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Google just announced that it has been using AI to successfully predict riverline floods, up to seven days in advance in some cases. This isn’t just tech company hyperbole, as the findings were actually published in the esteemed science journal Nature. Floods are the most common natural disaster throughout the world, so any early warning system is good news.

Floods have been notoriously tricky to predict, as most rivers don’t have streamflow gauges. Google got around this problem by training machine learning models with all kinds of relevant data, including historical events, river level readings, elevation and terrain readings and more. After that, the company generated localized maps and ran “hundreds of thousands” of simulations in each location. This combination of techniques allowed the models to accurately predict upcoming floods.

The approach built “highly accurate models for very particular locations”, but Google hopes to use these techniques to eventually solve the problem at global scale. While the company did successfully predict some floods a full seven days in advance, the average came in at around five days. Still, Google’s confident that it has extended the “reliability of currently-available global nowcasts from zero to five days.” It’s also significantly improved forecasting in underrepresented regions, like some parts of Africa and Asia.

All told, this technology allowed Google to provide accurate flood forecasting in 80 countries, with a total population of 460 million. The company made these forecasts available in Google Search, Google Maps, and via Android notifications. This information is also available via the company’s proprietary Flood Hub web app, which began operations back in 2022.

So what’s next? Google will continue to explore the “potential of machine learning to create better flood forecasting models” and has teamed up with academic researchers to fine tune the AI-driven approach. The company hopes this will eventually result in a “global end-to-end flood forecasting platform.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-used-ai-to-accurately-predict-floods-up-to-7-days-in-advance-191353201.html?src=rss 

Threads has begun testing swipe gestures to help users improve the algorithm that populates the For You feed. It’s reportedly called Algo Tune as, well, it helps people tune their algorithms. It’s pretty rare when any social media site, particularly one run by Meta, allows users to adjust the parameters by which the great and powerful algorithm operates, so this feature is definitely worth keeping an eye on.

It works a lot like Tinder and other dating apps. If you don’t like something on your feed, you swipe left. If you like a post and want to see more like it, you swipe right. That’s pretty much it. The algorithm is allegedly tuned over time by these responses, adjusting your feed to provide more of the content you want and less of the stuff you don’t want. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls it an “easy way to let us know what you want to see more of on your feed.”

This is just an experiment, for now, so the feature’s only rolling out to a select number of Threads users. The company also hasn’t released any specific information as to how all of the swiping actually influences the algorithm, but that’s par for the course when it comes to these things. The algo must remain protected at all costs.

The social media app sure has been busy lately, adding new tools at a rapid clip. Threads finally rolled out trending topics to all users, after experimenting with the feature since February. Meta also recently previewed fediverse integration, which would allow Threads posts on fellow social media app Mastodon. The company’s also been testing some features that let users save drafts and take photos directly in the app.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/threads-begins-testing-swipe-gestures-to-help-train-the-for-you-algorithm-175004586.html?src=rss 

If you’re looking for a way to turn any screen (including those in hotel rooms) into your own smart TV, you may be interested in this sale on a few Amazon streaming sticks. The discounts come as part of the company’s Big Spring Sale, underway now. One stick to call out is the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, which is down to $40 after a 33 percent discount. That matches the record low we saw for this latest model of Amazon’s most advanced streaming stick, a price it has hit a few times this year. 

As the name indicates, the Fire TV Stick 4K Max supports 4K video, as well as Wi-Fi 6E, Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and Dolby Atmos audio. It has more internal storage than the Fire Stick 4K and quicker processor. It comes with an Alexa remote, which lets you find stuff to watch just by talking. Speaking of Alexa, a Fire TV stick also allows your screen to act as a smart home hub of sorts, letting you control your smart lights and check in on your connected cameras. 

The Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite is also included in the sale. We named that one the best budget pick in our guide to streaming devices and right now it’s down to $20, a 33 percent discount off the $30 price tag. That’s not an all-time low, we saw it dip to $15 for Prime Day in July. But if you don’t want to wait to see if Amazon discount it again this summer, this is perfectly respectable deal. 

The Stick Lite a good way to get access to Amazon’s free content, which is extensive, plus the Fire TV OS interface does a fine job of looping in any streaming app you subscribe too (though it does heavily favor Amazon content). The stick even includes a voice remote. One thing the remote can’t do is control your TV’s on/off switch or adjust the volume. It also doesn’t support 4K video, but if you don’t have a super high-def screen anyway, that point is moot.  

If you want even more free stuff to watch, you may want to check out our top pick for free and live content, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K. It’s on sale for 22 percent off, or $39, a price it sells for fairly often.  

Your Spring Sales Shopping Guide: Spring sales are in the air, headlined by Amazon’s Big Spring sale event. Our expert editors are curating all the best spring sales right here. Follow Engadget to shop the best tech deals from Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, hear from Autoblog’s car experts on the best spring auto deals on Amazon, and find spring sales to shop on AOL, handpicked just for you.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-amazon-fire-tv-stick-4k-max-is-33-percent-off-for-the-big-spring-sale-170430703.html?src=rss 

It’s been almost three years since we found out that former Naughty Dog and Visceral Games writer and creative director Amy Hennig was working on a Marvel game with her team at Skydance New Media. During Epic Games’ State of Unreal showcase at the Game Developers Conference, a new story trailer shed some more light on the game, which is called Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra.

As the name suggests, it’s set during World War II in Occupied Paris. You’ll play as four characters in this story-driven action-adventure: a young Steve Rogers (better known as Captain America), T’Challa’s grandfather Azzuri (the Black Panther of his era), US soldier and Howling Commandos member Gabriel Jones and Wakandan spy Nanali.

The trailer shows Captain America taking out some foes (presumably Nazis) with his shield as he looks for Black Panther, who we see scampering over rooftops. It ends with the pair clashing on a bridge, but what are the odds that they (along with Gabriel and Nanali) form a shaky alliance to battle a common enemy?

Skydance New Media is using Unreal Engine 5.4 to build the game. The trailer has some striking visual,s including highly detailed facial animations and environments, which are seemingly reflective of what the game actually looks like. “All the sequences you just saw in that trailer are pulled right out of our game, running real-time in Unreal Engine 5,” Hennig said. ‘No smoke and mirrors.” We’ll have to wait a little longer — until Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra arrives in 2025 — to see if Hennig’s claims stand up.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/marvel-1943-rise-of-hydra-from-amy-hennigs-studio-arrives-in-2025-173514552.html?src=rss