To unlock the Fortnite Redcap skin for free, players must complete all five of the Refer a Friend 3.0 challenges by Jan. 9, 2024.

By Chibuike Oguh NEW YORK Shares of electric-vehicle startup Fisker Inc rose by more than 20% on Tuesday

CD Projekt Red has apologized for a Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 update featuring anti-Russian dialogue and

The US government and 17 states are suing Amazon in a landmark monopoly case reflecting years of allegations that the e-commerce giant abused its economic dominance and harmed fair competition.

In today's patch notes, Fortnite v26.20 added three new Reality Augments, including Marksman Headshots, to give select advantages in Chapter 4 Season 4.

By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Federal Trade Commission filed a long-awaited antitrust lawsuit against Amazon.com on Tuesday, charging

Blue light emitted from the screens of phones, tablets and televisions could induce puberty early, a study has found. In the modern day, children are raised with devices all around them, with many having a phone or tablet to keep them entertained from a young age. But, researchers in Turkey have discovered that it exposure to the blue light such devices give off could speed up the onset of puberty. Teams from the Gazi University and Bilkent City Hospital in Ankara revealed how they saw the effect in male rats, which could suggest a link between device screens and early childhood development. Their findings were presented at the 61st Annual European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology Meeting in The Hague and published in the Frontiers in Endocrinology journal. The study emulates the same findings that were observed in female rats, where early puberty was seen. Lead researcher Dr. Aylin Kılınç Uğurlu, of Bikent City Hospital, said: “For the first time, we found a direct relationship between blue light exposure and early puberty in male rats.” They continued: “Our findings align with our previous work on female rats, which also showed similar effects, thereby providing a more comprehensive view of how blue light may influence puberty in both male and female rats.” As part of the study, 18 male rats, all 21 days old, were split into three groups. Two of the groups were assigned either six or 12 hours of blue light exposure per day. The last group was a control and was not exposed to any blue light from screens. Results showed that the rats with exposure to blue light experienced signs of puberty “significantly earlier” compared with the control group. Uğurlu noted in a news report: “I want to emphasise that this is a rat study and direct results cannot be interpreted for humans. “However, we provide an experimental foundation to further investigate the health consequences of ever-increasing screen time in modern society.” Researchers hope to continue their study on the effects of blue light on rats to “understand its long-term effects on reproductive organ damage and fertility”. Uğurlu continued: “Ultimately, this research could lead to preventative measures and contribute to the ongoing discourse on how modern lifestyles affect physiological development and long-term health.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The Fortnite Crew Pack October 2023 featuring Shimmerdusk, a fae huntress perfect for Halloween, goes live on Sept. 30 at 8 p.m. ET.

India’s Chandrayaan-3 lander only touched down on the Moon a month ago, but already it's made some major contributions to science. The spacecraft arrived on the satellite's unexplored south pole on 23 August, securing India's place as the first country to achieve this ambitious feat. Its rover, named Pragyan (or "wisdom" in Sanskrit) then embarked on an exploration of the rocky terrain, equipped with two instruments for conducting chemical experiments. And now, India's space agency, the ISRO, has published the ground-breaking data collected by the bold robot. Pragyan's findings offered a new, detailed insight into what makes up the lunar soil. And whilst scientists were unsurprised by the presence of iron, titanium, aluminium and calcium in the rocks, they were stunned to note a much higher concentration of sulphur than expected. The discovery is significant for a number of reasons. Most significantly, perhaps, because the sulphur could be used to help create a human base on the Moon. As Jeffrey Gillis-Davis, a planetary scientist, pointed out in a piece for Science Alert: "Astronauts and robots could travel from the south pole base to collect, process, store and use naturally occurring materials like sulfur on the Moon – a concept called in-situ resource utilization. "In-situ resource utilization means fewer trips back to Earth to get supplies and more time and energy spent exploring. Using sulfur as a resource, astronauts could build solar cells and batteries that use sulfur, mix up sulfur-based fertilizer and make sulfur-based concrete for construction." Gillis-Davis went on to explain that sulfur-based concrete has a number of advantages over the more common variety used in building, pointing out that it "hardens and becomes strong within hours rather than weeks, and it's more resistant to wear". "It also doesn't require water in the mixture, so astronauts could save their valuable water for drinking, crafting breathable oxygen and making rocket fuel," he added. The presence of sulphur near the Moon's south pole also suggests that highland soils at the lunar poles could have very different compositions to highland soils at the lunar equatorial regions. This would have key implications for our understanding of how the Moon works as a geological system, given that sulfur mainly comes from volcanic activity. Still, there's plenty of work to be done. And while this is all just one small step in Chandrayaan-3's mission, it could mean a great leap in how we view our dear celestial companion. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

European Union officials on Tuesday called on large social media platforms to step up their enforcement against online mis- and disinformation, particularly about the war in Ukraine.

Ancient clay tablets unearthed from ancient ruins in Turkey by archaeologists have revealed a language lost to the passages of time. The new language was discovered in the ancient capital of the Hittite Empire at Hattusa (known as Boğazköy-Hattusha). The well-preserved tablets are among many incredible artworks found at the site - a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the past four decades, researchers have dusted off nearly 30,000 unique tablets - with most written in Hittite. New research, however, shows that some of the tablet haul shows that they are written in a language previously unknown to modern man. Of course, the meaning and words of this language have not been deciphered, but it appears from early inspection to branch off from languages used within the Hittite Empire - and is being referred to as Kalašma. archaeologist Interestingly though, researchers from the Istanbul Department of the German Archaeological Institute have noted that the new language is found within a recitation in a 'cultic ritual text'. While that's usually the basis of a middling horror movie, we're certain that there's nothing to worry about - it stems from an ancient Hittite practice. Professor Daniel Schwemer explains that the discovery wasn't unexpected. "The Hittites were uniquely interested in recording rituals in foreign languages," he said. These ritual texts provide insight into little-known languages, and thanks to this discovery, one more has been added to the list. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Apple has provided a software update for its iPhone 12 to French regulators following concerns about radiation levels of the smartphone. France suspended sales of iPhone 12 handsets last week after claiming it failed to pass tests relating to electromagnetic radiation exposure limits. The US tech giant risked a product recall if a fix was not found, while other European countries warned they may follow France’s initiative. French authorities received a software update from Apple for its iPhone 12 on Tuesday, a source at the French digital ministry told Reuters. Apple had earlier contested the French findings, saying the iPhone 12 was certified by multiple international bodies as compliant with global standards. A spokesperson for Apple told The Independent that it was engaging with regulators in an effort to prove that its iPhone 12 is compliant. The US tech giant said it has provided France’s National Frequency Agency (ANFR) with independent third-party lab results proving the iPhone 12’s compliance, and met SAR regulations. Apple then said on 15 September it would issue a software update to accommodate the testing methods used in France. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. The move by Paris to suspend sales of the iPhone 12 handsets had prompted concerns in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands. Belgium also reportedly requested the software update but it was limited to France, Belgian industry regulator said in an emailed statement. The Belgian regulator also said it expected more steps at a European level after the French authorities inform their peers about the fix and the fact that is not available widely in the European Union. French regulator Agence Nationale des Frequences did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Dutch digital watchdog also did not respond to a request for comment. Italian authorities will wait for French deliberations over the Apple update before taking any decision, an Italian government source said. Researchers have conducted multiple studies over the last two decades to assess the health risks of mobile phones. According to the World Health Organisation, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by them. The radiation warning in France was based on results of tests that differ from those carried out in other countries. Industry experts said there were no safety risks as regulatory limits, based on the risk of burns or heatstroke from the phone’s radiation, were set well below levels where scientists have found evidence of harm. Apple launched the iPhone 15 earlier this month and the iPhone 12 is not available to buy from Apple directly. It can, however, be bought from third parties that have inventory, or trade old phones. Apple routinely provides software updates for its phones and computers, mostly to fix a security issue. They can be focused on a particular model or a region, and sometimes Apple issues several updates in a month. The iPhone 12 update is set to be similar to any of these regular software fixes. Apple pings iPhones for eligible software updates and users install them. It is not clear if or when the update will be available for users. Additional reporting from agencies Read More Apple iPhone 15 and 15 Plus review: Quiet colours, impressively fast Google Pixel 8 camera will include ‘creepy’ face-changing AI iPhone 15: Apple workers strike in France ahead of biggest launch of the year You need to update your Apple devices right now iPhone 15 goes on sale – but you might struggle to actually get one iPhone 15: Apple workers strike in France ahead of biggest launch of the year