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Hexi: A Lightweight C++23 Library for Safe Binary Data Handling

2025-03-28
Hexi: A Lightweight C++23 Library for Safe Binary Data Handling

Hexi is a lightweight, header-only C++23 library for safely handling binary data from arbitrary sources (primarily network data). It bridges the gap between manually memcpying bytes and full-blown serialization libraries. Designed for ease of use, safety with untrusted data, flexibility, and minimal overhead, Hexi supports custom containers (including non-contiguous ones), exception handling, and bounds checking. Additional features include buffer types for binary files, static/dynamic buffers, and a thread-local block allocator.

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(github.com)
Development Binary Data

Half of US Drinking Water Contaminated with 'Forever Chemicals'

2025-03-28
Half of US Drinking Water Contaminated with 'Forever Chemicals'

The EPA's latest data reveals that nearly half of Americans have drinking water contaminated with PFAS, also known as 'forever chemicals'. These compounds, found in numerous products, persist in the environment and are linked to serious health issues like cancer and immune deficiencies. While the EPA has implemented regulations, millions remain at risk, highlighting the urgent need for widespread testing and remediation efforts.

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(www.scientificamerican.com)
Tech drinking water safety

Critical Ubuntu User Namespace Bypass Exploits Discovered

2025-03-29
Critical Ubuntu User Namespace Bypass Exploits Discovered

Qualys researchers have uncovered three critical security bypasses in Ubuntu 23.10 and 24.04's unprivileged user namespace restrictions. These bypasses, leveraging the aa-exec tool, busybox shell, and LD_PRELOAD technique, allow local attackers to create user namespaces with full administrative privileges, potentially exploiting kernel vulnerabilities. Canonical acknowledges these as limitations of their AppArmor defense, not vulnerabilities, and recommends administrative hardening steps such as enabling kernel.apparmor_restrict_unprivileged_unconfined=1 to mitigate the risks.

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(www.bleepingcomputer.com)
Development

Why My Personal Website Is Built With C

2025-03-30

The author, blogging since 2017, tried Django and Nuxt.js for their website, but abandoned them due to high maintenance costs. They finally chose C and the md4c library to build a static site, prioritizing speed, minimal dependencies, and long-term stability. This significantly reduced maintenance overhead. In contrast, the author found other static site generators like Hugo to be overly powerful and unnecessarily complex for their needs.

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(marcelofern.com)
Development static site generation

curl's Experimental HTTPS RR Support: The Next Generation of DNS Records

2025-03-31
curl's Experimental HTTPS RR Support: The Next Generation of DNS Records

curl now experimentally supports the new DNS record type HTTPS RR, offering a more modern way than SRV and URI to convey service metadata such as ECH configuration, ALPN lists, target hostnames, ports, and IP addresses. HTTPS RR enhances HTTPS connection security (via ECH encryption of the SNI field) and efficiency (by pre-fetching HTTP/3 support information), and simplifies service discovery. curl achieves HTTPS RR resolution through DoH, getaddrinfo(), or c-ares, but currently lacks runtime disabling and still has incomplete HTTPS RR support.

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(daniel.haxx.se)
Development

The End of Microservices Discussions: A Pointless Architectural Debate

2025-03-29
The End of Microservices Discussions: A Pointless Architectural Debate

The author recounts his frustration with endless debates about microservices during an architecture review meeting. He argues that the lack of a clear definition, the detachment from business goals, and the neglect of organizational changes render these discussions unproductive. Many discussions about microservices are actually about wanting cutting-edge technology rather than solving real-world problems. The author proposes abandoning abstract discussions about microservices and focusing on concrete challenges like faster feature deployments, reduced coupling, and solving bottlenecks. Microservices only work when organizational structure and processes support them; otherwise, they just add complexity.

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(blog.container-solutions.com)
Development

The Limits of Scaling in AI: Is Brute Force Reaching Its End?

2025-03-22
The Limits of Scaling in AI: Is Brute Force Reaching Its End?

A survey of 475 AI researchers reveals that simply scaling up current AI approaches is unlikely to lead to Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Despite massive investments in data centers by tech giants, diminishing returns are evident. OpenAI's latest GPT model shows limited improvement, while DeepSeek demonstrates comparable AI performance at a fraction of the cost and energy consumption. This suggests that cheaper, more efficient methods, such as OpenAI's test-time compute and DeepSeek's 'mixture of experts' approach, are the future. However, large companies continue to favor brute-force scaling, leaving smaller startups to explore more economical alternatives.

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(futurism.com)
AI

Arctic Glacier Melt Uncovers 1500 Miles of Coastline, Posing Risks and Rewards

2025-03-28
Arctic Glacier Melt Uncovers 1500 Miles of Coastline, Posing Risks and Rewards

A study in Nature Climate Change reveals that melting Arctic glaciers have exposed approximately 1500 miles of coastline since 2000, primarily in Greenland. The retreating ice unveils valuable mineral deposits, but also creates vulnerability. Newly exposed coastlines, lacking the stabilizing effect of ice, are susceptible to erosion and landslides. A dramatic example occurred in September 2023, when a thinning coastal glacier in eastern Greenland collapsed, triggering a 350-foot tsunami that registered globally. This highlights the significant risks and challenges posed by climate change.

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(e360.yale.edu)
Tech glacier melt geological hazards

Google Docs Fatal Error: The Bizarre Math.abs() Bug

2025-03-27
Google Docs Fatal Error: The Bizarre Math.abs() Bug

The Google Docs team encountered a bizarre fatal error: in a specific Chrome version, the Math.abs() function unexpectedly became an identity function at the super-optimized level, causing the document editor to crash after extensive text manipulation. After two days of intense debugging, the team finally traced the issue to an optimization change in the V8 engine, which caused Math.abs() to return negative values under specific conditions. This was a low-probability, non-deterministic error that was ultimately resolved with a temporary fix and assistance from the V8 team. The entire process revealed the complexity and challenges of debugging large software systems.

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(www.clientserver.dev)
Development V8 engine

Digital Echoes: The Unseen Costs of Constant Connectivity

2025-03-28
Digital Echoes: The Unseen Costs of Constant Connectivity

This essay explores the hidden psychological toll of our hyper-connected digital lives, focusing on the concept of "digital echoes." The author argues that the constant data collection by smart devices creates a pervasive sense of being monitored, transforming us into performers rather than participants in our own lives. Using smartphones and smart cars as contrasting examples, the piece highlights the difference in data generation and privacy implications. It advocates for a more mindful approach to technology, emphasizing single-function devices and analog alternatives to mitigate the negative effects of constant surveillance. The author concludes that future technological advancements should prioritize user privacy and focused experiences over ubiquitous connectivity and multitasking.

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(www.chrbutler.com)
Tech

Bodyoids: The Ethical and Technological Tightrope of Future Medicine

2025-03-28
Bodyoids: The Ethical and Technological Tightrope of Future Medicine

Scientists propose 'bodyoids,' human-like constructs grown from cells, for medical research and organ transplantation. While offering potential solutions to ethical dilemmas like animal testing, this technology raises profound ethical questions. Do bodyoids deserve human rights? How do we define their life status? How do we secure informed consent for cell donation? These issues demand careful consideration for responsible development and application.

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(www.technologyreview.com)
Tech bioethics

WWII: German Ace Escorts Damaged US Bomber

2025-03-30
WWII: German Ace Escorts Damaged US Bomber

On December 20, 1943, during WWII, a severely damaged US B-17 bomber, the "Ye Olde Pub," was unexpectedly escorted to safety by a German Luftwaffe ace, Franz Stigler, after a bombing run over Bremen. Stigler, despite having the opportunity to shoot down the crippled aircraft, chose not to, instead guiding it through enemy territory. This incredible act of chivalry, kept secret for decades, was only revealed years later when the two pilots reunited, forming a lasting friendship until their deaths in 2008. The story highlights an extraordinary moment of humanity amidst the brutality of war.

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(en.wikipedia.org)
Misc air combat humanity

Kansas Statehouse Black Mass Attempt Leads to Scuffle and Arrests

2025-03-30
Kansas Statehouse Black Mass Attempt Leads to Scuffle and Arrests

A planned Black Mass by a small group of self-described satanists at the Kansas Statehouse resulted in a scuffle and multiple arrests. The group's leader, Michael Stewart, was arrested along with three others after attempting to perform the ceremony. Hundreds of Christian counter-protesters gathered, leading to verbal clashes. Governor Kelly had temporarily banned protests inside the building. The incident sparked debate about free speech, religious freedom, and accusations of favoritism towards Christian groups by the state government.

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(www.cnn.com)
Misc

Saltwater-Soluble Plastic Breakthrough

2025-03-28
Saltwater-Soluble Plastic Breakthrough

Scientists at RIKEN in Japan have developed a new type of plastic that's as durable as conventional plastic but dissolves quickly in saltwater, leaving behind safe compounds. Made from supramolecular polymers with reversible bonds, this plastic offers a potential solution to plastic pollution. While strong enough for everyday use, a simple scratch on a hydrophobic coating allows saltwater to initiate rapid decomposition into nitrogen and phosphorus, beneficial nutrients for plants and microbes. Although excess nutrients can also be harmful, controlled decomposition in specialized facilities could recover these elements for reuse.

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(newatlas.com)
Tech sustainable plastic supramolecular polymers biodegradable

California Ballot Initiative Inspired by Murder Seeks to Reform Healthcare Insurance

2025-03-31
California Ballot Initiative Inspired by Murder Seeks to Reform Healthcare Insurance

A proposed California ballot initiative, informally named after the alleged assassin of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, aims to prevent insurers from delaying or denying doctor-recommended treatments. The initiative, filed by a retired attorney, is fueled by public anger over the healthcare insurance industry following the CEO's murder. The proposal would make it a felony for non-physicians to review physician-recommended treatments and requires physician review for any denial. The initiative is currently under review and requires significant public support to appear on the ballot.

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(www.newsweek.com)
Tech california ballot initiative insurance regulation

The Decline of Social Media: A Race to the Bottom

2025-03-28

A seasoned social media user expresses concern over the current state of social media, lamenting its transformation into a battleground of low-quality content and interaction bait. High-quality content is neglected in favor of cheap, click-driven material often generated by AI, prioritizing monetization over authenticity. The author criticizes platform algorithms for stifling creativity and promoting inauthenticity, citing examples of rampant fake content and hashtag manipulation. He calls for creators to return to their creative roots, focusing on producing work they enjoy rather than chasing numbers. Ultimately, he chooses to focus on his own blog, freeing himself from platform constraints.

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(christianheilmann.com)
Misc AI-generated content

Humanoid Robot Steals the Show at Shanghai Fashion Week

2025-03-30
Humanoid Robot Steals the Show at Shanghai Fashion Week

Unitree Robotics' humanoid robot, Unitree G1, made a stunning debut at Shanghai Fashion Week, walking the runway alongside human models. The 127cm tall, 35kg robot, boasting 23-43 joint motors, showcased impressive flexibility and seamless interaction. The show wasn't just about the G1; Unitree's quadruped robot also appeared, adding an unexpected twist by standing on two legs and 'walking hand-in-hand' with the G1. This innovative collaboration between technology and fashion redefines artistic expression and hints at a future where intelligent machines play a significant role in creative storytelling.

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(chinaminutes.com)
Tech Shanghai Fashion Week Unitree Robotics

LeetArxiv: Reimplementing a 1931 Integer Factorization Algorithm

2025-03-30
LeetArxiv: Reimplementing a 1931 Integer Factorization Algorithm

LeetArxiv recreates a 1931 integer factorization algorithm by Lehmer and Powers, based on continued fractions. The article meticulously explains the algorithm, including computing the continued fraction expansion of a square root and using the resulting coefficients (P and A) for factorization. A step-by-step example demonstrates the algorithm's details, successfully factoring 13290059. This algorithm, historically significant, was the first to achieve sub-exponential factoring time.

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(leetarxiv.substack.com)
Development integer factorization continued fraction

Signal Downloads Soar After Trump Admin Scandal

2025-03-27
Signal Downloads Soar After Trump Admin Scandal

The accidental inclusion of The Atlantic's editor in a Signal group chat used by Trump administration officials to plan a Yemen bombing, dubbed 'SignalGate', has led to a massive surge in downloads for the encrypted messaging app. The incident, which exposed secret plans and raised concerns about security protocols, caused Signal's US downloads to double their usual rate, marking the app's largest ever US growth spurt. This surpasses even the growth seen in 2021 when WhatsApp's privacy policy changes spurred a mass exodus to Signal. Sensor Tower data confirms a 105 percent increase in US downloads compared to the previous week, and a 150 percent increase compared to the average week in 2024.

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(www.wired.com)
Tech

The Real Book: A Bootlegged Jazz Bible

2025-03-28
The Real Book: A Bootlegged Jazz Bible

Since the mid-1970s, nearly every jazz musician has owned a copy of 'The Real Book,' an illegally copied collection of jazz standards. Its story begins with earlier 'fake books' – simplified sheet music – evolving from Tune-Dex cards. Two Berklee College of Music students created a modern, updated version, reflecting contemporary jazz styles. Its popularity led to widespread bootlegging, until Hal Leonard legally published it. The book’s legacy, however, sparks debate about copyright and the very nature of jazz, with some criticizing its simplification of this complex art form.

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(99percentinvisible.org)
Misc Music History

AirPods Max USB-C Gets Lossless Audio, But Is Apple Overhyping It?

2025-03-26
AirPods Max USB-C Gets Lossless Audio, But Is Apple Overhyping It?

Apple announced that AirPods Max (USB-C) will gain support for lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio via a firmware update next month, alongside iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, and macOS 15.4. However, Apple's own support documents claim that AAC audio is already virtually indistinguishable from original studio recordings, contradicting marketing chief Greg Joswiak's claim of an "ultimate" audio upgrade. While the improvement from lossless audio alone is minimal, the combination with ultra-low latency will make AirPods Max the only headphones allowing musicians to create and mix in Personalized Spatial Audio with head tracking.

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(www.macrumors.com)
Hardware Lossless Audio Ultra-Low Latency Audio

$10,000 Toyota IMV 0: A No-Frills Truck America Can't Have

2025-03-28
$10,000 Toyota IMV 0: A No-Frills Truck America Can't Have

In a US market where new trucks average $59,000, the $10,000 Toyota IMV 0 is a game-changer. This compact pickup, based on the Hilux platform, lacks modern amenities like touchscreens and safety features, but it boasts surprising practicality and ruggedness. It offers a surprisingly spacious bed and cabin, and its manual transmission and rear-wheel drive provide a pure driving experience. While currently only available in developing markets like Thailand, and unavailable in the US, it presents a compelling argument for a simpler, more affordable truck. It suggests a potential shift in market demand towards smaller, cheaper, and more utilitarian vehicles.

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(www.motor1.com)
Hardware pickup truck value

US Silently Deporting Students: AI-Powered Visa Crackdown

2025-03-30
US Silently Deporting Students: AI-Powered Visa Crackdown

The Trump administration is secretly targeting students for deportation, utilizing a rarely used immigration provision. They are manipulating the SEVIS database to revoke student statuses without notifying students or universities, leading to surprise arrests. The State Department has revoked at least 300 visas, reportedly using AI to monitor social media for justification. Many affected students hail from the Middle East and Muslim-majority countries, with some reporting no political activism or inflammatory social media posts. This highlights the administration's harsh immigration stance, disregard for individual rights, and the potential for technology misuse to infringe on freedoms.

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(zeteo.com)
Tech US immigration policy student deportations

Agentic Coding Assistants: Impressive Progress, Persistent Challenges

2025-03-26
Agentic Coding Assistants: Impressive Progress, Persistent Challenges

Generative AI, particularly LLMs, is revolutionizing software development. This memo details the author's experience using AI coding assistants over several months, revealing significant efficiency gains alongside persistent challenges. The AI frequently misdiagnoses problems, uses brute-force fixes, lacks code reusability, and generates redundant code, impacting team workflow and long-term maintainability. The author categorizes these issues into three impact radiuses: time to commit, team flow, and long-term maintainability, and offers mitigation strategies such as careful code review, regular reflection, and establishing code quality monitoring mechanisms. The core message is that despite rapid AI advancements, developer experience and skills remain crucial.

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(martinfowler.com)
Development

Chimpanzees Exhibit Engineering Skills in Tool Making

2025-03-29
Chimpanzees Exhibit Engineering Skills in Tool Making

A new study reveals that chimpanzees in Tanzania's Gombe Stream National Park exhibit engineering skills when crafting termite-fishing tools. Researchers found that chimpanzees selectively choose plants, favoring more flexible materials over stiffer alternatives. The preferred plants were 175% more flexible than those not used. This suggests chimpanzees possess a form of 'folk physics,' understanding material properties to optimize tool effectiveness. The findings offer crucial insights into the evolution of human tool use and provide a novel perspective on early human technology.

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(www.sciencedaily.com)
Tech Chimpanzees Tool Making

Veloren Update Recap: Combat Overhaul, New Items, and Puzzles

2025-03-29
Veloren Update Recap: Combat Overhaul, New Items, and Puzzles

Veloren has seen a flurry of updates in recent months, introducing combat system improvements, shiny new items and equipment, plus puzzles and newspapers to add to the gameplay. The development team released three recap blog posts detailing these updates, covering combat refinements, new item additions, and engaging puzzle elements. These updates demonstrate Veloren's continued development and progress, enriching the player experience.

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(veloren.net)
Game Game Update

Raspberry Pi E-Ink Commute & Weather Tracker: Closing the Agency Gap

2025-03-29
Raspberry Pi E-Ink Commute & Weather Tracker: Closing the Agency Gap

The author built a Raspberry Pi-powered e-ink display that shows real-time subway arrival times and weather forecasts, solving a daily morning commute problem. The device displays date, time, upcoming F & G train arrivals for the next 30 minutes, and a 12-hour weather forecast. The project details cover hardware and software design, including data acquisition from the MTA API, display engine, and update strategies to minimize screen flickering and ghosting. The final product is aesthetically pleasing and functional, loved by the author's wife, successfully bridging the 'agency gap'.

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(sambroner.com)
Hardware E-ink

Steins;Gate: Evidence for a Simulated Reality?

2025-03-29
Steins;Gate: Evidence for a Simulated Reality?

In Steins;Gate, the world seems to have an automatic error correction mechanism, erasing events and characters that deviate from a predetermined path. Protagonist Okabe Rintarou repeatedly tries to alter the past to save his friends, only to face failure. This resembles a running simulation correcting 'errors'. Okabe's eventual disappearance, restoring the world to 'normal', suggests his actions were anomalies, purged by the system. This raises the question: are we living in a similar simulated reality?

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(samyar.me)
Game Steins;Gate Simulated Reality Time Travel

Rebuilding the C++ Standard Library from Scratch: The Pystd Project

2025-03-25
Rebuilding the C++ Standard Library from Scratch: The Pystd Project

Tired of the C++ Standard Library's (STL) abysmal compile times and unreadability, a self-employed open-source developer decided to build a replacement from scratch: Pystd. Taking inspiration from the Python standard library, he incrementally implemented file handling, string manipulation, UTF-8 validation, hash maps, vectors, and sorting. The result? A functional application in under 1000 lines of code, comparable to the STL version. Pystd boasts significantly faster compilation and smaller executable sizes. A unique versioning scheme (e.g., pystd2025) ensures perfect ABI stability, easing future upgrades and maintenance.

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(nibblestew.blogspot.com)
Development Standard Library
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