Elon Musk’s X is planning to charge users in New Zealand and the Philippines joining via the platform’s web application $1 per year as part of its programme to reduce bot activity. The subscription is part of X’s “Not A Bot” programme, which attempts to “bolster our already significant efforts to reduce spam, manipulation of our platform and bot activity”, the company noted in a help centre post on its website on Tuesday. As part of the pilot programme, new users signing up via the website in the two countries will also be required to verify their account with a phone number, the unsigned post said. It remained unclear why the subscription programme is being rolled out only in these two countries, and exclusively for new users joining via the X website, and not the mobile app. However, Not a Bot’s terms and conditions suggested that people may also subscribe to the programme from X’s iOS and Android apps, while the main help centre post only specified web. X did not immediately respond to The Independent’s request for comment. “As of October 17th, 2023 we’ve started testing “Not A Bot”, a new subscription method for new users in two countries,” the company posted. “This will evaluate a potentially powerful measure to help us combat bots and spammers on X, while balancing platform accessibility with the small fee amount. Within this test, existing users are not affected,” it said. New users from the two countries who opt to subscribe with $1 will for the web version of the platform will be able to post content, like posts, reply, repost and quote other accounts’ posts, as well as bookmark posts, X noted. However, those who opt out of this subscription in the web application “will only be able to take ‘read only’ actions, such as: Read posts, Watch videos, and Follow accounts,” the company stated. “This new programme aims to defend against bots and spammers who attempt to manipulate the platform and disrupt the experience of other X users. We look forward to sharing more about the results soon,” it added. The latest programme is also in addition of X’s premium $8 subscription option. Commenting on a post on X about the new programme, Mr Musk called it “the only way to fight bots without blocking real users.” “Correct, read for free, but $1/year to write. This won’t stop bots completely, but it will be 1000X harder to manipulate the platform,” the multibillionaire said. X’s latest decision is in line with the Tesla titan’s aim to curb bot activity on the platform since before his takeover of then-Twitter in November last year. He has also held from the beginning that charging users would curb bot activity on the social media platform even though it has been found that only a small fraction of users subscribe to its $8 premium service. But the multibillionaire has continued to hold that a subscription fee would make it harder for bots to create accounts since each bot would need a new credit card to register on the platform. “It’s the only way I can think of to combat vast armies of bots,” Mr Musk said last month. “Because a bot costs a fraction of a penny – call it a tenth of a penny – but even if it has to pay a few dollars or something, the effective cost of bots is very high,” he added. Read More EU to investigate X’s handling of disinformation over Hamas attack on Israel EU asks Elon Musk to ‘walk the talk’ on X/Twitter disinformation over Hamas attack How Elon Musk’s Twitter became a haven for fake news and misinformation Viral hate and misinformation amid Israel-Hamas crisis renew fears of real-world violence Instagram Threads adds edit button and voice notes as it attempts to take over from Twitter EU opens investigation into X’s handling of disinformation over Hamas attack on Israel

LEHI, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2023--

The website formerly known as Twitter has replaced its bird logo with an X, but there's a way for iPhone users to get the old icon back on their home screen.

UPDATE: Aug. 2, 2023, 5:00 a.m. EDT This review has been updated with new car

A $20 billion international effort to accelerate Indonesia’s shift away from coal hinges on the availability of low-cost

ANCHORAGE, Alaska--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 14, 2023--

GET A $25 OR $50 BONUS GIFT CARD: Starting on July 10, when you buy

Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa says Switch games will continue to be released until March 2025.

Curly hair may have been absolutely critical to humans evolving millions of years ago, scientists have discovered. In fact, having curly hair could have been the key reason as to why humans developed, grew taller and came to have larger brains. It’s all to do with regulating body temperature, according to a new study by researchers at Penn State University. Given that hair can help to protect the head from the sun’s rays, it’s thought that thicker, curlier hair types could have been key to human life progressing in Equatorial Africa. Scientists recreated the kinds of conditions that early humans would have experienced, using wigs featuring different hair types on models. They found that curls were most effective in keeping the models cool in an environment measuring 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) and 60 per cent humidity. Tina Lasisi is the study's lead author. She spoke to Newsweek about the findings and said: "We hypothesized that tightly curled scalp hair would provide some benefits, but the extent of these benefits was uncertain. "Previous studies on mammalian coats have shown that hair can limit the amount of sunlight reaching the skin, but we were particularly surprised by the significant reduction in solar heat radiation impact provided by tightly coiled hair.” The reduction in heat caused by tight curls could have led to the development of larger brains. "Once humans developed large brains, they could employ other behavioral and social strategies to cope with heat, potentially diminishing the relative advantage of curly hair," she said. "This could have led to a diverse distribution of hair textures worldwide. Furthermore, since straight hair better retains heat, populations in colder environments may have experienced selective pressure for straight hair." She added: "Future research should aim to answer these questions by incorporating our data into mathematical models of human physiology or conducting experiments with human subjects who have different hair textures to examine the impact on their thermal regulation.” 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

TL;DR: The Ultimate Microsoft Office Pro 2021 for Windows, Windows 11 Pro, and Degoo Premium

MILPITAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 22, 2023--

Apple is planning to stop selling some of its leather products, and offer alternatives instead, according to multiple reports. In recent weeks, numerous reports have suggested that Apple is planning on swapping its leather cases for new woven materials, with the upcoming release of the iPhone 15. Various leaks from within the supply chain have suggested that it has developed a new material that will take its place. Now one of those examples appears to have leaked on Twitter. It is impossible to know whether the case is a legitimate Apple one – and, even it is, whether it will go on sale – but it appears to show one of the cases with an iPhone inside. Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, who has a strong track record of leaks from within Apple, appeared to suggest the case was legitimate. On Twitter, he said it was a “sample/replica of the new leather-free iPhone 15 case”. He then went on to suggest that Apple would also start “moving away from leather on its Apple Watch bands as well”. Apple offers a range of different leather Watch bands. It says they are made from “Roux Granada leather made in France”. It also sells leather straps as part of a collaboration with Hermès that has been ongoing for years. Mr Gurman initially suggested that partnership would be likely to continue, even if Apple stopped selling bands of its own – but then he suggested that could come to an end, too. Apple employees have been offered steep discounts on the Hermès accessories, he said, with staff being offered up to 90 per cent off. That suggests the company could be getting rid of stock it intends to stop selling, and so the Hermès leather Watch straps could come to an end too. Apple will hold a live streamed event on September 12, where it is expected to unveil a new line-up of four versions of the iPhone 15, updated Apple Watches, and more. It also usually refreshes its accessories line, adding new colours to both the iPhone cases and Watch straps, even when it does not make significant changes like the introduction or removal of certain materials. Read More Apple is about to make a huge change to the iPhone that it never wanted to do Here’s when you will actually be able to get the new iPhone Apple is about to reveal the new iPhone – and a lot more