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When he’s not making radical, controversial changes to Twitter/X, Elon Musk is eyeing up plans to colonise Mars in the coming years with his company SpaceX – and now a team of researchers at the Virginia-based George Mason University claims it has found out the minimum number of people needed to successfully takeover the red planet. In the study – the results of which were published to the research platform Arxiv in August - the academics established a model to find out the ‘initial population size’ required on Mars to produce a “stable colony size”. They ran the model five times for 28 Earth years, and increased the population by 10 people each time - from 10 to 170 individuals. “Given that there are four critical tasks that are needed continuously (air, water, food production and waste removal) in addition to handling disasters, and two skills needed for each task, we chose a population size of 10 as the minimum needed for a ‘stable’ colony size. “The population is allowed to dip below 10 as long as it bounces back within 1.5 years, or the amount of time between Earth resupply shuttles.” The test found all initial population sizes over 50 were able to sustain a population of at least 10 people across the time period, and that the bare minimum number to meet that criteria is at least 22 people. There you go, Elon. You’re welcome. It’s certainly a decrease in the minimum number previously suspected by French researcher Jean-Marc Salotti in June 2020 – that was the rather astronomical figure (sorry) of at least 110 people. And the Virginia researchers didn’t stop there, either, as they also took a look at the personality types best placed to handle the highly stressful environment that is living on a completely different planet. There’s four: “agreeables”: low competitiveness and aggressiveness, and not fixated on “stringent routine “socials”: medium competitiveness, extroverted, require social interaction but not fixated on stringent routines “reactives”: medium competitiveness and fixed on stringent routines “neurotics”: high competitiveness, highly aggressive and a “challenged ability to adapt to boredom or a change in routine” Perhaps unsurprisingly, the “agreeables” came out on top. The researchers added: “In all runs, the Agreeable personality type was the only one to survive the full duration of model runs. This is likely because it has the highest coping capability.” Their results found that while the “neurotic” was “most likely to fail”, and both “reactives” and “socials” fluctuated, the “agreeables” was the “most resilient”. “While this model assigns equal numbers of each personality type, future work could try adjusting the proportion of each to possibly lead to a lower required minimum initial population. For example, a crew of all Agreeable personalities may be more successful,” they suggest. Musk, meanwhile, said earlier this year that he was optimistic humans landing on Mars was "possible" in the next five years, and "highly likely" in a decade. 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.

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Lack of data protection laws in the UK could see an increasing problem of AI “ghostbots” made from people’s digital footprints, new research from Queen’s University Belfast has suggested. “Ghostbot” is a term used to describe what happens when artificial intelligence is used to create digital reincarnations of the dead. The technology used to create this includes chatbots, deepfakes or holographs that can replicate the voice, face and even personality of a dead person using data from social media. 'Ghostbots' lie at the intersection of many different areas of law, such as privacy and property, and yet there remains a lack of protection for the deceased’s personality, privacy, or dignity after death Dr Marisa McVey, Queen’s University Belfast As the concept of digital reincarnation moves into the mainstream, celebrities are beginning to showcase the capabilities of such technology, for example, a hologram of the late Robert Kardashian created using deepfake technology was gifted to Kim Kardashian by Kanye West in 2020, which used her father’s likeness and spoke in his voice. A research study titled Governing Ghostbots from Queen’s University Belfast, Aston Law School and Newcastle University Law School, has suggested that greater societal awareness of “ghostbots” and a “do not bot me” clause in wills and other contracts could prevent people from being digitally reincarnated without permission. The research looked at potential legal avenues to protect privacy (including post-mortem privacy), property, personal data, and reputation. Dr Marisa McVey from the School of Law at Queen’s University Belfast said there was a lack of protection for people’s privacy or dignity after death. Currently, in the absence of specific legislation in the UK and further afield, it’s unclear who might have the power to bring back our digital persona after we die Dr Marisa McVey, Queen’s University Belfast “’Ghostbots’ lie at the intersection of many different areas of law, such as privacy and property, and yet there remains a lack of protection for the deceased’s personality, privacy, or dignity after death,” she said. “Furthermore, in the UK, privacy and data protection laws do not extend to heirs after death,” she said. “While it is not thought that ‘ghostbots’ could cause physical harm, the likelihood is that they could cause emotional distress and economic harm, particularly impacting upon the deceased’s loved ones and heirs. “Currently, in the absence of specific legislation in the UK and further afield, it’s unclear who might have the power to bring back our digital persona after we die.” In the US and EU there is increasing momentum to legislate on who has ownership over a person’s digital identity, for example the EU AI Act which requires greater transparency for deepfakes and chatbots. In the absence of legislation in the UK, one way to protect our post-mortem selves might be through the drafting of a legally binding ‘do not bot me’ clause that could be inserted into wills and other contracts while people are still alive Dr Marisa McVey, Queen’s University Belfast Dr McVey has suggested that in addition to more formal legislation, an increased understanding of the phenomenon of “ghostbots” could help people to protect their data. “In the absence of legislation in the UK, one way to protect our post-mortem selves might be through the drafting of a legally binding ‘do not bot me’ clause that could be inserted into wills and other contracts while people are still alive,” she said. “This, combined with a global searchable database of such requests, may prove a useful solution to some of the concerns raised by ‘ghostbots’. “We also suggest that in addition to legal protections, greater societal awareness of the phenomenon of ‘ghostbots’, education on digital legacies and cohesive protection across different jurisdictions is crucial to ensure that this does not happen without our permission.” The research was a part of the Leverhulme Trust-funded project Modern Technologies, Privacy Law And The Dead. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Banking app feature allows economic abuse survivors to mute malicious messages Augmented reality headset Vision Pro is ‘most advanced device ever’ – Apple Revealed: The delivery apps charging you double for your food shop

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Amazon Prime Day is finally here, kicking off the 48-hour sale bonanza with a whole host of bargains. So far, we’ve spied stellar discounts on a range of products, such as this Apple Watch, which is at its lowest price ever; the AirPods Pro earbuds, which have a 16 per cent saving, and the Ninja air fryer, which has been slashed to half price. So, it’s safe to say, if you’re looking for a bargain, you’ve come to the right place. Everything from air fryers and coffee machines to headphones and tablets and even fans and air conditioners are included on the virtual sale rail. But, of course, as Prime Day is just getting started, we can expect to see some more stellar savings begin to seep through. At IndyBest, we have our expert bargain hunters on the case, sifting through the never-ending discounts to bring to you the very best steals. And trust us when we say you’ll want to pay attention to this one. The gaming device that was famously hard to get hold of at the start of the year has just been entered into the sale. But with a 16 per cent saving (God of War Ragnarök game included), we expect it will sell out fast. Keep reading below for everything you need to know to get ahead of the curve. PlayStation 5 console and ‘God of War Ragnarök’: Was £539.99, now £453.99, Amazon.co.uk Not only is this deal a great way to cop the console for less, it also comes with our top-rated PS5 game: God of War Ragnarök. “Ragnarok is quite simply one of the best games to come out in 2022,” shared our tester. Adding, “on its own merits, it’s difficult to fault, but on the foundations of 2018’s God of War, it’s nothing short of a masterpiece,” in their in-depth review. When looking at the console compared with the Xbox series X, we also found the PlayStation was the clear winner: size, shape, performance and games all included. So, with this Prime Day saving of 16 per cent, what are you waiting for? Buy now Voucher codes For the latest discounts on gaming consoles and other tech offers, try the below links: Currys discount codes Apple discount codes Want more savings? Check out our guide to the best Prime Day tech deals

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