Technologies

Google Drops New Features for Android and Wear OS: Here Are the Details

These are the features rolling out as of June 1.

Google on Thursday announced seven new features and updates to Android phones, tablets and Wear OS smartwatches. The offerings aim to help people learn new skills, stay productive on the go and protect their information, according to a blog post from Google.

The updates and features rolling out as of June 1 for phones and tablets include Reading Practice, which helps new readers improve their vocabulary and comprehension skills using thousands of compatible children’s ebooks on Google Play Books. There are also new widgets that bring Google TV, Google Finance and Google News to a user’s home screen and fresh emoji combinations in the Emoji Kitchen on Gboard.

These new options come shortly after Google I/O, where the tech giant revealed some of the new features coming to its Android 14 software. Android 14 is available in public beta and will officially arrive later this year.

This feature drop for Android and Wear OS comes just days ahead of Apple’s WWDC event, when it’s expected to show off iOS 17. The update is part of Google’s attempts to keep Android fresh and helpful in between major operating system releases.

New features coming to Wear OS smartwatches include new tiles and watch face shortcuts for Spotify and an option for commuters in Washington, DC and the San Francisco Bay Area to use their watch to ride with their SmarTrip and Clipper cards in Google Wallet. (Google on Thursday announced even more features for Google Wallet.) Additionally, Google Keep for Wear OS users will be able to add a tile for fast access to a to-do list or selected note.

The tech giant said most people in the US with Google accounts can now try dark web report on the Google One website and app. It lets users run scans to see if their Gmail address has been exposed on the dark web. Google One subscribers can also scan for more personal information like their Social Security number.

See Also: Best Android Phone of 2023

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Aug. 29

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Aug. 29.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s Mini Crossword was a fairly easy one. But if you need some help, read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Recede, as the tide
Answer: EBB

4A clue: Fictional creature voiced by Rihanna, James Corden or Nick Offerman, in a 2025 animated movie
Answer: SMURF

6A clue: Diet that harkens back to prehistoric times
Answer: PALEO

7A clue: It’s tough to digest
Answer: FIBER

8A clue: Trippy drug, for short
Answer: LSD

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: One might start «Hope you are well»
Answer: EMAIL

2D clue: Future tulips
Answer: BULBS

3D clue: Munchkin or Maine Coon
Answer: BREED

4D clue: No. on a sunscreen bottle
Answer: SPF

5D clue: Supportive of
Answer: FOR

Technologies

AI Is a Threat to the Entry-Level Job Market, Stanford Study Shows

Early-career workers in roles most exposed to AI, such as software development and customer support, have experienced big declines in employment.

Will artificial intelligence take your job? A recent Stanford study provides six facts supporting «the hypothesis that the AI revolution is beginning to have a significant and disproportionate impact on entry-level workers in the American labor market.»

The study noted that «since the widespread adoption of generative AI, early-career workers (ages 22-25) in the most AI-exposed occupations have experienced a 13% relative decline in employment.»

Easily automated jobs are most affected

The decline in employment can be seen primarily in occupations where AI automates the work rather than when it augments people’s labor. The study found «substantial declines in employment» for those in their early 20s working in fields most exposed to AI, including customer service and software development.

By contrast, employment for more experienced workers in those fields and those working in less AI-exposed fields like nursing «has remained stable or continued to grow,» the study said.

The research showed that job declines remained even when such considering such industry shocks as interest-rate changes. The adjustments are more visible in employment than compensation, meaning AI might affect employment more than wages, at least for now. The patterns also hold in jobs that aren’t affected by remote work and for both fields with a high share of college graduates and those without.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, overall unemployment remains relatively stable. July’s rate was 4.2%, slightly up from 4% in May and 4.1% in June.