elements so strongly — Mahar called it RPG-like, citing games like FIFA Ultimate Team and Destiny as part of the inspiration — it varies a bit from NBA 2K’s MyPlayer, while also allowing for co-op play, “boss battles” and more.

According to Mahar, “it was about listening to what our players had to say, really how they liked playing the game, and what the most popular way to play basketball games and generally sports games…you can still play in a league and dominate the NBA and win rings and win MVPs and make the All-Star team and do all of that and become a legend, but we also want to take a big part of the basketball world, which is the streets and the pro-am.” The One is also about making this a year-round game for players, not simply tied to the ebb and flow of the NBA season and roster updates.

Addressing last year’s delayed game (that turned into Live 18), he said that given “the technical capabilities, the volume of animations, the revamping of a lot of our systems, the breaking down of our modes, adding to them and building them back up… it’s just frankly something we didn’t think we could do in the span of one cycle, and the last thing we want to do for the players who want to play our game is to kind of under deliver on that promise.”

The decision to get it right may have been a hard one, but it’s borne out in the quality of the game so far — if only everyone had learned this lesson already. The team at Tiburon has mostly answered my question of whether or not it can make a game that compares to the competition, but between now and August we’ll have to see more — and it appears there is a lot more, especially when it comes to The One and multiplayer – about how it can surpass the juggernaut that is 2K. Even if it’s just as good, players will want to convince their friends to make the switch before buying into EA’s basketball vision.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.

Watch Microsoft’s Xbox E3 2017 event live right here at 5PM ET

Microsoft is getting down to business a little early this year and kicking off its E3 announcements on Sunday. We’re on the scene in Los Angeles ready to bring you all of the news as its announced — including the latest on Project Scorpio. However, if you’d like to follow the action on stage live, you can do so with Twitch, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Mixer streams. The event is also available on Xbox consoles and broadcast live on Fuse (the TV channel). Just remember: The news is always best served with our witty commentary on the side, so you’ll want to keep an eye on our liveblog as well. Microsoft’s big event starts at 5PM ET/2PM PT, and we’ve embedded the livestream down below to make things easy for you.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

Watch live video from Xbox on http://www.twitch.tv

We’re live from Microsoft’s E3 2017 ‘Scorpio’ event!

Microsoft will answer three important questions today: How much Project Scorpio, its high-powered Xbox One, will cost; what the console’s name will be; and when we can actually buy it. Lucky for you, you can follow along with your favorite members of the Engadget gaming crew as we deliver the blow-by-blow from Redmond’s annual E3 media briefing as it happens and as those questions are answered, on this very page.

Surely Microsoft will boast a few reasons to buy into its newly improved Xbox ecosystem, and even offer a few examples of why people should consider waiting until Scorpio (or whatever its final name will be) today. Hopefully. Regardless, today’s media briefing from the University of Southern California’s Galen Center will be one to watch. And if the company finally shows off Crackdown 3, you can say we predicted that well before the show even started.

‘Need for Speed: Payback’ and the business of car crashes

Need for Speed and Burnout are completely different franchises. Both are arcadey racers, sure, but the former’s fantasy kind of starts and stops with outrunning the cops in Lamborghinis and other supercars at extremely high speeds. The latter used unlicensed knock-offs for its races because its bread and butter was portraying car accidents with near-pornographic detail — something you just can’t do when a game developer is essentially “borrowing” cars from their real-world owners. But the just-debuted Need for Speed: Payback blurs the lines between the two divergent franchises in its depiction of vehicular mayhem, pushing the boundaries of how much carnage is possible with a real-world car.

Car manufacturers can impose strict rules on just what a game designer can do to their four-wheeled babies in exchange for a studio having access to virtual versions of the vehicles. For example, Chevy might tell Game Studio A that if it wants to have a Corvette in its game, then under no circumstances can the vehicle flip over or have body parts fall off. Based on what Electronic Arts has shown of Payback, it looks like the team at Ghost Games has persuaded manufacturers to give them more freedom.

When you crash in the game, everything happens in slow motion. The camera zooms in on the “goon” car you just shunted, the sound drops out, colors oversaturate, sparks fly and fire engulfs the enemy vehicle as it spins on its front bumper. If you’ve played Burnout: Paradise this will look familiar, but in Payback it happens with a BMW versus a ride from one of the game’s made-up automakers. How is that even possible?

“We have close communications with [car manufacturers],” executive producer Marcus Nilsson said. “We show them everything and they can absolutely go back and say, ‘We don’t like the way you treat our brand in this specific situation; we won’t approve that.’ And we’d have to change it.”

Nilsson said that the integrity of the franchise is more important to him than having a BMW in the game, so he pushes back when the automakers start to object.

“This is the game we’re making, do you [automaker] want to be a part of that? Then this is what you need to live with.”

Even then, what’s shown onscreen is still comparatively tame compared to how Burnout: Paradise portrays similar events. The biggest restrictions Ghost faced were how the team portrayed passenger safety.

“They [automakers] want to make sure the passenger compartment is always a safe place for the passengers to be,” vehicle art director Bryn Alban said. “We can’t have the doors open and we can’t crush the car too much.”

However, Alban was still surprised with how generous the manufacturers were. “They’re [automakers] way more lenient than we first envisioned, and we can actually do a lot more than we thought,” he said.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

We could be closer than ever to regenerating skin for burn victims

Why it matters to you

While we’ve made great strides in the medical community, we still haven’t found a way to regrow skin — until now.

The human body is pretty good at fixing itself, but now, science may help it get even better. Thanks to a major breakthrough from a small biotech company in Utah, we may be closer to regenerating our body’s largest organ — our skin. In initial experiments, Salt Lake City, Utah-based PolarityTED has successfully regenerated skin in pigs with burns and abrasions, and this could herald imminent success in humans as well.

As the company explains on its website, “Using our investigational platform technology, we seek to regenerate full-thickness, fully functional skin in humans with our launch product, SkinTE. The process we are developing should allow a patient’s own skin to be fully expanded from a small biopsy, and then regenerate all layers (epidermis & dermis), hair, and appendages — which has never been done before.”

Currently, burn victims have “severely limited” options when it comes to solutions to damaged skin, said PolarityTE’s founder and CEO Denver Lough in an interview with Reuters. Skin grafts are a possibility, but even the most advanced versions are a rather unsatisfactory substitute for the real thing. But PolarityTE’s SkinTE may provide a tenable solution.

In its pre-clinical study, PolarityTE used its new technology on pigs, and its SkinTE therapy “resulted in scar-less healing, growth of hair follicles, complete wound coverage, and the progressive regeneration of all skin layers,” according to the company. And don’t worry — pigs weren’t arbitrarily chosen as lab animals. Rather, because swine skin is a bit more complicated and stronger than human skin, success with pigs is generally considered a good omen for effectiveness among humans.

Human trials could begin as early as later this year, and the therapy itself might be made available 12 to 18 months after these trials are completed. Lough noted, “If clinically successful, the PolarityTE platform could deliver the first scientific breakthrough in wound healing and reconstructive surgery in nearly half a century.”

5 songs you need to stream this week: TLC, Phoenix, and more

Every week, there are thousands of new songs hitting the airwaves — and it’s just too much for your two ears to handle. With all those options, you can’t be wasting your time on tracks that deserve a thumbs-down click.

But don’t worry, we’re going to save you the hassle. We listen to some of the most-hyped and interesting songs each week, and tell you which are worthy of your precious listening time.

Here are our top five songs to stream this week. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to our Spotify page for a playlist of our weekly picks, which can also be found at the bottom of this post.

TLC — Way Back

Legendary ’90s R&B queens TLC return to the pop spotlight with new sounds this week. Way Back, which serves as the lead single off the group’s upcoming self-titled album (and sadly lacks third group member Lisa Lopes, who passed away in 2002), features a classic synth-driven West Coast hip-hop groove with subtle trumpet accents,  as well as a special guest verse from Snoop Dogg to close it out.

Phoenix — Goodbye Soleil

French electro-pop outfit Phoenix celebrated the launch of their latest record, Ti Amo, this week with the release of the song Goodbye Soleil, which brings back the same clean beats and vintage synth sounds that fans know and love. This one’s a mid-album single that sounds like it could have easily been on a club mix in 1985 Paris. It’s the kind of thing you put on at a party when you want everyone to make their way to the dance floor.

Alvvays — In Undertow

Canadian indie rockers Alvvays recently announced their second studio album, Antisocialites. This brisk pop number as a tease of the other material they’ll share with audiences in early September.  In Undertow is as crisp and clean as anything we’ve ever heard from the band, an honest look at a failing relationship that finds lead singer Molly Rankin asking hard questions of herself and her now ex-partner.

Sampha — Plastic 100°C (And More)

There are very few voices in the world that can stand on their own without a wall of sound, and British R&B songwriter Sampha’s is assuredly one of them. On his recent KEXP session, the sparse piano-and-voice arrangements favored by the up-and-coming musician are absolutely stunning, grabbing your ear and drawing you deeper with each intimate musical inflection.

Twin Peaks — Tossing Tears

There’s a drawling, muddy quality to Twin Peak’s latest song, Tossing Tears, that makes it perfect for hard-to-get-through midweek days. Accented by speedy guitar lines — and one particularly interesting piano-and-string interlude that leads to a series of choir-filled backgrounds — the song is beautifully and elegantly shaped, growing in your eardrums from beginning to end.

Iron & Wine — Call It Dreaming

A chirping summer day, self-driving truck, and a particularly friendly farm dog feature prominently in the music video for Iron & Wine’s latest song, Call It Dreaming, a brisk folk jam that pairs perfectly with a glass of sweet tea. Sure, this new song is not the most nuanced of songwriter Sam Beam’s many incredible singles, but boy is it cathartic on a warm and fading afternoon.

That’s it for now, but tune in next week for more tunes, and check out the playlist loaded with our recent selections below:

Take your bike game to a higher gear with these 8 epic cycling gadgets

A bicycle is a simple machine, sure, but there is plenty of room for aftermarket customization. The cycling industry itself enjoyed a massive expansion of late that’s seen it transform into a multi-billion dollar market over the past few decades — the result of manufacturers looking to help individuals train more efficiently and stay safe on today’s crowded thoroughfares.

While most bicyclists have a basic headlight and taillight, there remain a host of more sophisticated accessories capable of adding a little punch to your daily commute. From a bike pump that stealthily fits into your bike frame to one of the most advanced smart helmets on the market, here are eight of our favorite cycling gadgets.

Lumos Smart cycling helmet ($179)

We tested the Lumos smart helmet earlier this year and the device remains one of our favorite bicycle accessories. The Lumos features vivid, white LEDs on the front and a series of red LEDs on the rear, both of which provide ample luminescence for nighttime treks about town. The Lumos senses your velocity, too, and as your speed decreases, the helmet illuminates all of the rear LEDs, acting as a brake light for your bike.

A wireless, two-button remote also easily attaches to your handlebar, allowing you to activate the left and right turn signals on the backside of the helmet for clear communication with other commuters and pedestrians on the roadways. The paired Lumos app indicates the battery life of both the wireless remote and the helmet itself, and you can even adjust the accelerometer sensitivity from directly within the app. Read our full review here.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

PowerTap P1 Pedals and trainer ($1,200)

Understanding your unique performance metrics allows you to train more efficiently over time. With this in mind, cyclists will surely enjoy these smart pedals from PowerTap. You can easily connect and swap P1 Pedals between bikes, allowing for quick and reliable “plug-and-play” training. The P1 Pedals also utilize Bluetooth to connect to an array of smart devices and once connected, the units monitor the cadence and speed of your pedaling.

The pedals also measure the activity of both pedals independently, enabling you to pinpoint weaknesses and imbalances in your cycling. This specific package from PowerTap also includes the CycleOps 9904 Fluid2 Bike Trainer Base. With this unit, you can quickly connect your bike to the wheel mount for convenient indoor training during colder months or less than optimal weather conditions.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

Linka smart lock ($130)

Let’s be honest, it’s rather annoying to lock and then unlock your bicycle when you’re forced to make a pitstop. Luckily, the Linka smart lock connects to your smartphone and automatically locks as you walk away from your ride. If you’re leaving your bike unattended for longer stints, you can easily use the Linka in tandem with a cable to secure your entire bike and wheels.

If you’ve forgotten your phone — or if your battery dies in the middle of a trip — the Linka has a four-digit keypad for manual locking and unlocking. For added security, the Linka uses an accelerometer to activate a 100-decibel siren in the event someone attempts to move your bicycle. The device also communicates with other Linkas in the vicinity over Bluetooth, allowing it to record your location in the lock’s accompanying app. At just 1.6 pounds, the Linka smart lock secures your bike without weighing you down.

Buy one now from:

Linka

Hammerhead One ($70)

A GPS is a handy device to have at your disposal while biking around town and the Hammerhead One is one of the most functional GPS units available for cyclists. The unit easily mounts onto most handlebars and the paired smartphone app allows you to choose a route based on your distance, terrain, and weather preferences.

Rather than simply following a traditional overhead grid for mapping, the Hammerhead One uses a series of lights along the top of the unit to indicate directions along your route. These intuitive lights change as you progress, minimizing the need to incessantly check your exact location. This allows you to keep your eyes on the roadway while maintaining directional cues in your periphery. Read more about the original Hammerhead here.

Buy one now from:

Hammerhead Amazon

Garmin Varia Radar ($200)

One of the most dangerous aspects of riding a bike around town are vehicles approaching from the rear. Thankfully, Garmin’s Varia radar takes the guesswork out of this dangerous blindspot. The rear-mounted radar detects vehicles up to 153 yards behind you and transmits this data to the paired handlebar-mounted display. This readout highlights up to eight vehicles in your blindspot, which allows you to be mindful of approaching vehicles without requiring a look over your shoulder. The radar-equipped taillight also brightens as vehicles approach for added safety. Read our full review here.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

Venstar Waterproof Bluetooth speaker ($46)

Listening to music while casually cruising about town is just a given at this point. However, some states are beginning to pass legislation banning individuals from wearing earbuds while bicycling to prevent accidents and injuries. With this in mind, a Bluetooth speaker for your bike is a great way to avoid an accident and, possibly, a hefty fine. Fortunately, this Bluetooth speaker from Venstar is one of the more versatile options on the market.

The waterproof unit easily connects to all your Bluetooth-enabled devices, allowing for up to eight hours of continuous play, which should be more than enough battery life to power you through multiple outings. Moreover, you can easily remove the Venstar from its handlebar mount, so you can clip the unit onto your backpack for a little musical accompaniment on the trail.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

Blaze Laserlight ($199)

When cycling at night, a bike light is a great way to not only illuminate the road ahead of you but to also alert approaching vehicles of your presence. Unfortunately, most basic models often produce a rather limited beam with minimal bonus functionality. The Blaze Laserlight, on the other hand, dishes out an impressive 300 lumens of light. Unlike other models, the Laserlight is also capable of beaming a green LED on the ground directly ahead of your bicycle. This is extremely handy when rounding a corner or while traversing busier thoroughfares. The unit recharges via USB, too, and each charge is expected to last up to 13 hours.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

BioLogic PostPump ($40)

While this list is mostly dominated by tech-focused accessories, we certainly haven’t forgotten about the basics. As anyone who has ever had a flat tire knows, a bicycle pump can be a godsend when you’re commuting. However, carrying a bike pump at all times in your backpack can be rather inefficient and annoying. With this in mind, BioLogic built a bike pump that conveniently stows within the hollow seat post of your bike frame, directly beneath your seat.

Buy one now from:

Amazon

How to set up local multiplayer in Star Trek: Bridge Crew

This is the best way to enjoy local Star Trek: Bridge Crew matches.

Some of us want nothing more than to put on our Starfleet uniform, head into a room with four VR headsets and three similarly dressed friends, and play Star Trek: Bridge Crew all day. That doesn’t really work out well in reality for several reasons, not the least of which is actually putting four VR headsets in a large enough room can be complicated an expensive.

That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, but it does mean you’re going to want to tweak your settings even if you’re able to get two people in the same room for this game. Here’s what you need to know!

Read more at VR Heads!

Take a deep dive into Python with this programming bundle!

Python is one of the most popular programming languages out there thanks to a fast edit-test-debug cycle and wide versatility. Jumping into Python from a beginner’s standpoint isn’t exactly easy, as there are many routes you can take. The training required to become a Python expert is also generally quite expensive.

Become a Python master and save over 90% with this bundle! Learn more

What if there was a bundle of courses that included teaching for beginners as well as advanced users? What if, instead of paying more than $1,000, you could pay under $100 and have access to the bundle for a full year?

Right now, Android Central Digital Offers has this exact deal. The Complete Python Programming Bundle includes seven courses that will take you from amateur to expert. Instead of paying the regular price of $1,176, you’ll pay just $79. That’s 93 percent off!

Included in this bundle are hundreds of lectures in the following seven courses:

• Python Programming for Beginners
• Learn Python Django from Scratch
• Python Game Development: Create a Flappy Bird Clone
• Python Web Programming
• Python Object Oriented Programming Fundamentals
• Data Analysis with Python and Pandas
• Data Visualisation with Python and Matplotlib

Save an additional 50% at checkout by using the coupon code BUNDLE50! Learn more

Even if you’re a complete beginner to Python, this bundle has what’s needed to become a true expert. At 93 percent off, there’s no better time to get started on a new career. Don’t wait too long; this deal won’t last forever. For a limited time only, save an additional 50% off by using coupon code BUNDLE50 at checkout! That’ll bring the price you pay down to $39.50!