Tag Archives: Ideas

France sees global A.I. regulation ideas by the end of this year, wants to work with U.S. on tech laws – CNBC

  1. France sees global A.I. regulation ideas by the end of this year, wants to work with U.S. on tech laws CNBC
  2. France to invest €500 million to fund AI ‘champions’, Macron says FRANCE 24 English
  3. France President Emmanuel Macron isn’t worried about A.I. destroying humanity. Instead, he wants to ‘invest like crazy’ in the new tech Fortune
  4. France needs to work with the U.S. on A.I. regulation, finance minister says CNBC International TV
  5. Institutional investors to pledge €6 billion for French tech sector EURACTIV
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News

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‘Succession’ Cast on Final Season and Ideas for a Greg Spinoff: “‘The Life of An Idiot’ Would Be An Interesting Thing” – Hollywood Reporter

  1. ‘Succession’ Cast on Final Season and Ideas for a Greg Spinoff: “‘The Life of An Idiot’ Would Be An Interesting Thing” Hollywood Reporter
  2. Brian Cox had an absolute field day at Succession’s New York premiere The A.V. Club
  3. Succession’s Brian Cox Is ‘Delighted’ the Show Will End After Season 4 PEOPLE
  4. Expect “Lots of Bad Behavior” in Succession’s Final Season Vanity Fair
  5. “Succession” star Brian Cox thinks it was a smart decision to end show with fourth season #shorts Associated Press
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News

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‘Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt & Brett Goldstein Talk The Show’s Future; Pitch Spinoff Ideas – Deadline

  1. ‘Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt & Brett Goldstein Talk The Show’s Future; Pitch Spinoff Ideas Deadline
  2. Jason Sudeikis Says ‘Ted Lasso’ Season 3 “Is The End Of This Story We Wanted To Tell,” Addresses Potential Spinoffs Yahoo Entertainment
  3. Things That Will Definitely Happen In Ted Lasso Season 3 Looper
  4. Jason Sudeikis Says Ted Lasso Season 3 Is the ‘End of This Story’ — but ‘We’ve Set the Table’ for Spinoff PEOPLE
  5. Jason Sudeikis Teases Ted Lasso’s Future Beyond Season 3 E! NEWS
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News

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Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Is Returning To The MCU & Kevin Feige Says He Has “Big Ideas For That” – Deadline

  1. Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Is Returning To The MCU & Kevin Feige Says He Has “Big Ideas For That” Deadline
  2. A New Spider-Man Film Is Being Written, Harrison Ford Is the President, and More Marvel Updates From Kevin Feige Yahoo Entertainment
  3. Kevin Feige on Marvel’s Future: ‘Spider-Man 4’ Story Is Locked, President Harrison Ford, ‘Blade’ Films in ‘10 Weeks or So’ and More Variety
  4. MCU Writers Have a Story for Spider-Man 4, Kevin Feige Says IGN
  5. Spider-Man 4, Fantastic Four, X-Men Updates From Marvel’s Feige Gizmodo
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News

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NASA funding ideas for a space seaplane, other innovations

NASA is funding a concept for a space seaplane that could investigate the chemistry of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

The TitanAir project from Planet Enterprises’ Quinn Morley could both soar through Titan’s nitrogen-and-methane atmosphere and navigate its oceans. 

“Flying on Titan would be relatively easy thanks to its low gravity and thick atmosphere. Morley conceived a flying, heavily instrumented boat that would seamlessly transition between soaring through Titan’s atmosphere and sailing its lakes, much like a seaplane on Earth,” NASA said, noting that all NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) studies are not considered official agency missions. 

The NIAC program, within NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, funds early-stage studies to evaluate technologies that could support future missions, with the latest round of awards amounting to $175,000 in grants to 14 visionaries. 

NASA’S JAMES WEBB TELESCOPE FINDS FIRST EXOPLANET ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME SIZE AS EARTH

Artist’s depiction of TitanAir: Leading-Edge Liquid Collection to Enable Cutting-Edge Science
(James Vaughan Photo-Illustration)

With a liquid ingestion system, the Titan Flyer concept aims to “drink” in methane condensation and organic material using a permeable section of the leading edge wing skin. 

“Capillary features on the inside of the wing will collect this ingested material and combine it into a continuous fluid stream, which can then be routed to science instruments inside the flyer. To enable intermittent low altitude flight, the flyer will land on the seas of Titan like a flying boat – except ‘boat’ implies water, and on Titan the lakes are made of methane,” Morley explained in a blog post. “We’re calling it a ‘flying laker.’”

According to a release from the Gig Harbor, Washington-based company, once the liquid is inside the wing, it would be collected into a continuous fluid stream using several competing methods. 

The NASA Headquarters sign stands on June 26, 2020, in Washington, D.C. 
((Photo by Joshua Roberts/Getty Images))

NASA’S WEBB FINDS WHAT MAY BE THE MOST CHEMICALLY PRIMITIVE GALAXY IDENTIFIED

One of those methods uses biomimicry of water-collecting cacti on Earth, another utilizes a flexible membrane and a third uses channels etched into the skin. 

After it is analyzed with scientific instruments, the data is transmitted back to Earth between flights.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaks prior to the launch of an Atlas V rocket carrying Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner capsule to the International Space Station in a do-over test flight at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 29, 2021. 
(REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo)

“These initial Phase I NIAC studies help NASA determine whether these futuristic ideas could set the stage for future space exploration capabilities and enable amazing new missions,” Michael LaPointe, program executive for NIAC at NASA Headquarters, said in a statement.

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“NASA dares to make the impossible possible. That’s only achievable because of the innovators, thinkers, and doers who are helping us imagine and prepare for the future of space exploration,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson noted. “The NIAC program helps give these forward-thinking scientists and engineers the tools and support they need to spur technology that will enable future NASA missions.”

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NASA funding ideas for a space seaplane, other innovations

NASA is funding a concept for a space seaplane that could investigate the chemistry of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.

The TitanAir project from Planet Enterprises’ Quinn Morley could both soar through Titan’s nitrogen-and-methane atmosphere and navigate its oceans. 

“Flying on Titan would be relatively easy thanks to its low gravity and thick atmosphere. Morley conceived a flying, heavily instrumented boat that would seamlessly transition between soaring through Titan’s atmosphere and sailing its lakes, much like a seaplane on Earth,” NASA said, noting that all NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) studies are not considered official agency missions. 

The NIAC program, within NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, funds early-stage studies to evaluate technologies that could support future missions, with the latest round of awards amounting to $175,000 in grants to 14 visionaries. 

NASA’S JAMES WEBB TELESCOPE FINDS FIRST EXOPLANET ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME SIZE AS EARTH

Artist’s depiction of TitanAir: Leading-Edge Liquid Collection to Enable Cutting-Edge Science
(James Vaughan Photo-Illustration)

With a liquid ingestion system, the Titan Flyer concept aims to “drink” in methane condensation and organic material using a permeable section of the leading edge wing skin. 

“Capillary features on the inside of the wing will collect this ingested material and combine it into a continuous fluid stream, which can then be routed to science instruments inside the flyer. To enable intermittent low altitude flight, the flyer will land on the seas of Titan like a flying boat – except ‘boat’ implies water, and on Titan the lakes are made of methane,” Morley explained in a blog post. “We’re calling it a ‘flying laker.’”

According to a release from the Gig Harbor, Washington-based company, once the liquid is inside the wing, it would be collected into a continuous fluid stream using several competing methods. 

The NASA Headquarters sign stands on June 26, 2020, in Washington, D.C. 
((Photo by Joshua Roberts/Getty Images))

NASA’S WEBB FINDS WHAT MAY BE THE MOST CHEMICALLY PRIMITIVE GALAXY IDENTIFIED

One of those methods uses biomimicry of water-collecting cacti on Earth, another utilizes a flexible membrane and a third uses channels etched into the skin. 

After it is analyzed with scientific instruments, the data is transmitted back to Earth between flights.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaks prior to the launch of an Atlas V rocket carrying Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner capsule to the International Space Station in a do-over test flight at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on July 29, 2021. 
(REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo)

“These initial Phase I NIAC studies help NASA determine whether these futuristic ideas could set the stage for future space exploration capabilities and enable amazing new missions,” Michael LaPointe, program executive for NIAC at NASA Headquarters, said in a statement.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

“NASA dares to make the impossible possible. That’s only achievable because of the innovators, thinkers, and doers who are helping us imagine and prepare for the future of space exploration,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson noted. “The NIAC program helps give these forward-thinking scientists and engineers the tools and support they need to spur technology that will enable future NASA missions.”

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New Study Challenges Previous Ideas Regarding Alzheimer’s Disease

Summary: The brains of older, cognitively healthy people have similar amounts of dissolvable, non-fibrilla amyloid proteins as the brains of those with Alzheimer’s disease. Findings challenge the long-standing theory that having higher levels of amyloid proteins is an underlying cause of Alzheimer’s disease.

Source: USC

A new USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology study challenges existing ideas of how buildup of a protein called amyloid beta (Aβ) in the brain is related to Alzheimer’s disease.

While buildup of amyloid protein has been associated with Alzheimer’s-related neurodegeneration, little is known about how the protein relates to normal brain aging, said University Professor Caleb Finch, the study’s senior author and holder of the ARCO/William F. Kieschnick Chair in the Neurobiology of Aging at the USC Leonard Davis School.

To explore the levels of Aβ in human brains, the researchers analyzed tissue samples from both healthy brains and brains of patients with dementia. More severe Alzheimer’s cases were indicated by higher Braak staging scores, a measurement of how widely signs of Alzheimer’s pathology are found within the brain.

The analysis revealed that older, cognitively healthy brains showed similar amounts of dissolvable, non-fibrillar amyloid protein as brains of Alzheimer’s patients. But, as the researchers expected, the brains of Alzheimer’s patients had higher amounts of insoluble Aβ fibrils, the form of amyloid protein that aggregates to form the telltale “plaques” seen in the disease, said Max Thorwald, the study’s first author and a postdoctoral researcher at the USC Leonard Davis School.

The findings challenge the idea that simply having higher amounts of amyloid protein in general is an underlying cause of Alzheimer’s, say Finch and Thorwald. Instead, the increase in soluble Aβ may be a general aging-related change in the brain not specific to Alzheimer’s, while higher levels of fibrillary amyloid appear to be a better indicator of poorer brain health.

Rather than Alzheimer’s simply involving increased production of Aβ protein, the more important issue may be a reduced ability to effectively clear the protein and stave off the creation of plaque-contributing fibrillary amyloid, Thorwald said.

“These findings further support the use of aggregated, or fibrillary, amyloid as a biomarker for Alzheimer’s treatments,” Thorwald said. “The site in which amyloid processing occurs has less precursor and enzyme available for processing, which may suggest the removal of amyloid as a key issue during Alzheimer’s.”

Increases in amyloid levels happen during early adulthood and differ by brain region. Further studies, including those investigating drugs to possibly break down amyloid, should incorporate positron emission tomography (PET) imaging in both healthy individuals and Alzheimer’s patients of a wide range of ages to determine how and where amyloid processing and removal changes in the brain over time, he added.

“The brain’s frontal cortex has more amyloid production compared to the cerebellum during the aging process in human brains, which coincides with their Alzheimer’s-correlated pathologies in late life,” Thorwald said.

To explore the levels of Aβ in human brains, the researchers analyzed tissue samples from both healthy brains and brains of patients with dementia. Image is in the public domain

“Future projects should examine amyloid over the life course in both cognitively normal and Alzheimer’s patients with both modulation of amyloid processing or removal of amyloid through monoclonal antibodies currently used in clinical trials for Alzheimer’s treatment.”

Monoclonal antibody treatment lemanecab has been observed to reduce Aβ plaques in clinical trials and recently received FDA approval for its potential to slow cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s patients, but the results warrant further careful research regarding long-term impact, Finch said.

“Lecanemab clearly works to diminish fibrillar amyloid,” he said. “However, we are concerned with major side effects, including brain swelling and bleeding, that were 100% more than in controls, with unknown delayed or latent impact.”

Learning more about how the brain processes and removes proteins such as Aβ could provide important insights into Alzheimer’s disease and its causes. Finch noted that very few cases of dementia occur with amyloid plaques, or masses of aggregated Aβ protein, as the only pathology present in affected patients’ brains.

Instead, most cases present with more complicated tissue abnormalities, from buildup of additional types of protein to small bleeds in the brain: “The aging brain is a jungle.”

The study, “Amyloid futures in the expanding pathology of brain aging and dementia,” appeared online on December 19, 2022 in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Along with Finch and Thorwald, coauthors include Justine Silva and Elizabeth Head of the University of California, Irvine.

About this Alzheimer’s disease research news

Author: Press Office
Source: USC
Contact: Press Office – USC
Image: The image is in the public domain

See also

Original Research: Open access.
“Amyloid futures in the expanding pathology of brain aging and dementia” by Max A. Thorwald et al. Alzheimer’s & Dementia


Abstract

Amyloid futures in the expanding pathology of brain aging and dementia

Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging studies of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients show progressive increases of fibrillar Aβ-amyloid. Because current PET ligands underestimate nonfibrillar forms, we assayed soluble Aβ in AD and controls.

To identify the mechanisms responsible for soluble Aβ in AD brains, we examined lipid rafts (LRs), where amyloid precursor protein (APP) is enzymatically processed.

Frontal cortex was compared with cerebellum, which has minimal AD pathology. Compared with cognitively normal controls (CTL; Braak 0-1), elevations of soluble Aβ40 and Aβ42 were similar for intermediate- and later-stage AD (Braak 2-3 and 4-6).

Clinical-grade AD showed a greater increase in soluble Aβ40 than Aβ42 relative to CTL. LR raft yield per gram AD frontal cortex was 20% below that of controls, whereas cerebellar LR did not differ by Braak score. The extensive overlap of soluble Aβ levels in controls with AD contrasts with the PET findings on fibrillar Aβ.

These findings further support fibrillar Aβ as a biomarker for AD treatments and show the need for more detailed postmortem analysis of diverse soluble and insoluble Aβ aggregates in relation to PET.

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NASA wants ideas to boost the Hubble Space Telescope into a higher orbit with private spaceships

NASA is looking deeper into the possibility of using a private spacecraft to lift the Hubble Space Telescope to new heights, giving the influential space observatory a new lease on life. 

On Dec. 22, the space agency issued a Request for Information regarding a non-exclusive SpaceX study earlier this year that suggested how the Hubble Space Telescope could be “reboosted” into a higher orbit.

NASA’s request for information, which you can read here, comes as it continues to consider the space telescope’s future and will remain open until Jan. 24, 2023.

Related: The  best Hubble Space Telescope images of all time

Since the start of Hubble’s operations in 1990, the orbit of the space telescope 335 miles (540 kilometers) above Earth has been decaying. Reboosting it to an orbit that is both higher and more stable could add years to Hubble’s operating lifetime delaying the point at which NASA must deorbit or dispose of the telescope.

During its five space shuttle missions to the service Hubble, NASA used the shuttle to reboost the telescope. The last shuttle servicing mission to Hubble was in 2009. NASA retired its shuttle fleet in 2011.

The idea to raise Hubble to a higher orbit using a Dragon spacecraft at no cost to the government was first developed between SpaceX and Polaris Program, a private program of space missions using SpaceX’s Dragon and Starship vehicles funded by billionaire Jared Isaacman. The unfunded agreement between SpaceX and NASA to study the feasibility of reboosting Hubble was then signed in September 2022.

The SpaceX study was designed to help NASA, which currently has no plans to operate or fund a new Hubble servicing mission, determine the commercial possibility of such a mission. The SpaceX study also aimed to lay out the technical challenges of such a servicing endeavor. 

The fact the study is non-exclusive means that other companies are free to propose their own Hubble servicing studies based on the use of different rockets or spacecraft. 

These studies will collect data from Hubble itself and from SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft to assess the possibility of safely rendezvousing and docking with the space telescope before shunting it to a higher stable orbit. The studies are expected to take around 6 months to complete. 

“This study is an exciting example of the innovative approaches NASA is exploring through private-public partnerships,” associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, Thomas Zurbuchen, said in a statement. (opens in new tab) “As our fleet grows, we want to explore a wide range of opportunities to support the most robust, superlative science missions possible.”

The operation to reboost Hubble would demonstrate how older satellites and spacecraft could be given extended operating lives, especially those in near-Earth orbits like the space telescope. 

“SpaceX and the Polaris Program want to expand the boundaries of current technology and explore how commercial partnerships can creatively solve challenging complex problems,” said Jessica Jensen, vice president of Customer Operations & Integration at SpaceX. “Missions such as servicing Hubble would help us expand space capabilities to ultimately help all of us achieve our goals of becoming a space-faring, multiplanetary civilization.”

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17 Superb Gift Ideas That Are at All-Time Low Pricing and Can Still Be Delivered in Time

If you’ve still got a few folks to check off your holiday gift list after the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, you can nab some of the year’s best prices if you know where to look. Sales are continuing on a bunch of popular products and, in some cases, you can pick items up at their best prices ever even if you missed out late last month. 

We’ve gone ahead and rounded up some of our favorite deals still available on products at rock-bottom prices. Whether you’re shopping for yourself or someone else, there’s bound to be something below worth picking up. 

Microsoft

This wildly popular offer for a Microsoft Office lifetime license is still available for $30. It’s available for both Mac and Windows, so be sure to grab the right one for the computer that you use regularly.

Chamberlain

This smart accessory can be added to nearly any garage door made after 1993 and connects to your phone for easy control of the door from anywhere. It’s down to its best price, so grab one for yourself and even some family members — they’ll be sure to thank you for something that’s so useful. It’s worth nabbing at around $1 off its all-time low. 

You’re receiving price alerts for MyQ Smart Garage Control: $18

Amooca

Convert your car headrest into a convenient storage solution with these universal hooks. Each can hold 13 pounds so you can hang up coats, kids toys, umbrellas or even bags of groceries.

You’re receiving price alerts for Amooca Car Seat Headrest Hook 4 Pack Hanger Storage Organizer Universal for Handbag Purse Coat fit Universal Vehicle Car Black with Buckle

As it does every single year, Amazon launched some very appealing Echo Dot-plus-smart-bulb bundles for Black Friday, and the latest Echo Dot with Clock is still available for its lowest price to date with a free Sengled color bulb. It’s a great buy for those new to smart home stuff or if you’re expanding your own setup.

You’re receiving price alerts for Echo Dot (5th Gen) with Clock | Cloud Blue with Sengled Bluetooth Color Bulb | Alexa smart home starter kit

GE

Save a third on this already affordable gadget and bring things like outdoor Christmas lights into your smart home setup. The GE Cync outdoor smart plug offers two outlets that work individually with Alexa and Google Assistant, giving you mobile and voice control over whatever you plug into them. 

You’re receiving price alerts for GE Cync outdoor smart plug: $14

Beats

Nab the Apple-made Beats Solo3 wireless on-ear headphones via Walmart or Amazon at 50% off their regular price. These feature the Apple W1 chip for instant pairing and automatic switching for iPhones, iPads and Macs or you can connect them via Bluetooth with other devices. You’ll get up to 40 hours of playtime per charge. 

You’re receiving price alerts for Beats Solo3 Wireless (Black, 2019)

Sony

If you’re looking for the very best over-ear headphones on the market, Sony’s WH-1000XM5 are the pair to beat right now. The 1000XM5 are the latest in Sony’s top-of-the-line series of noise-canceling headphones, and right now you can pick up a pair on sale at Amazon. It currently has them available for $348, which is over $50 less than full price and a match for the lowest they’ve gone there.

You’re receiving price alerts for Sony WH-1000XM5: $348

Apple/CNET

Apple’s iPad is one of the most popular tablets around, and right now you can get a 10th-gen iPad from just $399 — saving you $50 off the list price. This is the lowest price we’ve seen the recently released iPad model go. It even beats the deals we saw late last month, making now the perfect time to pick one up for yourself or as a gift this holiday season. The discount applies to all colorways at Amazon and Best Buy while supplies last, with higher-capacity models and cellular-equipped variants also on sale. 

You’re receiving price alerts for 2022 Apple 10.9-inch iPad (Wi-Fi, 64GB) – Blue (10th Generation)

Amazon

The C2 is our favorite high-end TV of the year. It’s sleek-looking and packed with features, especially for gamers. But the best part is the picture quality, which thanks to OLED technology makes everything on the big screen look better. 

Read our LG C2 series OLED TV review.

 

You’re receiving price alerts for LG 55-inch C2 Series OLED 4K smart TV: $1,297

Nintendo

Nintendo rarely offers discounts on the Switch, so this seasonal bundle with Mario Kart 8 is about as good as it gets. At $300, it is the same price as the console normally costs, but also includes a digital copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (a great game) and a three-month subscription to Nintendo Online. 

You’re receiving price alerts for Nintendo Switch Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Bundle: $300

Apple

The 2022 MacBook Air model has seen a complete design overhaul, now featuring a larger and brighter 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display and thinner profile. Inside, it’s powered by Apple’s all-new M2 chip, which allows for a performance bump of up to 40% and battery life as long as 18 hours, according to Apple. It’s $150 off at Best Buy and down to a record low, making now the perfect time to upgrade.

You’re receiving price alerts for MacBook Air M2 (Starlight, 256GB, 8-core)

Amazon

Amazon makes some of the most affordable tablets on the market and its lineup of Fire devices is being discounted ahead of the holidays. Its 8-inch and larger devices are seeing prices return to record lows, with the entry-level 7-inch device being just $5 more than its best-ever price. These devices are excellent buys as holiday gifts. 

Meta

Pick up the 128GB Quest 2 VR headset bundled with Resident Evil 4 and Beat Saber for $50 off the price of the headset alone. The 256GB model is $70 off.

You’re receiving price alerts for Meta Quest 2 Resident Evil 4 bundle with Beat Saber 128 GB — Advanced All-In-One Virtual Reality Headset

Logitech

Logitech’s new G Cloud Gaming Handheld, a sort of Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck-like console designed with Microsoft and Nvidia is $50 off and back down to its best price yet. The device is specifically intended for playing from cloud-based gaming services, notably (and unsurprisingly) Xbox Cloud Gaming and GeForce Now, as well as using local game-slingers like Xbox Remote Play and Steam Link. 

You’re receiving price alerts for Logitech G Cloud gaming handheld: $300

Eligible Amazon accounts can nab a third-gen Echo Dot for just $1 alongside a month of Amazon Music Unlimited. That makes the total cost just $10. 

You’re receiving price alerts for Echo Dot (3rd Gen) for $0.99 and 1 month of Amazon Music Unlimited for $8.99 with Auto-renewal – Charcoal

MSCHF

Looking for a fun gift to give that’s outside the box and a little more fun? This puzzle is a QR code that gets scanned once it’s completely put together and offers the chance to win up to $1 million from it. Most people will win $1, but that’s the fun in it.

Duke Cannon

Duke Cannon’s Winter Survival Tube is a great gift for anyone braving the outdoors this winter. It offers hand and lip balms, plus face lotion, to repair dry, cracked skin and protect with SPF. 

You’re receiving price alerts for Duke Cannon – Winter Survival Tube

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Lego Doesn’t Want Your Legend Of Zelda-Themed Set Ideas Anymore

No choice but to burn them, I guess.
Image: Nintendo / The Lego Group / Kotaku

So, you’ve got this solid idea for a Lego set based on Nintendo’s popular action-adventure franchise The Legend of Zelda. You fine-tune the project and submit it to Lego Ideas, a section of the company’s website where fans share their own proposals for new sets, but…wait, hold on. Your idea just got rejected, with The Lego Group citing a “license conflict” as the reason. What’s going on here? Well, it turns out this has been happening to several different fan-made projects centered on Nintendo’s fantasy IP.

According to a report from the Lego-obsessed news site Brick Fanatics, The Lego Group is not only rejecting The Legend of Zelda fan ideas but outright banning them. At least eight different projects, from a Breath of the Wild-inspired Hyrule Castle to one featuring Ocarina of Time’s final battle, have seemingly been blocked by the prolific toy maker. Despite these creations receiving some 10,000 votes from fans on Lego Ideas, which typically pushes submissions to the review stage for possible consideration as official products, the company’s board has allegedly rejected every single one of them.

And now, as evidenced by screenshots from Brick Fanatics, you can’t even submit projects based on The Legend of Zelda to the Ideas section anymore. When you try, the site asks if your idea is based on an intellectual property. Selecting “Yes” and typing in “The Legend of Zelda” produces an error message saying the company has “already evaluated this IP and determined that we can’t allow submissions based on it” because of some “license conflict.” How weird.

The reason for this “license conflict” is murky, but Brick Fanatics pegs it to two possibilities. The first is that The Lego Group may already be working with Nintendo to produce sets based on The Legend of Zelda, like the two have done for Super Mario. (Brick Fanatics noted that when submitting ideas for Mario Bros., the message cites a “current 3rd party overlap” in its rejection.) The second is that a possible rival manufacturer might’ve swooped in to make sets centered around Nintendo’s long-running series, which could explain that “license conflict” error you get when trying to submit ideas. (Again, Brick Fanatics noted the same “license conflict” for Pokémon.)

Kotaku has reached out to The Lego Group and Nintendo for comment.

Whether there will be new Lego sets in time for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom remains to be seen, as that game will launch on May 12, 2023.

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