Norway (population: 5.7m) beats US (342m) to top Winter Olympics medal table
Norway has once again topped the Winter Olympics medal table, surpassing countries with far larger populations.The Scandinavian country won more gold medals (18) and more total medals (41) than the US, who came second in both categories (12 golds and 33 total medals).Norway’s 18 golds were the most by a country in Winter Olympics history, while their cross-country skiing hero Johannes Høsflot Klæbo accounted for six golds on his own, more than the all but seven other countries at this year’s Games.The achievements of Norway, which has a population of about 5.7m, are all the more remarkable given that they outperformed winter-sports nations with far larger populations such as the US (342m), China (1.
4bn), Germany (84m), Italy (59m) and Canada (40m).The Netherlands, which excels in speed skating, also punched above its weight, finishing with 10 golds – the same as host nation Italy – despite its relatively small population of around 18m.It was also a good Olympics for countries with modest winter sports traditions.Great Britain enjoyed its best ever medal haul at a Winter Olympics with three golds, a silver and a bronze, as did Australia (three golds, two silver and a bronze).While the US finished in second place, the Americans’ 12 golds were the most at a Winter Olympics in the nation’s history.
Norway’s success is nothing new.The Norwegians have won the most golds at every Winter Olympics since 2014 (they tied with Germany in 2018).It also has world class athletes in other areas such as Erling Haaland and Ada Hegerberg (football), Casper Ruud (tennis), Viktor Hovland (golf), Jakob Ingebrigtsen (athletics) and Solfrid Koanda (weightlifting).While the country’s climate and terrain play a part in its Winter Olympics success, other factors are at play.It is one of the wealthiest countries in the world per capita, while sports and exercise are a large part of many Norwegians’ lives.
Unlike countries such as the US, Norwegians put less emphasis on competition and specialisation in their youth sports – scores are not recorded in team sports matches featuring children under 12 – and more importance on fun,Norwegians believe this leads to fewer children becoming discouraged and quitting sports before they have time to develop their potential,Norway’s Winter Olympics success is also concentrated in sports such as cross-country skiing, biathlon and ski jumping,“We don’t do skeleton or bobsleigh because that costs too much money,We are a very rich country, but we believe in the socialist way of doing things.
That success should be from working hard and being together,” Morten Aasen, a former Norwegian Olympian, said in 2018.Geir Jordet, a professor at the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences in Oslo, told CNN Sports his country’s athletic success comes down to a simple formula: “Collaboration, communication and care.”
Nvidia reportedly plans to invest $30bn in OpenAI’s next funding round
Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, is reportedly planning to invest $30bn (£22bn) in OpenAI’s next funding round, after a $100bn deal between the two dissolved earlier this month.The maker of ChatGPT is expected to be valued at $730bn in the funding round, almost twice the valuation of Anthropic, one of its main rivals, which raised $30bn earlier this month.Nvidia’s announcement of a $100bn investment in OpenAI last September drove the chipmaker’s stock to more than $5tn and led to fervent discussion about circular deals between the largest players in artificial intelligence.The investment, which the chipmaker framed as a “letter of intent”, would have involved Nvidia giving OpenAI money to buy and deploy its chips for its AI infrastructure.That all appeared to change earlier this month, when reports surfaced that Nvidia’s intent was never a firm commitment – and OpenAI was looking elsewhere for chips to power its systems
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Mind is launching a significant inquiry into artificial intelligence and mental health after a Guardian investigation exposed how Google’s AI Overviews gave people “very dangerous” medical advice.In a year-long commission, the mental health charity, which operates in England and Wales, will examine the risks and safeguards required as AI increasingly influences the lives of millions of people affected by mental health issues worldwide.The inquiry – the first of its kind globally – will bring together the world’s leading doctors and mental health professionals, as well as people with lived experience, health providers, policymakers and tech companies. Mind says it will aim to shape a safer digital mental health ecosystem, with strong regulation, standards and safeguards.The launch comes after the Guardian revealed how people were being put at risk of harm by false and misleading health information in Google AI Overviews
West Virginia sues Apple over child sex abuse material stored and shared on iCloud
West Virginia’s attorney general filed a lawsuit on Thursday accusing Apple of allowing its iCloud service to become a vehicle for distributing child sexual abuse material.The state alleges that the company facilitated the spread of child sexual abuse material by declining to deploy tools that scan photos and videos and detect such material in iCloud users’ collections.JB McCuskey, a Republican, accused Apple of prioritizing user privacy over child safety. His office called the case the first of its kind by a government agency over the distribution of child sexual abuse material on Apple’s data storage platform.“These images are a permanent record of a child’s trauma, and that child is revictimized every time the material is shared or viewed,” McCuskey said in the statement
Skiers stranded by California avalanche used iPhone SOS feature to seek help
California’s deadliest avalanche killed at least eight people in a ski group near Lake Tahoe on Tuesday. The six survivors used the iPhone’s emergency SOS feature to help first responders find them as they waited under a tarp and discovered some of the bodies, according to the Nevada county sheriff. Apple’s feature, introduced in 2022, allows users to text law enforcement, even if there’s no cell service or wifi by connecting the phone to a satellite.First responders reached the skiers’ location and learned of the six survivors based on conversations held through the feature, Sheriff Shannan Moon said at a press conference on Wednesday.California office of emergency services law enforcement chief Don O’Keefe said his staff spoke with one of the stranded guides for more than four hours to relay information to the sheriff’s office, which was leading rescue efforts
US builds website that will allow Europeans to view blocked content
The US has built a portal that will allow Europeans to view blocked content including alleged hate speech and terrorism, according to Reuters.The portal, “freedom.gov”, will allow worldwide users to circumvent government controls on their content. The site features a graphic of a ghostly horse galloping above the Earth, and the motto: “Information is power. Reclaim your human right to free expression
Accenture ‘links staff promotions to use of AI tools’
Accenture has reportedly started tracking staff use of its AI tools and will take this into consideration when deciding on top promotions, as the consulting company tries to increase uptake of the technology by its workforce.The company told senior managers and associate directors that being promoted to leadership roles would require “regular adoption” of artificial intelligence, according to an internal email seen by the Financial Times.The consultancy has also begun collecting data on weekly log-ins to its AI tools by some senior staff members, the FT reports.Accenture has previously said it has trained 550,000 of its 780,000-strong workforce in generative AI, up from only 30 people in 2022, and has announced it is rolling out training to all of its employees as part of its annual $1bn (£740m) annual spend on learning.Among the tools whose use will reportedly be monitored is Accenture’s AI Refinery
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