Technology

La neurotechnologie pour réparer le corps avance à grands pas. Des chercheurs, qui appartiennent tous au Cortical Bionics Research Group, aux Etats-Unis, ont réussi à faire ressentir à deux personnes tétraplégiques portant un implant cérébral des sensations tactiles subtiles leur permettant de soulever, tenir et manipuler un objet. Ces actions ont été réalisées à l’aide d’un bras bionique contrôlé par les signaux cérébraux émis par les personnes implantées (Science du 16 janvier). Jusqu’à présent, ces membres bioniques pouvaient redonner une certaine fonctionnalité. Mais, sans le sens du toucher, diriger subtilement une action était difficile, explique Giacomo Valle, auteur principal de l’étude et professeur adjoint à l’université technologique Chalmers, en Suède....

Des membres du Triton Ruck Club marchent en groupe avec un sac à dos lesté à San Diego (Californie), le 8 octobre 2023. ARIANA DREHSLER/NYT-REDUX-REA On sait que la marche est bonne pour la santé. A l’échelle individuelle, elle peut permettre de rallonger sensiblement la durée de vie, les bénéfices les plus nets étant attendus chez les personnes les moins actives, indiquait une étude publiée fin 2024 récemment relatée dans cette chronique. Une tendance fait le buzz ces derniers mois sur les réseaux sociaux, le « rucking », qui consiste à marcher avec un gilet ou un sac lesté. Elle s’inscrit dans un mouvement en vogue chez les sportifs consistant à en faire toujours plus, à sans cesse repousser ses limites. A l’image des « spar...

Just a couple weeks after launching the refreshed “Juniper” Model Y in China and other Asia-Pacific markets, Tesla has started taking orders in the Americas (US, Canada, Mexico, and Chile) and Europe. The Launch Series is the only trim level currently available to order in the US, offering a “fully loaded” setup with special badging, the Full Self-Driving (Supervised) driver assist, and Acceleration Boost for $59,990 before discounts and estimated savings. The refreshed version of Tesla’s top-selling vehicle brings a new design for the front and rear lights, an updated interior with an 8-inch touchscreen for the backseat, acoustic glass treatment, a new sound system with more speakers, and a retuned suspension. There’s no mention of it, but in a few of the pictures (included in our gall...

Added support for DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation for GeForce RTX 50 Series graphics cards, which boosts FPS by using AI to generate up to three times per traditionally rendered frame – enabled with GeForce RTX 50 Series on January 30th. DLSS 4 also introduces faster single Frame Generation with reduced memory usage for RTX 50 and 40 Series. Additionally, you can now choose between the CNN model or the new Transformer model for DLSS Ray Reconstruction, DLSS Super Resolution, and DLAA on all GeForce RTX graphics cards today. The new Transformer model enhances stability, lighting, and detail in motion.

Netflix plans to offer couch co-op and party games that it will stream over the cloud to TVs, co-CEO Greg Peters said as part of the company’s Q4 2024 earnings announcements this week. The company has offered cloud gaming as a beta to a “subset” of subscribers since 2023, so this news from Peters indicates that the company is going to continue to invest in it.Peters didn’t say exactly when the co-op and party games might be available. But he did say that “we think of this as a successor to family board game night or an evolution of what the game show on TV used to be.”Netflix will also continue to focus on “more narrative games based on Netflix IP” — Peters says those games are “consistent fan favorites and we’ve got a lot in the library to work with there.”

Google is bringing smart home controls in Gemini to everyone. The Google Home extension in the Gemini app is adding a few new features, in addition to letting you adjust your smart lighting, thermostat, speakers, and other compatible devices as long as they’re connected to your Google account.Google first previewed the extension last November. With it, you can use natural language to control your smart home when interacting with Gemini, such as saying “The sun is too bright in the living room” to close your smart blinds. But now, Gemini can also carry out multiple requests, like “Turn the armchair light on too, but dim the kitchen lamp.” You’ll be able to use the Google Home extension to ask Gemini about the status of your devices too, such as whether you’ve left your porch light on.Add...

Following last month’s test, Threads will now let everyone schedule posts, Instagram head Adam Mosseri announced on Thursday. You can use the feature by creating a new post, selecting the three-dot menu in the top-left corner, and selecting “Schedule.”Once you get your post timed up, you can view, delete, or edit it from your drafts folder. Threads will let you schedule your posts up to 75 days in advance, but it won’t allow you to schedule replies.Mosseri also said that Threads is adding a way to “markup” a post you’re resharing. Based on early versions of the feature shared by users, it looks like it will let you draw over, highlight, or add arrows to an existing post. This feature is rolling out to a “few countries with more to come soon.”

Many EV manufacturers have leaned heavily on energy-gulping resistive heaters to keep the cabin and battery warm in the winter time. But heat pumps, which can cut down on battery range losses in the cold, are becoming more prevalent in EVs, and they could help EV owners in the US who are dealing with the low temperatures across much of the country this week.EV research site Recurrent reported that heat pumps can improve drivable range in below freezing temperatures by about 8 to 10 percent. The site tested this by comparing the ranges of 2020 Model 3 and Model S vehicles that lack heat pumps against 2021 versions that have them.Recurrent’s data shows that the Tesla Model X and the Audi E-Tron only lose about 11 to 13 percent of their range at 32 degrees Fahrenheit compared to driving th...

Though Nintendo can technically claim it had the first big gaming news event of the year, at least Xbox’s Developer Direct actually showed off some games and let us know when we can play them. The showcase was anchored by deep dives into the biggest games coming down the green pipe like Doom: The Dark Ages and Compulsion Games’ South of Midnight, with a couple of surprises to fill out the nearly one-hour-long runtime. Here are the highlights from the show.Xbox kicked off the Direct with the surprise reveal of Ninja Gaiden 4. The game is being codeveloped by Koei Tecmo’s Team Ninja and Bayonetta studio PlatinumGames. Ninja Gaiden 4 revives the series’ bloody, fast-paced combat and high-stakes (but often frustrating) platforming with a new face, the ninja Yakumo. Yakumo will use his uniqu...

Meta and YouTube aren’t the only platforms looking to benefit from TikTok potentially disappearing — Substack wants in on the action, too.The company announced Thursday it’s launching a $20 million “creator accelerator fund,” promising content creators they won’t lose revenue by jumping ship to Substack. Creators in the program also get “strategic and business support” from Substack, and early access to new features. “We established this fund because we’ve seen creators who specialize in video, audio, and text expand their audience, revenue, and influence on Substack, where the platform’s network effects amplify the quality and impact of the work they’re doing,” the company said in a blog post.This pivot on Substack’s part has been in the works for a while — for months, the company has ...