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Microsoft Security Copilot Uncovers Critical Bootloader Vulnerabilities

2025-04-04

Microsoft Security Copilot Uncovers Critical Bootloader Vulnerabilities

Microsoft Threat Intelligence, leveraging Microsoft Security Copilot, uncovered multiple vulnerabilities in open-source bootloaders (GRUB2, U-boot, and Barebox) impacting systems using UEFI Secure Boot and IoT devices. These vulnerabilities could allow arbitrary code execution, potentially bypassing Secure Boot and enabling the installation of persistent malware. Security Copilot significantly sped up the discovery process. Patches have been released; users are urged to update their systems.

(www.microsoft.com)

Tech bootloaders

RDNA 4's Dynamic VGPR Allocation: A Ray Tracing Bottleneck Breaker

2025-04-05

RDNA 4's Dynamic VGPR Allocation: A Ray Tracing Bottleneck Breaker

AMD's RDNA 4 architecture introduces a novel dynamic VGPR (vector general-purpose register) allocation mode to address the trade-off between register count and occupancy in ray tracing. Traditional GPUs face limitations in ray tracing where fixed register allocation per thread restricts thread parallelism in stages with high register demands. RDNA 4's dynamic allocation allows threads to adjust register counts at runtime, increasing occupancy without enlarging the register file, thus reducing latency and boosting ray tracing performance. While this mode can lead to deadlocks, AMD mitigates this with a deadlock avoidance mode. This isn't a universal solution, limited to wave32 compute shaders, but significantly advances AMD's ray tracing capabilities.

(chipsandcheese.com)

Hardware Dynamic VGPR Allocation

The Definitive Guide to Tcl Programming, 2nd Edition Released

2025-04-04

The highly anticipated second edition of "The Tcl Programming Language" is finally here! Covering Tcl 9, this comprehensive guide explores the Tcl language from basic syntax to advanced features such as metaprogramming, object-oriented programming, asynchronous I/O, and concurrent programming. The 660-page book details Tcl's flexibility and power, with overwhelmingly positive reviews praising it as the best resource for learning and referencing Tcl.

(www.magicsplat.com)

Development programming guide

Apple Ditches Goldman Sachs Credit Card Partnership

2025-04-04

Apple Ditches Goldman Sachs Credit Card Partnership

Apple is ending its credit card partnership with Goldman Sachs, according to the Wall Street Journal, marking a significant setback for Goldman's consumer lending ambitions. Apple plans to exit the partnership within the next 12-15 months, encompassing both the 2019-launched credit card and this year's savings account. Goldman's substantial losses in building its consumer banking operation led to this decision. While customer satisfaction was reportedly high, Goldman's acquisition costs—estimated at $350 per cardholder—were astronomically high, likely contributing to the partnership's demise.

(news.slashdot.org)

Tech Goldman Sachs Credit Card

Sample Size in Baseball: How Much Data is Enough?

2025-04-04

Sample Size in Baseball: How Much Data is Enough?

A baseball season is a collection of countless small events, each pitch contributing to the final outcome. Evaluating player performance requires a substantial amount of data, but the key is understanding which data points are meaningful. This article explores the issue of sample size in baseball statistics, explaining why a single at-bat isn't enough to judge a player's skill and why more data is needed to cancel out randomness. It highlights that different statistics require different sample sizes to 'stabilize,' for example, strikeout rate needs a smaller sample than BABIP. The author stresses the importance of sample size to avoid jumping to conclusions based on limited data.

(library.fangraphs.com)

Game baseball analytics sample size data stability

Dark Mode with Minimal CSS: A Surprisingly Easy Implementation

2025-04-04

Feep! website now boasts a sleek dark mode, achieved with surprisingly minimal CSS. The author details three approaches: leveraging the browser's built-in dark mode via a `` tag; employing the `color-scheme` property for CSS control; and using `prefers-color-scheme` media queries for separate light and dark mode styles. Tips include using the `light-dark()` and `color-mix()` functions for color optimization, and cleverly handling images and code blocks with CSS filters. The result? An elegant dark mode switch with only a handful of added CSS lines, streamlining the development process considerably.

(search.feep.dev)

Development browser native

2025 US Financial Crisis: A Different Beast Than 2008

2025-04-04

2025 US Financial Crisis: A Different Beast Than 2008

The 2008 financial crisis stemmed from complex financial engineering and excessive leverage. The looming 2025 crisis, however, is self-inflicted, born from protectionist trade policies and isolationism. While 2008 saw government intervention, albeit failing to address underlying issues, 2025 finds the US lacking a coherent response and facing eroding international trust. This points towards a far more severe downturn, potentially a depression. Unlike 2008's attempts to paper over bad behavior, the 2025 crisis lacks a clear path to recovery, hampered by a lack of international cooperation and severely damaged global relationships.

(samhenrycliff.medium.com)

Tech Financial Crisis

Gaza Massacre: 15 Paramedics Killed in Israeli Attack

2025-04-05

Gaza Massacre: 15 Paramedics Killed in Israeli Attack

On March 23, Israeli forces massacred 15 Palestinian paramedics in Rafah, southern Gaza, including eight Red Crescent and five Civil Defense workers. The sole survivor, Munther Abed, recounted being directly shot at, their vehicles destroyed, and subsequently tortured. The UN described the attack as part of a “concerted policy to destroy Gaza’s healthcare system,” and the Red Cross/Red Crescent called it the deadliest single attack on their workers since 2017. This incident highlights the ongoing attacks on medical personnel in the Gaza war and the gross violation of international humanitarian law.

(www.dropsitenews.com)

Misc Gaza conflict human rights abuses war crimes

Reciprocal Tariffs: A Potential Solution for Balancing Trade Deficits

2025-04-05

Reciprocal Tariffs: A Potential Solution for Balancing Trade Deficits

This report explores the concept of 'reciprocal tariffs,' designed to balance bilateral trade deficits between the U.S. and its trading partners. It calculates the tariff rates needed to drive bilateral trade deficits to zero. The study finds reciprocal tariff rates ranging from 0% to 99%, with an unweighted average of 20% and an import-weighted average of 41%. Persistent trade deficits are attributed to a combination of tariff and non-tariff factors hindering trade balance. The report employs an elasticity model, utilizing estimates of tariff elasticity of import demand and price pass-through to calculate reciprocal tariffs.

(ustr.gov)

Tech trade deficit

Bonobos' Complex Language: Beyond the Sum of its Parts

2025-04-03

Bonobos' Complex Language: Beyond the Sum of its Parts

Swiss scientists have discovered that bonobos can combine simple vocalizations into complex semantic structures, meaning their communication is more than just a sum of individual calls; it exhibits non-trivial compositionality—a trait once thought to be uniquely human. Researchers built a massive database of bonobo calls and used distributional semantics to decipher their meaning, offering a valuable insight into bonobo communication in the wild. This research was laborious, requiring researchers to wake early, trek to bonobo nests, and record calls and contextual information throughout the day.

(arstechnica.com)

AI bonobos

The RAW Image Format Mess: Why Isn't DNG Universal?

2025-04-04

The RAW Image Format Mess: Why Isn't DNG Universal?

The world of camera RAW formats is a fragmented mess. Canon's CR3, Nikon's NEF, Sony's ARW, and others create compatibility headaches for software developers and users alike. Adobe's DNG (Digital Negative) attempted to solve this with an open standard, but major manufacturers cling to proprietary formats. This article explores the reasons behind this: tighter control over image processing pipelines and optimization for their own software. While DNG offers flexibility, ease of use, and future-proofing, larger companies prioritize performance and unique features. This creates friction for early adopters and software developers, but as long as manufacturers cooperate with Adobe, the status quo might persist.

(www.theverge.com)

Hardware RAW format

Microsoft's AI-Powered Quake 2 Remake Sparks Backlash

2025-04-06

Microsoft's AI-Powered Quake 2 Remake Sparks Backlash

Microsoft unveiled an AI-generated version of Quake 2 using its new Muse model. Accessible via web browser, the demo suffers from blurry visuals and a short memory (0.9 seconds of gameplay), falling far short of the original experience. While Microsoft emphasizes it's a tech demo, social media users criticized the resource-intensive approach and its perceived disrespect towards game developers. This event sparked a broader discussion about AI in game development, with concerns about job displacement and plagiarism alongside optimism about increased employment and innovation.

(www.videogameschronicle.com)

Game

Mysterious SSH Password Disable Bug on Ubuntu 24.04

2025-04-06

Disabling SSH password access over the internet while allowing it on the local LAN on an Ubuntu 24.04 server seemed straightforward using sshd_config. However, a custom configuration file in /etc/ssh/sshd_config.d/ was ignored after restarting the SSH daemon. The culprit was sshd_config's 'first-come, first-served' configuration rule, and a system-generated '50-cloud-init.conf' file containing 'PasswordAuthentication yes', which loaded before the custom file. Renaming the custom configuration file to '10-no-passwords.conf' solved the problem by ensuring it loaded first.

(utcc.utoronto.ca)

Development Server Configuration

Windows 11 Poised to Surpass Windows 10 This Summer: Enterprise Upgrades Drive the Shift

2025-04-04

Windows 11 Poised to Surpass Windows 10 This Summer: Enterprise Upgrades Drive the Shift

Statcounter data reveals Windows 11's market share is rapidly growing, on track to overtake Windows 10 by summer. While Windows 10 still holds a 54.2% share, Windows 11 has reached 42.69%. The primary driver is enterprise upgrades spurred by the impending October 14, 2025, end of support for most Windows 10 versions. Despite a lack of compelling new features in Windows 11, the looming deadline is forcing the migration. This mirrors the challenge faced by AI PCs, where a lack of killer apps hinders upgrades, regardless of Microsoft's Copilot promotion.

(www.theregister.com)

Tech

Intel and TSMC JV: A Lifeline for the Struggling Chip Giant?

2025-04-04

Intel and TSMC JV: A Lifeline for the Struggling Chip Giant?

Intel and TSMC have reportedly reached a preliminary agreement to form a joint venture to operate Intel's US factories, with TSMC taking a 20% stake. This move could be a lifeline for Intel, which has struggled after missing the AI boom, suffering massive losses, and witnessing a significant stock price drop. Intel's previous attempts to manufacture chips for external clients faced challenges due to lagging customer service compared to TSMC, resulting in delays and failed tests. The success of this collaboration remains to be seen.

(finance.yahoo.com)

Tech

OpenAI Wins Partial Victory in Copyright Lawsuit Against NYT

2025-04-05

OpenAI Wins Partial Victory in Copyright Lawsuit Against NYT

The New York Times sued OpenAI for copyright infringement, alleging ChatGPT's unauthorized use of its content. A judge dismissed some claims, including those of 'free-riding' and removal of copyright management information, but upheld others, finding that OpenAI had at least reason to investigate and uncover end-user infringement. OpenAI argued its AI training is fair use and highlighted ChatGPT's benefits. The ruling is likely disappointing for news publishers, but a partial win for OpenAI.

(arstechnica.com)

Tech fair use

Bypass Browser Fingerprinting with curl-impersonate

2025-04-03

Bypass Browser Fingerprinting with curl-impersonate

curl-impersonate is a special build of curl that mimics the behavior of four major browsers: Chrome, Edge, Safari, and Firefox. It achieves this by precisely replicating the TLS and HTTP handshakes, effectively evading browser fingerprinting techniques used by websites to identify clients. Available as a command-line tool and an embeddable library, it supports various operating systems. The project modifies curl's TLS extension configurations, utilizes different TLS libraries (like NSS and BoringSSL), and adjusts HTTP/2 settings to accurately simulate browser behavior. This tool offers users a new way to protect their privacy and access restricted websites.

(github.com)

Development browser fingerprinting

Bitcoin Address Collision Hunting: A Distributed Computing Project

2025-04-05

This is a distributed computing project aimed at finding a collision in Bitcoin addresses. By exploiting the properties of the RIPEMD160 hash function, the project attempts to find different private keys that result in the same Bitcoin address. The project cleverly partitions the search space, assigning it to different clients for parallel computation, and uses a Bloom filter to efficiently check if generated hashes match known addresses with funds. Focusing only on addresses with funds significantly reduces the search space and increases the probability of finding a collision, while simultaneously incentivizing rightful owners to reclaim their funds.

(lbc.cryptoguru.org)

Tech Hash Collision Distributed Computing

Reverse Engineering a Children's Learning Device

2025-04-06

Reverse Engineering a Children's Learning Device

This blog post details the author's first reverse engineering project: a children's learning device (LeapFrog LeapStart/VTech MagiBook). The journey begins with acquiring the firmware from the VTech software's cache files. Key files identified include 'System' and 'FileSys'. 'FileSys' is a FAT32 filesystem image containing app, audio, and book data. 'System' appears to be an ARM binary, containing C++ information, logs, and kernel information (uC/OS-II). Future steps involve deeper analysis of these files, aiming to understand the dot-recognition and audio playback code, and potentially adding custom audio.

(leloubil.prose.sh)

Development firmware analysis

WattWise: Command-Line Power Monitoring and Optimization

2025-04-03

WattWise: Command-Line Power Monitoring and Optimization

A robotics and machine learning engineer has created WattWise, a command-line tool that monitors power usage from a smart plug and adjusts system performance based on electricity pricing. Initially built to manage the power consumption of a high-power EPYC workstation, the monitoring component is now open-source. WattWise uses Home Assistant to display real-time power usage, historical charts, and automatically throttles CPU and GPU performance to reduce costs during peak pricing periods. The power optimization features will be released later.

(www.tomshardware.com)

Tech power monitoring system optimization

Rust's Safety Traps: Even Safe Rust Isn't Foolproof

2025-04-06

Rust's Safety Traps: Even Safe Rust Isn't Foolproof

This article unveils common pitfalls in safe Rust code that the compiler misses. It covers integer overflows, type casting errors, array out-of-bounds issues, invalid states, sensitive data exposure, and more, providing solutions like checked arithmetic, TryFrom, the `get` method, and custom types. The author emphasizes that even with Rust's memory safety guarantees, developers need discipline, combining testing, linting, and fuzzing to build robust applications.

(corrode.dev)

Development

Sony's Hawk-Eye Revolutionizes NFL Down Measurement

2025-04-06

Sony's Hawk-Eye Revolutionizes NFL Down Measurement

Sony's Hawk-Eye technology will become the primary method for measuring the line to gain in the NFL, starting in the 2025 season. This system uses six 8K cameras for precise distance measurement, replacing the traditional chain gang, improving efficiency and accuracy. Hawk-Eye will be deployed across all 30 NFL stadiums and integrated with the league's existing replay system. This innovation enhances game fairness, efficiency, and provides a smoother viewing experience for fans, marking a significant step in technology-assisted officiating for the NFL.

(www.hawkeyeinnovations.com)

Tech Sports Tech

Anduril Banned from Discourse Recruiting: Weapon Maker Sparks Controversy

2025-04-04

Anduril Banned from Discourse Recruiting: Weapon Maker Sparks Controversy

A job posting from Anduril, a weapons manufacturer, on the Discourse forum ignited a firestorm of controversy. Users criticized Anduril's involvement in creating weapons of war and questioned its company culture. An Anduril employee attempted to address concerns about Nix/NixOS usage, non-compete agreements, and open-source opportunities, but the controversy escalated. Discourse's moderation team ultimately banned Anduril from posting future job openings on the platform to resolve the ongoing community dispute.

(discourse.nixos.org)

Tech defense contractor recruiting controversy

Heroku's .NET Support Goes GA: A Developer's Dream

2025-04-04

Heroku's .NET Support Goes GA: A Developer's Dream

Heroku has officially launched general availability (GA) support for .NET, ending its beta testing phase. This means .NET developers can now leverage Heroku's robust infrastructure and support services in production environments. Heroku automates the build and deployment of .NET applications, supporting languages like C#, F#, and Visual Basic, and seamlessly integrates with other Heroku features such as Pipelines, CI, and Review Apps for a streamlined development and deployment workflow. Whether you're new to .NET or a seasoned developer, Heroku offers a smooth deployment experience.

(blog.heroku.com)

Development Cloud Deployment

Setting Up Your Gumroad Development Environment

2025-04-04

Setting Up Your Gumroad Development Environment

This guide walks you through setting up a local development environment for Gumroad. You'll need Docker, Docker Compose, MySQL 8.0.x, imagemagick, libvips, ffmpeg, pdftk, and Bundler. Node.js and npm are also required. Configure Sidekiq Pro and environment variables as needed. Generate SSL certificates and start Docker services and the Rails server using `make local`. Remember to reset Elasticsearch indices and start the push notification service.

(github.com)

Development

North America is Dripping Away From Below: A New Discovery

2025-04-05

North America is Dripping Away From Below: A New Discovery

A groundbreaking study published in Nature Geoscience reveals that the underside of the North American continent is literally dripping away in blobs of rock. Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin used a new full-waveform seismic tomography model to identify this 'cratonic thinning,' hypothesizing that remnants of the subducting Farallon plate are responsible. This ancient plate, while separated by hundreds of kilometers, is believed to be redirecting mantle flow, weakening the craton's base, and causing this slow dripping process. While not an immediate threat, this discovery offers profound insights into continental evolution and the long-term dynamics of plate tectonics.

(www.jsg.utexas.edu)

Tech plate tectonics continental evolution

arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaborators

2025-04-03

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

(arxiv.org)

Development

Slipstream: A Data-Flow Model for Stateful Streaming Applications

2025-04-03

Slipstream simplifies the development of stateful streaming applications using a Python-based data-flow model. It supports diverse sources (Kafka, streaming APIs, etc.) and sinks (Kafka, RocksDB, APIs), allowing arbitrary stateful operations (joins, aggregations, filtering) with regular Python code. A simple timer example showcases its ease of use; creating a timed task requires just a few lines. Slipstream emphasizes simplicity, freedom, and speed, offering optimized defaults for quick setup and execution.

(slipstream.readthedocs.io)

Development data flow

uWrap: A Blazing-Fast Text Wrapping Utility (<2KB)

2025-04-04

uWrap: A Blazing-Fast Text Wrapping Utility (<2KB)

uWrap is a 10x faster and more accurate text wrapping utility under 2KB (minified), MIT licensed. Designed for efficient row height prediction in list and grid virtualization, optimizing UI performance for large scrollable datasets. It cleverly overcomes Canvas2D's lack of text wrapping APIs and the performance limitations of measureText(). Benchmarks show it significantly outperforms canvas-hypertxt in both speed and accuracy. Currently supports Latin character sets, with more features planned.

(github.com)

Development text wrapping

American Wealth Doesn't Guarantee a Longer Life: Study Reveals Systemic Issues

2025-04-04

American Wealth Doesn't Guarantee a Longer Life: Study Reveals Systemic Issues

A study of over 73,000 adults in the US and Europe reveals a shocking disparity: the wealthiest Americans have lower life expectancies than their European counterparts. The survival rate gap between the richest and poorest in the US far exceeds that seen in European nations. Even the poorest Americans fare worse than the poorest in Europe. Beyond healthcare access and social safety nets, the researchers suggest systemic factors like diet, environment, behavior, and cultural differences contribute to this uniquely American phenomenon of shorter lifespans, even among the wealthy. This highlights the deep-seated systemic issues impacting health outcomes in the US.

(arstechnica.com)

Misc health disparity life expectancy socioeconomic inequality

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