#Co-Pilot 360

[savageonwheels]

2024 Ford Maverick XLT FWD Review

Hybrid still available in compact pickup, but gas turbo I4 standard … Just two years ago both Ford, the leader in truck sales, and Hyundai, now No. 4 in the US, smartly introduced compact pickups, recreating a market that boomed here for years. That was before pickups grew into monster trucks that dueled with each other like muscle cars did in the 1960s and early 1970s, each getting bigger and…

[sailorrhansol]

Storm Breaker | Teaser (l.jh)

❀ Pairing: Lee Jihoon x reader  

❀ Summary: It’s a known fact Lee Jihoon is one of the best pilots the Jaeger Program has. The only problem? He can’t keep a co-pilot to save his life. He thinks you’ll just be another Ranger in the rotation, but you are an unpleasant surprise. 

❀ Word Count: ~23k

❀ Genre: SciFi, Rivals to Lovers  

❀ Type: Pacific Rim AU, Smut, Angst

❀ Rating: 18+ Minors are strictly prohibited from engaging in and reading this content. It contains explicit content and any minors discovered reading or engaging with this work will be blocked immediately.

❀ Warnings: TBD

❀ A/N: A fun little project me and @daechwitatamic decided to collab on :) coming to a Shatterdome near you soon. Also - this is set in the Pacific Rim Universe but I'm writing it in a way that you will not need to have seen the movie to understand.

❀ Also in this Universe: Cherry Bomb by @daechwitatamic

❀ Disclaimer: Disclaimer: All members of Seventeen are faces and name claims for stories. Any scenarios or representations of the people and places mentioned in works are not representative of real-life scenarios. Moreover, none of my works accurately reflect, represent or take a stance on the nuances of Korean culture, cities, people etc. Seventeen members are not Seventeen culturally, intellectually, physically, or representationally in my stories, and should be considered name and face stand-ins for made up characters.

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“You can and you will. Your drift compatibility is 98% and you have similar fighting style and come from similar machines. You’ll start Conn-pod training tomorrow.”

“Don’t make me partner with her. I don’t like her.”

The Marshall stands. “One day you might learn that if you give people a chance, you’d like what you find.” 

“Marshall-” 

“That’s all, Ranger.” 

The air feels heavy as Jihoon leaves the Marshall’s office. He stops on the command deck, his eyes flickering over to the windows. The glass is floor to ceiling all the way around, giving the tower a 360-degree view of the pacific ocean. Blue stretches out as far as the eye can see, backdropped by the shining silver of the city. 

Boats bob on the water, shifting back and forth on the dark surface. Air teams go back and forth, working in the aftermath of Chan and Wylie’s successful kaiju destruction. Jihoon can see the toxicity on the surface of the water, an oil slick that he knows the exact pungent smell of. 

Trailing to an observation window, he stares with unseeing eyes. How many times had he stood up here and provided commentary to his friends during a fight? He didn’t frequent the command deck, but sometimes it gave him perspective. Or he was a little worried about his friends, especially when they were taking on higher category kaiju. 

Jihoon chews on the side of his lip. He’s talked Wylie and Chan through plenty of bouts before. He remembers sharply the terror of the fight that had changed all of their lives over a year ago, watching as the hull of Fang Striker was breached, the screams of terror as Wylie took a talon to the stomach, nearly killing her. The aftermath of Chan’s grief.

A chill breaks out over his arms. Jihoon knows he isn’t cut out to sit through something like that again, to try and get a panicking pilot to focus and get to safety. He’s not made for an advisory role. Not built to watch pilots come and go, completely operating out of his control. 

Death is easier to process in the heat of battle. It gives him an excuse to be distracted, to hide from the immediate pain of losing a pilot during a fight because he’s too busy protecting himself, protecting the city. He’s not made to watch it from afar and take the full weight of it.

Turning away from the window, Jihoon descends back down to the ground floor. 

Probation period. Three months of having to stomach you or he’s out. Flexing his fingers, he heads to his room, needing the silence. If Jihoon is going to do this, he knows he needs to keep himself in line. Can’t push you away like he has the others. 

And he hates you for it.

-

Also in this Universe: Cherry Bomb by @daechwitatamic

[screwz]

she armor...

she armored on...

on my core...

til I...

Armored Core: For Answer is a 2008 vehicular combat game developed by FromSoftware and published by Ubisoft for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It is the 13th installment in the mecha-based Armored Core series, the game is the direct sequel to Armored Core 4.

Armored Core: For Answer

North American Xbox 360 cover art

Developer(s)FromSoftwarePublisher(s)Ubisoft

JP: FromSoftware

Director(s)Hidetaka MiyazakiProducer(s)Toshifumi NabeshimaComposer(s)Kota HoshinoSeriesArmored CorePlatform(s)PlayStation 3, Xbox 360Release

JP: March 19, 2008

NA: September 16, 2008

AU: November 27, 2008

EU: November 28, 2008

Genre(s)Vehicular combatMode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Contents

GameplayEdit

AC customization has been changed from the previous Armored Core title, with a new interface and many new parts not found in Armored Core 4. Online mode returns with a new co-operative mode alongside the player versus mode. Gameplay enhancements included a power increase for both Quick Boost and Over Boost, as well as an auxiliary high-speed booster, which is known as the Vanguard Over Booster (VOB). Another new feature in the game is the Assault Armor attack that becomes available by equipping certain Over boost parts. This attack uses up all available Primal Armor (PA) that the AC has and generates a huge blast consisting of Kojima particles (highly reactive particles) that destroys or damages all objects surrounding the AC. However, this also leaves the AC vulnerable because not only will the AC lose its PA, it will also not regenerate for a few seconds. Laser blades are deadlier because of the revamped laser blade attack. Once the blade has acquired a lock-on, the AC will instantly rush to the target, traveling a great distance to use the laser blade. All parts carried over from the previous game have had their parameters altered, much like the transition between previous series installments Silent Line and Nexus. The on-screen HUD can now be changed to any of 20 colors. There are now 442 FRS tuning points available to unlock, which is an increase from the 300 (PS3) and 337 (Xbox 360) FRS points available in AC4. Maps are much larger and more detailed including environmental damage such as collapsing buildings. The game is also the second in the series (after Last Raven) to feature multiple endings, with three different possible plot branches available depending on your actions and decisions in the game.

PlotEdit

Five years have passed since the LYNX War. Earth is now governed by the League of Ruling Companies, an international council composed of the corporations that survived the war, which ostensibly seeks to preserve global peace and corporate prosperity. Since much of the world's surface was polluted to inhospitable levels by hazardous Kojima Particles dispersed during the LYNX War, the League built perpetually-airborne habitats known as Cradles, which are dependent on ground-based power plants called Arteria that generate even more Kojima Particles as waste. Over half of the human population now lives in the Cradles, while the surface is a battlefield where corporate armies and mercenaries wage the interminable Economic War.

During the League's rise to power, it relied on the capabilities of LYNX, the pilots of the combat mechs known as NEXTs, and then abandoned the LYNX on the surface in favor of utilizing Arms Forts, mobile super weapons that could bring tremendous amounts of firepower to bear. While most LYNX are forced to eke out a living as mercenaries for Collared, a League-controlled intermediary organization, a handful of LYNX discovered the corporations' dark secrets and formed a resistance group called ORCA to overthrow the League.

The player takes on the role of a LYNX working for Collared who eventually becomes a pivotal figure in the escalating conflict between the League and ORCA. Three ending routes can be unlocked sequentially over three playthroughs. In the first ending, the player is tasked by the League with stopping ORCA from seizing the Arteria; the player succeeds, ensuring the Cradles stay aloft, but Kojima Particle radiation remains an unsolvable problem and will one day rise to the Cradles' altitude. In the second ending, the player helps ORCA take control of the Arteria; as a result, the Cradles lose power and make an emergency descent to the surface, causing many civilians to die from Kojima Particle exposure. However, the energy from the Arteria is redirected to destroy an array of autonomous weaponized satellites that had been preventing all attempts to leave Earth, and with the satellites gone, it becomes possible for humanity to travel to space and build its civilization anew on other planets.

Once the player has experienced the first two endings, the third ending route becomes available. A psychotic ORCA-affiliated LYNX with the callsign "Old King" reaches out to the player and asks for their help in destroying Cradle 03, a fleet of five Cradle airships with 100 million inhabitants between them. After the player and Old King carry out this unprecedented atrocity, Collared deploys a team of its best LYNX to hunt them down. Old King dies in the battle, but the player emerges victorious and goes on to destroy all of the other Cradles, becoming the single most prolific killer in history.

ReceptionEdit

Learn more

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2008)

Reception

Aggregate scoreAggregatorScorePS3Xbox 360Metacritic62/100[15]64/100[16]Review scoresPublicationScorePS3Xbox 3601Up.comC−[1]C−[1]Destructoid3/10[2]N/AEdgeN/A7/10[3]Famitsu29/40[4]30/40[5][6]Game Informer6.25/10[7]6.25/10[7]GameSpot7/10[8]7/10[8]GameZone7.9/10[9]7/10[10]IGN7.8/10[11]8/10[12]PlayStation Official Magazine – UK5/10[13]N/AOfficial Xbox Magazine (US)N/A5.5/10[14]

Armored Core: For Answer received "mixed or average" reviews on both platforms according to the review aggregator website Metacritic.[15][16] One of the most consistent complaints among reviewers seemed to be the lack of any sort of online community. Kevin Van Ord of GameSpot stated in his review that there were "fewer than a dozen [players on] Xbox Live" when he tried to playtest the game, and that similar attempts to find a game on PlayStation Network yielded "just a single opponent".[8] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 29 out of 40 for the PlayStation 3 version,[4] and one nine and three sevens for the Xbox 360 version,[6] while Famitsu Xbox 360 gave the latter console version 31 out of 40.[5]

ReferencesEdit

^ Jump up to:a b Quintero, Cesar (September 26, 2008). "Armored Core: For Answer Review". 1UP.com. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on June 15, 2016. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Nicholson, Brad (October 21, 2008). "Destructoid review: Armored Core: For Answer (PS3)". Destructoid. Enthusiast Gaming. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Edge staff (January 2009). "Armored Core: For Answer (X360)". Edge. No. 197. Future plc. p. 94.

^ Jump up to:a b "アーマード・コア フォーアンサー [PS3]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on August 20, 2016. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Jump up to:a b "アーマード・コア フォーアンサー [Xbox 360]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on November 14, 2015. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Jump up to:a b Ihtsham, Usman (March 26, 2008). "Famitsu For The Week". WhatIfGaming. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Jump up to:a b Reiner, Andrew (December 2008). "Armored Core: For Answer: This mech's broken. Eject! Eject!". Game Informer. No. 188. GameStop. p. 110. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Jump up to:a b c VanOrd, Kevin (October 1, 2008). "Armored Core: For Answer Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Bedigian, Louis (September 29, 2008). "Armored Core for Answer - PS3 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Folkers, Brandon (September 29, 2008). "Armored Core for Answer - 360 - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 3, 2008. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Clements, Ryan (September 22, 2008). "Armored Core for Answer Review (PS3)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on November 13, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Clements, Ryan (September 22, 2008). "Armored Core for Answer Review (X360)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 2, 2008. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ "Armored Core: For Answer". PlayStation Official Magazine – UK. Future plc. January 2009. p. 103.

^ "Armored Core: For Answer". Official Xbox Magazine. Future US. December 2008. p. 87.

^ Jump up to:a b "Armored Core: For Answer for PlayStation 3 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 28, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

^ Jump up to:a b "Armored Core: For Answer for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 6, 2019. Retrieved December 14, 2018.

External linksEdit

Official website (Japanese)

Armored Core: For Answer at MobyGames

[cupi0sloanii]

My Original Characters!

Greetings dear Overwatch community! I came here to show you my OC’s Each one with a amazing story on its own! Soon I will be posting stories related to them ^^

Aquahime

Meet Aquahime (Real name Azura, given by Doctor Sen) she goes by She/It. She’s 6’0. Her backstory is quite difficult, she acquired life (Awoke) after the awakening, Vishkar Co. was building a machine that could protect and assist humans and omnics perfectly, but instead created life that could use gravitational energy to attract water and harm others, with help of a suspicious alliance they took AZ-700 to a secret lab where she passed nearly a year of abuse. After meeting Doctor Sen and he giving her a name. Things turned 360 and she ended attacking him due something that happened. Not long after that she manage to escape, once out there she become aware of her water healing “powers”, that’s how she calls them. She’s currently on Nepal.

Canyon Rockie

Amadiz Velazquez, more known as The Canyon Rockie, is an omnic who worked as a comercial pilot once and now is the best Talon Pilot on their lines, also a meanie and a good tyrant when it comes to interrogation. He’s Mexican, specifically from Mexico City, and is 5’7 feet tall. (Also, don’t tell anyone but he’s in love with his boss….) When he awoke, he almost lost his head, but found fascination with the units that humans controlled, which were flying around… In his words, they were “amazing”. That made them want to control something like that. Once the crisis regulated, they were adopted into a family that they assisted during the war. The family supported Amadiz to become a comercial pilot, even if they noticed that everyone in their surroundings didn’t like the idea of an "Evil AI taking control”. Amadiz managed to become a professional pilot. Even his profesor had to admit he had a good run, but in his envy the professor decided to ruin his star career by meddling and manipulating a plane Amadiz would use, killing 67 people. Amadiz lost their career and went to prison, but later on their innocence was reveal. However, it was too late. No one wanted to work with him… So they turned to Talon for help. They are currently in Rome, Italy.

Hierbalia

Hierbalia is a ON288 model, similar to the Ravanger model but they are least common. Their real name is Dahlia Olivares, Their height is 5’7 and their pronouns are They/Them. They are from Puebla, Mexico. They know and had a deep bond with Dr. Marlee but now they are conflicted with feelings over him.

Hierbalia was once a Scientist at Natura Co. (which in here is a biotechnology and bio experimental corporation.) which had a nice reputation among the city of Cuetzalan, they even cultivated veggies and fruit for everyone, however things changed when they meet Saphica Lizz, a Spain omnic singer who caught their attention, fortunately the singer was intrigued with them as well, they fell in love and after a couple years of happiness, things changed when a Talon sniper assassinated Saphica and the police began chasing Hierbalia for murder charges. In a attempt to seek the truth Hierbalia began working as a sicario for a time, until they had to save their city from Talon, and face and old friend who was under their control, and face a terrible truth, now both are looking for Overwatch to seek the well being of Puebla and answers of their own.

They are currently on Dorado, Mexico.

Moonshard

Marlee Taylor is an Australian who escaped their country, and came to Puebla to become the Head Scientist in Natura Co. Uses He/She pronouns, 5’11 of height. Going by MoonShard as their code name. Fell deeply in love with Hierbalia.

Marlee was never one of the Junkers, in fact she hated being associated with them, but meeting a younger Mako and befriending them made things easier for him, and was finally able to escape Australia, and learn more about it's old roots, the most difficult part was adapting to omnics, but once Dahlia Olivares arrived to the Natura Co. team she fell in love with them, when they found out they didn't share feelings, Talon saw avadtage to eliminate a suspect of leaking important documents, Saphica Lizz, and who better than Marlee to do the dirty work. After years of cover up and hiding Hierbalia the truth, everything came up, and now both seek Overwatch to destroy Talon, and maybe... to recieve Dahlia's forgiveness.

This are my current Overwatch OC! I will be posting their full Origin Story soon, hope you like em!

[justforbooks]

Michael Caine wears two watches: an analogue for the time and an Apple for everything else. It even knows his pulse, he says, impressed. Right now, it’s telling him his flat is 26C: warm enough for his wife, Shakira, to pour iced coffee into his flask, but not hot enough for those balcony doors to be open: “It’s blowing a bloody gale in here!”

I slide them shut slightly. Is that OK? A bit more. Enough? Bit more. I close them completely. He’s happy now.

Caine lives in Chelsea Harbour: posh 80s condos and Princess Diana’s gym. He likes the security and tolerates the helicopters. His London penthouse has caramel carpets, 360-degree views, two Oscars and 5,000 photos of his grandchildren.

Below us lies Battersea Bridge, tide low, shore glittering. No, he shudders, he’s never mudlarked. Why not? After all, his first novel, out in November, is about binmen who find uranium down at the dump. “Well,” he says darkly, “other people do things and it goes all right. I do them and bad things happen.”

He looks at me. We’re waiting for his co-star, John Standing, who is stuck in traffic. Caine is a big man with whom to make small talk. It’s not just that your brain short-circuits each time he speaks (Michael Caine?!?!), it’s that at 90, he’s still 6ft 2in, undiminished and simply intimidating.

In 1987, he gave an acting masterclass in which he revealed the secret to being forceful on screen was a) don’t blink and b) mascara. It works face-to-face, too. The first one, anyway.

During the Blitz, says Caine, he watched the city get flattened from his dormer in Camberwell; from here, he’s seen it rise up again. He loves new-build and soft furnishings with the passion of a man raised in an attic with no hot water, one outdoor loo and rickets. Every time a bomb fell, the mattresses doiiinged. “Me and my brother would laugh all through the bleedin’ air raids!”

An update: Standing will be here shortly. I praise the pot-plants and Caine mourns his garden. He was evacuated to Berkshire, where he was fed a tin of pilchards a day and locked in a cupboard for the weekends, and then to rural Norfolk, where he discovered a love of horticulture – later energetically indulged at his own places in Oxfordshire and Surrey.

Less so in Hollywood. He sold up there after someone told him that if he wanted to grow daffodils he’d need to put the bulbs in the fridge for a fortnight. “That was it! Final straw!” But did he do it? “Oh yeah. It worked.”

In comes Standing, 89 but nimble as a debutante, all polish and apologies. They settle down, discuss the weather and a window is discreetly opened. Caine goggles at my iPad, which he mistakes for a phone: “Blimey, that’s a big one!”

The Great Escaper is brilliant, I say. Caine is surprised I’ve seen it, let alone enjoyed it. Didn’t he? “Yeah. But I’ve had films where I liked it but other people didn’t agree with me.”

No wonder it tempted them from retirement: meaty roles dry up as you approach 100. Caine plays Bernard Jordan, a real-life Royal Navy veteran who made headlines in 2014 when he travelled alone from his care home in Hove, East Sussex, to Normandy for the 70th D-day anniversary. The film – flintier than you might think, and very moving – fictionalises a friendship with Arthur, a former RAF pilot (Standing) he meets on the ferry.

Both actors did national service in Berlin after the war; Caine was then drafted to Korea – “a bugger”, he says (his memoir suggests this is understatement). “When we got there they said: the Chinese have just sent a million troops. What? But they were just young kids and old men to take all our ammunition. You shoot at them and then the real fighters come. And that was the Chinese in a nutshell.”

In the film, the pair make a pilgrimage to the war cemetery at Bayeux in Normandy. “What a waste,” cries Bernard as the camera zooms out to show the rows and rows of headstones. Caine doesn’t agree. “You had to have full cemeteries because you’d had to fight the German army, which was not a load of idiots. And the Germans had to be stopped.”

And Korea? Well, communism is “perfectly frightful”, says Standing. Caine nods. “It doesn’t take care of the working class quite the way they say. My father was a fishmonger in Billingsgate, so I knew when I saw the communists, they had no idea what it was all about. Do any working-class people want to live in North Korea?”

They both think national service should be reintroduced. “It gives you a whole new realisation of life,” says Caine. “I notice how different young people are today. They’re so free with everything. Military training makes you think about helping other people. My grandsons – all they do is play football.” (Still, he adds later, they’re also “incredible, unbelievable, and they worry about other people – which is handy”.)

Standing chips in: one of his daughters is “a bit woke” and cautions him about getting cancelled. “It’s horrible! We’re not allowed to say anything. I loathe it. My God, you’re not allowed to have mother-in-law jokes! It’s sort of barking.”

Then again, “things were far less complicated” 70 years ago. He smiles benignly. “Your telephone alone is the most complex thing anybody’s ever dreamed of. You’ve got all the information you ever want. You can chat to Henry VIII. Have you seen the man made of wood and iron playing the most immaculate game of ping-pong and thrashing the ordinary Briton at the other end?”

I haven’t. Caine confesses some concern over robots – that’s partly what his novel, a thriller, is about. “But I’m 90. I don’t worry about the future. I worry if I’m gonna make it to lunch.”

Caine and Standing first met on another hot day, in the summer of 1976, shooting another war movie, The Eagle Has Landed. Caine played a Nazi eager to assassinate Churchill; Standing a rather flaky vicar. Memories of the shoot seem thin on the ground, but they agree moviemaking hasn’t changed much.

“I make my own world,” says Caine. “And if they employ me, they gotta leave me to do it my way. Otherwise I screw it up. And even if I do it my way, I screw it up as well.”

They both chuckle. “Michael, darling!” says Standing.

Have they changed?

Standing sighs. “We’re just so bloody old.”

“And we’re still here,” says Caine.

“Which is incredible! All my mates are brown bread.”

“Oh, mine and all. Sean Connery, Roger Moore. Everybody’s dead. It’s amazing.”

How does that feel?

“Lonely,” says Caine. “I had dinner last night here with eight women. Shakira gets ’em. I don’t get ’em. They’re the wives of my friends. I’m often sitting with a table full of widows.”

Standing empathises. “Hundreds of women round one all the time. And you sit there thinking: give us a break! Ask me something, anything you like!”

Caine nods. “Ask me a question about football! But I’m perfectly happy with all the girls. I love them.”

Again: consult his memoir for more details, but this is putting it mildly. Caine spent the 50s, 60s and early 70s hoovering up hotties across the continents, pausing only for relationships with Natalie Wood and Nancy Sinatra and to refuel on vodka with Terence Stamp and Peter O’Toole.

So when he says he was tired of bachelor life by 1972, you can believe it – he must have been exhausted. He had a night in, saw a Maxwell House ad on telly and resolved to fly to Brazil the next morning to marry the woman with the maracas. No need, said a pal: she was Indian, not Brazilian, and lived on the Fulham Road in west London.

This is one of Caine’s regular chatshow yarns and he duly does it for us today: “I tracked her down! Incredible!” Caine is a bit of an anecdote jukebox – tales triggered by the briefest mention of Cary or Larry or Frank – but with material like his, it’s hard to object. Though charming, he also dominates conversation in general – about which Standing is a gent. Does he miss the 60s? “I don’t miss it, but I love having done it. I used to get into trouble all over the place.”

He and Shakira have been married more than 50 years. Ageing is less awful, he advises, “if you’re married to someone really beautiful who doesn’t grow old. I wake up every morning and there she is!” It’s true: Shakira, 76, does seem preternaturally patient and gorgeous. “What is great about her is that she’s very bright. She was the secretary in the … I forget which country she comes from [Shakira was born in British Guiana, now Guyana], but she was the secretary of the American embassy, so she’s a great secretary for me. She runs everything. It’s unbelievable.”

At the heart of The Great Escaper is another enduring marriage, between Bernie and Irene, played by Glenda Jackson in her final film. She and Caine first worked together 48 years ago. “She was very young and pretty,” he says. “Very attractive. Bloody good actress. But a left-wing socialist and I’m all for making money because I come from a very poor background.” They never talked politics – bit busy making the movies. He saw her five days before she died in June: “She seemed fine.” He’s relieved it was quick.

Bernie and Irene are a devoted couple who, though the film doesn’t discuss it, didn’t have children. Might that have changed their dynamic? “Oh, tremendously,” says Caine. “You don’t have any other separate thing to talk about. You talk about each other. And you don’t have to judge how people feel about someone else. Only you.”

It’s a sharp insight, particularly given that he’s personally “always had children around me like wildfire”. His eldest daughter, Dominique, was born when he was 23, during a brief marriage to the actor Patricia Haines; he and Shakira have another daughter, Natasha. Picking up his eldest grandson from the school is, Shakira tells me later, the highlight of his week. “I love kids,” he says, a bit wistfully.

Standing murmurs agreement. He’s also been married for yonks. The secret, he says, is “laughing with each other”.

Caine is less on-message: “Don’t argue. Don’t try to prove it with arguments or a row. Let ’em do it.”

“Women are No 1 anyway,” says Standing.

“It’s the only place you can get babies,” nods Caine.

“But I gotta say this, Michael: have you seen what women do now?” says Standing. A dramatic pause. He’s a West End veteran, light comedies a specialty. “Cage fighting!” He turns to me. “What possessed your sex to do something like that? For men to cage fight is unthinkable. For women – boom, boom, boom, on each other’s faces! Deranged! But that’s modern life.”

Has Caine seen that? “Oh yeah,” he says blithely. “On television.” And? “I was stunned.” Why? “I wouldn’t do that to anyone. Even if I didn’t like them. I’d just knock ’em out and walk away.”

The real theme of The Great Escaper is – perhaps not one for the poster – that the only escape from old age is death. Yet Caine and Standing continue to produce work that will live on after they’re gone. Caine wrote his first novel bedridden during lockdown, and is now writing a second. Standing is a professional painter. They have six children between them. Are any of these enterprises better or worse as stabs at immortality? There’s only really one, says Caine: “Kindness.” And maybe Alfie. And The Muppet Christmas Carol.

“Michael, darling,” says Standing, “I said to someone the other day: ‘Have you heard of Peter O’Toole?’ She said: ‘Well, I know the name.’ Once you are dead, you are dead. You think of Bogart! But young people only know Goose. What’s he called? Gosling. Big names in the theatre – Gielgud – mean nothing.”

That craft and that class is history, they reckon. When I ask Caine who today’s version of him is, he agrees there isn’t one.

“Because you don’t get young people now who are that far back in society. That had to come forward in great leaps. I think my type of person is extinct. I can’t think of anybody who had a life like mine.”

It wasn’t just the poverty, he says, it was Korea and then, six months later, malaria (he nearly died). “And so it never stopped, you know? Until it did.”

And yet it sort of hasn’t. Caine remains an icon of a time and an energy that feel increasingly exotic. He still calls himself working class and frets over any potential betrayal of his roots. The fate of his brother, Stanley, troubles him. “He just stood there and watched me become a millionaire when he didn’t even have a job. I turned him into someone who couldn’t move. I should have gone and moved him.”

Once, Caine was shopping for a sofa and Stanley – who’d been awol for a while – appeared as part of the team lugging it in from the back. “I grabbed him. I said, ‘You are outta here.’ Oh, it was terrible. I didn’t know where he was.

“He became an alcoholic. So I bought him two houses: one to live in and one to rent so he could have some money to buy some booze.” Caine’s eyes are rheumy. “He’s three years younger than me. And he’s been dead for five years.”

There was an older brother, too, David, born with severe epilepsy and confined to an institution. Caine only found out about him after their mother’s death – though she had visited David secretly each week. Caine then made him as comfortable as possible. His mother spent her final years living in one of the houses he’d bought her with a carer and her two young sons, “who loved my mum like a grandma. I was very happy with that. I did everything for everybody. So that’s it. I’m sitting here, I’ve done it. I can’t do any more.”

The Great Escaper has been widely described as Caine’s final film, just as Harry Brown was in 2009, and then – 24 films later – Best Sellers in 2021. It’s not. He’s shooting another in January: “It’s about someone who is so famous I’d never heard of him. Charles, Charles …”

“ … Darwin,” says Standing.

“Yeah. I play Charles Darwin. And that’ll be it. I won’t do another one after.”

He’s sure?

“No! But the point is, can you do it? Can you remember all the lines? I’ve got used to not working and staying in bed till 11am and staying out late at night. I love it.”

In The Great Escaper, Jackson has a line about life being fun when you’re young, but once you hit her age, “you’re basically buggered”. Present company queers that pitch. “Oh blimey,” says Caine. “I have a great time.” Standing nods. His one concession to old age has been to give up tap-dancing – though you suspect he might oblige in an emergency.

Neither man can think of a single instance in which they’ve been ill-treated because of their age.

“Nobody patronises me,” says Caine.

“We don’t look like we need help,” says Standing.

In Caine’s case, that’s not entirely true. His skin is smooth, his cheeks full – “I’m very lucky the whole face has not collapsed” – and The Great Escaper showcases them with loads of fantastic closeups. Yet he does use a walker and wheelchair. Never had qualms about being seen with them, he says. “Nope. It’s my life and I do what I want.”

“I think you are bloody brave,” says Standing. “Michael, man-to-man, it was an admirable thing to say: ‘Bollocks, I will do the film’, in spite of all those things.’”

I think he’s right. For someone with an image as familiar – and cultivated – as Caine’s, to visibly concede frailty feels courageous. It’s a shame, I say, that “mobility issues” were given as the reason the Queen didn’t attend various events near the end – as if being seen in a wheelchair was inconceivable.

Caine opts not to criticise the Queen. Instead he cues up the story of the first time they met, at a dinner, when she asked him to tell her a joke. He couldn’t think of a clean one. “She pointed to the man on her other side and said: ‘I’m gonna talk to him now. In five minutes I’ll be back and I want a joke.’”

I don’t know what I’d imagined Michael Caine’s Queen impression to sound like, but it’s definitely a lot more mobster. That was quite frightening, I tell him, once he’s finished the joke (long, about a chicken). Does he see any similarities between them?

“I think everyone sees a similarity between themselves and the Queen.”

Even Standing, an actual baronet, demurs at that one. But the fact Caine believes it adds weight to the idea they do share something – the ability, perhaps, to unsettle others through their presence alone. The Great Escaper taps that, too. Bernie prompts in people – Arthur included – profound reckonings, without really trying. Can Caine relate?

“I don’t know,” he says. “A bit, probably, yes. But it could be quite unpleasant. I don’t do things that are unpleasant.”

But you feel you have that power?

“Yeah, oh yeah.”

And what’s that like?

He grins. “Great.”

Our time is up. Caine checks his watch. “28C,” he says, “and that’s with the bloody windows open.”

© 2024 Guardian News, Catherine Shoard

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[jenukiart]

OC Stuff - BKW - The Bomb Brigade

This one's a doozy cuz each member has a lot going on so strap in!!!

Their job is to hunt intergalactic monsters, beasts, and other such dangerous anomalies. With Kisyku running around rampant across the Cosmos, he quickly becomes their biggest target yet!! While their heavy duty weaponry and means of combat mean serious business, the brigade often gets caught up in numerous misadventures (sometimes they're just outright hard to take seriously...)

Also.. I call them the Bomb Brigade as their official title, but I'd imagine in the actual story the name alliteration gets mixed up and butchered every single time, as if no one can remember the actual name hahahaha. Anywhos..

Bombs

Bombs is the head-honcho of the Brigade. He's a human from Earth who leads his team with great confidence (sometimes to a fault). He can be stubborn.. and.. hard to co-operate with sometimes.. but all in all he's a captain who cares deeply for the whole team. Each member to him is like family, so he's always doing anything he can to look out for them.

I'd imagine whenever the Brigade needs to put up with Kisyku (like a temporary truce, or whenever they eventually form an alliance later in the story), him and Bombs would be that kind of friendly rival dynamic that just has them constantly arguing while they have to put up with each others annoyances.

Bombs also has an interesting speech-style, adding a lot of S to the end of words and stuff.. He also has a big rocket launcher, because he believes anything can be solved with explosives.

Bits and Blitz

Bits is little shark-manta-alien-thing who was recruited by Bombs for his incredible technical prowess. He's super smart, and having four hands is quite helpful when you're the team's primary mechanic. Outside of his technical craft, however, he enjoys gardening a lot. Bombs even lets him have his own garden room on the ship! He also just talks with a lot of sailor/sea terminology hahaha

Bits invented Blitz before joining Bombs, but she was just the orb/eye part back then. She didn't get the laser cannon extension until Bits built Bash (yeah he built Bash too!!). Bits has been meaning to give her a proper robot body, but she's actually happy being just the way she is.

Blitz is like a sister to Bits, having a cheery heart-of-gold. She speaks in beeps, chirps, and whirs, but everyone can still understand what she has to say anyways. She's a great listener, and often the one the Brigade members (especially Bury...) confide in to talk about their feelings. Despite her physical limitations she's still a girl at heart, doing things like makeup and stuff. :P

Bash

The Brigade often searches through the aftermath of places Kisyku’s been for anything useful. He tends to really bust up facilities and machines for some reason. Bits managed to collect enough scraps and parts to give Blitz a laser cannon, and eventually construct Bash.

Bash is forged from the scraps of Kisyku’s destruction. He has one goal and one goal alone and it's to "kill the Celestial." That tunnel-vision mindset is kinda like Android 16 in DBZA, except Bash is also very arrogant too. He often sees himself as the superior being, the greatest, flawless, you get the idea. Somehow though, he's just co-operative enough to still be tolerable... except with Bury... him and Bury kinda argue like a LOT.

Unlike the weaponry used by the rest of the Brigade, Bash specializes in sheer physical strength and agility. He can spin his body around a whole 360 degrees, making him very a versatile threat able to keep up with someone as quick and nimble as Kisyku.

Eventually, Bits constructs the Giga Bash, a giant mecha that the Brigade uses at the climax of their rivalry with Kisyku in attempt to finish him off once and for all! This form of Bash is piloted by the rest of the Brigade, and has tons of features like missiles, swords, lasers, and all sorts of heavy duty artillery.

Kisk does.. end up beating the Giga Bash though.. I'd imagine it's then that they finally put the bounty stuff aside for good. Though I imagined later big story beats will have them bring Giga back out again to help out with massive threats Kisk faces.

Bury

Oh boy uhm. Bury is. interesting. She's my personal favorite member of the Brigade! It's probably why she's the only one I have a proper reference sheet of, haha

Not much is really known about Bury, The Brigade, by complete and utter luck, just found her unconscious on a desolate planet. They were there just looking for parts and stuff, so it was a complete "right place right time" sorta deal to even have found her.

Thankfully, they were able to recover her back to health, Bits even gave her a prosthetic arm to replace the one she was missing.

But Bury is a total mystery to the Brigade, she refuses to elaborate about her past, why she was stranded, etc. Whenever they prod her about it, she's very cold, rude, and defensive about it.

Eventually they just stop trying to push something out, and learn to just live with her as she is now. Doesn't mean things are awkward though. Despite her mean-girl nature, Bury gets along moderately well with the Brigade, still following orders where needed. While she has her problems with the gang, she still manages to tolerate her relationships with em fair enough.

Except Bash..... Bury argues with Bash like all the time them two like never get along, but it's mostly played up for laughs than anything really serious.

Though I'd imagine with time she grows a secret soft spot for them that she just doesn't wanna admit. It's probbaly why she still sticks around them. Not like she has anywhere else to go.

So the best way I can describe her is "space tsundere/troubled sister" hahaha

In terms of abilities though, Bury excels at both close quarters and long range combat, making her a threat on all covers.

Her laser scythe can be turned into a sniper rifle and vice versa with just a spin of the handle, so it's not like she's stick to one mode of combat at any time.

She REALLY doesn't like Kisyku, and is the only member of the Brigade who seems to ACTUALLY give him a a run for his money (see this saying is ironic because Kisyku is constantly broke but it's not actually about money sorry idk why I'm rambling I thought I felt so cool saying it)

But yeah, them two seem to not get along very well.... It's especially awkward when the Brigade is forced to team up with Kisyku for episodic antics. Kisyku genuinely doesn't know what her deal is though.

She just seems to have a lot going on that she just doesn't wanna talk about. For her to be so locked up about her past leaves her shrouded in complete mystery to the rest of the cast. I hope that one day if I can truly get BKW out there, I'll get to uncover her secrets to you all.

And wow that's them!! Hopefully you learned a lot about these guys, it's my first time sharing info about them like this!! Now I can go and draw my silly doodles about them :P

[usafphantom2]

APRIL 29, 2023

I flew the B-47 nuclear bomber

The Boeing B-47 Stratojet nuclear bomber first flew in 1947 and changed everything. Though it flew the same year as USAF’s first jet bomber, the North American B-45 Tornado, the B-47 was far superior – and pointed the way to the future. Its influence on later jets cannot be overstated, and every Boeing or Airbus at the airport, as well as the immortal B-52, are descendants of the sleek B-47. Of the 2000+ B-47s built, many were part of LeMay’s Strategic Air Command, the most lethal force in history. Colonel G.Alan Dugard (Retired) flew the B-47 in the 509th Bomb Wing, here he gives the low-down on the bomber that made the modern world, and threatened to destroy it.

DESCRIBE THE B-47 IN THREE WORDS…

SOLID, STABLE PLATFORM.

WHAT WAS THE BEST THING ABOUT THE B-47?

COMPACT, AND 360-DEGREE-VISIBILITY COCKPIT

..and the worst?

Location of trim items. Wheel for elevator trim was located right side near the throttle quadrant. Rudder trim back of quadrant.

What is the biggest myth about the aircraft?

Lack of manoeuvrability. You could actually roll the B-47

Did you feel confident that the aircraft would have been survivable in a war?

At the stage I flew it, it had high rate of survivability at low level, not at altitude.

What was your most memorable experience flying the B-47

I was flying a normal night mission, programmed for a KC_135 refuelling near the Canadian border going west a nav-leg and a low-level route down south. We had completed a 35,000-pound offload just south of Cleveland and attained our cruising altitude and started our preparation for the nav leg. The co-pilot had dis-engaged his seat to put the sextant in place. When I felt a grabbing to the right, followed by a sever pull to right and a great flash of light. Looking out to the inboard nacelle the # 4 engine was deteriorating from the explosion and the #5 engine was also on fire. Both engines were shut down. I told the co-pilot to return his seat to the locked position and told our “Forth Man”, seating in the lower aisle to fasten his seat belt. I called Cleveland Center, declaring a “Mayday” and asked for the nearest airfield to land at. Our biggest problem was our gross weight due to max onload of fuel. I was told to proceed to Lockbourne AFB in Ohio and was given a heading to the base. I contacted Approach Control for Lockbourne, told them the situation. I asked them if they had a dump area for my wing tanks and after a pause they said yes, but they would have to evacuate the GCA facility before I could drop the tanks. We were dumping fuel as fast as we could and when arriving at the base were still too heavy to land. We were fairly stable and so decide to just burn down to a landing weight, and still dumping. As the tips emptied we were at the max weight for landing and made a landing, not the best I ever made, but good enough. Examination of the two engines’ showed extensive damage to both nacelles as well as the engines.

An interesting second choice:

First deployment over the pond and refuelling with a KC-97 Tanker. The 97 had a ceiling of about 15,000 feet and a speed that was within a marginal point of the B-47 stall speed. It was a clear night at altitude, 28,000 flight level, but the refuelling took place at the tanker’s ceiling, and the tops of the undercast was 17,000 feet. The descent from clear skies to the Tanker was a radar rendezvous in the zero visibility clouds. Format speed was ok at the lock-on to the tanker and visual contact with the tanker was gained at about 30 yards. Contact made was realized with some turbulence, making it difficult. As the fuel was coming in and the B-47 gross weight increased it became increasingly apparent, that we were at a marginal speed. The tanker was forced to start a descent to maintain contact. Offload of 30,000# of fuel was finally made and a disconnect was taken. It was a sweat filled mask as we started our climb back to altitude.

What was the role of the B-47 and in which unit did you fly?

The B-47 was the primary deterrent Nuclear Armed aircraft of the initial “Cold

War. The 509th Bomb Wing (The unit that dropped the atomic bombs on Japan, ending WWII.

How would you rate it in the following categories?

A. Instantaneous turn rates

It was a very responsive aircraft

B. Sustained turn

You had to work at it one hand of the wheel and the other on the trim wheel.

C. Climb rate

Depending on gross weight, but alighter aircraft could put the nose in the air. Heavy your rate of climb was limited.

D. General agility

I liked flying the B-47. It was very responsive due to the sweep wing

E. High angle of attack performance

It flew like a bomber at altitude, but was very agile at low level and during “pop-up” procedures at low level.

F. Bombing accuracy

Excellent bombing platform. Usually highly accurate bomb results, CE below 500 ft

G. Cockpit layout

Nice cockpit, well arranged for flight instruments, gear and flap handles very convenient.

H. Sensors

Chaff and standard Jamming gear.

I In terms of combat effectiveness and survivability?

A very survivable aircraft at low level, Very vulnerable at high altitude.

Cockpit layout and comfort?

It was not intended for long missions, but it would treat you well for seven-eight hours flight.

What should I have asked you?

Emergency bailout for the Radar Navigator was downward and if on-board the forth man exit was out of the RN’s hole.

Thoughts on range and bombload?

In-Flight refuelling made the B-47 a long range bomber and the bomb load varied according to the type of bombs carried, Nulear load was four to six bombs.

Which weapons did you deploy, and which was the most spectacular from the cockpit?

Never dropped a bomb in anger.

Unofficially what’s the fastest and highest and the aircraft was taken?

.95 Mach, 38, maybe 40 K.

Do you love the aircraft?

I felt very at home in the B-47

What was unusual about B-47 tactics and culture?

It was an aircraft built for the typical role of a bomber at high altitude, but evolved into a most effective low altitude penetrator.

What were B-47 pilots most afraid of?

Loss of an outboard engine on takeoff. A number of takeoff accidents for this occurrence happened. Two at my home Base in New Hampshire and others at other locations. It was discovered that the reaction of pilots to this was to use aileron movement to correct the loss of direction control. Photos later discovered the problem was exacerbated by use of aileron and resulted in a situation called “Roll due to Yaw”. Correction of only rudder would correct the roll.

Did B-47 pilots feel about the absence of defensive weapons?

There was a twin 20 mm cannon in the tail controlled by the Co-pilot.

Tell me something I don’t know about the B-47

Although it was built to deliver nuclear weapons, it had the capacity to deliver conventional bombs and missiles.

What was base life like? How did you unwind?

Ideal location for water and mountain sports. Very family oriented, but a very professional group of crew members. The first jet bomber that incorporated the new jet trained pilots into an older group, of prop driven pilots, both learned from the blending.

[atplblog]

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[jcmarchi]

Robots with Feeling: How Tactile AI Could Transform Human-Robot Relationships

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/robots-with-feeling-how-tactile-ai-could-transform-human-robot-relationships/

Robots with Feeling: How Tactile AI Could Transform Human-Robot Relationships

Sentient robots have been a staple of science fiction for decades, raising tantalizing ethical questions and shining light on the technical barriers of creating artificial consciousness. Much of what the tech world has achieved in artificial intelligence (AI) today is thanks to recent advances in deep learning, which allows machines to learn automatically during training. 

This breakthrough eliminates the need for painstaking, manual feature engineering—a key reason why deep learning stands out as a transformative force in AI and tech innovation. 

Building on this momentum, Meta — which owns Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram — is diving into bold new territory with advanced “tactile AI” technologies. The company recently introduced three new AI-powered tools—Sparsh, Digit 360, and Digit Plexus—designed to give robots a form of touch sensitivity that closely mimics human perception. 

The goal? To create robots that don’t just mimic tasks but actively engage with their surroundings, similar to how humans interact with the world. 

Sparsh, aptly named after the Sanskrit word for “touch,” is a general-purpose agentic AI model that allows robots to interpret and react to sensory cues in real-time. Likewise, the Digit 360 sensor, is an artificial fingertip for robots that can help perceive touch and physical sensations as minute as a needle’s poke or changes in pressure. The Digit Plexus will act as a bridge, providing a standardized framework for integrating tactile sensors across various robotic designs, making it easier to capture and analyze touch data. Meta believes these AI-powered tools will allow robots to tackle intricate tasks requiring a “human” touch, especially in fields like healthcare, where sensitivity and precision are paramount.

Yet the introduction of sensory robots raises larger questions: could this technology unlock new levels of collaboration, or will it introduce complexities society may not be equipped to handle?

“As robots unlock new senses, and gain a high degree of intelligence and autonomy, we will need to start considering their role in society,” Ali Ahmed, co-founder and CEO of Robomart, told me. “Meta’s efforts are a major first step towards providing them with human-like senses. As humans become exceedingly intimate with robots, they will start treating them as life partners, companions, and even going so far as to build a life exclusively with them.”

A Framework for Human-Robot Harmony, the Future? 

Alongside its advancements in tactile AI, Meta also unveiled the PARTNR benchmark, a standardized framework for evaluating human-robot collaboration on a large scale. Designed to test interactions that require planning, reasoning, and collaborative execution, PARTNR will allow robots to navigate both structured and unstructured environments alongside humans. By integrating large language models (LLMs) to guide these interactions, PARTNR can assess robots on critical elements like coordination and task tracking, shifting them from mere “agents” to genuine “partners” capable of working fluidly with human counterparts. 

“The current paper is very limited for benchmarking, and even in Natural Language Processing (NLP), it took a considerable amount of time for LLMs to be perfected for the real world. It will be a huge exercise to generalize for the 8.2 billion population with a limited lab environment,” Ram Palaniappan, CTO of TEKsystems, told me. “There will need to be a larger dedicated effort to boost this research paper to get to a workable pilot.”

To bring these tactile AI advancements to market, Meta has teamed up with GelSight Inc. and Wonik Robotics. GelSight will be responsible for producing the Digit 360 sensor, which is slated for release next year and will provide the research community access to advanced tactile capabilities. Wonik Robotics, meanwhile, will handle the production of the next-generation Allegro Hand, which integrates Digit Plexus to enable robots to carry out intricate, touch-sensitive tasks with a new level of precision. Yet, not everyone is convinced these advancements are a step in the right direction. 

“Although I still believe that adding sensing capabilities could be meaningful for robots to understand the environment, I believe that current use cases are more related to robots for mass consumers and improving on their interaction,” Agustin Huerta, SVP of Digital Innovation for North America at Globant, told me. “I don’t believe we are going to be close to giving them human-level sensations, nor that it’s actually needed. Rather, it will act more as an additional data point for a decision-making process.”

Meta’s tactile AI developments reflect a broader trend in Europe, where countries like Germany, France, and the UK are pushing boundaries in robotic sensing and awareness. For instance, the EU’s The Horizon 2020 program supports a range of projects aimed at pushing robotic boundaries, from tactile sensing and environmental awareness to decision-making capabilities. Moreover, The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany recently introduced ARMAR-6, a humanoid robot designed for industrial environments. ARMAR-6 is equipped to use tools like drills and hammers and features AI capabilities that allow it to learn how to grasp objects and assist human co-workers. 

But, Dr. Peter Gorm Larsen, Vice-Head of Section at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Aarhus University in Denmark, and coordinator of the EU-funded RoboSAPIENS project, cautions that Meta might be overlooking a key challenge: the gap between virtual perceptions and the physical reality in which autonomous robots operate, especially regarding environmental and human safety. 

“Robots do NOT have intelligence in the same way that living creatures do,” he told me. “Tech companies have a moral obligation to ensure that their products respect ethical boundaries. Personally, I’m most concerned about the potential convergence of such advanced tactile feedback with 3D glasses as compact as regular eyewear.”

Are We Ready for Robots to “Feel”?

Dr. Larsen believes the real challenge isn’t the tactile AI sensors themselves, but rather how they’re deployed in autonomous settings. “In the EU, the Machinery Directive currently restricts the use of AI-driven controls in robots. But, in my view, that’s an overly stringent requirement, and we hope to be able to demonstrate that in the RoboSAPIENS project that I currently coordinate.” 

Of course, robots are already collaborating with humans in various industries across the world. For instance, Kiwibot has helped logistics companies dealing with labor shortages in warehouses, and Swiss firm Anybotics recently raised $60 million to help bring more industrial robots to the US, according to TechCrunch. We should expect artificial intelligence to continue to permeate industries, as “AI accelerates productivity in repeatable tasks like code refactoring, addresses tech debt and testing, and transforms how global teams collaborate and innovate,” said Vikas Basra, Global Head, Intelligent Engineering Practice, Ness Digital Engineering.

At the same time the safety of these robots – now as well as in their potentially “sentient” future – is the main concern in order for the industry to progress. 

Said Matan Libis, VP of product at SQream, an advanced data processing company, in The Observer, “The next major mission for companies will be to establish AI’s place in society—its roles and responsibilities … We need to be clear about its boundaries and where it truly helps. Unless we identify AI’s limits, we’re going to face growing concerns about its integration into everyday life.”

As AI evolves to include tactile sensing, it raises the question of whether society is ready for robots that “feel.” Experts argue that pure software-based superintelligence may hit a ceiling; for AI to reach a true, advanced understanding, it must sense, perceive, and act within our physical environments, merging modalities for a more profound grasp of the world—something robots are uniquely suited to achieve. Yet, superintelligence alone doesn’t equate to sentience. “We must not anthropomorphize a tool to the point of associating it as a sentient creature if it has not proven that it is capable of being sentient,” explained Ahmed. “However if a robot does pass the test for sentience then they should be recognized as a living sentient being and then we shall have the moral, and fundamental responsibility to grant them certain freedoms and rights as a sentient being.”

The implications of Meta’s tactile AI are significant, but whether these technologies will lead to revolutionary change or cross ethical lines remains uncertain. For now, society is left to ponder a future where AI not only sees and hears but also touches—potentially reshaping our relationship with machines in ways we’re only beginning to imagine.

“I don’t think that increasing AI’s sensing capabilities crosses the line on ethics. It’s more related to how that sensing is later used to make decisions or drive others’ decisions,” said Huerta. “The robot revolution is not going to be different from the industrial revolution. It will affect our lives and leave us in a state that I think can make humanity thrive. In order for that to happen, we need to start educating ourselves and the upcoming generations on how to foster a healthy relationship between humans and robots.”

[car2025]

Tata Curvv

Introduction – The Curve of Elegance

Picture this: you’re cruising down the highway in a car that looks like it belongs in a sci-fi movie. Heads are turning, jaws are dropping, and you’re sitting comfortably in your Tata Curvv, feeling like the star of the show. Sounds good? That’s exactly what the Curvv promises. With its modern design, sporty stance, and power-packed features, it’s more than just a car—it’s a statement.

Design That Stuns – Curves in All the Right Places

Let’s start with the show-stealer: the design. Tata Curvv isn’t just another car; it’s a masterpiece sculpted with precision and style. The vehicle boasts:

Sleek Aerodynamics: Every curve serves a purpose, reducing drag while making it look like it’s gliding even when parked.

Futuristic LED Lights: The bold LED DRLs in the front and rear aren’t just functional—they’re pure eye candy.

Panoramic Sunroof: For those long drives under the stars or sunny skies, this feature is a total mood.

Sharp Creases & Contours: Gives the car an edgy, premium vibe.

“You know what they say about curves—they’re irresistible!” 😏

Features That Steal the Show

The Tata Curvv is not just about good looks; it’s packed with features that make it a tech-savvy companion. Here’s what you get:

Interior Features

12.3-Inch Touchscreen Display: Controls everything from navigation to entertainment. It’s like having a command center at your fingertips.

Voice-Controlled AI Assistant: Who needs a co-pilot when you’ve got an assistant built right in?

Premium Upholstery: The interior feels like sitting in a luxury lounge.

Wireless Charging Pad: No more fumbling with cords—just drop and charge.

https://hamlab.site

Performance Highlights

Electric & Hybrid Options: Choose between fully electric and hybrid models, catering to the environmentally conscious and power enthusiasts alike.

Range of Up to 500 km: Drive without worrying about running out of juice.

Multiple Driving Modes: Eco, City, and Sport modes ensure you’re always in control, no matter the mood.

Safety Features

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS): Includes lane assist, collision warning, and adaptive cruise control.

6 Airbags: For maximum safety on the road.

360-Degree Camera: Parking has never been this easy—or stylish!

Tata Curvv Specifications

Let’s geek out a bit with the numbers because they’re as impressive as the car’s aesthetics:

Category

Details

Powertrain

Electric and Hybrid Variants

Battery Capacity

50 kWh (Electric)

Range

Up to 500 km (Electric)

Horsepower

250 HP

Charging Time

Fast Charging: 80% in 45 minutes

Top Speed

180 km/h

Dimensions

L: 4500 mm, W: 1900 mm, H: 1650 mm

Boot Space

450 liters

Price – What’s the Damage?

Now, let’s talk numbers because that’s what you’ve been waiting for. The Tata Curvv is surprisingly affordable for its features. Here’s the breakdown:

Base Model (Electric): $28,000 (~PKR 7,840,000)

Hybrid Variant: $30,000 (~PKR 8,400,000)

Top Variant (Electric): $35,000 (~PKR 9,800,000)

“Not bad for a car that makes you feel like a millionaire!” 💸

Why Choose Tata Curvv?

Still not convinced? Here are a few reasons why this car is worth every penny:

Eco-Friendly Options: With electric and hybrid models, you’re reducing your carbon footprint without compromising on style.

Feature-Packed: From luxury interiors to advanced safety tech, it’s all here.

Budget-Friendly: Competitive pricing for a car that feels premium.

Stylish Design: A car that looks this good will always turn heads.

Reliability of Tata: Backed by a brand known for trust and durability.

FAQs About Tata Curvv

1. What is the mileage of the Tata Curvv?

The electric version offers a range of up to 500 km on a single charge. The hybrid variant provides excellent mileage, balancing fuel and battery usage.

2. Does Tata Curvv support fast charging?

Absolutely! You can charge the battery up to 80% in just 45 minutes with a fast charger.

3. Is Tata Curvv available in multiple colors?

Yes! It comes in vibrant colors like Midnight Blue, Sunset Red, Arctic White, and more.

4. When will it be available in showrooms?

The Tata Curvv is expected to hit showrooms by the end of this month. Pre-bookings are already open.

5. Does it come with a warranty?

Yes, Tata offers a comprehensive 5-year warranty on both the vehicle and the battery.

Conclusion – The Future is Here!

The Tata Curvv isn’t just a car—it’s a glimpse into the future of driving. With its striking design, eco-friendly options, and budget-friendly pricing, it’s all set to revolutionize the market. Whether you’re a tech enthusiast, a design fanatic, or just someone looking for a reliable ride, the Curvv checks all the boxes.

So, are you ready to embrace the curve? Don’t wai

[cartech-chetan]

There were 250,000 new cars

It will take half a year.

Now the price of hundreds of thousands can be driven away.

Some people say he is useless

It's an embroidered pillow.

Then I can only say that you don't understand cars.

This one next to me is the latest 2021 tank 300 off-road version of the Conqueror to arrive in the store.

Safe driving range 29,000 kilometers

Black car with black interior

2.0T engine

Maximum horsepower 227 hp

And with an 8AT gearbox

The interior design is borrowed from Mercedes-Benz

It is equivalent to helping a client find a design benefit that buys a big name for a small amount of money.

This car is also equipped with a tank U-turn

Two differential locks

Three driving mode adjustments

360 Ring Shadow Chassis Perspective Technology

Adaptive Cruise Remote Start Function

Yanfei Lishi Audio

Leather seat upholstery for the whole car

The main and co-pilot are equipped with seat heating and ventilation

The main driver also has a massage function.

And a big skylight

Like many self-driving tour bosses now, they go to Xinjiang, Tibet and Inner Mongolia to drive, and the most they drive is the tank 300.

If you also want to know all about this car

Remember to pay attention

Leave me a message in the comments section.

[mavdrones]

Do UAV Drones Have Collision Avoidance Programmed Into Them?

Yes! Many UAV drones have built-in collision avoidance systems these days. It’s one of the coolest safety features that make flying smoother and safer for everyone, whether you’re a beginner or a pro. Let’s break it down.

What Is Collision Avoidance?

Collision avoidance is the drone’s “eyes” in the sky. It uses sensors to detect obstacles and either slow down or navigate around them to avoid a crash. Think of it like a built-in co-pilot, keeping an eye out for you.

How Does It Work?

Drones use various sensors, like ultrasonic, infrared, and cameras, to map the environment. If they detect something in their path, they’ll either stop or reroute themselves. So, no more worrying about accidentally smashing into trees or walls!

Best Drone For Obstacle Avoidance?

If you want top-tier obstacle avoidance, check out the DJI MINI 4 PRO WITH FLY MORE COMBO PLUS from Mavdrones. It's an amazing drone that doesn’t just fly – it glides through the sky with 360-degree obstacle sensing. That’s right! This drone sees everything around it, making it super safe and fun to fly. Perfect for peace of mind while you’re capturing epic shots!

[chonacas]

Acting Coach and Casting Director of the TV Show The Jinx - Brette Goldstein

We chat about casting actors and coaching.

As a casting director, I've cast multiple television series for streaming and cable networks such as HBO and USA, over 50 films, 300 commercials, 100 plays, seven pilot presentations for networks such as Bravo, and various new media projects. I was the resident casting director at Washington, D.C.’s Folger Elizabethan Theatre for ten seasons. Films I've cast have won awards and been official selections at all major film festivals including Sundance, Tribeca, and Cannes. I was the Co-Producing Director of Washington Jewish Theatre, the Production Manager at Washington Shakespeare Co., and the Associate Producer of the Washington Theatre Festival. I've worked with thousands of actors, helping them book roles, make career choices, and secure representation.

  I now bring my expertise to the world of business and beyond. I teach innovators, executives, salespeople, and collaborators how to deliver authenticity. I've provided presentation coaching for the senior executives at Boehringer Ingelheim, casting expertise for Hubspot’s sales managers, Special Sauce workshops for Library of Congress, and many others. I lead ongoing interactive group workshops with 28Muses and provide counsel on The Boston Globe’s podcast, Love Letters.

I am an Adjunct Associate Professor of Acting for Shenandoah Conservatory's BFA Acting Program. I also teach acting and audition technique as a guest artist at several other universities, including Montclair State University, Muhlenberg College, and the University of Maryland at College Park.

I'm a CultureTalk certified coach, focusing on the study of archetypes and how they apply to individuals and organizations.

  https://www.brettegoldstein.com/

https://www.instagram.com/brettegoldstein/

Stay connected: https://www.chonacas.com/links/

Episode Sponsor: 

Www.kaldental.com

310-360-8250 - IG - dds.kaldental

Check out this episode streaming now in over 100 countries

[tech-girls]

Spotlight: Brooke Blankenship and Avery Bruen

Each month we spotlight a woman or girl in tech who inspires us. This month we are highlighting two young women, Brooke Blankenship and Avery Bruen, who recently presented at Charlottesville Entrepreneurs and Espresso (CE2) about their work as interns with an early stage startup, C.A.R.E. Lab. They are rising seniors at Albemarle High School. In addition, Avery is the co-founder and Brooke is the vice president of EmpowerHer, an organization dedicated to creating menstrual equality for public schools in Central Virginia. At CE2, they shared about a pilot workshop that C.A.R.E. Lab is launching for high school students this summer to nurture future leaders as they explore the conscious, accountable, regenerative, and equitable principles.

How do you work with technology today? At the C.A.R.E. Lab, we work with Humanized Generative AI technologies to tackle various complex challenges. Our role involves collaborating on projects that aim to develop smart and sustainable solutions for real-world problems. We utilize AI for data analysis, predictive modeling, and to enhance efficiency and productivity. By integrating AI with the principles of C.A.R.E., we strive to create impactful and equitable outcomes that can benefit our community and beyond.

What drives your interest in technology? Our interest in technology is driven by its transformative potential. We are fascinated by how technology, especially AI, can be used to solve complex problems and improve lives. The ability to innovate and create sustainable solutions that address global challenges inspires us. Additionally, the dynamic nature of the tech field, with its continuous advancements and opportunities for learning, keeps us motivated and eager to contribute to its growth. Through our work at the CARE Lab, we have seen firsthand how technology can make a difference, and this fuels our passion to explore and innovate further.

What do you remember about your first coding experience? Brooke: I vividly remember my first coding experience during a summer tech camp where we were introduced to Scratch. Creating an interactive story with animations and sound effects was incredibly fun and rewarding. It was fascinating to see my ideas come to life through coding, and this experience ignited my curiosity about how technology works and what more I could create with it.

Avery: My journey into technology began in middle school with an introduction to Scratch, MIT’s visual programming language. The user-friendly interface made it easy to create interactive projects, sparking an interest in coding. Later, I explored QuickBase, a low-code application development platform, which provided more advanced, practical experience. These early encounters with Scratch and QuickBase laid the groundwork for my growing interest and skills in technology.

What was your pathway to working in/studying technology? Our path to technology is shaped by a combination of academic pursuits, leadership roles, and a strong passion for student empowerment. Technology must integrate 360 degree thinking in both design and implementation. Values and ethics cannot be an add on but must guide the design process.

Why is it important to see more girls and women studying and working in technology? Having visible female role models in technology inspires and motivates young girls to pursue careers in this field. It helps break down stereotypes and shows that success in technology is achievable for everyone, regardless of gender.

Who inspires you to pursue your passion? Both of us are inspired by the mentors and teachers who have guided us on our tech journey. Their support, encouragement, and belief in our potential have been invaluable. They demonstrate the importance of mentorship and the powerful role it plays in shaping future leaders in technology.

What most excites you about the future of technology? We are most excited about the potential of technology to drive sustainable and equitable progress across the globe. The rapid advancements in AI, renewable energy, and biotechnology promise to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time, from climate change to healthcare accessibility.

What advice would you give to your younger self? In a world that often pushes conformity, remember to stay authentic. Your unique perspective and talents are valuable - it’s diversity that drives innovation. Trust in your abilities and be confident in the path you choose, even if it's unconventional. Be responsible for the impact of technology on others and the planet!

[whereareroo]

DAY OFF EXPLORING

WF UPDATE (5/14/24).

Your legs should be happy today. No biking. It’s raining.

We decided to visit the National Museum of the U. S. Air Force. It’s about 5 miles from our lodging.

Aviation is a big deal in Dayton. The Wright Brothers spent their childhood here. (Orville was born here and Wilbur, born in nearby Indiana, moved here with the family when he was a toddler.) When the Wright Brothers built their aircraft factory in 1903- -the first aircraft factory in history- -they built it in Dayton.

The Air Force museum is next to a big Air Force base. The base is a consolidation of two different airfields. One airfield, called Wright Field, was named after the Wright Brothers. The other field, called Patterson Field, was named after a pilot who was killed during a crash in the area. Today, the big base is called Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

The museum, which recently celebrated its 100th anniversary, is the oldest military aviation museum in the world. It’s also the largest military aviaton museum in the world. It features more than 360 aircraft and missiles.

Don’t worry. I’m not going to barrage you with a boatload of detailed information. I know my audience. I’ll share 3 highlights:

1. Like most people my age, I have a fascination with JFK. Even though he was assassinated when I was a toddler, the older folks kept talking about JFK. Many American homes, and every Catholic School, featured a photo of JFK.

On the Dallas street where Kennedy was shot, I’ve stood on the “X” that marks the spot where the bullet hit JFK. Above that spot, I’ve stood at the book depository window where the assassin fired the shot. I’ve stood at JFK’s grave.

Today, at the Air Force Museum, I completed the rest of the JFK assassination story. I walked through the plane that carried JFK to Dallas on that fateful day. It’s also the plane that carried Kennedy’s body back to Washington DC. Just before that return trip, LBJ took the oath of office on that plane.

At the time of Kennedy’s assassination, the plane was brand new. It became “Air Force One” in 1962. It remained in service for 36 years. In addition to Kennedy, it was used by Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Bush I, and Clinton. That plane has seen a ton of history. It was unsettling to walk through the plane that brought Kennedy to Dallas and flew his body home.

2. On a lighter note, there’s a small plane right next to JFK’s Air Force One. When LBJ was president, he liked to go to his ranch in Stonewall, Texas. The ranch was about 80 miles from the nearest Air Force Base. The Air Force needed a little plane to fly the Johnson family from the base to the ranch. They bought a little plane and they called it the “Lady Bird Special.”

3. The last vehicle I’ll discuss isn’t a plane. It’s a Ford Mustang. This customized Ford Mustang is called the X-1. It’s named after the first plane that broke the sound barrier. From the outside, it looks like a fancy Mustang. The inside is redesigned to look like the cockpit of a jet fighter. If you saw a photo of the inside, you would think that you were looking at a jet fighter. There are two seats down the centerline of the car, one ejection seat in front and another ejection seat in the back. It’s the set-up for a pilot and co-pilot. The instrument panel looks like the panel from a plane. Like a plane, there’s a small u-shaped steering wheel The stick shift looks like a flight stick. It’s a cool car. For 10 years, the Air Force drove the X-1 all over America as a recruiting tool.

After 3 hours at the museum, we headed off for lunch. I’ll report 3 things from that trip:

1. We drove past a small storefront business that’s obviously owned by some funny guys. It’s called “Free At Last Bail Bonds.” Their slogan is “Call Us And Let Freedom Ring.” Who knew that bail bondsmen were funny?

2. Does anybody remember Erma Bombeck? I do. She was my mother’s favorite writer. She focused on everyday life. She wrote funny books and funny newspaper columns. She was hilarious. Her books included: “I Lost Everything In The Post-Natal Depression,” “The Grass Is Always Greener Over The Septic Tank,” and “If Life Is A Bowl Of Cherries, What Am I Doing In The Pits?” On the way to lunch, we drove on Erma Bombeck Boulevard. It turns out that Erma was raised in Dayton, went to college at the University of Dayton, and is buried in Dayton. Small world.

3. Yes, we finally made it to lunch. Our goal was to try Dayton-style pizza. Until we got here, we didn’t know that Dayton Pizza was a thing. Did you? It has a very thin crust, unsweetened sauce, and it’s sliced in tiny squares. We hit a legendary place called Cassano’s. Yummy. Everyone who visits Dayton should go to Cassano’s.

I hope you enjoyed your day off. We’re back on the bikes tomorrow. We’ll see you on the trail.