Media will be invited to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to cover the launch of the Boeing Starliner's manned test flight to the International Space Station, scheduled for no earlier than April 22, 2024.
Longueuil (Quebec), March 1, 2024 – Media will be invited to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to cover the launch of Boeing's Starliner manned test flight to the International Space Station, scheduled for no earlier than April 22, 2024.
This manned test flight is an important step towards Starliner-1, the spacecraft's first operational mission, which is scheduled to launch in early 2025 at the earliest. Starliner-1 will be the first space mission for Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk: he will be the fourth Canadian Space Agency astronaut to stay on the International Space Station and the first to participate in a mission carried out as part of NASA's promotional program manned missions are carried out.
Joshua Kutryk will be the Capcom liaison for the human test flight at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
To attend the launch of the human test flight, Canadian media must apply for accreditation online by March 14, 2024, 11:59 p.m. ET (English only).
For detailed information, see NASA's media advisory.
What :
Media accreditation to attend the launch of the Boeing Starliner manned test flight to the International Space Station
Deadline:
March 14, 2024, 11:59 p.m. (ET)
Contact :
Accreditation requests are made online: https://media.ksc.nasa.gov (English only)
THE TRAC is a non-profit organization since 1987 whose mission is to help people in need in southwest Montreal. We work with a population aged 12 and over through a significant and stable presence in people's living environments. The type of intervention preferred by our organization is non-institutional in nature and is based on the basic principles of street work, namely volunteerism and confidentiality.
Why work at TRAC?
TRAC is a supportive team finding solutions together, it is about new challenges in intervention with the general approach of street work, it is working with committed partners, it is above all about creating meaningful and human moments with the residents of southwest Montreal. You will meet diverse faces with equally different paths in life and immerse yourself in the heart of our community.
working conditions
▪ Hourly rate $24.00/hour (Possibility of recognizing previous knowledge)
Thetford Mines Parish Council has appointed three new members to its town planning advisory board. This approach follows the call for applications addressed to the population a few months ago.
Together with the two elected officials already in office, these five people officially constitute this committee, whose task is to provide the Council with opinions on the various requests from citizens on urban planning and regional development issues.
Of the three new members, two accepted a two-year mandate, namely Logann Morissette, coordinator of the Héritage Center-Ville organization, and J. Chantal Roy, retired project manager. Luc Falardeau, a citizen involved in various trail development projects, will assume this role for a period of one year.
“We are very pleased about citizens’ interest in urban planning and urban development. These new members have skills that will enrich discussions and recommendations to the council. “I would of course like to thank the outgoing members for their commitment over the last few years,” said Anthony Bilodeau, President of the Urban Planning Advisory Committee, President of the Urban Planning and Economic Development Commission and City Councilman.
Remember that the Town Planning Advisory Board appointed by the local council meets 16 times a year with one or two meetings per month.
The era of Galaxy AI has arrived and early adopters are already riding the waves of the latest innovation. To keep the conversation going, Samsung has significantly updated the Try Galaxy app and now offers Live Translation, Chat Assistant, Notes Assistant, Photo Assistant and Circle To Search with Google, so those who are still hesitant, Galaxy AI even without experience can change your phone.
The Try Galaxy app, previously developed for iOS users, is now available for the first time on all Android devices, including Galaxy models[1]. This will allow more users to explore the latest features of the Galaxy S24 series and One UI 6.1.
If you're thinking about it, maybe it's high time to give it a try… Try Galaxy.
What's new: Explore Galaxy AI through widgets and tutorials
The updated version of the Try Galaxy app simulates the experience of viewing a real Galaxy S24 home screen. Once users are in the app, tutorials and interactive content help them navigate the latest interface.
The new widget on the second page of the home screen showcases the Galaxy S24 series' basic AI-powered features and its advanced camera tools. Users can tap on each item to watch short demo videos that explain the features and how to apply them in daily life. Brackets appear next to completed videos to track your progress.
Below is an overview of the widget's new AI features:
Live translation: Communicate in different languages with real-time two-way call translation functionality built into the native app. Easily communicate with a rideshare driver or make a restaurant reservation in a foreign country with voice and text translation for phone calls supported in 13 languages.[2]
Notes Assistant: Take notes as usual, but now get instant AI-generated summaries to help you streamline and organize your notes. Turn dense paragraphs into bulleted lists and headings to make them easier to read. This feature enables automatic formatting, spell checking and translations.
Chat assistant: Tailor the tone of text messages to the circumstances, whether professional or informal. Send flawless schedules to the boss and chat with international friends in Spanish. The AI built into the Samsung keyboard can also translate messages in real-time into 13 languages2, allowing users to better communicate across cultural and language barriers.
Photo Assistant: Get the perfect photo with the help of Generative Editing, an AI tool that allows users to resize, reposition, or even remove objects in photos. Quickly refine the composition of a photo with suggested edits. Use the Clear Reflection tool to automatically remove unwanted shadows and light reflections.
Circle to search with Google: Search for items displayed on the screen by creating a circle without having to switch applications. When users see something they like in a social media post, they can simply long-press the home button and draw a circle around the image to get instant search results for the item they want. Depending on the location, AI-powered generative previews are provided.
In addition to the AI features, the widget highlights the Galaxy S24 series' advanced camera tools. With immersive first-person video tutorials, users can learn how to capture clear, bright night photos from a distance with the Nightography zoom, capture shaky videos of fast-moving subjects with the Super Steady feature, and capture stunning portraits and selfies Portrait mode.
More updates and options available
The app also allows users to try out the new Galaxy themes or wallpapers outside of the wallpapers offered on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. As a bonus, three types of artistic wallpapers are available to download, including graffiti and pop art.
To learn more about the Galaxy ecosystem, users can view informative maps depicting features such as easy multi-device connectivity, file sharing capabilities, and body composition data available on Samsung Health. To get started quickly with the latest foldable experience, users can watch walkthrough videos showcasing the Galaxy Z Flip5 and Z Fold5.
The Try Galaxy app currently supports 20 languages[3] covers 120 countries and has accumulated over 18 million downloads since its launch in 2022. Download the updated app by simply swiping a code
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[1] The Try Galaxy app is available on Android smartphones compatible with the latest version of Chrome, but may not be perfectly optimized depending on your device model, setting, screen size, etc. The app works on Safari, on iOS devices from version 7 with iOS 14 or later.
[2] Supported languages include Mandarin, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai and Vietnamese.
[3] The app is supported in Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Czech, English, French (FR/CA), German, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Latin American Spanish, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Vietnamese .
Project Music GenAI Control is the brand new artificial intelligence (AI) program from well-known image and video software developer Adobe.
The Photoshop of music
Announced this week at the Hot Pod Summit in Brooklyn, Project Music GenAI Control is a new prototype tool that allows users to generate music using simple text commands and then edit the audio with dedicated editing software without switching.
Project music GenAI control Adobe
However, AI-created music is nothing new. Although there are already many editing and music creation tools based on generative AI on the market, Adobe's approach has the virtue of respecting copyright.
In fact, generative AI music tools in general raise ethical and legal questions as AI-created music, artwork, and lyrics proliferate. Adobe is working with the University of California and the Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science on its project.
You just have to have musical ideas
Legal issues aside, and although the project is still in the research stage, Adobe's platform allows audio to be generated from text descriptions entered via the keyboard.
Project music GenAI control Adobe
It's possible to adjust elements such as tempo, intensity, repeating patterns and structure, or even take a track and extend it to any length, remix music or create an infinite loop.
In addition to various control options to try out, you don't have to be a composer, just express your musical ideas.
The experts behind the project believe that generative AI music tools will not replace artists, but will coexist with them and traditional means of music production.
This video from Adobe demonstrates the possibilities the project offers.
A tech engineer has been heavily criticized on social media for wearing a virtual reality headset at his own wedding and insisting that the new bride take photos with the device.
“My wife told me, “We’re not taking pictures with it.” [casque de réalité virtuelle] Vision Pro”. But I told him it was just a joke,” newlywed Jacob Wright told Futurism in an interview last week.
The 24-year-old engineer therefore attracted criticism from several Internet users after he shared two photos from his wedding in which we see him dancing and posing with the augmented reality headset on his head, along with his new bride Cambree Wright in her white dress, on February 10th in Utah.
Except in one of the photos, which has been seen more than 359,000 times, the message appears confused as she watches her husband immerse himself in the virtual universe in front of their wedding photographer.
“It was the last thing I wanted to have photos of,” the young woman emphasized to the American media, confiding to the local San Francisco newspaper SFGATE: “When he sits in the Apple Vision Pro, I let him do his thing.”
Luckily, despite her fears, she wouldn't have had to fight with the engineer, who works for an artificial intelligence company, to get him to give up the helmet for the duration of the ceremony, as he was already planning on putting it aside out of respect “God and his wife,” he would have suggested.
Advantages
Still, the newlywed explained that wearing the headset could be beneficial during their wedding as it offers the opportunity to capture immersive photos and videos that would practically allow one to relive a moment.
“I have a video of me there with all the bridesmaids, all the groomsmen – everyone who came to the ceremony. I think it will be super cool to show our kids in 20 years,” said Jacob Wright.
But several internet users didn't seem convinced that the joke was worth it.
“What are the return policies for husbands?” one of them joked, while another suggested that if it was the bride, divorce papers wouldn't be far away, according to the New YorkPost.
Apple's new virtual reality headsets have caused a lot of controversy since their launch in early February, when several authorities had to speak out to warn users to be careful.
Some were filmed crossing the street with the helmet on their heads, which uses cameras to reflect the outside world, while one was reportedly seen driving a Tesla on Autopilot.
We're not really talking about a funny part. The soil is poisonous. Unbreathable air. And I'm not telling you about cosmic rays, otherwise you'll think I'm totally anti-Martian.
Sooner or later the wanderer on Mars will want to send a little hello to an earthly acquaintance. So he'd better be patient. The simplest message takes an average of 22 minutes to travel the distance between Mars and Earth. The same applies to the answer.
Do the math. So when you call for help, it takes at least 44 minutes for a NASA official, probably half asleep, to respond: “What can I do to help you?”
Last summer, NASA reportedly compiled a list of 800 problems that need to be solved before considering sending astronauts to Mars, possibly in the late 2030s.
And remember that the list does not include even the most sensitive problem. Perhaps the main question. How will people deal with the psychological difficulties that accompany the journey?
To find out, NASA is looking for four volunteers to simulate life on Mars. The third of its kind. The lucky ones will have the privilege of being imprisoned in a replica of a Martian habitat for an entire year…
I promise the conditions will be realistic. Not the equivalent of the film Alone on Mars with actor Matt Damon, but almost. NASA promises that fake astronauts will endure various “frustrations and hardships.” It also promises to cause them a lot of technical problems.
Finally, I saved the best for last. In their free time, participants are entitled to trips to a hermetically sealed cabin to make bricks and grow a few measly lettuces.
Admit you're dying for this…
Source: The New York Times
(AP Archives, Alberto Pezzali)
Quick question
What unusual activity did the chief physician of the medical team monitoring King Charles' health ever recommend?
has) Count all the grains of rice contained in a 500 ml can of “Chicken Rice Soup” to practice patience;
B) Skydiving at least three times to cure vertigo;
vs) Play the bagpipes to combat certain lung problems;
D) Watch a handful of Mexican oat beans to increase your ability to concentrate.
e) Practice line dancing with at least 40 people to improve your coordination.
Answer: c)Source: The Guardian
The comparison
— Loudness of the bang! Ejected by Danionella Cerebrum, one of the smallest fish in the world, to intimidate a predator: 140 decibels;
— Noise level of a jackhammer: 120 decibels.
Source: The Guardian
(AP Archives, Carolyn Kester)
The number
24
That's how many times Commander, Joe Biden's German Shepherd, has bitten Secret Service agents responsible for security in the White House. The wild dog was eventually removed from the scene. After one of the incidents, tours of the White House had to be stopped to clean up blood stains on the floor.
Source: The Washington Post
The comparison
— Percentage of American boys who believe they are their mother's favorite child: 41%;
— Percentage of American girls who believe they are their mother's favorite child: 22%.
Source: YouGov, quoted by Harper's
Falling
– 6%
Decrease in the amount left by the Tooth Fairy for toothless children last year. It seems that inflation also affects the tooth fairy, although on average she leaves $5.84 for the first tooth.
Source: Delta Rentals
Right or wrong?
A quarter of the 705 members of the European Parliament are the target of more or less serious investigations by the judiciary in their country or another country in the European Union.
Answer: TrueSource: Le Monde
The forecast
Between 60 and 80%
Probability that the day of April 8, 2024 will be cloudy in southern Quebec during the total solar eclipse. The percentage is the average over the last 20 years.
Source: meteomedia.ca
The duration
212 years old
Time when Sweden was a neutral country. In 1812, the country joined Napoleon I's grand army to invade Russia. A disastrous decision that had cost him part of his territory. After that, the country always maintained strict neutrality. A “status” that ended with the country’s recent entry into NATO.
Source: The Conversation
The sale
$3.7 million
The price was achieved during an auction for 16 boxes, each containing 48 packs, of never-unopened hockey cards from 1979. The set contains between 25 and 30 cards of Wayne Gretzky when he was a rookie. A sort of Holy Grail for collectors, valued at more than $1 million each. Who knows, because we may never know the contents for sure. Given the value that unopened packages reach, it is not certain that the buyer dares to touch them!
Source: The New York Times
The proportion
82 out of 163
Number of ski resorts in the Pyrenees and French Alps seriously threatened by warming and lack of snow by 2050.
Source: Le Monde
To respond to this column, write to us [email protected]. Some answers may be published in our Opinions section.
The Lien MULTIMEDIA team presents the 207th issue of CONVERGENCE, the business and digital culture magazine. This 85-page magazine is available for download as a PDF and is optimized for reading on a tablet or computer screen. This issue features artists and entrepreneurs interviewed by our journalists, including Stéphane Foenkino on the immersive “Noire” experience at the PHI Center, Jacques Hermans, CEO of Quebec's Game Guild video, Luc Sirois, Quebec chief innovator and CEO by Quebec Innovation Council, Brigitte Monneau (SYNTHÈSE – Pôle Image Québec), Simon Dansereau (Triple Boris), Fleur Marty (Fang & Claw) and Christopher Chancey (ManaVoid Entertainment).
CONVERGENCE No. 207. Photo: Le Lien MULTIMEDIA
> CONVERGENCE number 207 (PDF) > Subscription > Single copies and subscriptions > Advertising > Contact
DIGITAL CULTURE
With “Noire” Stéphane Foenkinos dares to take the plunge into immersion
Darren Emerson explores the world of raves in Immersion
Pearle Harbor takes its audience into the pre-post-apocalypse with “Agit-Pop!” »
“Midnight Somewhere,” soon touring 25 cities in Quebec
“Fé·e·s sans foi”, a collaborative queer musical
BUSINESS
Despite post-pandemic stabilization, independent game studios have a bright future ahead of them
Three video game industry professionals share their advice on entrepreneurship
A PGL dictate for companies in the spirit of artificial intelligence
Khaled Bouaziz (Innoprofits) advises video game studios on tax credits
Cultural data, standards and discoverability in the context of diversity: an ongoing reflection
TECHNOLOGIES
“Ready for AI”: Luc Sirois satisfied with the work done; Now we have to walk the talk
Teacher Cindy St-Hilaire uses robotics to get her students excited about science
Marie-Hélène Hamel and her students went back to basics with the automated greenhouse project.
Sébastien Bergeron believes in the power of robotics and programming to combat school dropouts
About CONVERGENCE
CONVERGENCE magazine was launched in January 2000 at the suggestion of the newsletter Le Lien MULTIMÉDIA, published to its subscribers since 1994, and remains today the only magazine in Quebec dedicated exclusively to digital and technological culture here and elsewhere. It is produced without any government support and survives solely thanks to the support of its advertisers, subscribers and partners, to whom we sincerely thank.
CONVERGENCE is published 12 times a year in a digital format optimized for reading on tablets, computers and mobile devices (downloadable PDF). Each issue consists of between 60 and 100 pages, enriched with video content and podcasts.
