Visuals are a core part of video-game design. They can enhance gameplay and make a narrative more immersive—or, done poorly, ruin an experience altogether. Either way, visually impaired players don’t have access to them. In recent years, companies and researchers have increasingly tried to address that issue.
There are billions of dollars at stake—over $36 billion in the US alone—when it comes to the value of the video games industry. But the disparity between the game makers and the game players, especially when it comes to gender and ethnicity, means companies are leaving potentially vast amounts of money on the table, a recent study from Nielsen found. What’s more, businesses are losing a significant opportunity to meaningfully engage with audiences.
In 1997, while playing a concert in New Brunswick, Canada, Bob Dylan dedicated the song “Desolation Row” to Allen Ginsberg, the renowned Beat generation poet and Dylan’s longtime friend, who had died the night before. Twenty years prior, Ginsberg had actually interviewed Dylan and asked him about death, immortality, and art—but that particular conversation was previously unknown until now.
Post-millennials, or anyone born from 1997 onwards, have only just started to come of age in the US and are the digitally native future of the workforce. A new study from the Pew Research Center shows that post-millennial women in particular are focusing on their career and education more than any other generation before.
Everyday gadgets can pose security risks beyond the microphones on your smart speaker or the camera on your laptop.
Mozilla Foundation, maker of web browser Firefox, has created a tech shopping guide based on how much digital devices and gadgets encroach on your privacy.
How do you know if your holiday gift is going to leak your personal information or create an unlocked door for hackers to enter? Mozilla, the non-profit foundation that owns the web browser Firefox, has you covered.
The way Americans look at manufacturing might help explain why 2.4 million jobs could go unfilled between this year and 2028.
A report in the journal Space Weather might have solved a Vietnam War mystery—and shed light on just how much solar activity can interfere with technology on Earth.
Around the globe, 137 million streaming subscribers tune in to Netflix monthly to watch one of more than 12,500 movies or TV shows. The brand is built on providing this one core service in a straightforward way, and consumers seem to appreciate its simplicity: according to a survey by Siegel+Gale, a global brand strategy firm, Netflix is the simplest, or most easily understood and used brand/service, in the world.
The Camp fire in northern California has become one of the most destructive in the state’s history, razing an entire town to the ground, taking 29 lives, and turning breathing the air across the region into a health hazard. Meanwhile, the Woolsey fire is still raging in southern California. Combined, the two wildfires have caused 31 deaths and displaced 150,000 people.
Black Friday, the American retail phenomenon where hordes of competitive shoppers fight—sometimes literally—for the best deal is starting earlier than ever this year. But do more days to shop mean this big economic tradition is getting even bigger? Or will trends like the decline of brick and mortar stores slow shoppers down?
Amazon and Apple have partnered up so that consumers can now buy Apple products directly from Amazon, CNET reported Nov. 9.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) plans to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarettes as early as next week, senior agency officials told the Washington Post yesterday (Nov. 8).
Facebook is offering new video-calling devices powered by artificial intelligence. Judging by reviews, privacy concerns are going to make them a tough sell.
Fortunately (or unfortunately), there is no screen licking involved.
Black Friday is more than two weeks away, but retailers like Amazon and Walmart are already rolling out deals on this year’s best-selling video games and consoles.
Michigan voted in the US midterm elections yesterday (Nov. 6) to become the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana use. Voters in Utah and Missouri also passed measures to permit medical marijuana, while proposals in North Dakota to legalize recreational use, and in Ohio to decriminalize drugs, including marijuana, both failed.
An estimated 40 million people voted early in the US midterm elections, and millions more lined up all over the country today (Nov. 6) in the rain and in spite of broken machines to exercise their democratic right—the results of which will be determined tonight.
US consumers could spend more than $1 trillion this holiday season, a market research firm estimates, which would mark the first time sales pass that threshold.
Facebook admitted Nov. 5 that its platform was “used to foment division and incite offline violence” in Myanmar. “We agree that we can and should do more,” Alex Warofka, product policy manager at Facebook, said in a statement.
SeaWorld announced its third quarter earnings on Monday (Nov. 5) and one thing was clear: The memory of Blackfish isn’t enough to stop an increasing number of people visiting the theme park.
The Spice Girls’ social media accounts posted a video today (Nov. 5) that featured four of the group’s five members arguing over Ginger Spice’s outfit, before breaking out into an a cappella version of of “Spice Up Your Life,” and announcing some long-awaited news: there will be a Spice Girls reunion tour.
Dan Brown’s bestselling novel, The Da Vinci Code, became a phenomenon (paywall) when it was released in 2003. The thriller was loaded with mysteries, cliffhangers, and controversial theories about the Catholic Church—clearly a winning formula, judging by the more than 80 million copies sold.
