All posts tagged: Increasingly

Toy Story 5 review – It’s time to end this repetitive, increasingly bad franchise

Toy Story 5 review – It’s time to end this repetitive, increasingly bad franchise

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter We can only say goodbye to Toy Story so many times before it starts to get a little absurd. The series first ended in 2010 with Toy Story 3, as Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), et al waved their beloved owner Andy off to college and prepared for a new life with his young neighbour Bonnie. Then it ended again with Toy Story 4 (2019), an existential, pseudo-epilogue about making peace with life’s many endings, as Woody and Bo Peep (Annie Potts) retired from the toy life to take a shot out in the wilderness. Yet somehow, the pair turn up back at Bonnie’s bedroom window in Toy Story 5. Scratch that personal growth. There’s more money to be made. This one is certainly topical. It tackles the impact of technology on children’s imaginative play, and arrives in the …

China has long sought to control women’s bodies. Increasingly, they’re making their own choices | China

China has long sought to control women’s bodies. Increasingly, they’re making their own choices | China

Published by Sam Flores

Ever since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, women’s bodies have been the business of the state. In the 1950s, labour for state-controlled work units was organised according to women’s menstrual cycles. Then for decades, there was the one-child policy. Across vast swathes of the country the policy was enforced with a brutal severity. As well as fines for additional children, women were forced to have abortions and subjected to forced sterilisations. Now, women in China are facing new forms of pressure from the government as China battles a fresh challenge – a falling birth rate. Women are under pressure to devote their bodies to childbearing as the government tries to encourage more pregnancies. Increasingly, women are pushing back in ways that weren’t possible in the past, while the painful legacy of the one-child policy continues to echo and reshape expectations around family today. “For people of my generation, born at the end of the 1980s, everyone is from a one-child family,” says Guligo Jia, 36-year-old filmmaker based in Beijing. “Nowadays, …

AI bilingualism becoming increasingly vital across Singapore’s industries: IMDA chief

AI bilingualism becoming increasingly vital across Singapore’s industries: IMDA chief

Published by Sam Flores

SINGAPORE: “AI bilingualism” – the ability to combine artificial intelligence skills with industry expertise – is becoming increasingly important as AI adoption accelerates across the economy, said the head of Singapore’s digital watchdog.   Speaking to CNA ahead of this year’s ATxSummit, which begin on Wednesday (May 20), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)’s chief executive Ng Cher Pong said demand for tech capabilities is no longer concentrated within the technology sector itself.    In fact, tech roles in non-tech industries are growing three to four times faster than those within the tech sector, underscoring the growing need for workers across the nation to become fluent in AI tools and applications, he noted.    “We believe that the value that will be created is when we combine AI skills with domain expertise. Broadly, that’s called AI bilingualism,” Mr Ng said.    His comments come as Singapore ramps up efforts to position itself as a regional AI hub while ensuring workers and businesses are equipped to adapt to rapid technological change.    FROM THEORY TO IMPLEMENTATION  …

Americans are increasingly concerned about AI – want more regulation

Americans are increasingly concerned about AI – want more regulation

Published by Jenni Sidey

Artificial intelligence is now familiar to most Americans, but familiarity has not brought comfort. A new national survey finds a public that is far more uneasy than excited about what AI could mean for the country in the next decade, with majorities across party lines saying government has not done enough to regulate it. The poll, conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, comes at a moment when the country is arguing over how quickly to build the infrastructure behind AI, who should set the rules, and how much disruption the technology may bring to daily life. The answers suggest that many people are already paying attention, and a large share do not like where things appear to be heading. Only 17% of Americans said AI would have a somewhat or very positive impact on the United States over the next 10 years. Far more, 42%, said the effects would be somewhat or very negative. Another 32% said the technology’s impact would be equally positive and negative. That gap matters …

David Attenborough at 100: The voice of nature – and his increasingly urgent climate warning

David Attenborough at 100: The voice of nature – and his increasingly urgent climate warning

Published by Daniella Wilson

“When Sir David Attenborough first became a fixture in British living rooms, his role was not to warn us about the natural world, but to introduce us to it. There was wonder first. Curiosity. The thrill of encounter. From Zoo Quest in the 1950s to Life on Earth in 1979, Attenborough’s great gift was to make the planet feel at once vast and intimate: a place of remote forests, deep oceans, frozen plains and extraordinary creatures, but also one that could be brought, through the strange new magic of television, into the home. For decades, the Attenborough tone was defined by awe. He did not need to raise his voice. The authority was in the hush: the careful pause before a creature emerged, the whispered observation, the sense that he was not conquering a landscape but waiting respectfully within it. He was a guide, not an orator; a witness to marvels that, for many viewers, might otherwise have remained unimaginable. But as Attenborough reaches his 100th birthday on Friday 8 May 2026, the arc of …

David Attenborough at 100 – his increasingly urgent climate warning

David Attenborough at 100 – his increasingly urgent climate warning

Published by Daniella Wilson

When Sir David Attenborough first became a fixture in British living rooms, his role was not to warn us about the natural world, but to introduce us to it. There was wonder first. Curiosity. The thrill of encounter. From Zoo Quest in the 1950s to Life on Earth in 1979, Attenborough’s great gift was to make the planet feel at once vast and intimate: a place of remote forests, deep oceans, frozen plains and extraordinary creatures, but also one that could be brought, through the strange new magic of television, into the home. For decades, the Attenborough tone was defined by awe. He did not need to raise his voice. The authority was in the hush: the careful pause before a creature emerged, the whispered observation, the sense that he was not conquering a landscape but waiting respectfully within it. He was a guide, not an orator; a witness to marvels that, for many viewers, might otherwise have remained unimaginable. But as Attenborough reaches his 100th birthday on Friday 8 May 2026, the arc of …

Republican lawmakers increasingly concerned over Hegseth’s ideological military

Republican lawmakers increasingly concerned over Hegseth’s ideological military

Published by Sam Flores

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sat for hearings with Congress this week to discuss his handling of the Iran war, along with fielding questions about the Trump administration’s controversial $1.5 trillion defense spending proposal for 2027. Meanwhile, his support among Republican lawmakers is wavering following his firings of numerous high-profile military leaders, which experts say is both concerning and unusual. Since becoming head of the Pentagon last year, Hegseth has overseen a dozen dismissals, retirements and reassignments among some of the highest positions in the U.S. military. Among them were the first female commandant of the Coast Guard, the head of the Army’s Chaplain Corps, and a four-star general overseeing the Army’s Transformation and Training Command. However, it was the recent firing of Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George in the middle of the ongoing Iran war that first spooked Congressional Republicans. House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said that George “made great progress on increasing recruitment, improving efficiency, and modernizing the Army.” Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., said the move was “concerning,” …

Women Age 35 – 55 Live In A Way That Isn’t Humane & Becoming Increasingly Common, According To Therapist

Women Age 35 – 55 Live In A Way That Isn’t Humane & Becoming Increasingly Common, According To Therapist

Published by Jenni Sidey

Therapist Loretta Cella shared a trend she’s seeing that’s “undeniable” among women between the ages of 35 and 55 years old. Cella, who by her own estimation has worked in human services for 24 years, across 14 countries, spoke directly to women in this age range who are “living a life where you are in disarray, physically, mentally, emotionally.”  She clarified that the disarray affects these women’s work life, their relationships, and how they relate to their kids. In other words, all aspects of women’s lives are touched by this trend. Research has shown a “gender well-being paradox” where women report higher overall life satisfaction than men, yet simultaneously suffer from worse mental health, including higher anxiety and depression. Another study explained that women often manage demanding, multiple roles as caregivers, mothers, and workers, which can take a heavy toll on their mental health, especially during crises.  Therapist says women 35–55 are living in a way that ‘isn’t humane’ and it’s become increasingly common The therapist noted the concerning trend of women between 35 and 55 …

If A Man Has These 11 Increasingly Rare Things In His Home, He’s An Absolute Keeper

If A Man Has These 11 Increasingly Rare Things In His Home, He’s An Absolute Keeper

Published by Jenni Sidey

We’ve all been to a man’s house and found it in shambles. If you had to guess, he hadn’t cleaned in months. His fridge was virtually empty, and his trash was overflowing with takeout containers. Some men struggle to keep their space clean, and it comes across as immature. If your partner doesn’t keep certain things in his home, it’s a sign that he may not be a keeper. A blank, messy space doesn’t appeal to most people. However, if a man has things like cleaning products, a stocked fridge, and a proper bed setup, it can be a game-changer. While most of us expect these things to exist in someone’s home, it’s becoming increasingly rare for some men. Once you notice he has these things, you’ll know he’s an absolute keeper. If a man has these 11 increasingly rare things in his home, he’s an absolute keeper 1. Fitted sheets Thao Nhu from Canva Creative Studio via Canva If you’ve dated a man, you know it’s rare to find a proper bed set up. …

How one venture firm is investing in an increasingly fragmented world

How one venture firm is investing in an increasingly fragmented world

Published by skeptic

The world today is riven by cultural differences, political divisions, and geopolitical disputes — a challenging environment for any investor hunting for startups that can grow large enough to deliver venture-scale returns. Kompas VC has developed a regionally sensitive strategy to help it navigate, and invest in, this fragmented world. And it’s putting fresh capital towards this approach with a new €160 million fund ($187.5 million), the firm told TechCrunch. “We see the world really falling into three main spheres of economic activity, of political activity — the U.S., Europe, and China,” Sebastian Peck, partner at Kompas VC, told TechCrunch. “We certainly see today that these three domains follow very, very different trajectories.” Kompas has staked its reputation on backing startups that tackle core industrial competitiveness challenges, from manufacturing and supply chains to critical infrastructure and sustainability. Those themes haven’t disappeared, but different regions emphasize them to varying degrees. “There was a lot of enthusiasm around these themes back in 2021,” Peck said. “In 2026, we’re in a very, very different paradigm. It’s all about …