Need for abstinence before fertility treatment questioned as study finds sperm deteriorates as it stays in body

Encouraging men to have more frequent ejaculations may boost their fertility, according to researchers who found that sperm deteriorates over time as it remains in the body.

The longer men went without sex, the more their sperm showed signs of DNA damage and oxidative stress, and the more tests rated the sperm as less viable and poorer swimmers.

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Experts warn of ‘over-diagnosis’ dangers as social media prompts the worried well to seek out unnecessary and expensive scans and blood tests

Medical tests are marketed on social media as a way to empower people to take control of their health, but experts are warning to be wary of the harms influencers don’t mention.

Three controversial tests – full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, blood tests for testosterone levels and the Anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) or “egg-timer” test, which surveys a woman’s egg count – are the focus of a campaign backed by the University of Sydney based on its own research trying to combat misinformation online.

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New Mexico hails ‘historic’ win after jury finds firm misled consumers over safety and enabled harm against users

A New Mexico jury on Tuesday ordered Meta to pay $375m in civil penalties after it found the company misled consumers about the safety of its platforms and enabled harm, including child sexual exploitation, against its users.

This is the first bench trial to find Meta liable for acts committed on its platform.

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Nathan Newby set to receive George Medal for stopping a potential atrocity with an act of kindness

A hospital patient who managed to talk a man out of detonating a bomb in a maternity wing said the would-be attacker “asked for a cuddle” before standing down.

Nathan Newby, who stopped an atrocity through an act of kindness, spoke publicly for the first time about his encounter with Mohammad Farooq before receiving the George Medal for bravery.

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Na weken hard werken openden mijn collega’s en ik vrijdag eindelijk de tentoonstelling Living the Glass Age met prachtige voorbeelden van glaskunst.

Google is expanding Android Automotive from the infotainment screen into the broader non-safety "brain" of software-defined vehicles. With its new Android Automotive OS for Software-Defined Vehicles, the in-car experience will feel "much more cohesive and the latest features will reach your driveway faster," Matt Crowley, Android Automotive's group product manager, writes in a blog post. "From a truly integrated voice experience to proactive maintenance reminders, your car will become a true extension of your digital life," Crowley adds. The Verge reports: With its new software, Google is promising faster over-the-air software updates, better voice assistants, and more proactive vehicle maintenance alerts. Non-driving functions like climate control, lighting, and seating adjustment would fall under Android's control. And the system would move beyond basic infotainment to create a unified ecosystem for features like remote cabin conditioning, digital key management, and personalized driver profiles.

For automakers, the new system promises less expensive software development costs and an opportunity to focus on what matters most to them: branding. By providing the "foundational code and a common language for their software," Google says automakers will be free to design cool experiences for their customers. Google says its already working with companies like Renault Group and Qualcomm to bring its new software-defined vehicle version of Android Automotive to more cars. A variety of automakers already use regular Android Automotive, like Volvo, Polestar, General Motors, Nissan, and Honda.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Breaking free of its IP licensing shackles

Arm CEO Rene Haas took an ice-cold sip of the AI Kool-Aid during a keynote speech at the company’s annual conference on Tuesday, teasing a future product that he thinks will pump the British chip designer's total addressable market (TAM) to $1 trillion by the end of the decade.…

AMSTERDAM (ANP) - De Nederlandse economie zal door de Iranoorlog minder hard groeien, maar "kan tegen een stootje". Dat schrijven economen van ABN AMRO in een nieuw rapport, waarin ze ook waarschuwen voor hogere inflatie.

De economen ramen de economische groei voor dit jaar op 1,5 procent, terwijl ze eerder van 1,6 procent uitgingen. In 2027 verwachten ze een stijging van het bruto binnenlands product van 1,2 procent, waar dat voor het uitbreken van de oorlog 1,4 procent was.

Dat ze minder optimistisch zijn, komt doordat Nederlanders minder te besteden hebben als de prijzen harder gaan stijgen. Dat drukt de consumptie. Voor het begin van de gevechten in Iran en de Golfregio was de verwachting van de ABN AMRO-economen juist dat consumenten met extra uitgaven de economische groei zouden stutten.

Hogere inflatie

De neerwaartse bijstelling door de economen blijft beperkt doordat Nederland er voor het begin van de energiecrisis goed voorstond, schrijven ze. Zo hebben huishoudens relatief veel spaargeld en is de arbeidsmarkt nog altijd krap. Ook hebben particulieren en bedrijven hun schulden de laatste jaren afgebouwd.

Economen van ABN AMRO rekenen ook op een hogere inflatie, van gemiddeld 2,9 procent dit jaar. Dat is aanzienlijk hoger dan de eerder voorspelde 2,3 procent. Ze waarschuwen dat Nederland mogelijk een groter risico loopt op zogenoemde tweede-ronde-effecten. Daarbij werken gestegen energieprijzen door in hogere lonen en prijzen voor andere producten, wat kan leiden tot hardnekkig hoge inflatie.

In Nederland was de inflatie voor het uitbreken van de oorlog namelijk al hoger dan in omringende landen en de cao-lonen stegen nog aanzienlijk. "De economie zit eigenlijk nog in de laatste fase van het aanpassingsproces volgend op de vorige energieprijsschok en wordt met een nieuwe schok geconfronteerd", schrijft ABN AMRO, verwijzend naar de eerdere inflatiegolf in 2022 na de Russische inval in Oekraïne.