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Researchers using a computer algorithm modeled on cave dwelling traits in south Wales identified similar cave sites in Ireland, aided by caving specialist Shane Diffily and digital mapping consultant Darren Lee. The findings from newly discovered cave art suggest that Ireland's earliest known human inhabitants likely crossed over from Wales rather than arriving by another route.
Apple Arcade launched Retro Bowl College+ on August 6, a version of New Star Games' 2023 college football spin-off. The game lets players manage one of over 250 college teams using simple swipe-based controls for passing, running and kicking, while defense is handled by the game's simulation. Off the field, players must juggle roster morale, player ratings, facility upgrades and team budgets.
Andy Moliski, working with brothers Adam and Alex, built A Trail Tale, a web-based interactive journal chronicling his Appalachian Trail hike through pixel art styled after 1990s adventure games. Alex composed an original score blending nature sounds with acoustic instruments, and the site uses an Oregon Trail-like interface tracking Andy's fortitude, morale, and daily encounters with landmarks and weather.
A group of electronic musicians, including 26-year-old producer Max 'H4RRIS' Harris, are publicly calling out peers they suspect of passing off AI-generated music as their own work. Harris argues that such material lacks genuine artistic intent and amounts to a way of profiting off stolen creative labor rather than true expression.
Cara, an artist portfolio platform built to shield creators from AI training scrapes, suffered three large-scale data harvests starting August 13, including a 12-terabyte dump of roughly 12 million images posted publicly on Reddit. The person behind the scrape admitted doing it for under $10 and bragged about the effort, sparking backlash among Cara's 1.5 million users who had joined specifically to avoid this kind of exploitation. Founder Jingna Zhang says the incident exposed how legally murky and technically feasible such scraping remains despite platform defenses like Glaze.
System 3 Software unveiled James Pond Legacy: The Pond Is Not Enough, a compilation bundling four classic James Pond platformers from the Amiga, Genesis, Commodore 64 and SNES. Fans quickly accused the collection's new artwork of being AI-generated, a suspicion reinforced when System 3's own blog post defending its 'human-led' art process appeared to include AI-style images itself. Series creator Chris Sorrell, who has no ownership or input over the franchise, publicly condemned the release, saying he hopes those behind it 'choke on an AI-generated fishbone.'
Yayoi Kusama, the Japanese artist celebrated for her polka-dot motifs and immersive infinity mirror rooms, has died at age 97. Curators and admirers have described her installations as evoking a profound sense of wonder, transporting viewers into contemplative, almost cosmic spaces.
Yayoi Kusama Studio announced that the Japanese artist died on August 14 in a Tokyo hospital, without disclosing a cause of death. Kusama, celebrated for her repetitive dot motifs across paintings, sculptures and immersive installations, continued painting until her final days.
A CNET writer found that an inexpensive attachable milk thermometer solved persistent problems with over- or under-steamed milk for latte art. By monitoring exact temperature instead of relying on touch, the writer could pull the steam wand at the right moment, producing consistently velvety milk rather than scalded or watery results.
Yayoi Kusama, the Japanese artist famous for polka-dot patterns and pumpkin sculptures, died on the 14th at a Tokyo hospital due to multiple organ failure. She was 97 and a recipient of the Order of Culture. A private funeral was held with close family, and a public memorial is planned later.
Kelly Shen, an MIT graduate from the class of 2017, works in Sotheby's art intelligence division, where she designs algorithms that forecast auction prices based on buyer trends and artist popularity. Her work also includes cataloguing art pieces and building real-time systems capable of handling thousands of simultaneous bidders on the auction house's website.
During and after World War II, the Museum of Modern Art worked closely with U.S. government agencies to spread American modern art abroad, framing it as proof of Western creative freedom against fascism and communism. Nelson Rockefeller, who led MoMA while also serving in Roosevelt's administration, helped direct dozens of government-funded exhibitions across Latin America, and later CIA officer Thomas Braden oversaw covert cultural funding that supported showcasing artists like Jackson Pollock internationally.