New Zealand has voted to strengthen a counter-terrorism bill, now criminalizing the planning of attacks after a knifeman inspired by Islamic State recently left several injured, despite being trailed by police for weeks.
Parliament passed the bill on its third reading on Thursday, voting to amend two previous pieces of legislation that took effect in 2002 and 2012 in order to empower authorities to go after suspected terrorists.
Should the law receive final royal approval, anyone determined to be “planning” or making “other preparations” for an attack will be subject to a number of warrantless police powers, including those pertaining to entry, search, seizure, and surveillance.
The legislative push is long in the making, with calls to strengthen the country’s counter-terrorism laws growing louder following the infamous Christchurch shooting in 2019, in which a gunman massacred 51 people and injured another 40 in a shooting rampage at two different mosques.
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However, a knife attack in Auckland earlier this month – said to have been inspired by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) – provided more direct impetus for the terrorism bill. Though the attacker, identified as Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, had been under law enforcement surveillance for 53 consecutive days and police strongly suspected he was planning violence, they had no legal pretext to detain him before the attack. The new bill aims to remedy such issues going forward, empowering police to take more aggressive action ahead of a planned incident.
Last year, prosecutors attempted to charge Samsudeen with a terrorism offense, saying he had recently bought a large hunting knife and was found with IS propaganda material in his possession. However, the case was later thrown out, as a judge determined the knife and videos alone were not enough to proceed with criminal charges. The judge also noted that New Zealand law at the time made few provisions for terrorist plots, focusing instead on attacks themselves, saying this “could be an Achilles’ heel” in the justice system.
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NASA’s Mars helicopter Ingenuity canceled flight 14 due to failures in its flight control system. Originally, Ingenuity was designed to live one month and execute five demonstration test flights. Like other NASA technology, Ingenuity pushed beyond its initial limits. Today the Mars helicopter has more than doubled its original intended lifespan and number of flights.
Weeks before the canceled flight NASA had warned that flying on Mars was becoming more difficult with each passing day due to the variations of the Red Planet’s seasons. Seasonal variations on Mars are so extreme that they affect atmospheric density. Like all helicopters, Ingenuity must boost performance to overcome atmospheric changes.
Related: We Won’t Hear From Any Mars Rovers For At Least Two Weeks – Here’s Why
Ingenuity made the autonomous decision of canceling flight 14 after detecting an “anomaly” with its main control mechanisms. The helicopter is programmed to run pre-flight tests. During the last test, it detected that two flight-control servo motors did not respond as they should. The two upper rotor swashplate servos oscillated with an amplitude of approximately 1 degree compared to their commanded position. A change in 1 degree may seem small but from the perspective of the small helicopter about to fly on Mars, it was critical enough to shut down the flight.
Three days before the canceled flight the helicopter had conducted a high-speed test required to compensate for atmospheric density changes in Mars. The test pushed Ingenuity’s rpm to the highest level ever, reaching 2,800 rpm. The high-speed test was needed to know if it was safe to fly with high rpm levels.
Servos are a critical part of Ingenuity’s anatomy. They control a swashplate mechanism that adjusts the pitch of rotor blades which in turn controls the helicopter’s position and orientation during flights. Ingenuity has six servos, three on each swashplate. “Servos are critical to stable and controlled flight,” NASA said. NASA is working on two theories to understand what went wrong and how to solve it. One theory is that the helicopter has doubled its original flight design capabilities and the stress begins to show. The second theory is that during the high-speed rpm test the servos were affected.
On Earth, the solution is an easy fix, replacing servos in drone helicopters is normal. However, Ingenuity is millions of kilometers away from Earth, which rules out running to the store for a new servo. NASA is left with two main solutions, including the possibility of disabling “abnormal” servos if they have redundant systems, or programming flight commands to adjust to the servo malfunction. All vehicles on Mars, including Ingenuity, will be on a communication blackout due to the Solar Conjunction. The team will use these two weeks to test solutions and get back Ingenuity on the game by the time communications with Mars are reestablished.
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Daniel Craig didn’t like Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell’s No Time To Die theme song at first, according to the music producer who worked on the theme. Siblings Eilish and O’Connell wrote and performed the 25th James Bond theme, “No Time To Die,” alongside producer Stephen Lipson. Writing the song in three days on a tour bus, the siblings worked with Bond composer Hans Zimmer, who wrote the film’s score. The song was released back in February 2020, two months before the film’s initial release date.
Over 18 months later, the song will finally receive its cinematic premiere when No Time To Die hits cinemas in October. Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and starring Rami Malek as the villainous Safin, No Time To Die marks Craig’s final adventure as 007. Starting his tenure with 2006’s Casino Royale, Craig is the longest-serving Bond, edging Moore out by three years. Craig recently spoke about the perks being Bond has afforded him, for instance using his 007-influence to secure his stormtrooper cameo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Alongside this, it also appears that Craig has influence over wider aspects of Bond’s production, including the theme song.
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Speaking with CinemaBlend, UK music producer Stephen Lipson, who worked with Finneas and Eilish on the theme, recalls how Craig wasn’t initially sold on the song. Apparently, the actor wasn’t sure the theme provided the right “emotional climax” for his 007 swan song at first. It was only after Lipson played the song for Craig in the ideal environment of his studio that he really enjoyed the piece, and the “wheels were set in motion.” Read the quote below.
“I asked Finneas and Billie to give me a climactic vocal moment which Billie wasn’t too sure about, but when I heard it I knew it would deliver. Most important was getting Daniel’s approval. I finished the mix and everybody was happy but we still had to get Daniel on board. From the start, quite understandably, he wasn’t all that sure that the song delivered the right emotional climax for his final Bond outing, so satisfying him was key … I suggested that [Craig] come to my studio as I knew that, compared to any other location, it was without doubt the best sonic environment in which to hear it.
… Listening to it as if I was Daniel, I realised that the climax needed to be enormous … I sat Daniel in the chair between the speakers, hit play and waited for his response. When the song finished he didn’t look up but asked to hear it once more. Barbara and I had no idea how he felt until the end of his second listening, when he looked up at me and said something like, ‘That’s f*****g amazing.’ As soon as he’d approved it the wheels were set in motion and the news that Billie Eilish was doing the Bond theme song appeared everywhere.”
The Bond theme became an essential part of the 007 tradition with Shirley Bassey’s iconic 1964 Goldfinger theme, but it can also be a perilous journey for the musicians who take it on. Artists have recorded themes over the years only for them to be thrown out in favor of another, while others have turned down the chance to soundtrack a Bond adventure. Nancy Sinatra’s classic theme for You Only Live Twicewas originally offered to her father, Frank Sinatra, who turned the opportunity down. Now it appears that it’s the other way around, with the cast and crew holding the power to reject the artist, as Eilish’s song wasn’t signed off until Craig had given the go-ahead. Until then, even with the song recorded and ready to go, the artist’s involvement was kept under wraps from the public. It suggests that alongside his performance as a grittier version of the iconic British spy, Craig also had a big say in molding the entire franchise, including the theme song, in his Bond’s image.
While Eilish’s theme has so-far been well received, there’s also the risk of some people disliking the song when it debuts to a wider audience. Alicia Keys and Jack White’s “Another Way to Die” is the most recent example of a theme that drew many fan’s ire. Fortunately for Eilish, this hasn’t been the case with “No Time To Die,” which Eilish recently said aims to pay homage to Bond music of the past. Like the theme, the film has received strong reviews, with critics praising Craig’s final outing for its action, cinematography and emotion. Audiences can hear the new theme for themselves in cinemas when No Time To Die is finally released.
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The Genshin Impact community is always looking forward to new playable characters. Because miHoYo only announces new characters a patch or two before they release, there are still quite a few leaked or rumored characters that don’t have a release date yet. It is possible, however, to make an educated guess about which of these leaked characters may be coming soon.
When it comes to character speculation, there are few things to keep in mind. There have been instances when characters are announced or known about but then don’t release for quite some time. For instance, Ayaka, who was a beta character but only released at the end of July, or Cyno, who was announced in the region roadmap released last year and still doesn’t have a release date. Additionally, the current characters that are being released also seem to be Inazuma characters as that is where the story of the game is currently focused. That’s not to say that Liyue or Mondstadt characters can’t also become available, but it seems like the Inazuma characters are in the spotlight, for now.
Related: Genshin Impact 2.2 Livestream: Date, Start Times, & How To Watch
The only confirmed new playable character so far is Thoma, who should be available in Version 2.2. There are, however, some other Inazuma characters that could also become playable. Yae Miko played a rather significant role in the 2.1 Archon Quest and in the Inazuma storyline, as a whole. As the Raiden Shogun’s closest companion, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Miko were to get her own banner. Because the new characters releasing at the moment seem to be oriented around Inazuma, it is possible that Miko will be releasing in the next few updates. Gorou, a leader of the Sangonomiya Resistance, has also yet to be given a release date. Considering he has already been introduced in the storyline, it is likely that he may also be releasing soon.
And then there is Kamisato Ayato, Ayaka’s elusive brother and leader of the Kamisato Clan. Ayato has yet to make an appearance in-game, but it has been possibly leaked by former Genshin Impact leaker Sukuna that Ayato may be coming soon. There has been no official word on Ayato – his appearance isn’t even known – but he is rumored to be a Hydro claymore user. Another as-yet-unseen character that may be coming soon is Arataki Itto, who is mentioned by Sayu and Yoimiya as being the leader of the Arataki Gang. Itto is rumored to be a Geo user by Dimbreath on Twitter, whose account has sadly been deactivated.
All of the above characters are somehow connected to Inazuma and are, therefore, most likely to be coming soon with new updates. However, there are also a few Liyue characters that have been leaked recently. The most likely of these characters to be releasing soon is Yaoyao, who used to study alongside Xiangling and now works for Ganyu. Her arrival may coincide with the Mid-Autumn Festival – or the Moonlight Merriment Event in Genshin Impact – which is currently underway. The 2.2 livestream this Sunday would be the perfect time to announce her. It is also possible that Yaoyao could be the first playable Dendro character added to the game. As the Dendro region, Sumeru, is the next stop for Genshin Impact’s storyline, it would make sense to start introducing the element now.
Yunjin and Shenhe are also Liyue characters that have been leaked. Yunjin will likely be releasing in the future since there is no indication that she is coming soon. Shenhe may not be playable at all, as there isn’t even official artwork for her, and it is rumored that her design was used for other characters. There are also other characters that have been in the game that have yet to be made playable – namely Baizhu and Scaramouche. As Baizhu is a Dendro character – and may have connections to the Chasm – he will probably not be made available in 2021. Scaramouche, on the other hand, is a bit of a wild card. Though he may at some point be made playable, it is possible that he will never get his own Banner. For now, however, players will just have to wait for confirmation from miHoYo to learn when new Genshin Impact characters are coming to the game next.
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Robert Pattinson has seen some of Matt Reeves’ The Batman and thinks it’s “really cool.” The upcoming DC Extended Universe reboot of Batman will see the Twilight alum debut as the Caped Crusader in March 2022. The film will reportedly explore the early days of the Dark Knight’s career in a corrupt Gotham and his mantle as “The World’s Greatest Detective.” Rumor has it The Batman is inspired by comic book storylines like The Long Halloween.
Before Warner Bros. abandoned the Synder-Verse and re-directed the DCEU, Ben Affleck was supposed to star, direct, and write The Batman. However, the star left the project, which resulted in its overhaul into a solo film with no connections to previous franchises. Like Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne/Batman will exist in his own universe as he encounters a plethora of iconic villains including The Riddler (Paul Dano), Penguin (Colin Farrell), and Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz). The film will also feature Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth and Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon.
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During a recent interview with Variety on the red carpet for the Academy Museum’s premiere party, Pattinson teased what fans can expect from The Batman at this year’s DC FanDome. In addition to saying he and Kravitz had prepared something for the event, the actor talked about his reaction to Reeve’s film. “I’ve seen some of the movie now and it’s kind of really cool,” Pattinson said. “It’s really cool.”
It’s already been reported that a new trailer for The Batman will debut at DC Fandome, which begins on October 16. Before the debut of the film’s teaser at last year’s Fandome, many were wary of Pattinson playing the eponymous character. However, the moment his Batman showed off his brutality by pummeling a criminal, most skeptics became intrigued. Realizing the shoes he has to fill, DC recently revealed a promotional clip for The Batmanfeaturing all past versions of the character — from Michael Keaton to Ben Affleck. The Batman is said to be the start of a series aiming to rival Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy.
Despite existing in another universe and being teased as radically different, Pattinson’s Batman will be accompanied by two other Batmen in the larger DCEU. Both Affleck and Keaton are set to reprise their roles in Andy Muschietti’s The Flash, which stars Ezra Miller as Barry Allen. Given the multiversal name of that film, it’s possible (but unlikely) that Pattinson’s character will crossover to other DCEU films at some point. The Batman looks to be one of DC Films’ grittiest and most grounded superhero films yet and, to quote “Patman,” it does look really cool.
More: DC FanDome 2021 News & Updates: Everything We Know
