Press Start: next-gen consoles "ahead" of high-end PCs, Xbox One specs and mo...
A selection of links, hand-picked by the Guardian games writers.
EA: Xbox One and PS4 “are a generation ahead of the highest end PC on the market” | MCV
Rajat Taneja, the executive VP and CTO of EA, from an article on LinkedIn:
“These architectures are a generation ahead of the highest end PC on the market and their unique design of the hardware, the underlying operating system and the live service layer create one of the most compelling platforms to reimagine game mechanics. Our benchmarks on just the video and audio pe [...]
Truck strike may have caused Washington state bridge collapse, officials says
By Jonathan Kaminsky
OLYMPIA, Washington |
Fri May 24, 2013 5:14am EDT
OLYMPIA, Washington (Reuters) – A colliding truck may have triggered the collapse on Thursday of part of a four-lane freeway bridge that sent vehicles and drivers tumbling into a frigid river in Washington state, officials said.
A U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into what led part of the Interstate 5 bridge to fall into the Skagit River 55 miles north of Seattle was expected to continue on Friday.
Two [...]
‘Comfort women’ snub Japan mayor
24 May 2013
Last updated at 04:54 ET
Supporters of the former “comfort women” rallied outside Osaka’s city hall on Friday
Two South Korean women who were forced into sexual slavery during World War II have cancelled a planned meeting with Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto.
Mr Hashimoto drew international criticism last week when he said that the “comfort women”, were “necessary” for Japan’s wartime troops.
The two women were worried the meeting would be “politically exploited [...]
Stocks: Calm returns as holiday beckons
Global stocks have been edging higher after Thursday’s market mayhem that saw Japan’s Nikkei drop by 7.3%.
Investors are facing a quiet Friday ahead of the holiday weekend as stock markets regain their poise after a fright the previous session.
With few major corporate or economic reports on the agenda, U.S. stock futures were moving sideways and global markets were recovering from Thursday’s market mayhem that saw Japan’s Nikkei drop by 7.3%.
The Nikkei had a rocky Friday but managed to edge up by 0.9% at th [...]
Law agrees three-year Rangers deal
Midfielder Nicky Law has agreed a three-year deal with Rangers with effect from 1 September.
The Ibrox club are currently subject to an embargo on registering players, which expires on 31 August.
The 25-year-old has spent the last two seasons with Motherwell, whom he joined from Rotherham.
Englishman Law twice helped Motherwell secure a Europa League qualifying place and scored 13 times in 86 appearances for the Fir Park side.
Earlier this week,
Rangers announced that goalkeeper Cammy Bell would be joining on a fo [...]
Boehner: Sexual assaults a ‘disgrace’
Ongoing reports of sexual assault in the military are a “national disgrace,” House Speaker John Boehner said on Thursday.
“This is outrageous, and frankly, it’s a national disgrace,” he said.
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New reports surfaced this week that more women in the military have been victims of sexual assault, reviving an already controversial issue that Congress began examining in more depth last year.
(PHOTOS: Female war veterans: From uniform to Congress)
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon (R-C [...]
Sex education outpaced by porn
23 May 2013
Last updated at 20:53 ET
By Judith Burns
BBC News education reporter
In an age when “extremely violent and sadistic imagery is two clicks away”, school sex education is struggling to keep pace, a study suggests.
Relationship and sex education should be compulsory in all schools and include time for pupils to discuss the impact of pornography say the authors.
Lessons on relationships should start in primary school, said deputy children’s [...]
China ‘offers peacekeepers’ for Mali
24 May 2013
Last updated at 02:53 ET
The UN mission will join the 6,000-strong African force already in Mali
China has offered soldiers to the new UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, UN officials say.
Talks are underway, and more than 500 Chinese peacekeepers and engineers could potentially take part in the mission, according to UN officials.
Mali’s government was deposed in a coup in 2012, and Islamist rebels controlled the north of the country until French troops ousted them in January.
Around 6,000 African troops ar [...]
Cyclist Di Luca fails doping test
Former Giro d’Italia winner Danilo Di Luca has tested positive for EPO.
The Italian cyclist, who is currently competing in the Giro d’Italia for the Vini Fantini-Selle Italia team, failed an out-of-competition test before the race.
Di Luca, 37, has already served a ban for
testing positive at the Giro in 2009.
The
2007 Giro champion
is currently ranked 26th in the race, 33 minutes behind the leader Vincenzo Nibali.
More to follow.
Pritzker likely on confirmation path
Senators may confirm Penny Pritzker next month to lead the Commerce Department, a top Senate Republican said after a drama-free hearing Thursday.
Commerce Committee senators on both sides of the aisle largely shied away from the controversies surrounding the family of Chicago billionaire and Hyatt Hotel heiress Pritzker, despite GOP criticism centering on the use of subprime lending practices and offshore bank accounts.
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Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference [...]
Crave giveaway: Boombotix Boombot Rex portable speaker
An outdoorsy Boombotix Boombot Rex relaxing on a rock. You’ll have your choice of black, white, blue, or green.
(Credit:
Boombotix)
Congrats to John D. of Fruitland Park, Fla., for winning a Crucial M500 SSD and copy of Iolo System Mechanic in last week’s giveaway. This week, I asked you for help deciding whether to give away a mini action cam, a waterproof
iPhone 5 case, or an ultraportable speaker. The speaker won by a few tweets, so here you go, readers. Ask and ye shall receive (and don’t worry; those other prize [...]
Groups look for next step in delicate immigration reform dance
After clearing the first hurdle in some of the most delicate legislative jockeying in recent memory, advocates of a comprehensive immigration reform bill are already looking to the next stage of the legislation’s progress as it heads toward a high-profile airing in the full Senate.
While some groups aligned with Democrats failed to secure their desired changes to the sweeping Senate legislation as it worked its way through 30 hours of debate in the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this month, many are looking to the floor debate as a se [...]