Author: Trendici
The Liberal Democrats have proposed introducing film-style age ratings to limit which social media apps children can access.Under the party’s plan, platforms that use addictive algorithmic feeds or host “inappropriate content” would be restricted to users over 16 years old, while sites with “graphic violence or pornography” would be rated 18-plus. This approach, the Lib Dems have argued, would “avoid the unintended consequences” of banning all under-16s from using social media, as advocated by the Conservatives. In recent days, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has indicated he is open to the idea of an outright ban, telling reporters that “all…
Image: Unsplash TikTok will begin to roll out new age-verification technology across the EU in the coming weeks, as calls for an Australia-style social media ban for under-16s grow in countries including the UK. ByteDance-owned TikTok, and other major platforms popular with young people, such as YouTube, are coming under increasing pressure to better identify and remove accounts belonging to children. Regulators and child safety campaigners argue that existing checks are too easy to bypass, with self-declared birthdays and limited verification tools allowing underage users to access platforms designed for teens and adults. The looming EU rollout highlights the direction…
Gone are the days in which you needed to spend a fortune to get a good smartphone. In 2026, features once exclusive to high-end smartphones – big batteries, multi-camera arrays, high refresh rate OLED displays and more – have made their way down to more affordable models. Yes, you’ll still need to buy a flagship smartphone to get the best camera or fastest processor, but you don’t have to make nearly as many compromises as you once did if you have a strict budget to adhere to when you go shopping for your next smartphone. If you have less than…
Actor Timothy Busfield has made his first court appearance after turning himself in on criminal charges that he allegedly sexually abused two boys on the set of a TV series filmed in New Mexico, prosecutors say.The Emmy-winning actor, who starred in Thirtysomething and The West Wing, was taken into custody in Albuquerque on two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse that police allege happened on the set of Fox’s crime drama The Cleaning Lady.Busfield, 68, strenuously denied the allegations through his lawyer.”The claims being made against Tim are completely false, and we…
Harry Farley,Political correspondentandKate Whannel,political reporterPA MediaRobert Jenrick fields reporters’ questions with his new leader Nigel FarageThe Conservatives’ new shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy has said the public are “absolutely sick” of “backbiting and backstabbing” following the defection of Robert Jenrick to Reform UK.Jenrick dramatically joined Nigel Farage’s party on Thursday and writing in the Telegraph encouraged others to make the move, arguing that “the future of the country is on the line”. However, Timothy, who has replaced Jenrick in the shadow cabinet, said that in contrast to his own party Reform were not doing the “thoughtful work” needed to fix…
The indie RPG Sea of Stars is being released for mobile platforms on April 7. The iOS and Android versions are priced at just $10, which is a steal considering it cost $35 when it was first released for PC and consoles. Heck, it still costs that much on many platforms.This is a mobile release, so it’s not an exact port. The interface has been revamped to allow for complete touch control. It’s also compatible with controllers, which is always a good thing with smartphone ports. The Android version has a couple of unique features. It offers Google Play Games…
Flooding in South Africa’s northern provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga has forced the famed Kruger National Park to suspend visits and evacuate some guests and staff by helicopter. At least 19 people are now believed to have died in recent weeks in South Africa due to floods caused by torrential rain.Among those killed was a five-year-old boy in the town of Giyani, in Limpopo. President Cyril Ramaphosa met the child’s family to offer his condolences while visiting the region to assess the damage.A red level 10 warning has been issued by the South African Weather Service, forecasting yet more rain…
A new funding scheme will give access to emergency cash for people on low incomes across England. The Crisis and Resilience Fund beginning at the start of April will provide £1bn annually for the next three years. People will be able to apply for emergency funds through their local council, whether or not they currently receive benefits. The new rules say councils can give money to people in financial shock where there is “a sudden, unexpected expense or drop in income”, like a broken boiler, the loss of a job or to prevent people from entering crisis. It is a…
As part of Wikipedia’s , parent company Wikimedia a slew of partnerships with AI-focused companies like Amazon, Meta, Perplexity, Microsoft and others. The deals are meant to alleviate some of the cost associated with AI chatbots accessing Wikipedia content in enormous volumes by giving the tech companies streamlined access.As noted by , the timeline on these deals is a little squirrely. The Wikipedia foundation says that several companies became enterprise partners “over the past year,” while listing Amazon, Google and Meta as “existing” partners. It appears today is the first time they have been officially announced.The organization on this issue…
Bloomberg via Getty ImagesIndia hopes to make its own rare earth magnets for domestic useIn November 2025, India approved a 73bn-rupee ($800m; £600m) plan that could help it to cut its dependence on China in one of the most strategic corners of the global supply chain: rare earth magnets.These small but powerful components sit at the heart of modern life – used in everything from electric vehicles and wind turbines to smartphones, medical scanners, and defence equipment. Developing a full rare earths ecosystem is expensive, complex and time-consuming. By focusing on magnets instead, one of the most widely used rare-earth…