Bundesliga using Video Assistant Referees?

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MLS began using video assistant referees this month and the Bundesliga, Germany’s top flight began utilising the tech too. All 23 referees within the league will now serve as an assistant video referee during the 2017-2018 campaign. The VAR system is very controversial, slowing down match pace being a huge worry it was used in a penalty situation between Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen.

FIFA technical director Marco Van Basten argues otherwise:

“Football will remain the same….But we’re working so that through the video assistants it will become more honest. All that we want is that the result at the end of a game is achieved in a regular manner.”

Different leagues may employ the VAR differently but Bundesliga can only apply it in specific situations, 4 to be exact, irregularities in goal decisions, penalties, red cards and if there is mistaken identity when a player is given a red card.

App To Help Discover Cancer?

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Pancreatic cancer has a very low survival rate with just 9% of patients surviving 5 years or less. A large contributing factor to this is that there is no visible symptoms and by the time it is discovered the cancer is already very advanced. But researchers at the University of Washington have hopefully invented an accurate way to test the early signs of cancer, by themselves.

An app called BiliScreen may well be the way to discovering pancreatic cancer early, by using a smartphone’s camera, it uses computer vision algorithm to detect the chemical bilirubin in the whites of a persons eyes.

This is important because with pancreatic cancer, bilirubin levels start to increase and eventually turn a persons whites of their eye turn yellow, in which case the cancer is already highly developed. Cheaper and a lot easier than a blood test, BiliScreen is able to detect the levels of bilirubin and warn a user if their levels are abnormally high.

The app must be used in a special box to block out ambient light, or paper coloured glasses that the app is calibrated too. Biliscreen is said to be 90% accurate as a blood test, in identifying concerning levels of bilirubin when tested with a 70-person clinical study.

Star Wars Drones By Propel

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Microsoft/Sony Playing Nicely?

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Xbox Marketing Manager Aaron Greenberg has told the folks over at GameReactor they are “talking to Sony” about the potential for crossplay between the two consoles. Crossplay is a term to describe inter-platform gamers to play against each other on games, regardless of what console they are playing. He reiterated to GameReactor that he feels the industry is moving towards a ‘customer first’ focus. Making note of Minecraft users being able to play people from Xbox One, iPhone and Nintendo Switch.

Of Sony Greenberg said:

“We’re talking to Sony. We do partner with them on Minecraft and of course we’d like to enable them to be part of that one community, and unite gamers… We’re hopeful that they’ll be supportive of it.”

While Playstation aren’t so keen, back in June Jim Ryan, Playstation global sales and marketing head told Eurogamer:

“It’s certainly not a profound philosophical stance we have against this. We’ve done it in the past….We’re always open to conversations with any developer or publisher who wants to talk about it. Unfortunately it’s a commercial discussion between ourselves and other stakeholders.”

With the PS4 being the most popular console and by a long margin too, it makes little sense for Playstation to be up for this and total sense for Microsoft.

Apple Offering Movies 2 Weeks After Release?!

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Apple are really trying to get movies into your home a lot faster than they already are…..at a premium though.

Bloomberg are reporting that alongside Apple, Comcast are in talks (independently) with movie studios to offer $50 movie rentals approximately 2 weeks after their theatrical debut, then waiting a further 4-6 weeks you can get the same movie for $30. Apparently, the deals, if successful, could be finalized early next year.

Movie theatres have an interest in maintaining exclusivity for movies for as long as possible, concession sales of popcorn, drinks and sweets keep theatres alive, if a family is able to buy their tickets at home, the theatres life is in real danger. Deals with Apple/Comcast would give movie studios to push on with movie downloads, which could also threaten theatres, by giving them an ultimatum of agree to a deal or we will start selling downloads.

Will Apple finally get their way? Only time will tell.