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BSD kqueue: A Mountain of Technical Debt

2024-12-29

This article delves into the differences between BSD kqueue and Linux epoll in network programming. kqueue uses event filters, offering powerful functionality but lacking composability, leading to accumulating technical debt. Epoll, on the other hand, directly manipulates kernel handles, boasting greater composability and allowing for flexible monitoring of various kernel resources such as sockets, filesystem paths, and timers. The author argues that epoll's design is superior as it avoids the predicament of constantly adding new event filter types to kqueue with each new feature.

(ariadne.space)

Development network programming

Singularities: Physics' Unbreakable Dead Ends?

2025-05-28

Singularities: Physics' Unbreakable Dead Ends?

The birth of the universe and the center of a black hole both point to singularities—points where the fabric of spacetime breaks down. Einstein's general relativity predicts singularities, but it fails there. Recent research shows that singularities persist even when considering quantum effects, challenging physicists' efforts to build a complete theory of quantum gravity. This suggests that our universe may contain regions where spacetime structure completely disintegrates, time stops, and everything becomes unpredictable. Future quantum gravity theories might explain singularities, but the concept of spacetime may need redefinition.

(www.quantamagazine.org)

Tech

WhoFi: Wi-Fi-Based Biometric Identification Achieves 95.5% Accuracy

2025-07-23

WhoFi: Wi-Fi-Based Biometric Identification Achieves 95.5% Accuracy

Researchers from La Sapienza University of Rome have developed WhoFi, a novel biometric identification system using Wi-Fi signals. By analyzing patterns in Wi-Fi Channel State Information (CSI), WhoFi can accurately re-identify individuals across different locations, unaffected by lighting conditions and able to penetrate obstacles. Achieving up to 95.5% accuracy on the NTU-Fi dataset, WhoFi demonstrates the potential of Wi-Fi signals as a robust and privacy-preserving biometric modality, though privacy concerns remain.

(www.theregister.com)

AI Biometrics

Morphik: A Revolutionary Multimodal Document Search Engine Beyond Traditional RAG

2025-04-22

Morphik: A Revolutionary Multimodal Document Search Engine Beyond Traditional RAG

Morphik is a revolutionary document search engine that goes beyond traditional Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) for highly technical and visual documents. It offers multimodal search (images, PDFs, videos, etc.), knowledge graph creation, fast metadata extraction, and integrations with tools like Google Suite, Slack, and Confluence. Boasting a free tier and an open-source version, Morphik simplifies document ingestion and querying with a Python SDK and REST API. Developers can get started quickly with simple code and a user-friendly web console. While the open-source version has limitations, Morphik is committed to improving speed, integrating more tools, and welcomes community contributions.

(github.com)

Development multimodal search knowledge graphs

Ladybird: A New Open-Source Browser Challenging Chrome's Dominance

2025-05-25

Ladybird: A New Open-Source Browser Challenging Chrome's Dominance

In a browser market dominated by Google Chrome, a new open-source browser project called Ladybird is emerging. Created by former Apple and Nokia WebKit engineer Andreas Kling, Ladybird is built from the ground up, committed to web standards, and refuses commercialization. Unlike other Chromium-based browsers, Ladybird aims to provide an independent and open alternative to combat the monopoly of large tech companies on the web platform. While performance isn't currently its strong suit, the Ladybird team adheres to the development mantra of "Make it work, make it right, make it fast," and plans to transition to Swift later in development. Ladybird's emergence offers users more choices and provides new hope for maintaining web standards and the diversity of the web ecosystem.

(thenewstack.io)

Development

Anthropic Unveils Claude 3.7 Sonnet: A Hybrid Reasoning Model Blending Speed and Depth

2025-02-24

Anthropic Unveils Claude 3.7 Sonnet: A Hybrid Reasoning Model Blending Speed and Depth

Anthropic has launched Claude 3.7 Sonnet, its most advanced language model to date. This hybrid reasoning model offers both near-instant responses and extended, step-by-step thinking, providing users with unprecedented control over the model's reasoning process. Showing significant improvements in coding and front-end web development, it's accompanied by Claude Code, a command-line tool enabling developers to delegate substantial engineering tasks. Available across all Claude plans and major cloud platforms, Sonnet achieves state-of-the-art performance on benchmarks like SWE-bench Verified and TAU-bench. Anthropic emphasizes its commitment to responsible AI development, releasing a comprehensive system card detailing its safety and reliability evaluations.

(www.anthropic.com)

AI Reasoning Model

EU Mandates New Labels for Smartphones and Tablets

2025-04-24

EU Mandates New Labels for Smartphones and Tablets

The European Union is introducing mandatory labels for smartphones and tablets sold within the bloc, starting June 20th. These labels will rate devices on energy efficiency (A-G), battery life, charge cycles, durability, repairability, and water/dust resistance. Beyond labeling, new 'ecodesign requirements' mandate minimum standards for water resistance, scratch and drop protection, battery longevity (80% capacity after 800 cycles), and readily available spare parts (within 5-10 business days). Manufacturers must also provide OS updates within six months of code availability. The regulations cover smartphones, tablets (up to 17.4 inches), cordless phones, and feature phones, excluding rollable displays. Windows tablets fall under separate computer regulations.

(www.theverge.com)

Tech smartphone

SteamOS Expands Beyond the Steam Deck: A New Compatibility Label Arrives

2025-05-14

SteamOS Expands Beyond the Steam Deck: A New Compatibility Label Arrives

Valve is expanding its Linux-based SteamOS beyond the Steam Deck to other handheld PCs like the Asus ROG Ally. To prepare, Steam is introducing a "SteamOS Compatible" label indicating whether a game and its middleware are supported on SteamOS, including game functionality, launcher functionality, and anti-cheat support. Over 18,000 titles will initially be labeled compatible. While Proton technology has greatly improved compatibility, not every Windows game will run flawlessly. This signifies a major step towards broader SteamOS adoption.

(arstechnica.com)

Game

One Dog vs. the Windows 3.1 Graphics Stack

2025-01-04

The author attempts to run Windows 3.11 on a 2008 Asus Eee PC 1000H netbook, encountering video output issues. The default VGA mode looks awful on the higher-resolution screen, and the included Super VGA driver is incompatible. The article delves into the intricacies of Windows 3.x Enhanced mode, VGA hardware, the VBE standard, and the SVGAPatch. Through reverse engineering and debugging, the author analyzes the display driver and Virtual Display Device (VDD), improving SVGAPatch to resolve some compatibility problems. However, challenges remain, highlighting the complexities of legacy systems.

(wuffs.org)

Development

WordPress Founder Deactivates Accounts of Contributors Planning a Fork

2025-01-11

WordPress Founder Deactivates Accounts of Contributors Planning a Fork

WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg deactivated the accounts of several WordPress.org community members involved in efforts to create a fork of the open-source project. The conflict stemmed from a dispute with WP Engine, a commercial hosting company criticized for insufficient community contribution. Following this, key community figures like Joost de Valk (Yoast) and Karim Marucchi (Crowd Favorite) expressed concerns about WordPress governance, hinting at a potential fork. Mullenweg, ostensibly to support their independent efforts, deactivated their accounts and others, sparking controversy.

(techcrunch.com)

Development Community Governance

The Cybersecurity Industry's Silence on the Chris Krebs Case: A Moral Failing

2025-04-18

The Cybersecurity Industry's Silence on the Chris Krebs Case: A Moral Failing

Former CISA Director Chris Krebs, who affirmed the integrity of the 2020 election, faces retaliation via an executive order aiming to blacklist him. This action raises serious constitutional concerns, violating the First Amendment’s protection of free speech. While a few cybersecurity voices have spoken out, the industry's largely silent response is alarming. The author argues this silence is a moral failure, highlighting the industry's complicity in allowing political power to suppress truth. The article calls for a stronger defense of principles and a rejection of appeasement.

(www.forbes.com)

Tech political retaliation

Debunking the Myth: Did Globalization Really Hollow Out the American Middle Class?

2025-05-08

Debunking the Myth: Did Globalization Really Hollow Out the American Middle Class?

This article challenges the popular narrative that globalization and trade deficits led to the decline of American manufacturing and the hollowing out of the middle class. While acknowledging the negative impact of the China shock on some manufacturing workers, the author argues that its effects have been exaggerated. American middle-class income has actually been growing, and the decline in manufacturing's share of GDP is attributed to multiple factors beyond trade deficits. The author calls for a more nuanced perspective on trade and industrial policy, urging readers to avoid being misled by a flawed narrative.

(www.noahpinion.blog)

Tech Globalization Trade Deficits American Manufacturing

NZ Library Reorganizes Māori Literature Using a Culturally Relevant System

2025-06-01

NZ Library Reorganizes Māori Literature Using a Culturally Relevant System

Te Awe Library in Wellington, New Zealand, is piloting a new approach to organizing its Māori literature collection. Instead of the Dewey Decimal System, they're using Te Ao Māori, a classification system rooted in Māori cosmology. Books are grouped according to Māori gods (atua) and their associated domains of knowledge. For example, books on carving and oceanography are under Tangaroa, the god of the sea, while agriculture and cuisine fall under Rongomatāne. This culturally sensitive system preserves the inherent connections within Māori knowledge (Mātauranga) and offers a unique learning opportunity for all patrons. The project, currently in trial, aims for wider adoption across Wellington.

(magazine.1000libraries.com)

Misc Māori culture book classification

GTA V Remains King of Twitch, Hints at GTA VI's Immense Potential

2025-04-24

GTA V Remains King of Twitch, Hints at GTA VI's Immense Potential

Eleven years after its release, Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V) continues its reign as Twitch's most-watched game, accumulating over 1 billion hours watched last year! This dominance, alongside League of Legends also exceeding 1 billion hours, foreshadows the immense potential of the upcoming GTA VI. Other top performers include Call of Duty, Fortnite, and Valorant. Interestingly, V-Tubers also saw a 10% increase in viewership, reaching over a billion hours. GTA V's staggering numbers strongly suggest that GTA VI's launch later this year will be a monumental event.

(www.theverge.com)

Game GTA V GTA VI

Switzerland's Cold War Relic: A Nuclear Bunker and the Illusion of Survival

2025-05-06

Switzerland's Cold War Relic: A Nuclear Bunker and the Illusion of Survival

This article recounts a visit to Sonnenberg, a seven-story underground command center built in Switzerland during the Cold War to shelter 20,000 people. While impressively engineered, the 1987 trial run revealed significant shortcomings. The article explores the historical context of Switzerland's robust civil protection program, rooted in WWII experience and a unique national identity. However, it also questions the feasibility of surviving a nuclear war and emphasizes the importance of diplomacy and non-proliferation. The piece ultimately reflects on the complex legacy of Sonnenberg—a testament to both Cold War anxieties and a persistent hope for peace.

(www.thedial.world)

Tech Switzerland Nuclear Bunker

Adobe Raises Creative Cloud Prices, Adds Generative AI Features

2025-05-20

Adobe Raises Creative Cloud Prices, Adds Generative AI Features

Adobe is increasing prices for its Creative Cloud All Apps plan in North America, renaming it Creative Cloud Pro. The price hike comes with the addition of generative AI features, including unlimited credits for image generation and 4,000 monthly credits for premium video and audio AI tools. Individual annual subscriptions will rise from $59.99 to $69.99 per month, while monthly subscriptions jump from $89.99 to $104.99. A cheaper Creative Cloud Standard plan with limited AI capabilities is also being offered. The changes have sparked some user backlash, raising questions about Adobe's pricing strategy.

(www.theverge.com)

Development

GeoDeep: Object Detection in Maxar Satellite Imagery of Myanmar and Thailand

2025-04-13

This post details using the Python package GeoDeep to perform object detection on Maxar's open satellite imagery of Myanmar and Thailand, following a recent earthquake. Leveraging a high-performance workstation, the author runs GeoDeep's built-in AI models to detect cars, trees, buildings, and roads. The results reveal varying accuracy and efficiency across different models, with some exhibiting missed detections and false positives. The experiment highlights the potential and challenges of AI-powered object detection in satellite image analysis.

(tech.marksblogg.com)

Tech object detection

Tunarr: Build Your Own Personalized Live TV Platform

2025-04-12

Tunarr is a powerful software that lets you create live TV channels from media on your Plex, Jellyfin, and other servers. Its user-friendly web UI allows customization of channels, programs, commercials, and settings. Watch your channels by adding the spoofed Tunarr HDHomerun tuner to Plex, Jellyfin, or Emby, or use generated M3U files with any third-party IPTV player app. Born from a love of TV and building on dizqueTV, Tunarr aims to modernize the stack, provide a migration path for existing users, improve stability and performance, and enhance the web UI, all while adding tons of new features.

(tunarr.com)

Development Live TV

10-Minute EV Charging in -10°C? Michigan Engineers Crack the Code

2025-04-06

10-Minute EV Charging in -10°C? Michigan Engineers Crack the Code

University of Michigan engineers have developed a modified manufacturing process for EV batteries that solves the range vs. charging speed trade-off, especially in cold weather. By combining a stabilizing coating on the electrode with microscale channels, they achieved 500% faster charging at -10°C. This breakthrough addresses a major consumer concern, potentially boosting EV adoption by overcoming winter range anxiety and slow charging times. The technology is designed for easy integration into existing manufacturing processes.

(news.umich.edu)

Tech EV battery fast charging cold weather charging

arXivLabs: Community Collaboration on arXiv Features

2025-03-16

arXivLabs is a framework for collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on the arXiv website. Individuals and organizations working with arXivLabs share and uphold arXiv's values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only partners with those who adhere to them. Got an idea for a project that will benefit the arXiv community? Learn more about arXivLabs.

(arxiv.org)

Development

Automating the Search for Artificial Life with Foundation Models

2024-12-24

Automating the Search for Artificial Life with Foundation Models

Sakana AI, in collaboration with MIT and others, has developed ASAL, an algorithm using vision-language foundation models to automate the discovery of artificial life. ASAL tackles three search problems: finding simulations with specific target behaviors, discovering simulations generating perpetual novelty, and illuminating all possible simulations. Successfully applied to Lenia, Boids, Particle Life, and others, ASAL unearthed novel artificial lifeforms and cellular automata rules surpassing Conway's Game of Life in open-endedness. This breakthrough promises to revitalize ALife research by overcoming the limitations of manual simulation design and offers insights for future AI development, incorporating principles of open-endedness and self-organization.

(sakana.ai)

AI Artificial Life Foundation Models Automated Search

Emily Dickinson's Playful Letterlocking: Poetry in Envelopes

2025-04-14

Emily Dickinson's Playful Letterlocking: Poetry in Envelopes

Emily Dickinson's creative use of envelopes and seals transformed letters into miniature works of art. She ingeniously inscribed poems onto envelopes, utilizing the physical act of sealing and the envelope's form as part of the poetic expression. This unique approach, blending the epistolary with the poetic, showcases Dickinson's playful experimentation with form and content, highlighting her multifaceted genius beyond her renowned poetry.

(thereader.mitpress.mit.edu)

Design Emily Dickinson letterlocking envelope poetry

Solving the Ligature Puzzle in Monospace Fonts

2025-01-10

A developer building a graphical code editor encountered a challenge with ligature rendering in monospace fonts. Enabling ligatures introduced an extra glyph, "LIGSPACE", causing incorrect rendering for certain character combinations. Through experimentation, the developer discovered this wasn't a true ligature, but a zero-width placeholder adjusting spacing. The solution involved ignoring glyphs with zero rendering dimensions, effectively resolving the issue. This post shares the findings and insights gained during this debugging journey.

(joshleeb.com)

Development font rendering ligatures

AI Writing Assistant: My New Era of Writing

2025-04-09

AI Writing Assistant: My New Era of Writing

The author shares their experience using AI-assisted writing, significantly increasing writing efficiency and enjoyment. AI not only helps them quickly create long articles but also expands their writing ideas and even generates unexpected creative inspiration. The author believes that AI-assisted writing is not a simple replacement but a human-computer collaboration that improves the efficiency of the creation process and stimulates creativity, changing their writing style. They will continue to explore the boundaries of AI and human creation and redefine reader expectations for the newsletter.

(contraptions.venkateshrao.com)

Development writing efficiency creative inspiration

Introducing 'Solsthelion': A New Word for the Holiday Season

2024-12-30

The author coined the word 'Solsthelion', a portmanteau of 'Solstice' and 'Perihelion'. The December Solstice occurs around December 21st, and the Perihelion (Earth's closest point to the Sun) is around January 4th. 'Solsthelion' thus neatly encompasses the holiday period. It's purely astronomical, devoid of cultural or historical ties. The author suggests using 'Happy Solsthelion' as a festive greeting after mid-December.

(www.solipsys.co.uk)

Misc new word solstice perihelion

My $91 PowerMac G4 MDD Repair Odyssey: A Tale of Woe and Triumph

2025-04-14

The author acquired a cheap PowerMac G4 MDD, only to find it missing RAM, HDD, and a PRAM battery. After a frantic parts hunt and assembly, the machine booted, but the noise was deafening. Attempting a fan replacement, the author broke the original fan, forcing the purchase of a high-performance replacement. While the noise issue was solved, the new fan roared. The entire journey was a hilarious mix of unexpected problems and eventual success, offering a valuable lesson in vintage hardware repair.

(loganius.org)

Hardware Repair

Trump's Secret $21 Billion Cryptocurrency Reserves

2025-05-31

Trump's Secret $21 Billion Cryptocurrency Reserves

A March executive order from the Trump administration secretly established two national cryptocurrency reserves: a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimates their combined value exceeds $21 billion, primarily from crypto assets seized by the government. This move sparked debate in the crypto industry, with some praising it for boosting crypto's reputation and others expressing concerns about government intervention contradicting crypto's decentralized nature. The US government is improving its processes for managing and securing these reserves, but uncertainty remains about their precise composition and future direction.

(www.yahoo.com)

Tech national reserves

12,795 Objects: A Photographer's Intimate Inventory

2025-01-01

Belgian photographer Barbara Iweins meticulously documented 12,795 objects in her home over four years, creating the project 'KATALOG'. From her daughters' socks to her anxiety medication, the project transcends a simple inventory, becoming a deeply personal exploration of her life, emotions, and memories. It reveals a unique perspective on the profound meaning hidden within everyday belongings.

(www.katalog-barbaraiweins.com)

Art photography self-exploration

Gemini 2.5 Object Detection: A Surprisingly Good Match for YOLOv3?

2025-07-10

This benchmark tests Google's Gemini 2.5 Pro multimodal large language model on object detection. Using the MS-COCO dataset, the focus is on bounding box accuracy. Results show Gemini 2.5 Pro achieves a mean Average Precision (mAP) of roughly 0.34, comparable to YOLOv3 from 2018, but significantly behind state-of-the-art models at ~0.60 mAP. While Gemini's versatility across open-ended tasks is impressive, CNNs remain faster, cheaper, and easier to reason about, especially with good training data.

(simedw.com)

AI Object Detection

Google Backtracks: goo.gl Short Links Get a Reprieve

2025-08-02

Google Backtracks: goo.gl Short Links Get a Reprieve

Google has reversed course on its plan to shut down all goo.gl short links on August 25, 2025. Following significant pushback from users and developers who rely on these links, Google will now only disable inactive links—those with no activity since late 2024. Active links will continue to function, preventing a widespread internet-breaking event.

(nerds.xyz)

Tech short links

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