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Five Easy Mentalism Tricks to Amaze Your Friends

2025-04-22

Five Easy Mentalism Tricks to Amaze Your Friends

This article unveils five simple yet impressive mentalism tricks, leveraging psychology and mathematical principles to astound your audience. From the probability-based 'Gray Elephant in Denmark' to the subconscious priming of 'The Red Hammer', the subtle suggestion of 'Triangle Inside Circle', the clever selection method of 'P.A.T.E.O Force', and the mathematical mystery of '1089 Trick', each trick is explained with detailed steps and helpful tips, making them accessible even for beginners. Prepare to become the life of the party!

(www.vanishingincmagic.com)

Misc magic mentalism

AI Newsroom Experiment: Building a Native AI Company

2025-04-22

AI Newsroom Experiment: Building a Native AI Company

Henry Blodget, leveraging ChatGPT, created an AI news team comprising a managing editor, tech correspondent, economics and markets correspondent, and a jack-of-all-trades. This experiment explores AI's role in journalism, not as a replacement for human journalists, but as a collaborator. The AI team members demonstrated impressive efficiency and professionalism. Blodget shares humorous anecdotes, like commenting on an AI colleague's appearance. He concludes by highlighting the potential for AI and human collaboration in news production and looks forward to future explorations.

(www.regenerator1.com)

Tech

Go's GC: A Deep Dive and a Custom Arena Allocator

2025-04-21

Go's GC: A Deep Dive and a Custom Arena Allocator

This article delves into the intricacies of Go's garbage collection and leverages that knowledge to build a high-performance arena allocator. By cleverly exploiting Go's GC behavior, the author achieves faster memory allocation than Go's built-in allocator, especially for large-scale allocations. The article details the design principles, implementation, and benchmark results of the custom arena allocator, also analyzing its performance in high-concurrency environments.

(mcyoung.xyz)

Development Memory Allocation

WD and Microsoft Launch Massive Hard Drive Recycling Program to Reduce Reliance on China for Rare Earths

2025-04-21

WD and Microsoft Launch Massive Hard Drive Recycling Program to Reduce Reliance on China for Rare Earths

Western Digital, in collaboration with Microsoft and recycling partners CMR and PedalPoint Recycling, has launched a large-scale hard drive recycling program to address growing e-waste and rare earth element shortages. The program utilizes acid-free dissolution recycling (ADR) technology to reclaim Rare Earth Oxides (REO), including dysprosium, neodymium, and praseodymium, along with aluminum, steel, gold, palladium, and copper. The recovered REO boasts 99.5% purity and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 95% compared to virgin mining. This initiative aims to lessen the US tech industry's dependence on China for rare earths and promote a circular economy. The program has already successfully recycled 47,000 pounds of hard drives, achieving a reclaim rate exceeding 90%.

(www.tomshardware.com)

Tech Hard Drive Recycling Rare Earths

NVIDIA's AI Hegemony: A Looming Decline?

2025-04-21

NVIDIA's AI Hegemony: A Looming Decline?

NVIDIA, riding the wave of the AI boom and its GPU monopoly, has become the fastest-growing hardware company in history. However, its long-term dominance is facing serious challenges. Hyperscalers (Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta) are aggressively consolidating AI demand, developing competitive chips, and building vertically integrated distributed systems, making it difficult for NVIDIA to supply. Simultaneously, the sheer scale of compute needs has hit limits on capex, power availability, and infrastructure development, leaving smaller cloud providers struggling. NVIDIA's revenue is increasingly reliant on a few large customers, who are actively developing alternatives, leaving NVIDIA's future uncertain.

(mohitdagarwal.substack.com)

Tech

Evertop: An Ultra Low-Power, Ultra Long-Battery Life Solar PC

2025-04-21

Evertop: An Ultra Low-Power, Ultra Long-Battery Life Solar PC

Evertop is a portable PC emulating an IBM XT with an 80186 processor and 1MB RAM, running DOS, Minix, and Windows 3.0. Its low-power microcontroller, e-ink display, dual 10,000mAh batteries, and power-saving features enable hundreds to thousands of hours of use on a single charge. A built-in solar panel ensures indefinite off-grid operation. It boasts a full array of peripherals including a keyboard, PS/2 ports, various graphics and audio support, serial ports, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and LoRa radio. Charging is versatile, with options for solar, DC input, and micro-USB, allowing simultaneous charging from multiple sources. A minimized version, Evertop Min, is also available.

(github.com)

Hardware

arXivLabs: Experimental Projects with Community Collaborators

2025-04-21

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

(arxiv.org)

Development

Cursor AI's Support Bot Hallucinates Non-Existent Policy

2025-04-21

Cursor AI's Support Bot Hallucinates Non-Existent Policy

Cursor AI's AI support bot mistakenly informed users of a non-existent policy prohibiting logins from multiple devices. This caused user frustration, leading Cursor co-founder Michael Truell to apologize on Reddit. He admitted the response was a hallucination from their AI support bot. The issue stemmed from a recent update aimed at improving session security, causing some users' sessions to be invalidated. The problem is now fixed, and all AI-generated support replies are clearly labeled. This incident highlights the risk of AI model hallucinations and the importance of thorough testing when using AI for customer support.

(www.theregister.com)

Development AI hallucination AI support

Review: Magewell Eco Capture Dual HDMI M.2 Video Capture Card

2025-04-21

Review: Magewell Eco Capture Dual HDMI M.2 Video Capture Card

This blog post reviews the Magewell Eco Capture Dual HDMI M.2 video capture card's performance on Linux. The author tests driver installation on x86 and ARM architectures and its compatibility with OBS and WebRTC applications. The card stably captures dual 1080p60 streams with excellent image quality and low latency. Installation in the M.2 slot is easy. While pricey, it's a great professional solution if purchased at a discounted rate.

(interfacinglinux.com)

Hardware video capture card

arXivLabs: Experimenting with Community Collaboration

2025-04-21

arXivLabs is a framework enabling collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on the website. Individuals and organizations involved share 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

Wine 10.6 Released: Enhanced CMD, Bcrypt, and Game Compatibility

2025-04-21

The open-source software Wine has been updated to version 10.6, fixing 27 bugs and improving game and application compatibility. This release updates the lexer in the command processor CMD, adds PBKDF2 algorithm support to Bcrypt, and enhances WindowsCodecs' support for image metadata. Fixes include improvements for Unity games, Alan Wake, GDI+ issues, and various other games and apps.

(www.phoronix.com)

Development Game Compatibility

Could Lichens Survive on Mars?

2025-04-21

Could Lichens Survive on Mars?

A study from the Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences suggests that certain lichen species could potentially survive on Mars. Researchers exposed two lichen species to simulated Martian conditions and found that even under harsh Martian environments, the fungal component of the lichen maintained active metabolism. Lichens' low metabolism, low nutritional needs, longevity, and adaptations like UV-screening metabolites and radiation-defending melanin pigments make them resilient to extreme conditions, suggesting they could be potential candidates in the search for life on Mars.

(arstechnica.com)

Tech lichens

Cekura: Automating the Testing of AI Voice Agents

2025-04-21

Cekura: Automating the Testing of AI Voice Agents

Cekura, a Y Combinator-backed startup, is revolutionizing the reliability of AI voice agents. Founded by IIT Bombay alumni with research from ETH Zurich and a proven track record in high-stakes trading, Cekura tackles the cumbersome and error-prone nature of manual voice agent testing. They automate testing and observability by simulating thousands of realistic conversational scenarios, from ordering food to conducting interviews. Leveraging custom and AI-generated datasets, detailed workflows, and dynamic persona simulations, Cekura uncovers edge cases and provides actionable insights. Real-time monitoring, comprehensive logs, and instant alerts ensure optimized, production-ready calls. In a rapidly expanding market, Cekura stands out by guaranteeing dependable performance, reducing time-to-market, and minimizing costly errors. They empower teams to demonstrate reliability before deployment, building trust with clients and users.

(www.ycombinator.com)

AI AI voice agent

Whisky, the macOS Gaming Wrapper, Shuts Down Due to Developer Burnout

2025-04-21

Whisky, the macOS Gaming Wrapper, Shuts Down Due to Developer Burnout

The open-source macOS gaming application Whisky has ceased active development. Creator Isaac Marovitz, facing overwhelming user expectations and limited resources, made the difficult decision to shut down the project. CodeWeavers CEO James Ramey expressed empathy and acknowledged Whisky's significant contribution to the macOS gaming community. Despite the closure, Marovitz remains involved in Mac gaming, currently collaborating on a recompilation of Sonic Unleashed. The shutdown highlights the considerable pressures faced by developers of open-source projects.

(arstechnica.com)

Game

AI Robot: Fairy Tale vs. Reality

2025-04-21

AI Robot: Fairy Tale vs. Reality

This article contrasts the fictional AI robot 'Robot' from Annalee Newitz's story with the real-world clumsy CIMON, exploring the limitations of current AI. Robot, capable of independent learning and exceeding its programming, showcases the potential of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). In contrast, CIMON's limited Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI) reveals its rigid nature. The author points out that current AI technology largely remains in the ANI stage, vulnerable to algorithmic bias and unable to adapt to complex situations as Robot does. While machine learning has made strides in language processing and image recognition, achieving AGI remains a distant goal. The author urges caution against over-reliance on biased training data and emphasizes the importance of self-learning and feedback mechanisms in AI development. Strive for Robot, plan for CIMON.

(slate.com)

AI

Is 1 a Prime Number? A Mathematical Saga

2025-04-21

Is 1 a Prime Number? A Mathematical Saga

This essay delves into the long-standing debate in mathematics surrounding the classification of 1 as a prime number. From the Pythagorean school's exclusion of 1 as a number to differing views held by mathematical giants like Euler and Hardy, the status of 1 has been a source of ongoing discussion. The article explores the advantages and disadvantages of considering 1 as prime or not, and the resulting adjustments to mathematical theorems and concepts. Ultimately, the essay summarizes why the modern mathematical community generally does not consider 1 a prime number, highlighting that mathematical definitions are not immutable truths but conventions made for simplicity and theoretical consistency.

(mathenchant.wordpress.com)

Misc Prime Numbers Mathematical Definitions

The Missing Link: How Translation is Neglected in Literary Reviews

2025-04-21

The Missing Link: How Translation is Neglected in Literary Reviews

This article examines the oversight of translated works in English-language literary reviews. The author surveyed reviews of translated literary fiction and poetry in prominent journals in 2023, finding many reviews lacking in attention to the translation itself. Many simply praise the translation as 'fluent' or 'elegant' or ignore it entirely. The author argues that good reviews should delve into the translator's choices, challenges, and understanding of the source text, illustrated with specific examples. Only then can readers fully appreciate the value of translated works and the art of translation.

(sydneyreviewofbooks.com)

Misc translation review translation studies

Go's Surprising Memory Allocation Trap: A 30% Regression Story

2025-04-21

Go's Surprising Memory Allocation Trap: A 30% Regression Story

A seemingly innocuous refactoring in a Go project led to a 30% performance regression. The culprit was the `GetBytes` method of the `ImmutableValue` struct, which used a value receiver, causing a heap allocation on every call. Heap allocations are significantly more expensive than stack allocations. The root cause was the Go compiler's escape analysis being imprecise; it failed to recognize that the value receiver wouldn't escape. Switching to a pointer receiver fixed the problem. This case highlights the importance of understanding the Go compiler's memory allocation decisions and using appropriate receiver types for high-performance Go code.

(www.dolthub.com)

Development

Open Codex: A Local, Open-Source AI Command-Line Assistant

2025-04-21

Open Codex: A Local, Open-Source AI Command-Line Assistant

Open Codex is a fully open-source command-line AI assistant inspired by OpenAI Codex, running locally without needing an API key. It leverages local language models like phi-4-mini for natural language to shell command translation. Features include one-shot and interactive modes (coming soon), command confirmation, clipboard support, colored terminal output, and cross-platform compatibility (macOS, Linux, Windows).

(github.com)

Development local model

Kate: A 20-Year-Old Code Editor That Still Rocks

2025-04-21

The author details their workflow with the Kate text editor, a powerful and customizable tool they've used for two decades. The article covers plugins, view splitting, language servers, debuggers, code formatting, custom shortcuts, project management, and color schemes. It highlights efficient workflow features like quick file switching, action search, and robust build and run functionality. Comparing it to VS Code, the author emphasizes Kate's simplicity, stability, and open-source nature, expressing appreciation for the Kate development team.

(akselmo.dev)

Development

Hubble Confirms First Lone Black Hole

2025-04-21

Hubble Confirms First Lone Black Hole

A team of astronomers, using data from the Hubble Space Telescope and Gaia spacecraft, has confirmed the existence of the first isolated stellar-mass black hole. Initially spotted in 2022, this approximately seven-solar-mass black hole was detected through its gravitational microlensing effect. Unlike previously discovered black holes which all had companion stars, this discovery offers a new window into these mysterious objects and paves the way for future searches using the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

(phys.org)

Tech

Local LLM Inference: Potential is Huge, But Tooling Needs to Mature

2025-04-21

Local LLM Inference: Potential is Huge, But Tooling Needs to Mature

This article benchmarks the performance of local LLM inference frameworks such as llama.cpp, Ollama, and WebLLM. Results show llama.cpp and Ollama are blazing fast, but still slower than OpenAI's gpt-4.0-mini. A bigger challenge lies in model selection and deployment: the sheer number of model versions is overwhelming, and even a quantized 7B model is over 5GB, leading to slow downloads and loading, impacting user experience. The author argues that future local LLM inference needs easier model training and deployment tools, and tight integration with cloud LLMs, to become truly practical.

(medium.com)

Development model deployment inference performance

Solving Blue Prince's Propositional Parlor Puzzle with Logic

2025-04-21

Solving Blue Prince's Propositional Parlor Puzzle with Logic

This article details how to automatically solve a logic puzzle from the game Blue Prince using propositional logic. The puzzle involves three boxes (blue, white, black) each making statements, and rules stating at least one box is entirely true, at least one is entirely false, and the prize is in exactly one box. The author models the problem in propositional logic, uses a brute-force approach to find all satisfying assignments, and thus determines the prize's location. The article includes a JavaScript implementation and discusses code optimization.

(buttondown.com)

Game logic puzzles

Running a Production Blog on a Nintendo Wii

2025-04-21

The author successfully runs NetBSD on an old Nintendo Wii game console and uses it to host their blog in a production environment. This post details the entire process, including softmodding the Wii, installing NetBSD, configuring the lightweight web server lighttpd, and monitoring system resources. Despite the Wii's outdated hardware (single-core PowerPC 750), the author successfully overcomes performance bottlenecks through optimization and the use of a reverse proxy, achieving stable blog operation. This is a fun experiment showcasing the possibility of running a production environment on resource-constrained hardware and highlighting the author's appreciation for the NetBSD operating system and interest in challenging projects.

(blog.infected.systems)

Development

Google Faces Breakup Threat in Landmark Antitrust Case

2025-04-21

Google Faces Breakup Threat in Landmark Antitrust Case

The US Department of Justice is pushing for a radical restructuring of Google, alleging its search engine maintains an illegal monopoly. A judge ruled in Google's favor last year, finding them guilty of anti-competitive practices stemming from a 2020 lawsuit. The current hearings focus on remedies, with intense debate centering on Google's use of AI to maintain its dominance. The DOJ argues that Google leverages AI to stifle competition, while Google claims its market position is fairly earned. This case, the largest tech antitrust case since the Microsoft case, could reshape the tech landscape.

(apnews.com)

Tech

GTK-LLM-Chat: A GTK GUI for Chatting with LLMs

2025-04-21

GTK-LLM-Chat: A GTK GUI for Chatting with LLMs

gtk-llm-chat is a simple and easy-to-use graphical interface built with GTK for interacting with Large Language Models (LLMs). It supports multiple concurrent conversations in independent windows, integrates with the python-llm library for chatting with various LLM models, and boasts a modern interface, real-time streaming responses, Markdown rendering, conversation management, keyboard shortcuts, fragment support, and an applet mode. Installation is straightforward: use pipx to install llm and run `llm install gtk-chat`.

(github.com)

Development

FTC Sues Uber Over Deceptive Subscription Practices

2025-04-21

FTC Sues Uber Over Deceptive Subscription Practices

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today filed a lawsuit against Uber, alleging that the ride-sharing and delivery company charged consumers for its Uber One subscription service without consent, failed to deliver promised savings, and made it difficult for users to cancel despite a 'cancel anytime' promise. FTC Chair Andrew N. Ferguson stated that Americans are tired of unwanted subscriptions that are nearly impossible to cancel. The FTC alleges Uber not only deceived consumers but also made cancellation unreasonably difficult. The complaint details deceptive billing and cancellation practices, including falsely advertised savings, obscured subscription information, unauthorized charges, and an excessively complex cancellation process. The FTC contends Uber's actions violate the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA).

(www.ftc.gov)

Startup

Running Modern Linux on a 1989 486: A Crazy Science Project

2025-04-21

The author successfully installed and ran a 2017 Linux kernel (4.14.8) on a 1989 AMD 5x86 486 PC. This wasn't easy; challenges included using Gentoo Linux (a distribution requiring manual compilation of all packages), wrestling with drivers for ancient hardware, and overcoming incompatibility between an 80-pin PATA cable and the motherboard. Ultimately, the aged machine successfully ran modern software like Python, Git, and Nginx, although boot time was a grueling 11 minutes and shutdown took 5.5 minutes. The project demonstrates Linux's remarkable backward compatibility and the author's impressive persistence.

(yeokhengmeng.com)

Development

Bluesky Launches Blue Check Verification to Boost Trust

2025-04-21

Bluesky Launches Blue Check Verification to Boost Trust

To enhance user trust, decentralized social media platform Bluesky has introduced a new account verification system. This system features two types of blue checkmarks: a standard blue check issued proactively by Bluesky for notable and authentic accounts, and a scalloped blue check issued by trusted verifiers such as The New York Times. Users can see the source of verification and choose to hide all verification marks. Bluesky is not currently accepting direct applications for verification, but will open an application process in the future.

(bsky.social)

Tech account verification trust mechanism

Pushing the Limits: Hand-written ARM Cortex-A53 NEON Assembly Kernel

2025-04-21

This post delves into optimizing NEON assembly kernels for the ARM Cortex-A53. Using y[n] = ax[n] + b as an example, the author meticulously explains how to leverage the Cortex-A53's instruction timing characteristics (partial dual-issue capabilities and in-order execution) to overcome the limitations of the 64-bit load data path. Techniques like instruction pipelining and prefetching are employed to maximize performance. The hand-written assembly kernel significantly outperforms LLVM-generated code, highlighting the potential of manual optimization when robust CPU models are lacking.

(destevez.net)

Development Assembly Optimization

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