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IBM Layoffs: US Jobs Shifting to India

2025-03-28

IBM Layoffs: US Jobs Shifting to India

IBM's layoffs are far more extensive than previously reported, with a significant number of US employees losing their jobs, while these positions are being transferred to India. Data reveals a surge in job openings in India, contrasting with a persistent decline in the US. An IBM employee recounted being tasked with training new Indian hires, only to receive a layoff notice themselves. Many laid-off employees possessed extensive cloud experience, replaced by less experienced Indian workers, resulting in decreased quality and efficiency. This raises concerns about IBM's offshoring practices and the implications for US workers' rights and the company's future direction.

(www.theregister.com)

Tech

The Centennial Computer: A Post-Apocalyptic Computing Dream

2025-03-25

The Centennial Computer: A Post-Apocalyptic Computing Dream

This article explores the possibility of designing a general-purpose computing machine built to last a century. The author reflects on the pervasive planned obsolescence and internet dependence of modern electronics, drawing inspiration from science fiction to envision a self-repairing, self-replicating computer adaptable to various power sources and communication methods. This computer would feature a simple interface, an open-source operating system (like Forth-based DuskOS or CollapseOS), and comprehensive documentation and tools to ensure long-term usability in a post-apocalyptic setting. The design prioritizes durability, repairability, and openness, challenging the modern consumerist model of technology.

(thomashunter.name)

Tech Post-apocalyptic Centennial Computer Sustainable Computing

iNaturalist Project Update: 7000+ Observations and Growing!

2025-03-23

After a two and a half year hiatus, an iNaturalist project focused on collecting the first ever photographs of each species has released a journal update. The project boasts over 7,000 observations and 2,000 members. The update reiterates the project rules: 1. Observations must be the first photos of that species ever taken anywhere; 2. Photos must be of a living organism; 3. Sexually dimorphic species or species with distinct life stages are eligible. The project thrives on user contributions and thanks numerous contributors, especially highlighting @borisb's significant contributions to beetle identification and advocacy for the project.

(www.inaturalist.org)

Misc species records

Sophisticated npm Malware Campaign Uses Clever Evasion Techniques

2025-03-26

Sophisticated npm Malware Campaign Uses Clever Evasion Techniques

A recent sophisticated malware campaign leveraged two seemingly benign npm packages, ethers-provider2 and ethers-providerz, to inject malicious code into locally installed `ethers` packages. These packages cleverly hide their malicious payload, ultimately establishing a reverse shell connection to the attacker's server. Even after removing the malicious packages, the malicious functionality may persist due to the attackers' clever injection method. This highlights the ongoing risk of malicious packages in open-source repositories and the need for enhanced security measures.

(www.reversinglabs.com)

Development npm security

Ruby Ractors and YJIT: A Concurrency Performance Deep Dive

2025-03-26

This post explores the true concurrency capabilities of Ruby Ractors in version 3.4.2 and unexpectedly discovers the impressive performance gains offered by YJIT. Benchmarks using Fibonacci and Tarai functions reveal that Ractors effectively utilize multiple cores on native macOS, but underperform in Docker. However, enabling YJIT significantly improves performance in both environments, exceeding expectations. The author concludes that Ractors are not yet production-ready, but YJIT is production-ready and provides substantial performance improvements.

(jpterry.com)

Development

EU Launches 'EU OS': A Linux-Based OS for Digital Sovereignty

2025-03-27

The EU has launched 'EU OS,' a community-driven initiative to develop a Linux-based operating system for its public sector. Built on Fedora and KDE Plasma, it aims to bolster digital sovereignty, reduce reliance on external vendors, and create a secure, self-sufficient digital ecosystem. While the choice of Fedora (backed by US-based Red Hat) has raised concerns, the open-source model promises cost savings and increased flexibility, offering a promising path towards digital independence for the EU.

(www.linuxjournal.com)

Tech Open Source OS

Waymo's Self-Driving Accident Analysis: Are Humans the Real Culprits?

2025-03-26

Waymo's Self-Driving Accident Analysis: Are Humans the Real Culprits?

This article analyzes 38 serious accidents involving Waymo self-driving cars between July 2024 and February 2025. Surprisingly, the vast majority of these accidents were not caused by Waymo vehicles themselves, but rather by other vehicles driving recklessly, such as speeding and running red lights. Waymo's data shows that its self-driving vehicles have a much lower accident rate than human drivers. Even if all accidents were attributed to Waymo, its safety record is still significantly better than human drivers. Compared to human driving, Waymo has made significant progress in reducing accidents, especially those resulting in injuries.

(www.understandingai.org)

AI

NotaGen: An AI Composer Mastering Classical Music via Reinforcement Learning

2025-03-26

NotaGen: An AI Composer Mastering Classical Music via Reinforcement Learning

NotaGen, an AI music generation model, is pre-trained on 1.6 million pieces of music to learn fundamental musical structures. It's then fine-tuned on a curated dataset of 8,948 classical music scores, enhancing its musicality. To further refine both musicality and prompt control, the researchers employed CLaMP-DPO, a reinforcement learning method using Direct Preference Optimization and CLaMP 2 as an evaluator. Experiments showed CLaMP-DPO effectively improved both controllability and musicality across various music generation models, highlighting its broad applicability.

(electricalexis.github.io)

AI classical music

The Jevons Paradox of Labor: How AI Is Making Us Work More

2025-03-28

The Jevons Paradox of Labor: How AI Is Making Us Work More

The essay explores the unexpected consequence of AI-driven productivity increases: instead of freeing us, it's leading to a 'labor rebound effect,' where increased efficiency paradoxically leads to more work. This is driven by factors like the soaring opportunity cost of leisure, the creation of new work categories, and intensified competition. The author argues that we need to redefine our metrics of progress, shifting from a singular focus on efficiency to a broader consideration of human well-being, to avoid a 'Malthusian trap.' Examples of alternative metrics include employee time sovereignty, well-being indices, and impact depth. Ultimately, the article suggests that in an AI-powered world, the truly scarce resource is knowing what's worth doing—a deeply personal and subjective question.

(fakepixels.substack.com)

AI

The Subtle Art of the En Dash and Em Dash

2025-03-26

The Subtle Art of the En Dash and Em Dash

This article clearly explains the difference in usage between en dashes and em dashes, and how to efficiently insert them in Word and Google Docs. The author uses vivid examples to illustrate that en dashes are used for ranges (e.g., time range 7–10pm), while em dashes are used for emphasis, parenthetical asides, or abrupt breaks in speech. The article also compares these two symbols with hyphens and provides several shortcut keys and manual insertion methods to help readers avoid ambiguity caused by improper punctuation.

(www.lighthouseproofreading.co.uk)

Design punctuation

Decomposing Factorials into Large Factors: Progress on an Old Conjecture

2025-03-28

A new paper studies the problem of factoring a factorial into factors as large as possible. Erdős and others proposed a conjecture about this, but the proof was lost. This paper, using clever applications of the prime number theorem and approximate factorization, provides new upper and lower bounds, partially solving this long-standing problem and offering new avenues to fully resolve the remaining conjectures.

(terrytao.wordpress.com)

Development combinatorics

GCC 15.1's Rust Front-End Gets Major Boost

2025-03-24

The upcoming GCC 15.1 release will feature significant improvements to its Rust front-end, gccrs. Arthur Cohen of Embecosm merged a third patch set adding support for Rust's "if let" statements, massive changes to internal AST/HIR representations, and full implementation of Clone and Copy. Further improvements, including support for PartialOrd and PartialEq, are expected before the release, making gccrs a more viable alternative to rustc.

(www.phoronix.com)

Development

Science Nerd Faces Jail Time for Ordering Radioactive Material Online

2025-03-26

Science Nerd Faces Jail Time for Ordering Radioactive Material Online

A 24-year-old Australian man, Emmanuel Lidden, faces up to 10 years in jail for ordering radioactive plutonium online as part of his quest to collect all elements of the periodic table. The incident triggered a major hazmat response in August 2023 when the package arrived at his parents' home in suburban Sydney. While his lawyer argued Lidden is an 'innocent collector' with no malicious intent, prosecutors countered that his actions created a market for illegal materials. Lidden pleaded guilty to breaching Australia's nuclear non-proliferation act and will be sentenced on April 11th. The case highlights the dangers of acquiring hazardous materials illegally and the challenges faced by law enforcement.

(au.news.yahoo.com)

Tech radioactive material periodic table nuclear non-proliferation

Curiosity Rover Finds Largest Organic Molecules Yet on Mars, Hints at Prebiotic Chemistry

2025-03-25

Curiosity Rover Finds Largest Organic Molecules Yet on Mars, Hints at Prebiotic Chemistry

NASA's Curiosity rover has discovered the largest organic molecules yet found on Mars: decane, undecane, and dodecane. These molecules, likely fragments of fatty acids—building blocks of life on Earth—were found in the 'Cumberland' rock sample from Gale Crater's Yellowknife Bay, a region that shows evidence of an ancient lakebed. The discovery suggests prebiotic chemistry may have been more advanced on Mars than previously thought, increasing the possibility of past life. The sample's rich clay minerals, sulfur, nitrates, and methane further support the ancient lake environment. This finding strengthens the case for returning Martian samples to Earth for more detailed analysis.

(science.nasa.gov)

Tech Mars life organic molecules Curiosity rover

Unlocking Infantile Amnesia: A Year-Old's Hippocampus Lights Up

2025-03-25

Unlocking Infantile Amnesia: A Year-Old's Hippocampus Lights Up

A new study using fMRI scanned the brains of 26 infants aged 4 to 25 months, attempting to solve the century-old mystery of infantile amnesia. The research found that around the age of one, the hippocampus, responsible for memory formation, becomes active, generating neural signals related to things the infants remembered from tests. This suggests that babies begin encoding memories around the age of one, even as their hippocampus is still developing. The study provides valuable clues to understanding early brain development and memory formation, hinting that we may one day be able to retrieve lost memories from our infancy.

(singularityhub.com)

AI infantile amnesia hippocampus memory formation

Mysterious B-2 Bomber Deployment: Iran?

2025-03-27

Mysterious B-2 Bomber Deployment: Iran?

A significant, and largely unacknowledged, deployment of B-2 Spirit stealth bombers has been tracked from Whiteman AFB to Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. Open-source intelligence indicates at least four or five B-2s were involved, with one diverting to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam due to an emergency. The scale of this deployment is unprecedented, exceeding typical Bomber Task Force or Global Power Missions. Accompanying the B-2s are numerous C-17 transports carrying personnel and equipment. Runway closures at Diego Garcia until May 1st suggest a prolonged stay. While official comment is lacking, the timing, coinciding with heightened tensions in the Middle East, particularly US sanctions and threats against Iran, leads many to speculate a connection to Iran. The B-2’s capability to carry the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator further fuels this theory.

(theaviationist.com)

Tech B-2 Bomber Military Deployment Middle East

The Lost Art of the Commit Message: A Guide to Writing Effective Git Commits

2025-03-25

This article criticizes the common practice of writing vague Git commit messages, such as "fix bug" or "update code." It emphasizes the importance of clear commit messages for team collaboration and future debugging. The article details a standardized format for commit messages, including type (feat, fix, chore, etc.), scope, short description, detailed points, and footer, with multiple examples. The author encourages developers to cultivate the habit of writing high-quality commit messages to create a clear and understandable project history.

(www.seyhan.me)

Development Commit Messages

Google Translate Bug Turns 'Yes' into 'Forks' in Online Surveys

2025-03-26

Google Translate Bug Turns 'Yes' into 'Forks' in Online Surveys

A bizarre bug in a Pew Research Center's 2024 online survey replaced the 'yes' option with 'forks' for some respondents. The investigation revealed a 'lightbox popup' design feature caused some browsers to misinterpret the English survey as Spanish, triggering Google Translate's auto-translation. Google Translate, however, contained a peculiar error: translating 'yes' from Spanish to English resulted in 'forks'. Pew Research Center resolved the issue by disabling the browser's translation function and improving its programming. Analysis showed the bug had a negligible impact on the survey data.

(www.pewresearch.org)

Tech online surveys programming bug

The Rise of ESM-Only: Is the JavaScript Ecosystem Ready?

2025-03-24

The Rise of ESM-Only: Is the JavaScript Ecosystem Ready?

This post explores the current state of ESM (ECMAScript Module) adoption in the JavaScript ecosystem and argues for a transition to ESM-only packages. The author revisits a previous post advocating for dual CJS/ESM formats and explains the shift towards ESM-only. The rise of modern build tools like Vite and frameworks like Nuxt and SvelteKit has made ESM the dominant module system. Node.js's support for `require()`ing ESM modules further removes interoperability hurdles. While dual CJS/ESM packages served as a transition mechanism, they introduce significant maintenance overhead and interop issues. The author recommends ESM-only for new projects and provides guidance for different project types (browser, CLI). A new tool, Node Modules Inspector, is introduced to help analyze ESM adoption in project dependencies.

(antfu.me)

Development JavaScript Modules

Anthropic's Claude 3.7 Sonnet: AI Planning Skills on Display in Pokémon

2025-03-27

Anthropic's Claude 3.7 Sonnet: AI Planning Skills on Display in Pokémon

Anthropic's latest language model, Claude 3.7 Sonnet, demonstrates impressive planning capabilities while playing Pokémon. Unlike previous AI models that wandered aimlessly or got stuck in loops, Sonnet plans ahead, remembers its objectives, and adapts when initial strategies fail. While Sonnet still struggles in complex scenarios (like getting stuck on Mt. Moon), requiring improvements in understanding game screenshots and expanding the context window, this marks significant progress in AI's strategic planning and long-term reasoning abilities. Researchers believe Sonnet's occasional displays of self-awareness and strategy adaptation suggest enormous potential for solving real-world problems.

(arstechnica.com)

AI strategic planning

Six Months In: My Year-Long Project on Building Friendships

2025-03-23

Six Months In: My Year-Long Project on Building Friendships

This post summarizes the author's sixth month of a year-long project focused on building and maintaining friendships. Key takeaways from eight books on the subject include: strong friendships improve health, even weak ties are valuable for opportunities, building friendships requires significant time investment, genuine interest is more effective than self-promotion, and declining social capital poses risks. The author found the topic far more complex than anticipated and will share personal reflections next week.

(www.scotthyoung.com)

Misc social skills

Command-line Tool: OSGInt – A Powerful GitHub User Information Retriever

2025-03-24

Command-line Tool: OSGInt – A Powerful GitHub User Information Retriever

OSGInt is a powerful command-line tool that retrieves GitHub user information using either a username or email address. It fetches basic details like username, avatar, bio, and digs deeper to uncover email addresses and GPG keys. OSGInt uses multiple methods, including analyzing public commits, GPG keys, and the GitHub user API. Inspired by the Zen project, it's under active development, with features like spoofing commits to get email addresses in the works.

(github.com)

Development user information retrieval

StarVector: A Transformer-based Image-to-SVG Vectorization Model

2025-03-26

StarVector is a Transformer-based image-to-SVG vectorization model, with 8B and 1B parameter models released on Hugging Face. It achieves state-of-the-art results on the SVG-Bench benchmark, excelling at vectorizing icons, logos, and technical diagrams, demonstrating superior performance in handling complex graphical details. The model leverages extensive datasets for training, encompassing a wide range of vector graphic styles, from simple icons to intricate colored illustrations. Compared to traditional vectorization methods, StarVector generates cleaner, more accurate SVG code, better preserving image details and structural information.

(starvector.github.io)

AI image vectorization Transformer model

Building iximiuz Labs: A Hands-On DevOps Learning Platform

2025-03-26

Building iximiuz Labs: A Hands-On DevOps Learning Platform

This post details the creation of iximiuz Labs, a learning platform for DevOps, SRE, and platform engineers. It features a unique learning-by-doing approach, combining theoretical learning with interactive practice using Firecracker-based microVMs. The author dives into design goals, architecture, technology choices (including frontend framework, backend language, containerization, and infrastructure), and challenges encountered. The resulting platform is cost-effective, reliable, secure, and scalable, with future plans including IDE integration, multi-node playgrounds, and a Kubernetes visualizer.

(iximiuz.com)

Development Learning Platform

California Takes Aim at Ultra-Processed Foods in School Meals

2025-03-27

California Takes Aim at Ultra-Processed Foods in School Meals

California has introduced Assembly Bill 1264, the first US bill to phase out certain ultra-processed foods from school meals by 2032. The bill defines ultra-processed foods and tasks scientists with identifying and removing harmful products. This initiative, supported by both Democrats and Republicans, addresses concerns about the health impacts of these foods, including obesity and ADHD. It follows California's previous bans on certain food dyes and chemicals, and mirrors similar legislation emerging in other states, reflecting a growing national focus on food safety and children's health.

(www.thenewlede.org)

Tech ultra-processed foods

The Rise of Tabletop RPGs: How Dungeons & Dragons Is Combating Loneliness

2025-03-27

The Rise of Tabletop RPGs: How Dungeons & Dragons Is Combating Loneliness

Starting from a board game café in New York City, a group of twenty-somethings transformed their Dungeons & Dragons hobby into a thriving Twitch channel, "The Bards of New York," boasting thousands of followers. Their success mirrors the exploding popularity of tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs), especially Dungeons & Dragons. Once a niche hobby, D&D now boasts tens of millions of players, spawning movies, TV shows, and lucrative streaming careers. The article highlights how TTRPGs not only provide entertainment but also foster strong communities, combating loneliness and enhancing creativity and problem-solving skills—a particularly valuable aspect in a post-pandemic world.

(www.businessinsider.com)

Game Tabletop RPGs

Beyond Levels: Rethinking Management Roles

2025-03-21

Beyond Levels: Rethinking Management Roles

The author critiques common corporate practices like rigid leveling systems and annual performance reviews, arguing they fail to accurately reflect employee value. The core of the article distinguishes three fundamental management roles: Manager, Director, and Vice President. The difference isn't titles or headcount, but responsibility and mindset. Managers execute tactical plans; Directors create and execute plans; Vice Presidents create strategic plans and are accountable for results, even if the plan was approved but ultimately failed. The author encourages VPs to think independently and embrace risk, rather than simply executing someone else's plan.

(kellblog.com)

Management

Leaked Xbox UI Hints at Steam Game Integration

2025-03-21

Leaked Xbox UI Hints at Steam Game Integration

Microsoft accidentally leaked, then quickly removed, an image showcasing a new Xbox UI. The image reveals a cross-device UI seemingly capable of displaying Steam games. Sources say Microsoft is developing an Xbox app update to list all PC games, including those from Steam and the Epic Games Store. While still early in development, this suggests a potential move towards greater PC game platform integration, solidifying the Xbox app as a central hub for PC gaming.

(www.theverge.com)

Game Cross-Platform Gaming

The UK's National AI Institute: A Case Study in University-Led Failure

2025-03-27

The UK's National AI Institute: A Case Study in University-Led Failure

The Alan Turing Institute (ATI), intended to be the UK's leading AI institution, is in crisis due to mismanagement, strategic blunders, and conflicts of interest among its university partners. The article details the ATI's origins and how it became a university-dominated, profit-driven consultancy rather than a true innovation hub. The ATI neglected cutting-edge research like deep learning, focusing excessively on ethics and responsibility, ultimately missing the generative AI boom. This reflects common issues in UK tech policy: unclear goals, over-reliance on universities, and a reluctance to abandon failing projects. The defense and security arm, however, stands as a successful exception due to its industry and intelligence agency ties.

(www.chalmermagne.com)

AI AI Institute UK Tech Policy University Domination

Tenerife Lunar Eclipse Shoot: A Battle Against the Odds

2025-03-24

Tenerife Lunar Eclipse Shoot: A Battle Against the Odds

Two photographers planned an ambitious shoot to capture a total lunar eclipse in Tenerife, using the Teide crater as a unique foreground. However, equipment malfunctions, severe weather, and even a car break-in threatened to derail their plans. Despite facing seemingly insurmountable challenges, their perseverance paid off, resulting in stunning images and timelapses of the lunar eclipse captured under extreme conditions. This story is a testament to the photographers' determination and passion for their craft.

(lrtimelapse.com)

Misc lunar eclipse Tenerife

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