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NYC's 50-Year-Old Property Tax System: Unfair, Needs Reform

2025-04-05

NYC's 50-Year-Old Property Tax System: Unfair, Needs Reform

New York City's property tax system, now 50 years old, is under fire for its inequities. It overtaxes large multifamily buildings, hindering the construction of much-needed apartments and exacerbating the housing crisis. Low-income households and minority communities bear a disproportionately heavy burden, while luxury condos pay significantly less. Reform advocates are pushing for change, but mayoral candidates are largely silent. A lawsuit challenging the system is ongoing, with the state's highest court ordering action, yet the city remains largely unresponsive.

(www.thecity.nyc)

Misc property tax

Rediscovering Apple's Newton Gem: Open Dylan

2025-01-19

Open Dylan is an object-functional programming language, a descendant of Apple's Dylan language originally created for the Newton PDA. Combining the strengths of Scheme and CLOS, without the Lisp syntax, it's designed for efficient machine code generation. This article showcases Open Dylan's comprehensive documentation, including tutorials, reference manuals, and extensive library documentation, along with an online Playground for quick experimentation. Whether you're learning a new language or exploring efficient programming paradigms, Open Dylan is worth a look.

(opendylan.org)

Development

GitHub Open Source Project yadm: Yet Another Dotfiles Manager

2024-12-19

GitHub Open Source Project yadm: Yet Another Dotfiles Manager

yadm is a dotfiles manager based on Git, supporting system-specific alternative files or templated files and encrypting private data using tools like GnuPG and OpenSSL. It offers customizable initialization and hooks for executing custom scripts before and after any operation. Features include adding, committing, encrypting, and decrypting files, and creating OS-specific configurations. Project address: https://github.com/yadm-dev/yadm

(github.com)

Development dotfiles management encryption

Memory Safety Standardization: A Path to Secure Software

2025-02-07

For decades, endemic memory-safety vulnerabilities in software trusted computing bases (TCBs) have fueled malware and devastating attacks. This article argues for memory-safety standardization as a crucial step towards universal strong memory safety. Recent advancements in memory-safe languages, hardware/software protections, formal methods, and compartmentalization offer solutions, but a lack of shared terminology hinders adoption. Standardization would improve industry best practices and address market failures preventing widespread use of these technologies, ultimately leading to more secure software for everyone.

(cacm.acm.org)

Development Standardization

Gene Drive Technology Offers Hope in the Fight Against Malaria

2025-03-25

Gene Drive Technology Offers Hope in the Fight Against Malaria

Researchers at Imperial College London, in collaboration with Tanzanian institutes, have developed a gene drive technology that renders mosquitoes unable to transmit the malaria parasite. This groundbreaking technology could significantly reduce the global malaria burden, saving hundreds of thousands of lives annually, particularly among children. The equitable nature of the technology ensures accessibility without economic or social barriers, offering a new weapon in the ongoing battle against this devastating disease. This collaboration highlights the power of international partnerships in tackling global health challenges.

(www.imperial.ac.uk)

Tech gene drive malaria

Microjax: JAX in Two Classes and Six Functions

2025-07-07

Microjax: JAX in Two Classes and Six Functions

Inspired by Andrej Karpathy's Micrograd, Microjax is a library that replicates JAX functionality using only two classes and six functions. Unlike the popular PyTorch, Microjax adopts JAX's more functional programming style. This tutorial heavily borrows from Matthew J Johnson's excellent 2017 presentation on autograd, the predecessor to JAX, simplifying it and packaging it as a notebook.

(github.com)

Development

LiveSplat: Realtime Gaussian Splatting Algorithm Released (Alpha)

2025-05-15

LiveSplat: Realtime Gaussian Splatting Algorithm Released (Alpha)

LiveSplat, a realtime Gaussian splatting algorithm using RGBD camera streams, has been released. Developed as part of a larger VR telerobotics system, its public release follows significant community interest. Currently in alpha, it requires Python 3.12+, Windows or Ubuntu, an Nvidia GPU, and one to four RGBD sensors. While closed-source, installation instructions and an Intel Realsense integration script are provided. The author is open to licensing opportunities.

(github.com)

Development realtime rendering gaussian splatting

Gracefully Handling Child Process Termination in Terminal Applications

2025-07-31

Gracefully Handling Child Process Termination in Terminal Applications

When a terminal application with child processes doesn't exit cleanly after Ctrl+C, terminal corruption ensues. This post, using the Moose CLI as an example, details solutions. Key strategies include: 1. Process Output Proxying: Redirect child process stdout/stderr to a logging system, isolating it from the terminal; 2. Terminal State Management: Explicitly clean up the terminal state (raw mode, alternate screen buffer, cursor visibility) using crossterm for cross-platform consistency on exit; 3. Graceful Process Termination: Attempt graceful shutdown with SIGTERM, then SIGKILL with timeouts; 4. Thread-Safe Spinner Management: Coordinate spinners and child process output to prevent display corruption. These strategies build robust terminal applications, preventing frustrating terminal damage from child processes.

(www.fiveonefour.com)

Development child processes

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.

(veloren.net)

Game Game Update

Microlightning: A New Spark in the Origin of Life Debate

2025-03-30

Microlightning: A New Spark in the Origin of Life Debate

New research published in Science Advances suggests that microlightning within water droplets may have played a crucial role in the formation of Earth's earliest organic molecules. Building on the famous Miller-Urey experiment, scientists found that electrical discharges between oppositely charged water droplets can produce amino acids, the fundamental building blocks of life. This process, potentially more frequent than lightning on early Earth, could have provided an abundant source of life's precursors. This challenges existing theories suggesting life originated from hydrothermal vents or arrived via asteroids, offering a compelling new perspective on the origin of life.

(www.cnn.com)

Tech amino acids

pgstream: Cracking the Code on PostgreSQL Snapshot Performance

2025-07-06

pgstream: Cracking the Code on PostgreSQL Snapshot Performance

Recent pgstream releases have dramatically improved PostgreSQL snapshot performance. Initially, the write path was the bottleneck. By switching to bulk ingestion (COPY FROM) and deferring index creation, pgstream now outperforms pg_dump/pg_restore in snapshot speed. Further improvements to batch configuration ensure more stable and efficient snapshot handling across varied data sizes and table structures.

(xata.io)

Development

Chicago Fed's Million-Dollar Cube: A Counting Conundrum

2025-07-02

Chicago Fed's Million-Dollar Cube: A Counting Conundrum

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago's Money Museum displays a transparent cube supposedly containing $1,000,000. A visitor, however, counted the stacks and found it actually holds approximately $1,550,400! This discrepancy sparked questions about the museum's accuracy and the cube's construction. To verify the count, the visitor even created a simple image counting tool, 'Dot Counter'. The conclusion? Either the cube is mostly empty inside, or the museum significantly overstated the amount. This intriguing tale highlights a mathematical puzzle and the importance of verifying information.

(calvin.sh)

Misc

Archimedean-Shaped Ceramic Powders Resist Extreme Heat and Oxidation

2025-03-10

Archimedean-Shaped Ceramic Powders Resist Extreme Heat and Oxidation

A research team synthesized high-quality boride ceramic powders with Archimedean shapes, exhibiting exceptional heat and oxidation resistance. Using a refined precursor-carbon/boron thermal reduction process and a novel sol-gel method, they produced high-purity ZrB2 and HfB2 powders. Control over particle size and shape, achieved through the addition of dispersants, resulted in powders with superior crystallinity and a unique polyhedral morphology. These powders formed a thin protective oxide layer (86.43 micrometers after 3 hours at 1400°C), significantly outperforming similar materials. This breakthrough offers a new approach for developing ultra-high-temperature materials.

(phys.org)

Tech boride ceramics Archimedean polyhedra high-temperature materials

Baku in Memory: A City Map for Emigrants

2025-03-19

Baku in Memory: A City Map for Emigrants

Over one million Azerbaijanis live abroad, and this article focuses on their memories of Baku. These 35-45 year olds, who left Baku more than five years ago, often return, but their memories of the city remain fixed at the time of their departure, when Baku was still an integral part of their lives. Through the stories of several emigrants, the article reveals specific locations deeply intertwined with their personal experiences. These places aren't imbued with nostalgia, but rather serve as backdrops to fragments of their past. From waiting outside a courthouse to a first date in a hidden courtyard, from a basement cafe and friendships to encounters on the way to music school, each location carries a piece of their former selves. These memories, like multiple exposures in photography, blend and overlap with their current lives in foreign cities.

(jam-news.net)

Misc emigration Baku

Engelbart's Five-Key Keyset: The Mouse's Perfect Partner

2025-06-15

Engelbart's Five-Key Keyset: The Mouse's Perfect Partner

Concurrently with inventing the computer mouse, Doug Engelbart and his team at SRI created a one-handed input device called the "five-key keyset," designed for efficient single-handed text editing and command entry in conjunction with the mouse. Inspired by telegraph operators and stenographers, users combined presses of five keys to input letters and commands, while mouse buttons functioned as Shift and Ctrl keys. This groundbreaking interface, showcased in the 1968 "Mother of All Demos," offered a new approach to high-performance user interfaces, enabling fast and efficient text editing even while manipulating the mouse with one hand.

(dougengelbart.org)

Tech mouse five-key keyset

Bitwig Studio 6 Beta Focuses on Editing and Automation

2025-08-31

Bitwig Studio 6 Beta Focuses on Editing and Automation

Bitwig Studio 6 beta is out now, focusing on enhancing editing and automation workflows rather than AI or gimmicky features. New features include an Automation Mode, improved editing gestures, automation clips, project-wide key signatures, and a refreshed UI. This update delivers significant improvements to the editing experience, addressing long-standing requests from engineers and users.

(cdm.link)

Development Editing Automation

Donut.c on a Chip: Minimalist 3D Rendering with Shifts and Adds

2025-01-12

Donut.c on a Chip: Minimalist 3D Rendering with Shifts and Adds

This project details the porting of the classic donut.c program to a tiny ASIC, achieving 3D donut rendering using only shifts and adds, eliminating the need for multiplication. Leveraging CORDIC and ray marching, a 4-tile design was submitted to Tiny Tapeout 8, resulting in a hardware implementation on a 130nm chip. Resource constraints lead to a rough, polygonal rendering, showcasing the elegance of minimalist hardware design.

(www.a1k0n.net)

Hardware Hardware rendering CORDIC algorithm

SigNoz Hiring: Backend Engineers Wanted for Open-Source Observability

2025-01-26

SigNoz Hiring: Backend Engineers Wanted for Open-Source Observability

SigNoz, an open-source observability startup, is looking for a Backend Engineer. Ideal candidates will have 3-6 years of backend engineering experience in Go, a passion for open-source with a history of contributions, a deep understanding of the observability domain, and familiarity with Go's locks/channels/concurrency. Responsibilities include owning the product R&D lifecycle, driving OSS adoption of SigNoz, managing the product roadmap and feature development to improve open-source user experience, writing technical content, building an integration marketplace, and more.

(www.linkedin.com)

Development GoLang

Building a Financial Trading Bot with Claude and SnapTrade

2025-05-25

Dino Angelov details building a financial trading bot using Anthropic's Claude and the MCP protocol, integrated with SnapTrade's API. While initially attempting to use Claude to write the MCP server, he found Gemini more effective. He ultimately leveraged the go-mcp framework for faster development, creating functionality to connect brokerage accounts, view portfolios, and execute trades. The author cautions users about the unpredictable nature of LLMs and the potential for accidental trades.

(dangelov.com)

Development

New API: Full-Stack Backends for Agents

2025-07-17

New API: Full-Stack Backends for Agents

Software engineering enters a new phase with the rise of AI agents. This post announces a new API providing full-stack backend services for agents, including databases, sync engines, authentication, file storage, and presence. Designed to simplify app development, the API leverages built-in abstractions, efficient hosting, and data exposure for improved productivity. Its multi-tenant architecture enables rapid creation of numerous databases, reducing costs, and supports various isolation strategies to optimize resource utilization. The ultimate goal is to empower both developers and AI agents to build and deploy applications more easily, with database-like abstractions enabling app extensibility.

(www.instantdb.com)

Development full-stack backend

D2 0.7.1 Released: ASCII Output Now Supported

2025-08-19

D2 0.7.1 Released: ASCII Output Now Supported

D2, a diagramming tool, has released version 0.7.1, introducing ASCII output. Any `.txt` file will now use the ASCII renderer. This is particularly useful for small diagrams within source code comments, improving readability. The feature is accessible via the Vim extension or the command-line flag `--ascii-mode=standard`. Note that this renderer is still in alpha and may contain bugs.

(d2lang.com)

Development ASCII rendering diagramming tool

Headscale: A Self-Hosted Open Source Alternative to the Tailscale Control Server

2025-04-03

Headscale: A Self-Hosted Open Source Alternative to the Tailscale Control Server

Headscale is an open-source, self-hosted alternative to the Tailscale control server, offering a simple private network solution for individuals or small organizations. Built on WireGuard, it implements core Tailscale networking features like IP address assignment, user boundary management, and route advertisement. While not affiliated with Tailscale Inc., the project benefits from contributions from a Tailscale maintainer and adheres to strict coding standards and development processes. Headscale aims to provide a user-friendly and sustainable open-source alternative for self-hosting enthusiasts.

(github.com)

Development

34 Ingenious Paper Mechanisms: A Showcase of Folding Engineering

2025-05-18

This article showcases 34 remarkable paper mechanisms, ranging from simple animated folds to complex rotating contraptions. These designs demonstrate the boundless possibilities of paper engineering, combining artistic aesthetics with intricate mechanical principles and folding techniques. Highlights include a Miura-fold inspired deployable solar panel and various geometrically driven dynamic structures, showcasing the intersection of art and engineering in paper design.

(cutfoldtemplates.com)

Design paper engineering mechanisms

13 Lessons Learned Building an Open-Source Autorouter

2025-03-28

13 Lessons Learned Building an Open-Source Autorouter

The author shares 13 lessons learned from building an autorouter for tscircuit, an open-source electronics CAD kernel. The post highlights the power of the A* algorithm and its adaptability in optimizing autorouting, including using multi-level A* for hyperparameter optimization and replacing inefficient quadtrees with spatial hash indexes. The author stresses the importance of algorithms over programming language, advocating for cacheable algorithms and visualization tools for debugging and optimization. Finally, the post discusses the pros and cons of recursive functions, Monte Carlo algorithms, and weighted A* algorithms.

(blog.autorouting.com)

Development A* algorithm autorouting spatial hash index

Zaymo, YC-backed Startup, Seeks Founding Engineer

2024-12-17

Zaymo, YC-backed Startup, Seeks Founding Engineer

Zaymo, a Y Combinator-backed e-commerce email marketing startup, is hiring a Founding Engineer. Zaymo transforms e-commerce emails into shoppable landing pages, allowing purchases without leaving the inbox. The company is experiencing hyper-growth and seeks an experienced full-stack engineer to help build the future of email marketing. The ideal candidate has 2+ years of startup engineering experience, proficiency in TypeScript, Remix, and AWS, and a positive, fast-moving, collaborative attitude. Zaymo offers competitive salary, equity, and relocation assistance.

(www.ycombinator.com)

Startup Engineer

NIST's Flawed Kyber-512 Security Calculation: A Controversy Over Standardization

2025-06-22

This cr.yp.to blog post exposes a serious error in NIST's calculation of the security level for the Kyber-512 post-quantum cryptosystem. The author demonstrates that NIST nonsensically multiplied two costs that should have been added, resulting in a severe overestimation of Kyber-512's security. This error stems from NIST's mishandling of memory access costs, misinterpretations of existing literature, and a lack of transparency in its standardization process. The author also reveals the close collaboration between NIST and the NSA, and the unfair treatment of alternative candidates like NTRU. The post details the flawed calculation and calls for a complete overhaul of NIST's standardization procedures to ensure transparency and reliability.

(blog.cr.yp.to)

Tech

Undergrad Team Runs Xv6 on a Homebrew CPU

2025-06-28

In 2015, a University of Tokyo undergraduate team tackled an ambitious project: designing, building, and running the Xv6 operating system on a homebrew CPU with a custom RISC ISA. Over four months, they built a C compiler from scratch, overcame numerous challenges in understanding and implementing the necessary CPU features for an OS (interrupts, memory management), and successfully ported Xv6, even adding games like 2048 and Minesweeper. Their final demo ran the required ray-tracing program on top of Xv6, showcasing incredible ingenuity and problem-solving skills. This project serves as a testament to the rewards of reinventing the wheel and the educational value of hands-on learning.

(fuel.edby.coffee)

Development CPU Design

yes-rs: A Blazingly Fast, Memory-Safe Rust Rewrite of Unix 'yes'

2025-05-27

yes-rs: A Blazingly Fast, Memory-Safe Rust Rewrite of Unix 'yes'

Tired of the memory-unsafe and overflow-prone C version of the Unix 'yes' command? Meet yes-rs, a Rust rewrite that's not only blazingly fast but also guarantees memory safety with zero unsafe code blocks. Clocking in at a hefty 1302 lines of Rust (compared to the original C's ~50), yes-rs boasts modern error handling, zero-cost abstractions, and the ability to output custom strings. Built with Cargo, it's easy to install and use. For those demanding ultimate performance and safety, yes-rs is the answer!

(github.com)

Development

The Legend of Mel: A Real Programmer's Hexadecimal Blackjack

2025-07-16

This article recounts the story of Mel, a legendary programmer from the 1980s. A master of machine code, Mel wrote a blackjack game for the LGP-30 computer at Royal McBee, later optimizing it for the RPC-4000. He eschewed compilers and optimizing assemblers, manually optimizing code to exploit the drum memory architecture for maximum speed. Even simple loops were ingeniously crafted, using instruction address overflow to terminate, avoiding explicit tests. While forced to add a win/loss switch, he subtly reversed the logic, making the program always win when activated, showcasing his unique style and ethical stance. The article highlights Mel's profound skill and dedication to his craft.

(users.cs.utah.edu)

Development programming legend

FBI Freezes Green Fund Accounts Amidst Controversy

2025-03-14

FBI Freezes Green Fund Accounts Amidst Controversy

The FBI has frozen accounts held by several nonprofits and state government agencies containing funds from the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, established by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to finance clean energy projects. This action has sparked controversy, with the EPA administrator alleging fraud but providing no evidence. A court has demanded evidence from the Department of Justice or the accounts will be unfrozen.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Green Fund FBI Investigation Legal Dispute

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