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If you're reading this, you're looking for a little help playing Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game.

Strands requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for December 13 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for December 13 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: One for the Swifties

These words are related to Taylor Swift

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

Words are easily recognized by fans of Taylor Swift.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is AlbumTitle.

Featured Video For You Strands 101: How to win NYT’s latest word game NYT Strands word list for December 13

• Folklore

• Fearless

• Midnights

• Evermore

• Lover

• AlbumTitle

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Connections: Sports Edition is a new version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

Tweet may have been deleted

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

Tweet may have been deleted

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for December 13 Here's a hint for today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Used in snow

• Green: Worn by athletes

• Blue: Team representatives

• Purple: Sounds broadcasters might make

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Skiing equipment

• Green: Logos of athletic brands

• Blue: NBA mascots

• Purple: Sports onomatopoeias

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections Sports Edition #81 is...

What is the answer to Connections Sports Edition today

• Skiiing equipment - BOOTS, GOGGLES, POLES, SKIS

• Logos of athletic brands - SWOOSH, PUMA, JUMPMAN, THREE STRIPES

• NBA mascots - BENNY, BURNIE, CHUCK, RUMBLE

• Sports onomatopoeias - BLOOP, CLANK, DOINK, SWISH

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Connections is the latest New York Times word game that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

Tweet may have been deleted

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

Tweet may have been deleted

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for December 13 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hit about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Mythical beings

• Green: Common sections in an email client

• Blue: Citrus-based fizzy drinks

• Purple: Sounds like an animal

Featured Video For You Connections: How to play and how to win Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Fantasy Creatures

• Green: Email Folders

• Blue: Citrus Sodas

• Purple: Animal Homophones

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #551 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Fantasy Creatures: DRAGON, GIANT, PIXIE, TROLL

• Email Folders: DRAFTS, SENT, SPAM, TRASH

• Citrus Sodas: CRUSH, SPRITE, SQUIRT, STARRY

• Animal Homophones: BORE, LINKS, PHISH, TOWED

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for December 13

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Oh hey there! If you're here, it must be time for Wordle. As always, we're serving up our daily hints and tips to help you figure out today's answer.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections today: Hints and answers for December 13 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT's The Mini crossword answers for December 13 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Participants in sanctioned fist fights.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no reoccurring letters.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter B.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

BOXER.

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for December 13

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

Fighting game old-heads are freaking out right now, and for good reason.

Virtua Fighter, one of the most beloved and also most presumed-dead fighting game series, is back. A new, currently untitled entry in the series was announced at The Game Awards 2024, courtesy of longtime series publisher SEGA and new lead development studio Ryo Ga Gotoku, of the Like a Dragon/Yakuza series.

In other words, the people who make the coolest games about beating dudes up are making a new game about beating dudes up. Sounds great.

The move follows Meta’s donation of the same amount to the fund earlier this week.

Borderlands is back, and you won't be surprised to learn it has plenty of guns and attitude.

That's the rub from the Borderlands 4 reveal trailer aired at The Game Awards, anyway. It has new characters, locations, guns, and enemies, which are all the things you would want from a new Borderlands game. The classic art style returns, too, so Borderlands fans shouldn't be disappointed.

Let's just hope it clears the movie.

Elden Ring was a very popular game, so naturally, they're making another one.

It isn't Elden Ring 2, though. Geoff Keighley took to the stage at The Game Awards 2024 to announce something slightly unexpected: A co-op action game set in the Elden Ring universe. Called Elden Ring: Nightreign and developed by From Software, it looks like it might be a cross between Elden Ring and Monster Hunter, with players teaming up to take down horrifying boss monsters.

Whatever it is, it probably just became the single most anticipated game for millions of people.

Every year's edition of The Game Awards, which seems to be a lot more about trailers than awards, gives us at least one really striking-looking original game to look forward to. It's usually buried in between trailers for updates to mobile games, but it's always there.

This year, that game might be Split Fiction. Developed by Hazelight Studios and headed up by Josef Fares (known for using colorful language at previous Game Awards shows) Split Fiction is the spiritual follow-up to 2021 Game of the Year recipient It Takes Two. That means it's a really wacky and inventive adventure about rival fiction novelists meant specifically to be played by two people together cooperatively. I didn't get the impression that single-player is even an option, nor would it make sense for it to be one.

Anyway, I got to sit down and play about 45 minutes of Split Fiction with Fares himself before the big reveal at The Game Awards. While it remains to be seen if any of its big ideas will work when the game releases in early March, I can at least confirm that Split Fiction makes a hell of a first impression.

SEE ALSO: The 10 best video games you may have missed in 2024 Split Fiction hands-on preview: You got sci-fi in my fantasy Regardless of which aesthetic it's using at any given time, 'Split Fiction' looks very nice. Credit: Hazelight/EA

To understand what, exactly, Split Fiction is, you need to understand the premise. The problem is that I didn't fully grasp it in my brief time with the game, but I'll do my best to explain.

Two female novelists named Zoe and Mio (Fares was quick to mention these are his daughter's names) have, through seemingly nefarious means, been trapped inside a virtual simulation of their work together by an evil publishing company that wants to steal their stories. One of them is a sci-fi writer and the other is a fantasy novelist. The bulk of the gameplay seems like it will take place in either a fantasy or sci-fi world, depending on the level, with the idea being that these two women who don't like each other (or each other's work) very much need to work together creatively to get out of the simulation.

The name of the game in Split Fiction is variety. Every single level appears to have some kind of unique, bespoke co-op mechanic that probably only lasts for 10 to 15 minutes, and that you won't see anywhere else in the game. Here are just a few examples that Fares showed me in the very quick demo I got to play:

• A level where Zoe and Mio do competitive snowboarding down a mountain, complete with a reasonably deep trick and scoring system

• A level where Zoe and Mio hatch, raise, and ultimately ride on two dragons who grow as the level progresses

• A level where Zoe and Mio play as two pigs, one of whom can extend vertically like a Slinky toy, while the other farts rainbows in order to clear horizontal gaps

Oh yeah, there's a level where you shapeshift into weird monsters, too. Credit: Hazelight/EA

The most important part is that everything I got to play was fun. Split Fiction's base third-person platforming mechanics are solid and snappy on their own, but once the more goofy mechanics come into play, things get pretty neat. The snowboarding level was a decent enough approximation of SSX, while the pig level was a neat little optional distraction that Fares assured me lasts like 10 minutes. Speaking of optional distractions, Split Fiction seems like it will be full of hidden levels that are set in other stories these two characters have written. The pig level was one of these, but another one turned the game into a hand-drawn-in-pencil side-scroller for a while.

Hazelight's previous work in making unique co-op games shone through in the short demo I played, as well. It's not just that these mechanics are fun and two players get to do them together; in many cases, each player is given a different ability or role, so coordination is key. Sometimes one player will have to alter gravity to walk along the ceiling, cutting down platforms for the other. You know, stuff like that.

I can't say whether or not Split Fiction will live up to the excellent first impression it makes when the full game launches on March 5. But between a bunch of really fun co-op shenanigans I saw in just a brief demo, and the fact that there isn't a very annoying, omnipresent narrator like It Takes Two, Split Fiction is lining up to be one of the more interesting games of early 2025.

Hey folks, they're making a new The Witcher game. Yes, you play as Ciri. Remain calm.

CD Projekt Red announced its first new game since Cyberpunk 2077 at The Game Awards 2024. The lengthy trailer for The Witcher IV doesn't show any gameplay, but it does confirm something incredibly important: Ciri, not Geralt of Rivia, is the protagonist this time around. Geralt's voice is heard briefly at the end of the trailer, but he is not seen at any point. This is a Ciri adventure, which is what lots of folks (me) wanted after The Witcher 3.

Hopefully it launches in a better state than Cyberpunk.

One of the first reveals at the 2024 Game Awards will probably wind up sucking thousands of hours out of countless players.

At least, that's what Slay the Spire has done over the last few years, so it's reasonable to expect Slay the Spire 2 to do the same. It looks to add to the already-versatile card-based gameplay of the original with new cards, items, and other wild variables to consider as you try to, well, slay the spire.

The best part is you don't have to wait long. Slay the Spire 2 will launch in early access in 2025.

Still aiming to become a global leader in AI, the United States announced it will be moving forward on initiatives to incorporate generative AI into the inner workings of the Department of Defense (DoD)— just as AI's creators pitch their offerings to major defense contractors.

Announced today, the office will be moving ahead with a new $100 million AI Rapid Capabilities Cell "focused on accelerating DoD adoption of next-generation artificial intelligence," including generative AI. It will be led by the department's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) and Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). The announcement comes as a result of Task Force Lima, a Department of Defense generative AI task force established in 2023 to "assess, synchronize, and employ generative AI capabilities" in the DoD.

SEE ALSO: Rising use of generative AI by police is a threat to Americans' civil liberties, ACLU warns

"DIU's role is bringing the very best commercial tech to bear to meet critical warfighter problems with the focus, speed, and scale required to meet the strategic imperative," said DIU Director Doug Beck. "The result will help us scale the tech faster and more reliably, and will also help change the way the Department thinks about software development and delivery tempo for the future." The department's AI applications will include "decision support, operational planning, logistics, weapons development and testing, uncrewed and autonomous systems, intelligence activities, information operations, and cyber operations," as well as administrative purposes.  

Under the Biden Administration, the U.S. endorsed the international Political Declaration on Responsible Military Use of Artificial Intelligence and Autonomy, a best practices initiative to explore the development of AI's military capabilities — despite already using the technology in warfare applications. In a Nov. 2023 statement, the Department of Defense announced its intention to explore "the responsible military use of artificial intelligence and autonomous systems." AI watchdogs have warned of the accelerated use of AI in warfare and its global repercussions.

One month prior, the White House announced an extensive regulatory executive order outlining risk and safety standards for AI, cybersecurity provisions, and various guidelines that spanned the Department of Commerce, Homeland Security, and Energy. The administration announced even more AI initiatives soon after, including the creation of a United States AI Safety Institute (US AISI). This was later followed by a warning to Big Tech to curb the spread of synthetic, AI-generated content.

While it's uncertain whether President-elect Donald Trump will uphold the Biden administration's national and international AI commitments, the soon-to-be sworn in leader has already announced his pick for a position he's calling the "White House AI Czar." As for his picks for the country's defense leaders, Trump is rumored to be eyeing Palantir chief technology officer Shyam Shankir for a top spot in the Pentagon — Shankir is a proponent of the Department of Defense's rapid adoption of commercial tech, including AI.

"The DoD has an imperative to responsibly pursue the adoption of generative AI models while identifying proper protective measures and mitigating national security risks that may result from issues such as poorly managed training data," said DoD Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Officer Dr. Radha Plumb. "We must also consider the extent to which our adversaries will employ this technology and seek to disrupt our own use of AI-based solutions."

The increase is the latest for the streaming service, which debuted in 2017 at $35 a month. The company blamed “rising content costs.”

Since Nick Fury first broke into Tony Stark's cliffside mansion, comic books fans have been primed to expect bonus goods once the credits roll on the superhero movies. The MCU has unleashed jaw-dropping cameos, bizarre callbacks, and teases for future adventures, and Sony Pictures followed super suit.

At the end of Morbius, a cameo of Michael Keaton as Adrian "The Vulture" Toomes seemingly tied this movie to the MCU's Spider-Man: Homecoming, in which he was the Big Bad. More recently, the post-credits scene in Venom: The Last Dance revealed the fate of a character caught in the military-versus-symbiote crossfire — and set up a path to a could-be sequel.

However, what path forward might Kraven the Hunter tease when The Wrap is reporting Sony's closing up shop on Spider-Man spinoffs for now?

Does Kraven the Hunter have a post-credit scene?

Nope. At the film's New York premiere, critics, cast, and crew who stayed through the credits saw the long list of names of all the people who worked on J.C. Chandor's curious action movie. But there was not a post-credit scene with bonus goodies.

However, seeing the incredible amount of people power that went into Kraven the Hunter is its own reward, right?

Kraven the Hunter opens only in theaters Dec. 13.

Some 2.6 million Stanley mugs have been recalled after customers reported dangerous issues with the cup's construction.

If you're worried about your trendy, TikTok-must-have Stanley cup, however, you're likely OK. The recall is for the Stanley Switchback and Trigger Action travel mugs and not the big ol' Quencher tumblers you've likely seen all over social media.

SEE ALSO: What's so special about a Stanley? A guide to conspicuous consumption on TikTok.

The Switchback and Trigger Action mugs have an issue where the "lid threads can shrink when exposed to heat and torque, causing the lid to detach during use, posing a burn hazard," wrote the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in its recall announcement.

The CPSC said Stanley has received 91 reports worldwide of the lid detaching, which resulted in 38 burn injuries and 11 people requiring medical attention. The company is offering a free replacement lid to the affected consumers. You can see if your Stanley is part of the recall and request a replacement lid at the company's website.

Stanley previously had a PR kerfuffle when it was noted that some of its mugs contain small amounts of lead, but experts said it posed no threat at all to users — the lead was a part of insulation that's not exposed to consumers.

The new recall isn't ideal, but if you're affected it should be simple enough to get a new, better-working lid. And your Quencher is still fine to use on your next Target run.

ChatGPT's Santa Mode is restricted to age groups that might already be questioning Santa Claus's existence.

The Santa voice is for ages 13 and up according to a disclaimer. OpenAI debuted the seasonal Santa Mode as part of Thursday's livestream, which also announced vision capabilities for ChatGPT. For ChatGPT Plus and Pro users, when using Advanced Voice Mode, they can select Santa's jolly, booming baritone among the voice options to interact with.

OpenAI won't let kids use Santa Mode. Credit: Screenshot: Mashable / OpenAI

But OpenAI has thumbed its nose at the joy of little children everywhere by restricting Santa Mode to teens and adults. How Grinch-y. Jokes aside, there is a reason for this. The 13-and-up age restriction applies to all of ChatGPT, a spokesperson told Mashable. According to OpenAI's terms of use, "You must be at least 13 years old or the minimum age required in your country to consent to use the Services. If you are under 18 you must have your parent or legal guardian’s permission to use the Services."

SEE ALSO: OpenAI's Sora is officially here

Some kind of age restriction makes sense for use of a technology that might share harmful or inaccurate information. But it also raises the question of what kind of raunchy adult content Santa Mode could get up to. That said, OpenAI has trained ChatGPT to restrict certain adult content and prevent misuse. But the real trick would have been creating a truly kid-safe version of Santa Mode.

Of course parents can always use Santa Mode with their kids or a tech-savvy pre-teen could get their parent's permission to chat with Santa. But it kind of takes away from the festive fun, knowing that Santa Mode is almost exclusively a gimmick for adults that are already in on the world's greatest conspiracy.

Meanwhile we'll be pushing the limits of Santa Mode to see how "adult" it can be.

Our sun regularly shoots out solar flares — explosions of light and radiation from its surface — into space. But how about superflares?

These stellar events are thousands of times more powerful than typical solar flares, which can wreak havoc on our power and communication systems. To better understand the superflare risk from the sun, astronomers sought to find how often sun-like stars blast out such potent radiation, and to find an answer they surveyed a whopping 56,000 stars.

The results astonished them.

"Stars that are similar to our sun generate superflares once per century, which is 30 to 60 times more frequent than previously thought," Valeriy Vasilyev, a stellar activity researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Germany, told Mashable.

"We were shocked by the high frequency," he said. Vasilyev is a co-author on the research published in the journal Science.

SEE ALSO: Aliens haven't contacted us. Scientists found a compelling reason why.

Previous research, for example, found that sun-like stars emit powerful superflares every 3,000 to 6,000 years.

To better understand the behavior of sun-like stars, which are relatively stable stars, astronomers used observations captured by NASA's now-retired Kepler Space Telescope. Kepler was designed to expertly measure stellar brightness as it searched for new planets transiting in front of their distant stars. The astronomers identified 56,450 stars that have sun-like characteristics, and over a four-year period spotted superflares — which show telltale signs of immediate light increases followed by a long tail of decaying light — on 2,527 sun-like stars. From this large number of superflares over a relatively brief time range, they inferred the frequency of how often these stars are blasting out superflares.

"We were shocked by the high frequency."

The distant stars emitted energies of some 10³⁴ to 10³⁶ erg ("erg" is a unit of energy measurement), which is greater than any flare ever observed from the sun. Such a superflare packs the energy of roughly 1 trillion hydrogen bombs, Vasilyev said.

"We found crazy flaring stars," he marveled.

An illustration of a superflare on a distant star. Credit: NASA Scientific Visualization Studio Tweet may have been deleted

Solar flares explode from our star's surface when potent and changing magnetic fields naturally become tangled. "Like a rubber band that snaps when it is twisted too far, the tangled magnetic fields release energy when they snap," explains the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. "The energy emitted by a solar flare is more than a million times greater than the energy from a volcanic eruption on Earth!"

And when solar flares shoot out on the side of the sun facing Earth, it can have consequences — particularly if it's a strong solar flare. Such mighty solar flares are often accompanied with events called "coronal mass ejections," or CMEs, which are massive ejections of super hot gas (like throwing a chunk of the sun into space).

Infamously, in 1989 a potent solar flare-associated CME knocked out power to millions in Québec, Canada. The CME hit Earth's magnetic field on March 12 of that year, and then, wrote NASA astronomer Sten Odenwald, "Just after 2:44 a.m. on March 13, the currents found a weakness in the electrical power grid of Quebec. In less than two minutes, the entire Quebec power grid lost power. During the 12-hour blackout that followed, millions of people suddenly found themselves in dark office buildings and underground pedestrian tunnels, and in stalled elevators." The same solar event fried a $10 million transformer at Salem Nuclear Power Plant in New Jersey.

Fortunately, Earth's protective magnetic field and atmosphere shield people from such harmful radiation. But this new research suggests we should be aware of the potential technological impacts from a superflare, which would be significantly more potent than the 1989 event. It remains unknown, however, if the sun has all the requisite properties of these distant sun-like stars that would stoke such relatively frequent solar flares.

Superflares don't just pose threats to Earth. They could impact the many planets orbiting other stars, called exoplanets. For instance, Vasilyev wonders what impacts radiation-heavy superflares might have on worlds with protective atmospheres thinner than Earth's.

But superflares aren't inherently bad. Conversely, superflares might provide the energetic kick molecules need to form the building blocks of life. Perhaps a lifeless Earth, in its distant past, even benefited from a superflare, or two.

ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode now has video and screenshare capabilities.

The feature was last May with the release of GPT-4o, but only the audio modality has been live. Now users can chat with ChatGPT using a phone camera and the model will "see" what you see.

SEE ALSO: OpenAI's Sora is officially here

In the livestream, CPO Kevin Weil and other OpenAI team members demoed ChatGPT assisting with how to make pour-over coffee. By pointing the camera at the action, AVM demonstrated that it understood the principle of the coffee maker and walked the team through the brewing of their beverage. The team also showed how ChatGPT supports screensharing by understanding an open message on a phone with Weil wearing a Santa beard.

The long-awaited announcement comes a day after Google unveiled the next generation of its flagship model, Gemini 2.0. The new Gemini 2.0 can also process visual and audio inputs and has more agentic capabilities, meaning it can perform multi-step tasks on the user's behalf. Gemini 2.0's agent features currently exist as a research prototype under three different names: Project Astra for a universal AI assistant, Project Mariner for specific AI tasks, and Project Jules for developers.

Not to be outdone, OpenAI's demo showcased how ChatGPT's vision modality accurately identified objects — and was even interruptible. And yes, part of this included a Santa voice option in Voice Mode, complete with a deep, jolly voice and lots of "ho-ho-hos." You can chat with OpenAI's version of Santa by tapping the snowflake icon in ChatGPT. No word yet on whether the real Santa Claus contributed his voice for AI training or OpenAI used his voice without prior consent.

Oddly, when selecting the Santa voice in the ChatGPT app, the user is warned that the voice is only for people 13 and older.

Tweet may have been deleted

Starting today, video and screenshare are available to ChatGPT Plus and Pro users, with Enterprise and Edu availability coming in Jan.

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$99.00 Save $50.00 Get hald-off with code SHIPTGIFT Get Deal

With the holiday season in full swing, we could all use a little extra time to tackle our endless to-do lists, from grocery shopping and holiday meal planning to gift wrapping and sending out those last-minute cards.

To help you save time and money, Shipt (the same-day grocery pick-up and delivery service) is offering 50% off annual memberships now through Jan. 4, 2025, with the code SHIPTGIFT.

SEE ALSO: Save up to 20% on gift cards from Hulu, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart, and more

Usually, annual memberships are $99, but with this special offer, you’ll get an entire year of unlimited grocery and other essential deliveries for just $49.

With an annual membership, you can get unlimited same-day deliveries on orders of $35+ and tons of other member-only perks. Plus, Shipt partners with major retailers like Target, Petco, CVS, and more, so you can get everything you need in as little as an hour.

Other December deals include:

• Get $15 off any order of $60 or more with the code HOLIDAYS now through Jan. 1, 2025.

• Get 25% off orders of $40 or more from Ulta Beauty at Target, CVS, Walgreens, PetSmart, Petco, Lowes, Carters, Office Depot, and Office Max through Dec. 14.

• Get 20% off top gifting categories at Target and Meijer through Dec. 24.

If you’d like to gift a membership to a friend or family member, Shipt is offering the same deal on annual membership gift cards (you’ll just need to apply the SHIPTGIFT promo code when you check out).

SAVE UP TO 90% OFF: Stock your Kindle library with e-books up to 90% off. Find some of the best books of the year, like Dolly Alderton's Good Material, for just $2.99, saving you $25.01 for 89% off.

Best Kindle Book deals Best book deal 'Good Material' by Dolly Alderton $2.99 at Amazon (Save $25.01) Get Deal Best non-fiction book deal 'The Wide Wide Sea' by Hampton Side $14.99 at Amazon (Save $20.01) Get Deal Best Kindle Deal Amazon Kindle Paperwhite $134.99 at Amazon (Save $25) Get Deal

Honestly, no matter what time of year it is, being curled up with a good book is pure bliss. However, with the cold weather of winter setting in, you have to admit that it's the ideal season to be hunkered down under a blanket (or two) with a warm beverage in hand and a good read in the other.

The cozy holiday season kicked off with spectacular deals on Amazon's 2024 Kindle models during Black Friday and Cyber Monday. And if you got your hands on one of these sleek e-readers, you're probably thinking it's time to stock your library full of the year's best books. Luckily, you can find Kindle e-books marked down up to 90% off, running as low as $1.99.

If you're ready to read, here are the best Kindle book deals to shop this week.

PS: If you missed out on the Kindle deals, you can still find the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite marked down to $134.99, saving $25 on the e-reader.

Best book deal Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon 'Good Material' by Dolly Alderton $2.99 at Amazon
$28.00 Save $25.01 Get Deal Why we like it

Named one of The New York Times's best books of the year, Dolly Alderton's Good Material details the breakup of Andy and Jen. As Andy is set adrift in the haze of heartbreak, he's left to pick himself up, navigate his career, and try to piece together how the breakup came to be. Alderton's wit is sharp, providing moments of riotous laughter, and pangs of tenderness that run deep.

You can find the Kindle e-book of Good Material on sale now for $2.99, saving you $25.01 on one of the top reads of 2024.

More Kindle book deals

• Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton — $2.99 $19 (save $16.01)

• Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here by Jonathan Blitzer — $13.99 $32 (save $18.01)

• Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver — $2.99 $19.99 (save $17)

• I Heard Her Call My Name by Lucy Sante — $13.99 $27 (save $13.01)

• The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri — $2.99 $9.99 (save $7)

• Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner — $1.99 $13.99 (save $12)

• The Magician's Assistant by Ann Patchett — $1.99 $19 (save $17)

• The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley — $14.99 $28.99 (save $14)

• The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon — $8.48 $15.99 (save $7.51)

• The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan (The Kane Chronicles book one) — $1.99 $15.99 (save $14)

• Swordcrossed by Freya Marske — $14.99 $28.99 (save $14)

• The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan (The Kane Chronicles book two) — $1.99 $15.99 (save $14)

• West with Giraffes by Lydia Rutledge — $2.99 $4.99 (save $2.50)

• The Wide Wide Sea by Hampton Side —$14.99 $35 (save $20.01)