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Procedural Island Generation (III)

Resulting terrain elevation with multi-scale noise layers and mountain peaks This post continues from Part II, where we established the paint map foundation and mountain ridge system. Now we’ll add detailed noise layers, distance-based mountain peaks, and do blending to create the final terrain elevation. Paint Map (recap) Before applying noise layers, we start with the foundation established in Part I - the paint map that defines our base land/water distribution: The paint map from Part I -

Tau² Benchmark: How a Prompt Rewrite Boosted GPT-5-Mini by 22%

In a recent post, we introduced the Tau² benchmark, a framework for benchmaring LLMs. Today we’re sharing a surprising discovery we made while using it: a simple prompt rewrite boosted a small model’s success rate by over 20%. This post is a deep-dive on how we found and fixed this performance bottleneck by making subtle changes to agent policies. Benchmarking LLMs with Tau² On the recent OpenAI Summer Update, we have seen that GPT-5 model has made significant strides in agentic tasks. To vali

Did a ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Songwriter Really Use ChatGPT to Write ‘Soda Pop’? [Updated]

Netflix hit KPop Demon Hunters has stayed in the conversation in large part because of its blockbuster soundtrack, but now one of those songs has come under scrutiny for potentially getting an assist from ChatGPT. Update 9/17 9am ET: The English-language article released by Joongang Daily has been updated to include a correction and remove the original quote about “Soda Pop”, bringing it more in line with the Korean-language piece. The original piece is as follows. In a recent discussion in Se

4 Things You Should Never Cook in a Nonstick Pan, According to an Expert

Nonstick cookware has its place in the kitchen, but its limitations should keep it from being your everyday pan. Nonstick cookware can tank a recipe when misused, leaving meat and vegetables without a proper sear. Some foods can damage the surface of your nonstick skillet, leading to a shorter lifespan or the release of nonstick materials into your food. As much as we love the easy cleanup, most foods fare better in a stainless-steel, carbon-steel, or cast-iron skillet. I turned to an expert fo

Stop Letting That Old Computer Gather Dust. Here's Where to Recycle It for Free

When an old laptop or printer finally gives out, the biggest question is often, "What do I do with it now?" Tossing electronics in the trash is bad for the environment and can even be illegal. It's no wonder a recent CNET survey found that nearly a third of us have old, unused tech just sitting in our closets and basements. The good news is that recycling your e-waste is simpler than you might think. You don't have to hunt down a special facility; major retailers like Best Buy and Staples make

I Tested the iPhone 17: Long-Overdue Upgrades Make a Notable Difference

CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise. The iPhone 17 brings many long-awaited features, like an always-on display. Abrar Al-Heeti/ Zooey Liao/CNET It's easy to overlook the iPhone 17, especially in a year when the ultraslim iPhone Air has stolen the spotlight -- and the bright orange iPhone 17 Pro is hulking next to it. But subtle upgrades to Apple's baseline model add up to notable improvement

Apple's Super-Slim iPhone Air Had Me on Edge... Until I Tested It

CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise. 8.6 / 10 SCORE iPhone Air $999 at Apple Pros Slick, lightweight design Surprisingly good battery life Impressively durable iOS 26 looks great Cons Single rear camera Scaled-back speaker Only charges up to 20 watts High $999 price tag I fell in love with Apple's sleek, lightweight iPhone Air the moment I first held it. Now, after using the wildly thi

I Tested the iPhone 17 Pro Max. It's Part Midlife Crisis and Part Battery-Life King

CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise. 9.2 / 10 SCORE iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max $1,099 at Apple Pros The 17 Pro Max's incredible battery life The brighter screen looks fantastic Center Stage camera with the ability to take landscape selfies vertically is sweet Cons Wished Dual Capture had a 50/50 split Live Translation's Siri voice can overlap with speakers' iPhone 17 Pro battery life is

Topics: 17 cnet iphone max pro

Bored at Work? Tubi Wants to Help You Secretly Watch TV on the Job

Should you be watching TV while at work? Why yes, yes you should -- according to Tubi. On Wednesday, the streaming service announced the launch of a stealthy new tool that helps you watch shows and movies while you're at work. Some of you are probably already doing that (I'm not judging), but with the introduction of Productubity, you can be sneaky and switch to a fake screen to trick your colleagues. "It's designed for the modern multitasker who's streaming on the sly, because sometimes, the o

China blocks sale of Nvidia AI chips

China’s Internet regulator has banned the country’s biggest technology companies from buying Nvidia’s artificial intelligence chips, as Beijing steps up efforts to boost its domestic industry and compete with the US. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) told companies, including ByteDance and Alibaba, this week to end their testing and orders of the RTX Pro 6000D, Nvidia’s tailor-made product for the country, according to three people with knowledge of the matter. Several companies had

Canon Promo Codes: 10% Off | September 2025

We love Canon’s lineup of mirrorless cameras, which deliver the same great image quality without the bulk. The R5 is a powerhouse of a camera, offering a 45 Megapixel full-frame sensor and can shoot 8K RAW Video. If you don’t need the huge 45 MP sensor of the R5, the smaller, cheaper R6 Mark II Body is a solid choice. Plus, Canon has an online deals hub with rotating offers so you can get the gear you need for all your projects for way less. There are plenty of other Canon discounts and offers

Samsung HW-Q990F Soundbar System Review: Glorious Atmos

It’s hard to convince anyone to spend over a thousand dollars on a soundbar system. Ask a home theater nerd or Redditor, and they’ll say spending real cash on anything other than a receiver and dedicated speakers and subwoofer is a fool's errand. As an A/V reviewer, I see this as a hilariously case of gatekeeping. These arguments are predicated on the fact that everyone has the room, know-how, and desire to deal with cables, speakers, and the associated setup. For those of us with partners who

Waymo to launch a robotaxi service in Nashville in 2026

is transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Waymo is bringing its robotaxis to Music City, USA. The Alphabet-owned company plans on launching its robotaxi service in Nashville in 2026. Customers will be able to hail a ride initially through the Waymo One app, and then later thro

Track power outages in real time across the US with the Ting app

is a senior science reporter covering energy and the environment with more than a decade of experience. She is also the host of Hell or High Water: When Disaster Hits Home , a podcast from Vox Media and Audible Originals. There’s a new, free tool to help Americans monitor power outages in real time. Compiling data from its vast network of home sensors, startup Whisker Labs is launching the feature today in its Ting app. You don’t actually need to have one of these sensors in your home to use t

How to watch Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote at Meta Connect 2025

is a senior reporter covering technology, gaming, and more. He joined The Verge in 2019 after nearly two years at Techmeme. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Meta is about to kick off its annual Connect conference, beginning with a keynote address from CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday night. Zuckerberg plans to discuss “the latest on AI glasses” and will lay out “Meta’s vision for artificial intelligence and the metaverse,” according to the

Sony’s PS5 update adds controller swapping and Power Saving mode

Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. PS5 users can now run select games in “Power Saving” mode and pair DualSense controllers with multiple devices. Sony started beta testing these features in July, but they’re now rolling out to everyone today in the version 25.06-12.00.00 console software update. The new Power Saver mode will reduce the power consumption of PS5 consoles in exchange for scaling back game performance, according to Sony’s PS5 u

Upgrade your everyday carry setup with these 22 picks

What we carry says a lot about what’s important to us, who we are, and who we aspire to be. This fall, it’s worth examining what you bring with you every day and thinking about how you could refine it. Perhaps you carry too much, and a utility pouch that’s just a bit bigger than a wallet could reduce (or at least help organize) the clutter in your pockets or purse. Or perhaps you want to be more prepared for what the day could bring, with compact tools like a notepad, pen, and maybe a multitool.

Casio’s stress-relieving furry robot is coming to the US

is a senior reporter who’s been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2006, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid. First announced nearly a year ago, Casio’s robotic pet Moflin has been selling so well in Japan, according to the Wall Street Journal, the company is now expanding its availability to other markets including the UK and the US. Preorders for the gold or silver version of Moflin are now available through Casio’s US website. The robot, which looks l

Icarus raises $6.1M to take on space’s “warehouse work” with embodied-AI robots

Icarus Robotics cofounders Ethan Barajas and Jamie Palmer spent hours interviewing astronauts about what it was like working in space as they homed in on their startup idea. Their big takeaway: the work was often more cargo logistics than cutting-edge science. “We’re Amazon warehouse workers with PhDs,” one astronaut said. If an experiment takes two hours on station, the person continued, the first ninety minutes are spent just moving around cargo and preparing tools. It’s a dismal waste of to

Lyft and Waymo are partnering to bring robotaxis to Nashville

Waymo has struck a deal with ride-hailing company Lyft to launch a robotaxi service in Nashville in 2026. The company said Wednesday it will begin testing its fleet of all-electric and autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles in the Nashville area in the coming months and will open up the service to the public next year. The partnership agreement announced Wednesday comes as Waymo ramps up its robotaxi expansion from its initial commercial market of Phoenix to Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, and San Fr

Terra Oleo’s oil-producing microbes could replace destructive palm oil plantations

When most kids rebel against their families, they might become a ski bum, join a band, or go to art school. Shen Ming Lee decided to start a company. “I grew up in the conventional palm oil industry,” Lee told TechCrunch. “My family’s business is one of the top producers in the palm oil space. And so I grew up a little bit — I have to admit —ashamed of what my family does.” Palm oil has come to dominate the market for vegetable oils, with the raw ingredient and its derivatives appearing in eve

Topics: lee oil oleo palm produce

Flying cars crash into each other at Chinese air show

Flying cars crash into each other at Chinese air show 28 minutes ago Share Save Imran Rahman-Jones Technology reporter Share Save Weibo Footage on social media site Weibo showed the wreckage Two flying cars crashed into each other at a rehearsal for an air show in China which was meant to be a showcase for the technology. The Xpeng AeroHT vehicles collided in mid-air, with one catching fire during landing, the company said in a statement to Reuters. The company said people at the scene were s

Tech bosses say massive investment will make UK 'AI superpower'

Tech bosses say massive investment will make UK 'AI superpower' 33 minutes ago Share Save Zoe Kleinman Technology editor Share Save Watch: UK is not giving up its digital sovereignty, Microsoft boss tells BBC Major US tech firms have pledged tens of billions of pounds worth of investment in the UK, with the boss of the world's leading chipmaker, Nvidia, predicting it will make the country an "AI superpower". The biggest single investment comes from Microsoft, which has announced a $30bn (£22b

Topics: ai growth said tech uk

Speaker Johnson says China is straining U.S. relations with Nvidia chip ban

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks with reporters outside his office in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., Sept. 11, 2025. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson called China an "adversary" of the U.S. on Wednesday after a report that the country has told tech companies to stop buying Nvidia 's artificial intelligence chips. The Cyberspace Administration of China ordered companies to halt purchases of Nvidia's RTX Pro 6000D, a chip that was made for the country, the FT repor

Nvidia CEO says he's 'disappointed' after report China has banned its AI chips

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang holds a Blackwell GeForce RTX 50 Series GPU (L) and a RTX 5000 laptop as he delivers a keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 6, 2025. LONDON — Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has weighed in on the chipmaker's struggles in China after a report claimed the country has banned its AI semiconductors. He said he was "disappointed" after the Financial Times on Wednesday reported that the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) had orde

The Download: measuring returns on R&D, and AI’s creative potential

Given the draconian cuts to US federal funding for science, it’s worth asking some hard-nosed money questions: How much should we be spending on R&D? How much value do we get out of such investments, anyway? To answer that, in several recent papers, economists have approached this issue in clever new ways. And, though they ask slightly different questions, their conclusions share a bottom line: R&D is, in fact, one of the better long-term investments that the government can make. Read the full

I was a thin phone skeptic, but after holding the iPhone Air…I get it

Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority Apple launched the iPhone 17 series last week. Riding along the new 120Hz display on the iPhone 17 and the new design and upgraded telephoto camera on the iPhone 17 Pro is the all-new iPhone Air. As someone who has been a thin-phone skeptic, I’ve looked at the iPhone Air’s launch with the same disdain I reserved for the Galaxy S25 Edge: Why would anyone trade off crucial features like battery life and camera versatility for a flagship whose primary claim-to-fa

Survey shows these two phones are tied as top Android alternatives for the iPhone 17 Pro

Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority With the iPhone 17 series now widely available, we recently explored which Android phones are the best alternatives to Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro. To get a clearer picture, we also asked our readers to vote for their top choices and share their thoughts in the comments. Our goal was to combine both popular opinion and firsthand experiences from Android users to see which devices stand out as serious alternatives to Apple’s most premium iPhone. After collecting over

Pixel 10 phones just received a fix for ‘fuzzy display’ issue

Some Pixel 10 series owners discovered a rather weird bug, as their screens would go “snowy” for several minutes at a time. This also affected one of our review units. Google previously confirmed that it was rolling out a fix , and now, a new update seems to further tackle this. Don’t want to miss the best from Android Authority? 9to5Google spotted a new September 2025 update for Pixel 10 series phones, featuring version number BD3A.250721.001.E1. We can confirm getting this update on at least

Wallpaper Wednesday: More great phone wallpapers for all to share (September 17)

C. Scott Brown / Android Authority Welcome to Wallpaper Wednesday! In this weekly roundup, we’ll give you a handful of Android wallpapers you can download and use on your phone, tablet, or even your laptop/PC. The images will come from folks here at Android Authority as well as our readers. All are free to use and come without watermarks. File formats are JPG and PNG, and we’ll provide images in both landscape and portrait modes, so they’ll be optimized for various screens. For the newest wall