I built a freelance career by saying yes. Now, I'm learning when not to.
Courtesy of Hannah Howard
I don't think I would have had the courage to become a freelancer if I hadn't been laid off.
Humpback whale mother may have mourned her dead calf for days
A rare observation of a humpback whale mother remaining beside her dead calf is offering researchers a closer look at how these animals may respond to loss.
The encounter, documented by researchers from Griffith University and Sea World Foundation, raises the possibility that humpback whale mothers may experience grief when a calf dies.
I taught an old man new tunes in rhythm-action shopkeeper sim Mr. Records, and now you can try the demo yourself
Vinyl fantasy
One of the bright spots of a miserably grey Summer Game Fest 2026 was Mr. Records, a mashup of rhythm-action autorunner and casual vinyl shop management by music game specialists Glee-Cheese Studio. I’ve since played a demo – which you can now try yourself on Steam – and was pleased by the apparent confirmation that it can induce that head-nodding, foot-tapping thing that rhythm games should. Big fan, usually, of games that force me into involuntary body movements.
Council Post: The Next Frontier Of Sovereign AI Is Permission
Dr. Aditya Vikram Kashyap, AI governance and innovation leader exploring how autonomous systems reshape institutions, markets and power.
getty
A NIST concept paper published in February stated the shift more plainly than most strategy decks: Enterprises are moving AI from generating text and graphics to taking actions, such as deploying code to production. Short sentence, large consequence. The sovereignty debate has not caught up with it.
Sonos Beam Ultra review: A huge Atmos upgrade for $699 - Engadget
It's basically just a mini Sonos Arc.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
RATING : 9 / 10
- Excellent sound quality for movies and music
- True Dolby Atmos upward-firing speakers
- Less obtrusive than the Arc Ultra
- Slides right into a Sonos system
- Expensive
- Dolby Atmos works best with flat ceilings
The Sonos Beam Ultra is a Beam speaker in name only. It may look like the company's previous mid-range speakers, but it sounds more like the high-end Arc, and it has a much higher $699 price to boot. The Beam Ultra justifies that increase with the addition of two upward-firing Dolby Atmos speakers, which can bounce overhead surround sound off of your ceiling, as well as provide more hardware for richer sound and deeper bass. It's a soundbar that even a home theater enthusiast could enjoy, whereas the second-gen Beam (now $499) felt merely like a good effort with its simulated Atmos sound.
The creator of Windows Task Manager has 'vibe coded' a new version that runs on macOS and Linux - Engadget
It only took a 107-page spec to accomplish.
If you've ever hit Ctrl+Shift+Esc to find out what's eating your PC alive, you've used Dave Plummer's work. Now, some three decades after he wrote the original Windows Task Manager at Microsoft, Plummer is back with a new iteration: TMOG. That's short for Task Manager OG — a twist on the tool he built back in 1996 and was released with Windows NT 4.0 that August.
F1 title race: Why Azerbaijan-Malaysia-Singapore triple header will shape what rest of 2026 championship chase will look like
Formula 1 embarks on its first triple header of the season this week with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix the first of three races in as many weekends.
The race on the streets of Baku - which takes place on Saturday rather than the usual Sunday - was originally due to be a standalone event with the Singapore Grand Prix following on two weeks later.
Super League: Wakefield prop Emre Guler set to miss rest of play-offs after being given two-match ban for punching
Wakefield prop Emre Guler is set to miss the rest of the Super League play-offs after being handed a two-match ban for punching.
The forward was sent off following a clash with Leigh's Owen Trout during Trinity's 26-16 victory over the Leopards in their eliminator last Friday.
Lee Cutler beat one McKenna, now he wants to fight world champion brother Aaron McKenna if he can overcome Louis Greene
Lee Cutler beat one McKenna brother, now he wants to fight the other for the world middleweight title.
Cutler overcame Stevie McKenna in a thriller in 2024. He lost a technical decision to Sam Eggington in another exciting match-up. Now looking to roar back to form, Cutler stopped Aaron Sutton in a Bournemouth homecoming and will take on Louis Greene next.
Tottenham bottom of Premier League despite £300m summer spend - where do they go from here?
This time it was supposed to be different. After multiple false dawns for Tottenham Hotspur, the club had a manager with proven Premier League experience, and had handed him a £300m+ war chest - easily the biggest in its entire history.