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StackSafe: Conquering Stack Overflow in Recursive Rust

2025-07-27

StackSafe: Conquering Stack Overflow in Recursive Rust

Recursive functions in Rust are prone to stack overflows, crashing your program. StackSafe solves this by automatically growing the stack in recursive functions and data structures. Simply add the `#[stacksafe]` attribute, and your code works without crashes. Used in production by ScopeDB for petabyte-scale data, StackSafe provides complete protection for both recursive functions and their derived traits (like `Debug`, `Clone`, `Drop`), offering comprehensive stack safety and debug-time checks to catch potential overflows early.

(fast.github.io)

Development stack overflow

Bo's Electric Scooter: A 22mph Commuter and a Bonneville Speed Demon

2025-08-22

Bo's Electric Scooter: A 22mph Commuter and a Bonneville Speed Demon

UK-based Bo is making waves with two electric scooter models: the practical Model-M (22mph top speed, 40-mile range, $2,500) and the high-performance Turbo, aiming for triple-digit speeds at Bonneville. Founded by former F1 engineers, Bo aims to elevate e-scooters beyond disposable transportation. The Turbo boasts a 24,000-watt dual-motor setup and Safesteer stabilization technology, but commands a hefty $30,000 price tag. The article explores Bo's ambition, the high-end e-scooter market, and compares it to competitors like Rage Mechanics' RM-X.

(www.thedrive.com)

Tech electric scooter

Go Runtime: Proposal for OS-Free Execution

2025-05-07

Go Runtime: Proposal for OS-Free Execution

This proposal suggests adding a new GOOS target (e.g., GOOS=none) to the Go runtime, enabling Go programs to execute under application-defined exit functions instead of relying on arbitrary OS syscalls. This allows freestanding execution without direct OS support, a capability already implemented in the TamaGo project. The proposal advocates for upstream inclusion. Go applications built with GOOS=none would run on bare metal; all necessary support comes from the Go runtime and external Go driver packages. Key functions like CPU initialization, hardware initialization, standard output, random number generation, and system time retrieval must be defined. This significantly expands Go's applicability to environments like embedded systems, virtual machines, and UEFI.

(github.com)

Development Go language bare-metal execution

The Beeper: A DIY Solution to Combat Prolonged Sitting

2025-01-01

Tired of the aches and pains from prolonged sitting at the computer? This post details a clever DIY device, "The Beeper," built to combat this. The Beeper consists of an ESP8266 microcontroller, a buzzer, and a simple switch housed in a small enclosure. After a set period of inactivity (screen unlocked), the Beeper emits an annoying sound, forcing the user to get up and silence it. The author provides details on the hardware, Lua firmware, and a macOS script that controls the device, highlighting iterative improvements to minimize interruptions during video calls. A simple yet effective solution to a common problem!

(blog.jacobvosmaer.nl)

Hardware Ergonomics

We're Destroying Software (And Our Joy of Hacking)

2025-02-08

Veteran developer antirez warns that we're destroying software! Over-reliance on new technologies, ignoring complexity, unwieldy build systems and dependency chains, and neglecting maintainability and backward compatibility are making software fragile. He argues that avoiding 'reinventing the wheel' stifles learning and innovation, while premature rewrites, frequent language/framework changes, and reliance on existing complex libraries exacerbate complexity. We need to prioritize code simplicity, scalability, and maintainability to rediscover the joy of hacking.

(antirez.com)

Development code complexity

Belling the Cat: A Timeless Fable About Action vs. Planning

2025-09-07

Belling the Cat: A Timeless Fable About Action vs. Planning

The fable "Belling the Cat" recounts a group of mice devising a plan to attach a bell to a cat's collar to warn of its approach. However, the plan fails due to a lack of volunteers willing to undertake the perilous task. This timeless story highlights the gap between planning and execution, emphasizing the critical role of feasibility in any plan. From ancient times to the modern day, interpretations range from political commentary to reflections on individual behavior, highlighting the enduring tension between ambition and practicality.

(en.wikipedia.org)

Misc fable planning

Ex-Intel Architects Launch AheadComputing, Challenging x86 Dominance

2025-06-06

Ex-Intel Architects Launch AheadComputing, Challenging x86 Dominance

Four veteran chip architects from Intel have founded AheadComputing, aiming to develop a new generation of microprocessors based on the RISC-V architecture. Leaving Intel's massive workforce, they're challenging the x86 hegemony in a smaller startup, already securing $22 million in venture capital. They believe RISC-V's openness will unlock greater possibilities in chip design, potentially offering more efficient processors for PCs, laptops, and data centers. While facing significant challenges, their expertise and confidence in RISC-V position them to potentially revolutionize Oregon's semiconductor ecosystem.

(www.oregonlive.com)

Tech

Search Engine Crawler Optimization: The Long Tail of 0.1%

2025-03-27

A search engine's crawler consistently struggled to finish its task, spending days on the final domains. Recent migration to slop crawl data reduced memory usage by 80%, increasing crawling tasks. This resulted in 99.9% completion in 4 days, but the remaining 0.1% took a week. The issue stems from website size following a Pareto distribution, with large websites (especially academic ones with numerous subdomains and documents) and crawler limits on concurrent tasks per domain. Initial random ordering caused large sites to start late. Sorting by subdomain count led to a surge of requests to blog hosts. Adding request delay jitter and adjusting the sort order to prioritize sites with more than 8 subdomains partially solved the problem. However, inherent limitations of the batch crawling model require further optimization.

(www.marginalia.nu)

Development crawler optimization

Stop Teaching Useless Math: Probability and Statistics Should Reign Supreme

2025-03-03

$Stop Teaching Useless Math: Probability and Statistics Should Reign Supreme$

This essay critiques the current high school math curriculum, arguing that the overemphasis on calculus and trigonometry—useless for most students—neglects the crucial importance of probability and statistics. Probability and statistics are widely applicable in daily life, empowering students to understand risk, detect misleading information, and make better decisions. The author proposes a curriculum reform prioritizing probability and statistics, integrating real-world applications like sports analytics, social media, and gaming strategies, to make math relevant and engaging.

(anandsanwal.me)

Misc probability and statistics

Waymo Gets Green Light to Test Robotaxis at SFO

2025-09-17

Waymo Gets Green Light to Test Robotaxis at SFO

Waymo has secured permission to test its robotaxi service at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), a significant victory in its expansion efforts. After lengthy negotiations, Waymo signed a “Testing and Operations Pilot Permit” with SFO, allowing a three-phase rollout: human-supervised testing, driverless testing, and finally, commercial operation. Testing will begin with employees before public access, initially using SFO's Kiss & Fly lot, accessible via AirTrain. While Waymo operates in five cities, SFO represents a major expansion, given its high-traffic environment and lucrative potential. Airport trips represent an estimated 20% of ride-hail trips, making airport access crucial for Waymo to compete with Uber and Lyft and achieve profitability.

(www.theverge.com)

Tech

Reviving ELIZA: A C++ Recreation of the First Chatbot

2025-05-17

Reviving ELIZA: A C++ Recreation of the First Chatbot

This post details the recreation of ELIZA, the first chatbot created by Joseph Weizenbaum in 1966, using C++. The author meticulously recreated ELIZA's functionality, starting from parsing the original script to optimizing the code and comparing it with the original source. Further enhancements include running ELIZA on an ASR 33 teletype and contributing to the proof that the 1966 CACM version is Turing-complete. The entire project is neatly packaged in a single eliza.cpp file, with compilation instructions for macOS and Windows. This project is a fascinating tribute to AI history and a valuable resource for developers interested in early AI technology.

(github.com)

AI

Conquering Database Counter Lock Contention: The Slotted Counter Pattern

2025-02-04

Conquering Database Counter Lock Contention: The Slotted Counter Pattern

Updating database counters in high-concurrency scenarios often leads to lock contention, causing performance degradation and even deadlocks. This article introduces a pattern called "slotted counters" that effectively mitigates lock contention by distributing counters across multiple slots. This pattern distributes update operations across multiple rows, eliminating the bottleneck of single-row updates and improving concurrency performance. GitHub used a similar solution to address counting issues; the core idea is to distribute update operations across multiple rows and then aggregate them to get the final count.

(planetscale.com)

Development

Stack Overflow's Decline: AI Assistants and a Changing Landscape

2025-01-10

Stack Overflow's Decline: AI Assistants and a Changing Landscape

Stack Overflow, once the go-to resource for developers seeking coding help, is experiencing a significant decline in activity. New questions have plummeted 75 percent since their 2017 peak, and were down 60 percent year-on-year in December 2024. While the rise of AI assistants is a contributing factor, cited by some as a major cause, issues with the site's culture and moderation are also blamed. Although Stack Overflow is attempting to monetize its knowledge base and integrate AI features, the continued decline of its core Q&A platform poses a serious threat to its future.

(devclass.com)

Development AI assistants

Beyond Metrics: The Feeling of User Experience

2025-08-30

Checkboxes checked. Requirements met. Demo done. But did you *feel* it? This article argues that successful products aren't just about meeting specifications; they evoke feelings in users. Joy, satisfaction, ease of use – these are crucial elements often missed in metrics and demos. The author emphasizes the importance of developers truly using and living with their work to understand and create products that resonate emotionally with users. It's not just about checking boxes; it's about feeling the experience.

(mitchellh.com)

Design emotional design

British Artist Creates Playful, Weightless Steel Sculpture

2025-06-06

British Artist Creates Playful, Weightless Steel Sculpture

British artist Alex Chinneck unveiled "A week at the knees," a new sculpture at London's Clerkenwell Design Week. Made from 320 meters of repurposed steel and 7,000 bricks, the 5-meter-tall, 12-ton piece is surprisingly only 15 centimeters thick. It playfully anthropomorphizes a Georgian facade, its lower levels appearing to sit with knees bent, creating a whimsical interaction with the surrounding park. The sculpture masterfully blends the weight of the materials with a light and graceful visual effect, creating a unique artistic experience within the historical context of London's squares and gardens.

(www.thisiscolossal.com)

Design sculpture art public art installation

New Solar System Body Challenges 'Planet Nine' Hypothesis

2025-07-21

New Solar System Body Challenges 'Planet Nine' Hypothesis

Astronomers have discovered a massive trans-Neptunian object, 2023 KQ14, nicknamed 'Ammonite,' beyond Pluto's orbit. Its unusual elongated orbit challenges the 'Planet Nine' hypothesis, suggesting it might be much further than previously thought or even ejected from the solar system. This fourth known sednoid has a unique orbit compared to its siblings, yet its 4.5-billion-year stability hints at a dramatic early solar system event. The discovery underscores the complexity of the outer solar system and places constraints on the existence of 'Planet Nine,' even suggesting the possibility of a past planet being ejected.

(www.space.com)

Tech Sednoid

Anthropic Launches Premium Claude Max AI Chatbot Subscription

2025-04-09

Anthropic Launches Premium Claude Max AI Chatbot Subscription

Anthropic launched a new, high-priced subscription plan for its AI chatbot, Claude Max, to compete with OpenAI's ChatGPT Pro. Max offers higher usage limits and priority access to new AI models and features compared to Anthropic's $20-per-month Claude Pro. It comes in two tiers: $100/month (5x rate limit increase) and $200/month (20x rate limit increase). This move aims to boost revenue for the costly development of frontier AI models. Anthropic is also exploring other revenue streams, such as Claude for Education, targeting universities. While subscription numbers remain undisclosed, the company's new Claude 3.7 Sonnet model has generated significant demand.

(techcrunch.com)

AI AI subscription

Numerical Instability in Automatic Differentiation for Scientific Machine Learning

2025-09-18

Numerical Instability in Automatic Differentiation for Scientific Machine Learning

Scientific machine learning (SciML) heavily relies on automatic differentiation (AD) for gradient-based optimization. However, this talk reveals the numerical challenges of AD, particularly concerning its stability and robustness when applied to ordinary differential equations (ODEs) and partial differential equations (PDEs). Using examples from Jax and PyTorch, the presentation demonstrates how inaccuracies in AD can lead to significant errors (60% or more) even in simple linear ODEs. The speaker will discuss non-standard modifications implemented in Julia SciML libraries to address these issues and the necessary engineering trade-offs involved.

(www.stochasticlifestyle.com)

AI Scientific Machine Learning Numerical Analysis

Merlin Bird ID: AI-Powered Birdwatching

2025-06-04

Merlin Bird ID: AI-Powered Birdwatching

Merlin is a powerful bird identification app leveraging AI to identify birds through sound, photo, and a question-and-answer wizard. It works offline, covering the US, Canada, Europe, parts of Central & South America, and India, with more regions coming soon. Users can build a life list of identified birds and explore likely sightings based on location and season. Powered by eBird, Merlin boasts a massive database and community-contributed content.

(merlin.allaboutbirds.org)

Tech Bird Identification Nature

Fauna Database Shutting Down, Core Tech Going Open Source

2025-03-19

Fauna Database Shutting Down, Core Tech Going Open Source

Fauna, a document-relational database service, announced it will be sunsetting its service in the coming months. Unable to secure the funding needed for global expansion in the current market, the company made the difficult decision to cease operations. However, Fauna is committing to open-sourcing its core database technology, drivers, and CLI tooling, making its unique transactional features, document-relational data model, and FQL language available to the wider developer community. Existing customers will receive migration support to ensure a smooth transition.

(fauna.com)

Development

Nova Launcher's Uncertain Future: Open Source Promise in Jeopardy?

2025-09-09

Nova Launcher's Uncertain Future: Open Source Promise in Jeopardy?

Following last year's layoffs of nearly the entire Nova Launcher team, founder Kevin Barry has left the company after being asked to cease development and open-sourcing efforts. Nova's website is down, and the future of the popular Android launcher is uncertain. Branch Metrics, which acquired Nova, previously stated that open-sourcing was a contractual obligation if Barry left. However, with both Barry and the former CEO gone, this promise remains unfulfilled, prompting a community petition demanding open-sourcing.

(www.theverge.com)

Development Android Launcher

GM Settles FTC Charges Over Secret Sharing of Driver Location Data

2025-01-17

GM Settles FTC Charges Over Secret Sharing of Driver Location Data

General Motors (GM) has settled with the FTC over privacy concerns related to its discontinued Smart Driver program. The FTC alleged that GM collected and shared precise geolocation data from millions of vehicles without informed consent, providing this data to insurance companies and impacting drivers' premiums. The settlement prohibits GM from sharing such data for five years and mandates obtaining affirmative consent for data collection, along with data access and deletion options for users. This case highlights the ongoing debate surrounding the privacy of automotive data and consumer protection.

(www.theregister.com)

Tech

How to Title Your Blog Post (or Anything)

2025-05-12

How to Title Your Blog Post (or Anything)

This post delves into crafting compelling titles to maximize engagement with your target audience. The author suggests thinking of a title as a 'classifier,' aiming to attract those who'll appreciate your work while deterring those who won't. It breaks down the two goals of a title: attracting the right readers and repelling those likely to dislike it. Various title strategies are discussed, including using jargon, mimicking famous figures, employing puns, and including conclusions in the title. Ultimately, the key is finding your audience and conveying your work's value concisely.

(dynomight.net)

Misc title writing content marketing target audience

TikTok Experiment: My Rabbit and the Robot Cat

2025-05-26

TikTok Experiment: My Rabbit and the Robot Cat

A researcher's TikTok experiment, introducing a robot cat to her rabbit, unexpectedly led her down the rabbit hole of animal-robot interaction (ARI) research. The rabbit showed zero interest, and other pets' reactions varied. This sparked reflections on how animals understand and respond to robots, leading to explorations in ARI, revealing surprising parallels with human-robot interaction (HRI) but also ethical dilemmas, such as manipulating animal behavior with robots. The TikTok videos, contrary to expectations, didn't generate a robust discussion about the robot-pet relationship, instead prompting deeper introspection into animal welfare and human-robot relationships. The ethical implications of using robots to manipulate animals, particularly in industrial or military contexts, are highlighted, along with the emotional responses of both the researcher and viewers.

(thereader.mitpress.mit.edu)

AI Animal-Robot Interaction Human-Robot Interaction

NASA Adds SpaceX's Starship to Launch Services Contract Despite Setbacks

2025-03-29

NASA Adds SpaceX's Starship to Launch Services Contract Despite Setbacks

Despite recent major setbacks in Starship's past two flights, NASA has added SpaceX's still-experimental rocket to its launch services contract. This opens the door for Starship to potentially carry future NASA science missions, pending a successful orbital flight. The contract, which already includes Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, features an on-ramp provision for new providers. While Starship's reliability remains a concern, this decision offers NASA a potential crewed lunar lander for Artemis III in 2024 and an option for its planned 2026 uncrewed Mars mission.

(www.yahoo.com)

Tech

Apple Notes Rumored to Get Markdown Support in iOS 26

2025-06-04

Apple Notes Rumored to Get Markdown Support in iOS 26

Apple's Notes app is reportedly getting Markdown support in iOS 26 and macOS 26, according to 9to5Mac. This would let users format text with simple syntax, ditching the app's current rich text controls. It's a big upgrade for keyboard-centric users, letting them type **bold** or # Header directly instead of tapping buttons. This puts Apple Notes on par with Obsidian, Notion, and Bear. Developers and writers already using Markdown on GitHub or Reddit will appreciate the streamlined workflow. If true, the feature will likely be unveiled at next week's WWDC alongside other iOS 26 improvements like automatic translation and polls in Messages, and a visual redesign.

(www.macrumors.com)

Development

Schizophrenia's Evolutionary Enigma: The Cliff Edge Fitness Model

2025-06-29

Schizophrenia's Evolutionary Enigma: The Cliff Edge Fitness Model

The genetic basis and high prevalence of schizophrenia have long been a puzzle in evolutionary biology. Traditional theories struggle to explain its persistence. This post introduces the "cliff edge fitness model," which proposes that certain cognitive and social traits enhance fitness up to a threshold, beyond which they lead to severe disorders like schizophrenia. This model explains the observation of both positive and negative selection on schizophrenia-related genes and predicts a complex relationship between polygenic risk scores and reproductive success. Research suggests that while schizophrenia itself is detrimental, its associated genes may have conferred other benefits during evolution, such as enhanced cognitive abilities. The model highlights that evolution optimizes for gene transmission, not individual health, explaining why some diseases persist with high heritability and prevalence.

(www.psychiatrymargins.com)

AI evolutionary medicine schizophrenia cliff edge model

Bluesky's Eternal September: Navigating New User Etiquette

2025-04-08

Bluesky's Eternal September: Navigating New User Etiquette

The influx of new users to platforms like Bluesky echoes the 'Eternal September' phenomenon of the early internet, frustrating longtime users accustomed to established online norms. The article explores strategies for navigating this, such as thoughtful replies, avoiding redundant jokes, and utilizing robust blocking features. Some users view blocking as a proactive measure to maintain a positive environment, while others emphasize empathy for newcomers unfamiliar with online culture. The article highlights the contrast between Bluesky's approach and the more abrasive environment of platforms like X (formerly Twitter).

(www.wired.com)

Tech online etiquette

arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaboration

2025-03-23

arXivLabs is a framework enabling collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on the website. Individuals and organizations involved embrace arXiv's values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only partners with those who share them. Have an idea to enhance the arXiv community? Learn more about arXivLabs.

(arxiv.org)

Development

C++20's Strongly Happens Before: Untangling the Memory Model

2025-09-01

This article delves into C++20's newly introduced "strongly happens before" relationship, which solves a tricky problem within the C++ memory model. Using a simple multithreaded program example, the author progressively explains how modification order, coherence ordering, and the "strongly happens before" relationship constrain the order of concurrent execution. The article also analyzes why certain executions seemingly violating the C++ memory model are allowed on Power architectures and explains how "strongly happens before" fixes these inconsistencies, ultimately guaranteeing a single total order for all `memory_order::seq_cst` operations.

(nekrozqliphort.github.io)

Development

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