Established 1961 15 Technology Sunday, September 23, 2018 High-tech Tokyo Game Show: Old skool ones remains the best

Manufacturers wheeled out revamped versions of their old games consoles

MAKUHARI: At the Tokyo Game Show, the world’s top ‘Old memories’ firms compete to show off their very latest in high-tech The console — which retails for around $60 — comes gaming gadgetry: from head-spinning virtual reality to with 30 games including Nintendo’s famed Super Mario cutting-edge multiplayer eSports. But crowds were and Donkey Kong characters. “These old games are not flocking not only to the latest smartphone shoot-em-up, beautiful but we used to play them with school friends in but classic games from the 1980s like Donkey Kong and the arcades and playing them makes you automatically Mario Brothers, as manufacturers wheeled out think of this friendship and old memories come flooding revamped versions of their old games consoles to cap- back,” said Soichiro Morizumi, a gamer and game develop- ture a new market. er himself. “Modern games may be beautiful but they do Alongside the top-of-the-range latest models such as not fire the same emotions,” Morizumi told AFP. the PS4, Japanese electronics giant Sony caught everyone Other firms at the show are also jumping on the nostalgia off guard by announcing the release of a miniature con- bandwagon including Hamster, which has acquired licences sole — designed like the original PlayStation — with 20 to offer classics like Donkey Kong and Mario Brothers on vintage games. Nostalgic fans and curious new gamers the latest consoles like Nintendo’s Switch, Microsoft’s Xbox will find PlayStation classics such as the 1997 role-playing or Sony’s PS4. “Games from the 1980s have become game Final Fantasy VII and 1998-1999 racing game R4: extremely popular in recent times and I think the market is Ridge Racer Type 4. exploding,” said Satoshi Hamada, chief executive of Hamster. “Twenty-five years after we launched the first “Gamers from that era are over 40 now. They still want PlayStation in Japan, we are offering this version not only to play but today’s games are too complicated for them. for fans from back in the day but also for those who never They want the same simplicity they had before, because knew this console,” said Shu Takura, spokesman for Sony they have grown old,” he added. “As you can see from our Interactive Entertainment. Sony’s move to roll back the stand, it is men in their 40s and 50s that are playing these years comes two years after bitter rivals Nintendo games.” The Tokyo Game Show is Asia’s largest, with launched the NES, a palm-sized version of its eighties era 250,000 visitors expected until Sunday in the suburbs of games console, tapping into nostalgia for titles from the the Japanese capital. Some 668 firms from 41 countries are TOKYO: Visitors play at old video games at the Tokyo Game Show on September 21 2018. —AFP early era of home video games. set to showcase their latest cutting-edge wares. — AFP

the numbers are even more alarming, with a tered a per capita consumption of 10 liters of Alcohol full 13.5 percent of all deaths among 20-29- pure alcohol or more per year. Alcohol con- year-olds considered to be alcohol-related, sumption has dropped in three-quarters of the study found. European countries, with the biggest declines responsible for seen in Russia, Moldavia and Belarus. ‘Unacceptably high’ In Russia, average annual alcohol con- NASA telescope discovers one in 20 deaths In comparison, HIV/AIDS was responsible sumption plunged from 18.7 liters of pure for 1.8 percent of global deaths in 2016, road alcohol per person over 15 in 2005 to 11.7 two new planets five worldwide: WHO injuries accounted for 2.5 percent and vio- liters in 2016, the report said. This “dramatic lence for 0.8 percent, it said. The latest num- decrease” is linked to a range of “positive months after launch GENEVA: Alcohol kills three million people bers are lower than those in WHO’s last policies” introduced by Moscow, Vladimir worldwide each year — more than AIDS, vio- report on global alcohol consumption, pub- Poznyak, who coordinates WHO’s substance ORLANDO: A planet-hunting orbital mented during the past 20 years and is lence and road accidents combined, the lished in 2014. There are “some positive glob- abuse unit, told reporters. He pointed to the telescope designed to detect worlds running out of fuel. NASA expects to World Health Organization said Friday, al trends”, the agency said, noting shrinking introduction of a minimum price for vodka beyond our solar system discovered pinpoint thousands more previously adding that men are particularly at risk. The prevalence of heavy episodic drinking and and an alcohol advertising ban. two distant planets this week five unknown worlds, perhaps hundreds of UN health agency’s latest report on alcohol alcohol-related deaths since 2010. WHO however warned that outside of months after its launch from Cape them Earth-sized or “super-Earth” and health pointed out that alcohol causes But it warned that “the overall burden of Europe, alcohol consumption has continued Canaveral, Florida, officials said on sized - no larger than twice as big as more than one in 20 deaths globally each disease and injuries caused by the harmful to rise, especially in Asia, with China and Thursday. NASA’s Transiting our home planet. year, including drink driving, alcohol-induced use of alcohol is unacceptably high,” espe- India registering significant hikes. It urged Exoplanet Survey Satellite, better Those are believed the likely violence and abuse and a multitude of dis- cially in Europe and the Americas. Globally, countries to do more to counter harmful known as TESS, made an early discov- to feature rocky surfaces or oceans eases and disorders. an estimated 237 million men and 46 million drinking and to reach a goal of cutting global ery of “super-Earth” and “hot Earth” and are thus considered the best can- Men account for more than three quarters women suffer from alcohol use disorders, consumption by 10 percent between 2010 planets in solar systems at least 49 didates for life to evolve. Scientists of alcohol-related deaths, the nearly 500- WHO said. Alcohol abuse affects nearly 15 and 2025. “Based on all trends and predic- light-years away, marking the satel- have said they hope TESS will ulti- page report found. “Far too many people, percent of men and 3.5 percent of women in tions, we can expect an increase in overall lite’s first discovery since its April mately help catalog at least 100 more their families and communities suffer the con- Europe, and 11.5 percent of men and 5.1 per- alcohol consumption and alcohol-related launch. TESS is on a two-year, $337 rocky exoplanets for further study in sequences of the harmful use of alcohol cent of women in the Americas, it pointed out. harm in the next 10 years,” Poznyak warned, million mission to expand astronomers’ what has become one of astronomy’s through violence, injuries, mental health Alcohol consumption overall is unevenly dis- stressing that “this will definitely result in known catalog of so-called exoplan- newest fields of exploration. problems and diseases like cancer and tributed around the globe, with well over half increased number of deaths and suffering ets, worlds circling distant stars. MIT researchers on Wednesday stroke,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom of the world’s population over the age of 15 around the world.” While the two planets are too hot announced the discovery of Pi Mensae Ghebreyesus said in a statement. Drinking is abstaining completely. On average, the 2.3 WHO is urging countries to tax alcohol to support life, TESS Deputy Science c, a “super-earth” planet 60 light- linked to more than 200 health conditions, billion people currently considered drinkers and ban advertising of such beverages to Director Sara Seager expects many years away orbiting its sun every 6.3 including liver cirrhosis and some cancers. — meaning they have drunk alcohol at least reduce consumption. Poznyak said blocking more such discoveries. “We will have days. The discovery of LHS 3844 b, a Alcohol abuse also makes people more once in the past year — consume 33 alcohol companies from sponsoring big to wait and see what else TESS dis- “hot-earth” planet 49 light-years away susceptible to infectious diseases such as grammes of pure alcohol per day. sporting events could make a big difference. covers,” Seager told Reuters. “We do that orbits its sun every 11 hours, was tuberculosis, HIV and pneumonia, the report That is roughly equivalent to two glasses “These events are being watched by millions know that planets are out there, litter- announced on Thursday. Pi Mensae c found. The some three million alcohol-related of wine, a large bottle of beer or two shots of and sometimes billions of young people, and ing the night sky, just waiting to be could have a solid surface or be a deaths registered globally in 2016 — the lat- spirits. Europe clearly has the highest per it’s impossible to prevent exposure to this found.” TESS is designed to build on waterworld as the composition of such est available statistics — account for 5.3 per- capita consumption, which despite a more kind of advertising to those who are under the work of its predecessor, the Kepler planets is a mixed bag, Martin Spill, cent of all deaths that year. For young people, than 10-percent drop since 2010 still regis- the legal age,” he said. — AFP space telescope, which discovered the NASA’s program scientist for TESS, bulk of some 3,700 exoplanets docu- said in a phone interview. —Reuters First to Mars will become Facebook dating analysis showed the animals were abun- ‘Fat’ traces dant 558 million years ago, millions of Martians: Canada astronaut years earlier than previously thought, service rolling out according to Brocks. The creature was OTTAWA: Astronauts traveling through astronaut said. confirm weird part of the Ediacara Biota that lived on space on the long trip to Mars will not “It’s going to be very difficult not in Colombia Earth during a time when bacteria have the usual backup from mission con- having Mother Earth next to you and it’s fossils were reigned, 542-635 million years ago. trol on Earth and will need to think of going to be really important for that BOGOTA: Facebook said Friday a dating service it The Edicarian Period was about 20 themselves as Martians to survive, crew to define who they are as the most teased early this year is being rolled out in Colombia. million years prior to emergence of mod- Canada’s most famous spaceman half- distant explorers in human history,” he The social media giant chose the Latin American earliest animals ern animal life — a period known as the jokingly said Friday. Current predictions said. Hadfield, whose 2013 rendition of country as its test lab because Colombians are par- Cambrian explosion. “The question has are that humans will reach Mars — up to David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” aboard ticularly avid fans of using social networks and web- been, is that real? Is that an event that 400 million kilometers (250 million the International Space Station was sites to find partners. The new feature, rolled out in WASHINGTON: A strange fossil that happened in Earth history? Or have we miles) from Earth — in the coming watched by millions, was taking part Colombia this week, allows users to create a sepa- looks a bit like a giant leaf, or a finger- just not found the older fossils?” David print the size of a coffee table, has decades. with fellow astronauts in a fireside chat rate “dating” profile not visible to their network of Gold, geobiologist and assistant profes- intrigued scientists for decades. But the vast distance means commu- with students at the University of friends, with potential matches recommended based sor at the University of California, told Thousands of the fossils have been found nications with mission control would be Ottawa. on preferences and common interests. AFP. “This paper is another really good over the past seven decades, revealing delayed by up to 22 minutes. As a result, — who holds the The service is programmed not to link up people line of evidence to support the idea that that it lived at the bottom of the ocean, astronauts would need to be self-reliant Canadian record for the most time spent who are already connected as family or friends, and it is in fact an animal, and that animals on the voyage, which clocks in at 2.5 in space — said new Canadian Space without a mouth, intestines or anus, half users of Facebook Dating will also be able to block are much older than the Cambrian.” years round trip in travel time alone. “If I Agency recruits Joshua Kutryk and Jenni a billion years ago. Was it a mossy people if they wish. A basic chat service will be Dickinsonia could be an ancestor of were commander of that crew as soon as Sidey-Gibbons “are going to go to deep plant? A giant single-celled amoeba? A available, and the site will bar strangers from sending “many forms of animal life today” includ- the Earth started fading in the rearview space, returning to the moon, to an failed experiment of evolution? Or the photos, videos or links. ing worms and insects, added Gold, who mirror, I would get the crew together asteroid... and then 20 years from now earliest animal on Earth? Some 21 million people log in to Facebook every was not part of the current study. and say: ‘We are no longer Earthlings, we’re going to be on the surface of Mars After digging one of these fossils off a day in Colombia, a country of 50 million people, Scientists had a difficult time finding we are now Martians. That’s who we are. exploring.” In the short term, “the idea of cliff in Russia and analyzing its contents, according to the company. “We view this as an Dickinsonia fossils with organic matter We need to redefine our relationship living on the moon... is becoming very, incredible opportunity to continue helping people researchers discovered molecules of with the planet that birthed us,’” former very real,” said Kutryk. — AFP cholesterol, a type of fat. This confirms still attached. Many of the known fossils build relationships in meaningful ways on Facebook,” were in Australia, and had been exposed said Facebook Dating product manager Nathan that the creature, known as Dickinsonia, is the Earth’s earliest known animal, said to too many elements over many millions Sharp. Facebook’s chief Mark Zuckerberg in May of years. The fossil for the current study announced plans for the new dating feature at the the report Thursday in the journal Science. “Scientists have been fighting came from cliffs near the White Sea in world’s leading online social network-while vowing the northwest of Russia. to make privacy protection its top priority in the for more than 75 years” over the nature of these “bizarre fossils,” said associate “I took a helicopter to reach this very wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. remote part of the world — home to Zuckerberg was emphatic that the focus would professor Jochen Brocks from the Australian National University Research bears and mosquitoes — where I could be on helping people find partners, not flings. “This find Dickinsonia fossils with organic is going to be for building real, long-term relation- School of Earth Sciences. “The fossil fat now confirms Dickinsonia as the oldest matter still intact,” said Ilya Bobrovskiy, ships, not just hookups,” Zuckerberg said in pre- a doctoral researcher at ANU. “These senting the new feature. He said the dating offer was known animal fossil, solving a decades- fossils were located in the middle of cliffs built with privacy and safety in mind. Facebook old mystery that has been the Holy Grail of the White Sea that are 60 to 100 faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvest- of paleontology.” meters high. I had to hang over the edge ing of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a of a cliff on ropes and dig out huge British political consultancy that worked for Donald Edge of cliff blocks of sandstone, throw them down, Trump’s 2016 election campaign. The company has Dickinsonia contained rib-like seg- wash the sandstone and repeat this admitted up to 87 million users may have had their ments the length of its oval-shaped body, In this NASA file photo taken on December 25, 2012, astronaut process until I found the fossils I was data hijacked in the scandal. —AFP which came in a variety of sizes and Chris Hadfield strums his guitar in the International Space Station’s Cupola. — AFP could grow as large as 4.6 feet. The after.” — AFP