The text describes a C program for a heap-based virtual machine that implements a Scheme interpreter. Key points include:

• The program starts by defining functions for tokenizing input, reading expressions, and printing them.
• It uses a structure called Pair to manage pairs of data, which is essential for representing lists and expressions in Scheme.
• The core functionality includes compiling Scheme expressions into a format the virtual machine can execute and managing an environment for variables.
• The virtmach function is the main loop that processes commands, executing operations such as variable assignment, function application, and control flow.
• The program includes a simple read-eval-print loop (REPL), allowing users to input Scheme code and see the results immediately.

Overall, it provides a basic implementation of a Scheme interpreter in C, focusing on expression handling and evaluation.

Summary of Monorepo Tasks Announcement:

The new feature, Monorepo Tasks, is designed for managing tasks across multiple projects in a single repository. It aims to simplify the management of tools, environments, and tasks, making it easier for developers.

Key Features:

• Unified Task Namespace: Automatically discovers and organizes tasks with clear names based on their location.
• Smart Tool Inheritance: Share common tools across projects while allowing specific overrides.
• Wildcard Patterns: Easily run tasks across multiple projects using wildcard commands.
• Consistent Execution: Tasks run in the correct context wherever they are initiated.
• Automatic Trust Propagation: Trust settings apply to all project configurations automatically.

Quick Start:

1. Enable Monorepo Tasks in your project's configuration.
2. Set an experimental flag.
3. Define tasks for each project.
4. Run tasks from any location in the repository.

Comparison with Other Tools: Monorepo Tasks is straightforward and suitable for multi-language projects, unlike other tools that may cater specifically to JavaScript or require complex setups.

Ideal Use Cases:

• Best for teams using multiple programming languages.
• Offers easy management of tools and tasks without heavy complexity.

Feedback Request: Users are encouraged to try the feature and provide feedback for improvements.

Overall, Monorepo Tasks aims to provide a powerful yet simple solution for managing tasks in monorepos.

Grapevine is a knowledge search system designed for AI agents that integrates with platforms like Slack, Google Drive, and Notion. Their first application is a company-specific GPT that outperforms current options. Users can easily set up a Grapevine Slack bot that answers questions related to their company context.

The founders created Grapevine to improve how AI understands and responds to day-to-day company queries, achieving an 85% accuracy rate in answering over 100 representative questions, compared to 50% for existing tools. This has transformed their workflow, with departments relying on the bot for various queries.

Security is a priority; Grapevine does not train on user data, keeps data encrypted, and complies with SOC 2 standards. The setup process is user-friendly, and users can try Grapevine for free at their website.

On October 6, 2025, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet announced that the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine will be awarded to Mary E. Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi for their important discoveries about peripheral immune tolerance. Their work explains how the immune system is regulated to prevent it from attacking the body's own tissues, which is crucial for avoiding autoimmune diseases.

Key points include:

• The laureates identified regulatory T cells, which act as "security guards" for the immune system, ensuring it does not harm the body.
• Shimon Sakaguchi made the first major discovery in 1995, showing that immune tolerance is more complex than previously thought.
• In 2001, Brunkow and Ramsdell discovered a mutation in a gene called Foxp3, linked to autoimmune diseases in mice and humans.
• Their combined research has led to new treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases, with some currently in clinical trials.

The prize amount is 11 million Swedish kronor, to be shared equally among the winners.

The text discusses the importance of privacy in messaging and the risks associated with using mainstream chat services, particularly in light of proposed monitoring plans by the European Commission. To counter these risks, the author decided to set up their own XMPP (Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol) server, which allows for secure communication through features like encryption, file sharing, and support for various client applications.

Key steps for setting up the XMPP server include:

1. Domain and IP Configuration: Set up various subdomains for different functionalities (e.g., main server, conference, file uploads).

2. Server Installation: Use ejabberd server software, which is reliable and can be installed via a dedicated repository or from GitHub.

3. Firewall Configuration: Ensure that specific ports are open for communication and services.

4. Privacy Settings: Adjust configurations to prioritize user privacy, such as disabling certain tracking features and managing file uploads.

5. Administration: Set up an admin user and configure access rules for user registration, ensuring security against spam.

6. TLS Encryption: Implement TLS for secure connections and consider using a web server like nginx to handle requests.

7. Client Recommendations: Suggest suitable clients for different operating systems for connecting to the XMPP server.

This setup empowers users to communicate privately and securely, reducing reliance on potentially vulnerable third-party services.

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Summary of Ink Deformation Review

Overview of Digital Ink:

• Digital ink is a flexible way to capture ideas quickly, allowing for modifications after drawing without needing to start over.
• Users can change properties like color and position, but shape deformation is more complex.

Key Concepts:

• The challenge is to combine the fluidity of freehand drawing with the manipulation capabilities of formal vector graphics.
• The goal is to create a system where users can easily deform drawings both manually and programmatically.

Steps for Ink Deformation:

1. Control Structure: Develop a simple format for users to manipulate, rather than messy strokes.
2. Mapping: Establish a relationship between the original drawing and the simplified control structure.
3. Deformation: When the control structure is altered, the original drawing should deform accordingly.

Challenges:

• Creating an effective control structure that matches the sketch's meaning.
• Developing a mapping system that is intuitive and does not require complex actions.

Techniques Explored:

1. Simplified Geometry: Convert ink strokes to vector shapes for easier manipulation, but this works best for clean strokes.
2. Nudging and Pulling: Techniques like nudging apply forces to deform ink but are limited in scope and control.
3. Scaling and Warping: Basic methods to stretch or warp shapes, effective but with limitations.
4. Skeletal Deformation: Uses a skeleton (bones) to influence shape movement; this requires manual setup but allows for complex deformations.
5. Free-Form Deformation: Combines skeletal and mesh-warp techniques for more flexibility.
6. Physically Accurate Deformation: Simulates real-world material behavior, but can be computationally expensive and unstable.

Conclusion: The review outlines various methods for ink deformation, emphasizing the need for a balance between ease of use and effective manipulation. The research aims to improve how users can interact with digital ink while maintaining its natural feel.

No summary available.

pfjson Overview

pfjson is a command-line tool designed to convert OpenBSD Packet Filter configuration files (pf.conf) into JSON format and vice versa.

Key Features:

• Supports two-way conversion between pf.conf and JSON.
• Maintains comments and original formatting.
• Ensures data integrity with SHA256 and SHA512 checksum verification.
• Tracks file metadata such as original filename and size.
• Prevents accidental file overwriting; requires a force flag to overwrite.
• Can read from standard input and write to standard output.
• Includes syntax validation and dry-run options.
• Fully parses all pf.conf elements, including macros, rules, and comments.

Installation: To install, compile the tool from source using v ..

Basic Commands:

• To convert pf.conf to JSON: pfjson -e /etc/pf.conf backup.json
• To restore from JSON: pfjson -d backup.json restored.conf
• To validate pf.conf syntax: pfjson -c -e /etc/pf.conf

Usage Options:

• -e: Encode pf.conf to JSON.
• -d: Decode JSON back to pf.conf.
• -c: Check syntax only.
• -n: Perform a dry run.
• -v: Verify checksums strictly.
• -f: Force overwrite of existing files.
• -j: Output machine-parsable JSON.
• -h: Display help information.

File Safety and Error Handling:

• The tool protects against overwriting existing files by default.
• It provides clear error messages for common issues, such as syntax errors or missing files.

Machine-Parsable JSON Output: Using the -j flag, pfjson can return structured JSON responses suitable for automation and scripting.

License: Refer to the LICENSE file for licensing details.

Summary:

Modern computers use DRAM memory to store sensitive data, and public cloud providers implement hardware-level memory encryption for protection. However, a new vulnerability called "Battering RAM" can bypass these protections. Researchers demonstrated that this attack can compromise the security of Intel SGX and AMD SEV-SNP technologies, which are designed to keep data secure in cloud environments.

Key Points:

1. Battering RAM Attack: A custom-built interposer, costing around $50, can sit between the CPU and memory, appearing normal during startup but later redirecting memory access to allow attackers to read or modify sensitive data.

2. Impact on Security: This attack undermines memory encryption and boot-time defenses, enabling unauthorized access to encrypted data and breaking the security guarantees of confidential computing technologies from Intel and AMD.

3. Technical Details: The interposer can dynamically enable or disable itself, making it undetectable to software checks. It exploits the static nature of memory encryption, allowing attackers to replay data and gain access to plaintext information.

4. Real-World Implications: While physical access is required for the attack, this is feasible in cloud environments, raising concerns about rogue employees or supply chain tampering.

5. Open Source Development: The researchers have shared the design and schematics for the interposer on GitHub, making it accessible for potential misuse.

6. Response from Intel and AMD: Both companies acknowledged the findings but indicated that physical attacks are outside the scope of their current security measures.

7. Main Takeaways: Current memory encryption technologies have significant vulnerabilities that need to be addressed. Organizations should reassess their security models, as low-cost physical attacks pose a serious risk to encrypted memory systems.

For more information, the researchers have made their findings available in a paper and on GitHub.

Summary of Delimited Continuations in Lone Lisp

Lone Lisp has introduced support for delimited continuations, a powerful programming feature that enhances control over program flow. This feature enables advanced functionalities such as exception handling and generators.

Key Points:

1. Implementation Journey: The author shares the story of how they implemented this feature, starting from the complexity of Lone Lisp and the need for better iteration control. They initially added simple iteration methods inspired by Ruby but realized that more control was necessary for advanced features.

2. Understanding Iteration: The author found that Lone Lisp's lack of stack control limited its ability to handle iteration effectively. They explored various resources, including Bob Nystrom's articles and the classic book Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs (SICP), which ultimately guided them towards building a more complex evaluator.

3. The Explicit-Control Evaluator: By translating SICP's explicit-control evaluator into C, the author created a machine that properly manages function application and control flow in Lone Lisp, allowing for more sophisticated programming constructs.

4. State Machines for Primitives: To manage control flow without mixing C and Lisp stacks, the author transformed Lone Lisp's primitives into state machines. This allowed the machine to handle operations without direct recursion, keeping control within the Lisp environment.

5. Delimiters and Continuations: The author implemented mechanisms to manage function delimiters and stack states. They developed two key primitives: control, which sets up a continuation, and transfer, which allows returning to a specific point in the program.

6. Capturing and Using Continuations: Continuations are viewed as reified segments of the stack, allowing the program to return to a previous state and resume execution as if no interruption occurred. This feature parallels exception handling but provides a more flexible mechanism.

7. Final Implementation: The author successfully integrated first-class delimited continuations into Lone Lisp, enabling the language to handle complex control structures efficiently.

In summary, the addition of delimited continuations makes Lone Lisp a more powerful language by allowing for advanced control flow, similar to features found in other languages, while maintaining its Lisp identity.

The article discusses the iRonCub3, a flying robot designed for disaster response. This robot has a baby-like appearance and is based on the earlier iCub platform developed by the Italian Institute of Technology in 2004. The iRonCub3 represents a potential advancement in robotics, particularly for use in emergencies.

No summary available.

No summary available.

The text outlines various resources and projects available on Evan Chen's website. Key points include:

• Sections of the Website: It includes information about Evan Chen, his CV, blog, teaching resources, and personal hobbies like puzzle hunts and games. There are also links to his YouTube/Twitch channels and a coding learning resource.

• The Napkin Project (v1.6): This project is a light introduction to higher mathematics, covering topics from undergraduate to early graduate levels. The latest version (1.6) includes new chapters and fixes but still has some chapters and problems that are incomplete.

• Accessing Resources: Users can download the latest draft of "The Napkin," find PDFs for individual sections, and view the project on GitHub for contributions or discussions.

• Content Overview: The material covers a range of topics such as algebra, topology, calculus, and more, providing a general understanding rather than detailed proofs.

• Community Contributions: There is a community working on both readable and formal proofs of problems from "The Napkin," with resources available online.

Overall, the website serves as a hub for mathematics education and collaboration.

No summary available.

Magic Wormhole Overview

Magic Wormhole is a tool designed for securely transferring files and messages between computers. Here are the key points:

1. Purpose: It allows users to send files, directories, and messages through a secure connection.

2. Connection Methods:

   • Typically, it uses a peer-to-peer (P2P) connection, but can also rely on relays if needed.
   • A "Mailbox" server helps establish an initial connection by sending small messages and hints to locate peers.

3. Security:

   • Utilizes Password Authenticated Key Exchange (PAKE) for secure communication, ensuring high security with easy-to-remember codes.
   • Each code is for one-time use, limiting the chances for interception.

4. Installation:

   • Available for various operating systems like MacOS, Linux (Debian, Ubuntu), and Windows.
   • Users can install it through package managers or from source using Python.

5. Use Cases:

   • Ideal for transferring files when direct computer communication is not possible.
   • Useful for sharing passwords or SSH keys securely.

6. Command-Line Usage:

   • Simple commands like wormhole send and wormhole receive facilitate file transfers, along with options for code length and verification.

7. Development:

   • Open for contributions and improvements, with a focus on developing additional features and fixing bugs.

Overall, Magic Wormhole simplifies and secures the process of file and message transfer between computers, making it user-friendly and highly secure.

Summary of Sonic Robo Blast 2 (SRB2) Updates:

Sonic Robo Blast 2 (SRB2) is a 3D fan-made game based on Sonic the Hedgehog, using a modified Doom engine. While still in development, it has many levels and gameplay similar to the original Sonic games.

Recent Updates:

1. Patch Releases:

   • v2.2.15 (January 26, 2025): Hotfix to fix issues from the previous version. A dedicated shield button was temporarily removed for better mod compatibility.
   • v2.2.14 (January 17, 2025): Major updates included new maps, improved visuals, and a significant overhaul of multiplayer modes.
   • v2.2.13 (September 9, 2023): Improved multiplayer functionality and bug fixes.
   • v2.2.12 (September 7, 2023): Enabled saving progress with addons and improved multiplayer emblem collection.

2. OLDC (Online Level Design Contest):

   • The OLDC is now a collaborative event rather than a contest, with new rules for participation and map submissions. Recent rounds have featured many new maps and enhancements.

3. Community Contributions:

   • Many community members have contributed by creating new levels and features, enhancing gameplay experiences.

Players are encouraged to download the latest version and join the community to enjoy the game and participate in future updates and contests.

No summary available.

Summary of "Apple's unlawful evil"

Apple has recently removed the ICEBlock app, a tool designed to help users track the movements of law enforcement agents targeting undocumented immigrants. This decision came after a warrantless demand from Pam Bondi, a member of Trump's administration. Apple claims to comply with legal orders, but critics argue that Bondi lacks the authority to censor this app.

The company's control over its App Store limits users' ability to install their preferred software, which Apple justifies as a security measure. However, this control has led to the removal of various apps, including those that provide information about civilian casualties in drone strikes and VPN services in China. Critics describe this approach as "feudal security," where users are trapped in a system that can also harm them.

The article emphasizes that Apple's actions contribute to human rights abuses by enabling the government's mass deportation efforts. It also criticizes both Apple and Google for prioritizing compliance with authority over the welfare of their users. The overarching message is that both companies are engaging in practices that pose risks to their customers, highlighting the troubling nature of modern capitalism where companies can exploit their users while claiming to protect them.

Flightcontrol Overview:

Flightcontrol is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) that simplifies deploying applications on Amazon Web Services (AWS). It helps companies manage servers, databases, and more without needing extensive DevOps expertise.

Key Benefits:

1. Time and Cost Efficiency: Flightcontrol reduces the complexity and time spent on managing AWS infrastructure, allowing developers to focus on coding rather than infrastructure tasks.
2. User-Friendly Dashboard: It offers an intuitive interface that simplifies deployment and management, making it accessible for developers without deep AWS knowledge.
3. Automation: Flightcontrol automates infrastructure provisioning and continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD), enabling quick deployments with minimal effort.
4. 24/7 Support: Users receive emergency support around the clock, ensuring help is available whenever needed.
5. Flexibility and Scalability: It retains full control over AWS resources while benefiting from AWS's scalability and reliability.

Features:

• Connect your AWS account and git repository easily.
• Deploy applications with a simple git push or webhook.
• Create temporary preview environments for testing before merging code.
• Maintain cost control with optimized resource sharing and database seeding.
• Access world-class customer support with quick response times.

Use Cases: Flightcontrol is suitable for various applications, including static sites, servers, background workers, and databases, making it a versatile choice for teams looking to streamline their deployment processes.

Overall, Flightcontrol is designed to provide developers with autonomy while handling the complexities of AWS infrastructure, allowing teams to deploy faster and more efficiently.

Summary of the Internet Archive's 1 Trillion Web Pages Celebration

This October, the Internet Archive is celebrating a major milestone: the preservation of 1 trillion web pages through the Wayback Machine. Since 1996, they have collaborated with libraries worldwide to document the internet's history, ensuring that websites—both significant and obscure—remain accessible for future generations.

A series of events will take place throughout October to commemorate this achievement and discuss the future of web preservation:

1. October 7: A musical celebration featuring the Del Sol Quartet, focusing on human collaboration.
2. October 9: A discussion with Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Brewster Kahle about the internet's impact and the role of the Internet Archive.
3. October 16: A virtual forum for library leaders discussing modern library services.
4. October 21: A behind-the-scenes tour of the Internet Archive’s physical collections in Richmond, California.
5. October 22: A major celebration at the San Francisco headquarters, marking the milestone of 1 trillion archived pages with a party and livestream.
6. October 27: An event at Georgetown University discussing the open web's past and future, featuring prominent speakers.

These archived pages have significant real-world impacts, aiding in research, preserving personal histories, and supporting investigative journalism. The Internet Archive invites everyone to share their stories and encourages support to continue their mission of preserving the web for future generations.

Summary: Why Language Models Mistakenly Believe in a Seahorse Emoji

Many language models (LLMs) confidently assert that a seahorse emoji exists, despite it never having been officially created. When asked if there is a seahorse emoji, models like GPT-5 and Claude 4.5 consistently respond "yes." This widespread belief may stem from the abundance of aquatic animal emojis and discussions in human training data, leading both humans and models to assume a seahorse emoji should exist.

The confusion arises because LLMs attempt to construct a response based on the idea of "seahorse + emoji," leading to strange outputs when the emoji doesn’t actually exist. Instead of producing a valid seahorse emoji, the models often generate unrelated or incorrect emoji, as they try to find the closest match based on their internal processes.

Using a tool called the logit lens, we can observe how LLMs refine their outputs through different layers, often mixing the concepts of "seahorse" and "emoji." When they fail to find a specific seahorse emoji, they might resort to more generic fish or horse emojis instead.

Some models are able to adapt and recognize their error, leading to corrections in their responses, while others may get stuck in a loop of incorrect outputs. This highlights the challenges LLMs face when generating responses based on incorrect assumptions. The phenomenon raises questions about how LLMs learn and adapt, particularly in the context of reinforcement learning.

Summary of GPT-oss Leaks About OpenAI's Training Data

OpenAI has released an open-weights model, revealing some insights about their training data, particularly that GPT-5 was trained using phrases from adult websites. While OpenAI keeps its training data sources secret, the model's parameters provide clues.

Key points include:

1. Training Data: OpenAI claims its models were trained on a vast dataset focused on STEM, coding, and general knowledge. However, analysis shows that the model includes tokens from less reputable sources.

2. Glitch Tokens: The analysis identifies many low-frequency tokens, some of which have explicit meanings related to adult content. These tokens are embedded in the model's structure and can affect its responses.

3. Membership Inference: The study suggests that certain sensitive strings were part of the training data, a notable finding since membership inference is usually considered impractical for deployed models.

4. Source Correlation: The presence of certain tokens correlates with content found on GitHub, suggesting that this might be a source of some training data, although this is not definitive.

5. Implications: The findings raise concerns about how open-access models can inadvertently expose sensitive content and suggest that future models should avoid including unusual strings in their token vocabularies.

In conclusion, the analysis indicates that OpenAI's GPT-5 and related models contain content from adult websites and possibly GitHub, highlighting the risks associated with the open-weights approach in AI.

The author created a simple Google Sheet in 2020 to track personal finances. Initially shared on Reddit, it gained over 130,000 views without any marketing or funding. Now, it has over 2,300 active users on its dedicated website, write-it-down.com. The key to its success is its simplicity and usefulness, showing that people often prefer practical solutions over trendy AI tools. The experience taught the author valuable lessons about product development: it's important to build something that truly solves a problem, even if it seems boring. The author encourages others to share their own simple but successful projects.

Microsoft is preparing to launch a free ad-supported version of Xbox Cloud Gaming. Currently, this version is being tested internally by Microsoft employees, allowing them to play some games without needing a Game Pass subscription. The service will include streaming for games players already own, Free Play Days titles, and Xbox Retro Classics.

During the testing phase, users will encounter about two minutes of ads before accessing games and will have a session limit of one hour, with a maximum of five free hours per month. This ad-supported service will be available on various devices, including PCs and Xbox consoles, with plans for a public beta test soon.

This launch follows recent changes to Xbox Game Pass, which now offers enhanced streaming options. Microsoft aims to make Xbox Cloud Gaming more affordable and accessible, indicating a push to reach more players and new regions.

In her essay "Lighthouses in the Sky," Julia Kieserman explores the growing trend of social location sharing and its implications for personal relationships. As technology evolves, many people are moving away from public social media to more private spaces, and tools like Apple's FindMy and Google Maps are increasingly used for sharing real-time locations. While this can enhance safety and communication among friends and family, Kieserman raises concerns about the potential loss of autonomy and privacy.

Kieserman shares anecdotes illustrating both the positive and negative aspects of location sharing. For instance, while some find comfort in knowing their loved ones are safe, others have experienced harassment and stalking through these tools. The technology can create a sense of community and care, but it can also lead to unwanted surveillance and assumptions about a person's activities based solely on their location.

The essay discusses how location sharing alters the dynamics of relationships. It can facilitate connection but also removes opportunities for spontaneous interactions and genuine self-disclosure. Kieserman suggests that while there are benefits to location sharing, it is crucial to be mindful of its implications for privacy and personal agency.

Ultimately, she advocates for a rethinking of how we use location-sharing technology, proposing that it should focus more on fostering care and connection rather than surveillance. The essay concludes with a call for a new approach to technology that prioritizes human relationships over tracking.

Summary of "Peer-to-Peer Networking: Building a VPN Tunnel with Wintun on Windows - Part 1"

This article discusses using Tailscale, a peer-to-peer VPN solution, to access a home lab without a public IP. Tailscale is open-source, free for small setups, and works on various platforms, including Windows and Linux.

The author explores how Tailscale operates on Windows using Wintun, a TUN driver that allows VPN software to manage IP packets. Wintun enables user-space applications to interact with network packets as if they were using a physical network card, but it is managed entirely by software.

To set up a VPN tunnel on Windows, the author provides a step-by-step guide:

1. Download Wintun: It's available as a dynamic library that needs to be placed in the same directory as the executable file.
2. Create a Virtual Network Card: Using WireGuard's Wintun GO interface, you can compile a program that creates a virtual network adapter.
3. Set Up IP and Routing: Use the Windows API to configure the network card's IP address and routing.
4. Read and Write Data: Once set up, you can read and write IP packets, like ICMP packets for pinging.

The article emphasizes that the Wintun.dll file is crucial for the program to run correctly, especially if shared with others.

For further details, links to Tailscale and Wintun resources are provided.

Summary of the QNX Operating System History

The QNX Operating System was developed by Gordon Bell and Dan Dodge, who founded Quantum Software Systems in 1980 after graduating from the University of Waterloo. They began by creating QUNIX, an early microkernel real-time operating system for the IBM PC, which was later renamed QNX due to trademark issues with AT&T.

QNX quickly gained recognition for its reliability and unique features, supporting multiple tasks and users. Early versions included support for hard disks and various programming languages. By the mid-1980s, QNX had established itself in the educational market with machines like the ICON, which ran QNX and were used in Canadian schools.

Throughout the 1990s, QNX evolved into a leading real-time OS for various industries, including automotive and telecommunications. The company was later acquired by Harman International and then Research In Motion (RIM), focusing on automotive applications.

In 2010, QNX introduced a safety-hardened variant and continued developing its OS, which became popular in vehicles. By 2023, QNX was reported to be in over 255 million vehicles worldwide, emphasizing its reliability and versatility.

Recent versions of QNX, including 8.0 and its subsequent updates, have integrated modern features such as support for advanced graphics and enhanced networking capabilities, reinforcing its position as a leader in embedded systems. QNX remains known for its robust design and adaptability across various high-stakes environments, from automotive to robotics.

Ken Parker, aged 73, passed away on October 5, 2025, at his home in Gloucester, MA, with Susan Kolwicz by his side. In his final message, he expressed gratitude for the opportunity to share his life's work and knowledge over the past 50 years. He encouraged others to continue building on what he has taught, specifically mentioning Sam Krimmel, who will carry on his work. Ken hoped for peace and urged everyone to take care of themselves.

No summary available.

Summary of the Automatic Theorem Proving Project Announcement:

The project, funded by the Astera Institute, aims to create a public database of "structured motivated proofs" in mathematics. This initiative responds to the limitations of current AI in understanding mathematical proofs, which often lack transparency in their reasoning processes.

Key points include:

1. Funding and Progress: The project has received funding for PhD students and postdocs, and is actively progressing.

2. Database Purpose: The database will provide detailed reasoning behind proofs, as current AI struggles with complex mathematical concepts and often resorts to incorrect reasoning.

3. Structured Motivated Proofs: These proofs will be formatted to clarify the thought processes behind them. They will be generated through a user-friendly system that encourages structured contributions and minimizes "magic" or unmotivated steps in proofs.

4. Collaboration Opportunities: The project seeks participants to submit proofs, help design the platform, and serve as moderators to ensure the quality of submissions.

5. Future Development: The team plans to create an interface for users to input proofs in an organized manner and aims for the platform to be ready within a year.

Overall, the project hopes to enhance AI's capability in mathematics by providing a comprehensive resource that outlines the reasoning behind mathematical proofs.

No summary available.

Summary of Toybox Repository

• Overview: Toybox is an all-in-one command line tool for Linux, designed to provide a single binary that functions like various common commands (e.g., cp, mv, cat).

• Getting Started: You can download binaries for different systems from the Toybox website. To use Toybox, you can download it, make it executable, and run it directly.

• Building Toybox: To build Toybox, use commands like make defconfig, make, and make install. You can also cross-compile for different architectures with specific settings.

• Using Toybox: The Toybox binary adapts to the command name used. You can run commands via Toybox without needing to install it.

• Configuration: Toybox allows configuration similar to the Linux kernel, where you can select features to include in the binary.

• Creating a Linux System: Toybox includes a basic system builder that can create simple Linux systems for emulation.

• Presentations: Several talks and presentations about Toybox are available online, covering its purpose, design choices, and comparisons with similar tools like BusyBox.

• Contributing: Interested developers can contribute through the mailing list or by submitting patches via Git. Non-build related patches should go to the main Toybox repository first.

• License: Toybox is released under the 0BSD license, which allows for broad use and modification.

For more details, you can visit the Toybox website.

This website is dedicated to the Sun Microsystems Network File System (NFS), which started in 1983 and is still important for modern computer systems. The NFS celebrated its 40th anniversary in September 2025 at the MSST Conference in Santa Clara, CA.

The site features a collection of documents including design papers, specifications, research articles, and marketing materials related to NFS. It is organized into four sections:

1. Source and specifications
2. NFS-related documents
3. Prior and competing work
4. Photos

Most materials are available for download. There is also a list of Internet RFCs related to NFS and a reference to another site, nfsv4bat.org, which has additional NFS information, but users should be cautious as it is not secure and slow.

The website was created by a team of contributors, and feedback can be sent to Geoff Arnold via email. The last update was on September 24, 2025.

Matthias Weyland is among many Germans using "balkonkraftwerk," or balcony solar panels, which are easy to install and don’t require home ownership. These small solar systems, costing around $550, can power up to half of a household's daily electricity needs. Over 550,000 of these systems are now in use across Germany, with many installed in 2023.

The popularity of balcony solar has grown due to government support, rising energy prices, and the ability to easily plug them into standard outlets. While each system is limited to 800 watts—enough for small appliances—the cumulative impact helps Germany move towards its clean energy goals. Users enjoy generating their own renewable energy and reducing reliance on the grid, even if the savings are modest.

However, challenges remain, such as resistance from landlords and the need for regulatory approvals. Despite these obstacles, more people are interested in balcony solar, creating a community around this sustainable practice.

James O'Claire decided to self-host his own S3 storage about five months ago to accommodate his work on tracking Android and iOS apps. He found a second-hand Framework laptop without a screen to use as a home server and paired it with a JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks). The laptop runs on ZFS and Garage S3.

After several months of use, he was pleased to discover he had used 10TB of space without any issues. He successfully restarted the laptop for upgrades and updated the software with no problems. He also had to move some metadata to the laptop itself to resolve initial performance issues with ZFS. Overall, he is happy with how everything has been running smoothly.

Researchers have observed orcas giving dead prey, like rays and seals, to humans, suggesting they may possess the ability for altruism and recognize other species' sentience. This phenomenon was first noted by Jared Towers in 2015, who filmed orcas sharing food with him. He later documented 32 similar cases from 2004 to 2024, showing a variety of prey offered by different orcas.

This behavior, typically seen among orca pods, indicates that orcas might extend their social sharing to humans, demonstrating kindness and curiosity. It suggests they have a theory of mind, meaning they can understand that others have different thoughts and feelings. This ability to engage in altruistic behavior is beneficial in their social structures, where cooperation can lead to survival. Overall, orcas exhibit complex social behavior and intelligence, akin to some other intelligent animals.

Here’s a simplified summary of the text:

• The text includes various footnotes that provide additional context or warnings.
• It mentions a Father's Day gift that was given late and discusses the challenges of debugging a computer.
• It warns users of BirdNET-Pi to be cautious when connecting to Wi-Fi networks they don't trust.
• The author plans to update their setup instructions with a notifications feature in the future.
• They reflect on delays in publishing their work, which was originally drafted in April and is now October.
• The author shares regret about losing the original opening line about springtime bird activity in Boston.

Summary of Inodes and Inode Numbers

In file systems, files and directories are identified by data structures called inodes, with each inode having a unique number known as the inode number. This system helps manage files effectively.

• HFS+ File System: Apple's older file system, HFS+, uses Catalogue Nodes (CNIDs) instead of traditional inodes. CNIDs serve a similar purpose but differ in structure and limits.

• APFS File System: The newer APFS supports standard features, using 64-bit unsigned integers for inode numbers. Each file in APFS has essential attributes, such as timestamps and permissions, along with optional data and metadata components.

• File Operations:

  • Copying a file creates a new inode.
  • Duplicating a file creates an APFS clone that shares data but has a different inode.
  • Symbolic links point to file paths without using inode numbers, while hard links share the same inode number among linked files.

• Accessing Inode Numbers: Users can view inode numbers using command tools in Terminal, like ls -i, or through utilities like Precize.

Overall, inode numbers are crucial for identifying files within a file system and are essential for managing file operations.

The text is a discussion between Jane and John Psmith about Paul Fussell's book "Class: A Guide Through the American Status System." They explore the complexities of social class in America, noting that while Americans often claim not to discuss class, the subject is frequently embedded in conversations, especially on social media.

Key Points:

• Americans pride themselves on social mobility but have an intricate class system that is often uncomfortable to discuss.
• Fussell categorizes American society into nine classes, from the upper class to the destitute, with each class having distinct cultural markers that go beyond income.
• Upper-class behaviors include a lack of concern for academic achievement, while the upper-middle class prioritizes education and sophisticated tastes.
• The middle class is characterized by a desire for respectability and often uses euphemisms and commercial jargon.
• The proles (working class) are divided into three tiers, with high proles taking pride in skilled trades and lower proles facing job insecurity.
• The text also touches on the notion of "prole drift," where higher classes adopt lower-class tastes, leading to cultural flattening.
• The discussion highlights how class affects politics today, with the left primarily representing upper-middle-class interests and the right increasingly appealing to working-class sentiments.
• Jane suggests that culture evolves, and while the markers of class change, the underlying structure remains.

Overall, the conversation reveals how deeply ingrained class distinctions are in American life and how they shape behavior, culture, and politics.

Summary of NEON Bytepack

Overview: NEON Bytepack is a research tool designed for packing and unpacking data efficiently. It is not a standard library and is intended for those familiar with SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data), ARM architecture, and microarchitecture basics. The tool was created by Ashton Six, who is available for hire.

Key Features:

• Performance: Achieves 86 GB/s on L1-resident data using a single thread on specific hardware (Neoverse V2).
• Efficiency: Offers a significant speed increase (2x) over a traditional plane-transpose method.

How It Works:

• Packing and Unpacking: The routines compress data by moving bits from input bytes into tightly packed outputs and can reverse the process.
• Byte-Level Parallelism: Utilizes multiple logical operations per instruction, allowing for higher throughput.
• Instruction Optimization: Uses specific instruction shapes to minimize operations and improve scheduling on the hardware.

Packing Patterns:

• Different methods for packing data depending on the number of bits (K) being processed:
  • K=1: Merges down from 8 to 1.
  • K=2: Merges down from 4 to 1.
  • K=3: Uses specific patterns for packing.
  • K=4 to K=8: Applies various interleaving methods.

Integration Tips:

• To maximize performance, combine Bytepack with other operations, keeping intermediate data in registers to avoid memory throughput issues.
• Potential applications include enhancing codec stages like delta encoding or dictionary lookups.

Licensing: The software is available under the Apache 2.0 license.

Benchmarking Results:

• Detailed benchmarks show throughput rates for different values of K, comparing NEON routines with a baseline method, illustrating NEON’s superior performance.

Additional Notes:

• Further instructions and guidelines for using Bytepack with wider bit widths (K > 8) are provided in the appendices.
• The author is open for project collaborations and can be contacted through their website.

This summary presents the essential aspects of NEON Bytepack, highlighting its performance capabilities and practical applications while simplifying technical jargon for easier understanding.

Summary of AI Table Format Research

This research explores the best formats for presenting tabular data to Large Language Models (LLMs) like GPT-4, which is crucial for improving the accuracy of AI systems that process information from documents containing tables.

Key Points:

1. Importance of Format: The way data is formatted significantly affects how well an LLM understands and processes it. Poor formatting can lead to reduced accuracy and higher costs due to increased token usage.

2. Experiment Methodology:

   • The study tested 11 different data formats using 1,000 synthetic employee records and 1,000 questions based on that data.
   • The formats included Markdown-KV, XML, INI, YAML, HTML, JSON, Markdown Table, Natural Language, JSONL, CSV, and Pipe-Delimited.

3. Results:

   • Markdown-KV was the most effective format, achieving 60.7% accuracy.
   • CSV and JSONL were among the least effective, suggesting that commonly used formats might hinder accuracy.
   • There was a trade-off between accuracy and token usage, with Markdown-KV using more tokens than more efficient formats like CSV.

4. Practical Advice:

   • Consider switching to Markdown-KV for high accuracy needs.
   • Markdown tables can be a good compromise between readability and cost.
   • Be cautious about defaulting to CSV or JSONL, as they may negatively impact accuracy.

5. Limitations:

   • The study only tested one model (GPT-4.1-nano) and one type of data, meaning results might vary with different models or datasets.
   • Future research could explore how different formats perform with nested data and various question types.

In conclusion, the format used to present data to LLMs can significantly impact their performance, and simple changes in formatting could enhance the effectiveness of AI systems.

The author has created an ASCII drawing board that allows users to choose different brushes, set canvas sizes, and export their art as text files. They aimed to keep the process manual and did not include a feature to convert images to ASCII art. The drawing board offers various textures and brushes, and when zoomed out on a large canvas, it resembles a textured drawing rather than just ASCII characters. The author invites others to try it out and provide feedback, mentioning that there is already an emerging ASCII benchmark for language models.

On September 30, 2025, new features were introduced on the Claude Developer Platform to help manage agents' context more effectively. The key updates include context editing and a memory tool, available with the Claude Sonnet 4.5 model.

1. Context Editing: This feature automatically clears outdated tool results from the context when approaching limits, allowing agents to run longer without losing important information. It helps maintain conversation flow and improves overall performance.

2. Memory Tool: This tool allows agents to store and retrieve information outside the immediate context, using a file-based system. This means agents can remember key information across conversations, building knowledge over time without needing to keep everything in active memory.

3. Performance Improvements: These new features significantly enhance agent capabilities, enabling them to handle complex tasks like coding, research, and data processing more efficiently. Context editing and memory management together improved performance by 39% in tests.

These tools are currently available in public beta on the Claude Developer Platform, Amazon Bedrock, and Google Cloud's Vertex AI. Developers can explore documentation and resources to utilize these new features.

No summary available.

I created a tool to help track how much money I can save on interest by making early loan payments. Many existing websites only cater to the US market, so I designed one that can handle a wider range of loan information. I welcome any feedback on my tool.

BYD has created the world's fastest production car, the Yangwang U9 Extreme, which reached a speed of 308.4 mph, surpassing the previous record held by the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+. This record was set at the Papenburg facility in Germany, highlighting BYD's strong presence in the automotive industry. The U9 Extreme features four electric motors that produce over 3,000 horsepower and uses BYD's advanced 'Blade' battery technology. Only 30 units will be produced, though the price has not been announced yet. This achievement showcases the rapid advancement of China's car industry and BYD's growing influence, as recognized by being voted the Most Loved Brand in the 2025 Drivers’ Choice Awards.

The text describes a font called "Retrocide" with several key features:

• It has a monospaced design, ensuring perfect alignment for text.
• All characters share a uniform baseline, with no descenders (like tails on letters g, j, p, q, y), making it visually consistent.
• The font is optimized for coding and terminal use, blending a retro style with modern clarity.
• It is available in multiple formats: TTF, OTF, and WOFF2.

The font is particularly suitable for:

• Code editors, providing clarity for programming.
• Terminals, enhancing command line interfaces with a retro aesthetic.
• UI design, adding a synthwave vibe to applications.
• ASCII art, ensuring perfect alignment for text-based graphics.

The installation process is straightforward, involving commands to install the font and configure it for use.

The text also showcases examples of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, symbols, and a code sample to illustrate the font's application.

Choosing Between Ada, SPARK, Rust, and C/C++

In the realm of high-integrity software development for embedded systems, the commonly considered programming languages in 2024 are C/C++, Ada/SPARK, and Rust. Each has its pros and cons.

1. C/C++:

   • It is the default choice for many teams due to existing investments, trained personnel, and known costs.
   • However, C/C++ struggles with safety and security, making it harder to produce reliable software.

2. Ada and Rust:

   • Both offer improved safety and security over C/C++.
   • Rust has a vibrant community and a growing ecosystem but is still developing commercial support.
   • Ada has a mature ecosystem with comprehensive tools and certification documentation, although its community is smaller.

3. SPARK:

   • Built on Ada, SPARK allows for formal mathematical proofs of software safety and security, potentially reducing costs by eliminating the need for many unit tests.
   • It offers a robust way to ensure code correctness through static verification, which can lead to significant savings in high-integrity applications.

4. Comparison Factors:

   • Community: Rust has a large community, while Ada and SPARK have smaller but dedicated ones.
   • Toolchain and Certification: Ada and SPARK have mature ecosystems and well-established certification processes, while Rust is still developing in this area.
   • Programming Paradigms: All three languages are imperative and provide mechanisms to avoid programming errors.
   • Memory Safety: Rust excels with its ownership model, while Ada offers pointer avoidance. SPARK combines benefits from both.
   • Adoption Costs: Adopting Ada or Rust involves learning new languages, but adopting SPARK requires a shift in programming methodology.

5. Benefits:

   • Ada and Rust can lead to a significant reduction in programming errors and memory safety issues.
   • SPARK's formal verification can reduce defects even further, making it especially valuable in high-stakes environments.

Ultimately, the choice between these languages depends on your team's goals and willingness to adapt to new methodologies. Each language has unique strengths that can benefit different projects in high-integrity software development.

No summary available.

The article discusses the significant energy demands of AI systems, particularly ChatGPT, which handles billions of queries daily. OpenAI's ChatGPT has around 700 million weekly users and processes over 2.5 billion queries each day. This usage leads to a substantial energy consumption, estimated at 850 megawatt-hours daily, enough to power thousands of electric vehicles.

The overall energy consumption for generative AI is projected to rise dramatically, from 15 terawatt-hours in 2025 to 347 terawatt-hours by 2030, necessitating the construction of many new data centers. These centers, part of the Stargate Project, will be crucial in supporting the expected growth in AI usage, which could reach 329 billion queries per day by 2030.

The energy needed for AI is mainly driven by user interactions rather than training the models. The estimates for energy use can vary, but a significant increase is anticipated as AI becomes more integrated into daily life.

The author has created a simple command-line toolkit to help with various development and debugging tasks. The toolkit includes tools for:

• Encoding: base64 and URL encoding/decoding
• Hashing: md5, sha1, sha224, sha256, sha384, and sha512
• Data Generation: generating UUIDs and random text
• Text Processing: changing text case, pretty-printing, and comparing text
• Development Tools: calculator, JSON builder, regex, and date/time tools
• Web & Network: checking HTTP status and serving content
• Color & Design: converting colors
• Reference: Unicode information

The toolkit incorporates some features built with Claude Code and invites users to suggest new features or contribute.

Summary:

Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) are AI cameras that record details about passing vehicles, including location, date, time, make, model, and identifying features. While they can help track stolen cars or criminals, they primarily monitor innocent people's movements without any suspicion or warrant.

ALPRs pose significant privacy risks as they continuously collect data, often sharing it with various agencies across the country, leaving individuals with no control over its use. This tracking can lead to wrongful arrests and misuse of the data, such as stalking by law enforcement. Despite claims from ALPR vendors like Flock, there is little evidence that these systems effectively prevent crime.

The article discusses the decline of industrial design in consumer electronics, highlighting how products have become visually uninteresting and overly simplistic. In the past, devices like the Motorola RAZR and colorful home computers showcased unique designs and user-friendly interfaces. However, modern electronics, such as smartphones and TVs, now largely consist of flat, featureless rectangles made of plastic and glass, lacking distinctive characteristics.

This trend has led to the removal of physical buttons and controls, with many devices relying solely on touchscreens or mobile apps for interaction. While this design shift aims for minimalism, it results in a dull user experience, making it hard for users to differentiate between products. The article suggests that the absence of engaging design elements may lead people to seek more stimulating experiences through retro or hobbyist projects that revive the tactile and visual excitement of older electronics.

In this article, Jefferson Heard shares a story about dealing with technical debt in software engineering. Technical debt refers to quick fixes that provide immediate benefits but can cause long-term issues if not addressed.

The problem arose when their calendar platform was nearing the maximum limit for a specific type of key used in the database. They planned to upgrade the keys to a larger size but realized that changing the keys would disrupt customer integrations, which could take months to fix.

To solve this issue quickly, the team decided to use negative primary keys, allowing them to continue using the existing system without breaking anything. This workaround bought them time to implement a permanent solution while ensuring a smooth transition for customers.

Heard emphasizes that while the negative keys were not a standard practice, it was a practical choice at the time, demonstrating the importance of quick thinking and planning when managing technical debt.

The text discusses insights from a project aimed at creating an AI agent capable of generating complex 3D models using Blender's Python API. Here are the key points:

1. Goal and Challenge: The project aimed to have an AI generate intricate 3D models, which is challenging due to the need for reasoning and planning, not just coding.

2. Hybrid Agent Approach: The author created a hybrid system combining two types of AI models:

   • "Thinker" LLM: Responsible for high-level reasoning and planning.
   • "Doer" LLM: A specialized model focused on coding and debugging.

3. Testing Architectures: Three different setups were tested:

   • A large model doing everything.
   • A small model also doing everything.
   • The hybrid model combining "Thinker" and "Doer."

4. Results:

   • Hybrid Model: This approach was the most effective, achieving results faster and more reliably.
   • Homogeneous Small Models: Using a small model for all tasks was ineffective, often resulting in failures.
   • Memory Impact: Adding a memory module surprisingly increased the number of iterations needed, suggesting it may complicate the process.

5. Model Behavior:

   • Larger models produced better visual results.
   • Some models struggled with task completion and context management.

6. Implementation Tips: When creating such AI systems, consider breaking down tasks, selecting specialized models, and incorporating error handling mechanisms.

7. Conclusion: Success in AI modeling lies in combining different specialized models rather than relying on a single powerful model. This approach could lead to advancements in AI tools for complex creative tasks.

The Free Software Foundation (FSF) celebrated its 40th anniversary on October 4, 2025, by introducing a new president, Ian Kelling, and launching the LibrePhone Project. The celebration included discussions about the FSF's mission and future, featuring contributions from various free software activists.

The LibrePhone Project aims to enhance mobile computing freedom and is a collaboration with developer Rob Savoye. FSF's executive director, Zoë Kooyman, shared plans to continue hosting local free software events and develop criteria for free machine learning.

The event featured talks from leaders in the free software community, including representatives from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and Sugar Labs, focusing on software freedom, privacy, and education.

Overall, the celebration highlighted the FSF's commitment to promoting software freedom and acknowledged the contributions of many individuals over the past four decades.

The text discusses the concept of "Social Cooling," which refers to how our behavior changes due to the awareness that we're being watched through data collection. Here are the key points:

1. Impact of Big Data: Our personal data is analyzed and transformed into various scores that can predict aspects of our lives, such as political views or health risks, often without our knowledge.

2. Consequences of Digital Reputation: People are beginning to realize that their online data can affect job prospects, loan rates, and social interactions. For example, women may see fewer job ads, and social media connections can influence loan costs.

3. Behavioral Changes: To improve their scores, individuals are altering their behavior, leading to:

   • Conformity: People censor themselves to avoid negative judgments.
   • Risk Aversion: Systems that reward conformity can lead to poor decision-making, as seen with doctors receiving low scores for taking risks to help patients.
   • Social Rigidity: Reputation systems can suppress dissent and limit opportunities, as seen in China's social credit system.

4. Philosophical and Societal Questions: The text raises concerns about whether increased surveillance makes us more compliant but less human, and how it might stifle creativity and societal evolution.

5. Call to Action: It compares Social Cooling to global warming, emphasizing the need for public awareness and a shift in perception about data privacy. It advocates for the right to make mistakes and the need for a more nuanced understanding of data's impact on society.

In summary, Social Cooling poses significant challenges to individual freedom and societal progress, and there is an urgent need for awareness and action to address these issues.

Modern macOS versions open folders in random sizes and positions. These scripts fix that by making folders remember their location and size, similar to classic macOS. This helps users take advantage of their memory for better file management.

Summary of Indefinite Backpack Travel

Since 2015, the author has embraced a minimalist lifestyle, living out of a laptop backpack by only keeping essential items. This approach simplifies travel, reduces costs, and allows for spontaneous adventures. The author shares updates and insights annually, addressing common questions about the minimalist travel lifestyle.

Key points include:

• Onebag Travel: This method eliminates typical hassles of air travel (like checked bags) and allows for a smoother airport experience.
• Lifestyle Evolution: The author has gradually optimized their packing, preferring practical items over expensive brands.
• Nomadic Living: While the author enjoys fast-paced travel, they now stay longer in cities to maintain friendships and explore more deeply.
• Packing List: The author provides a detailed list of their belongings, including tech gadgets (like a MacBook Air and iPhone), clothing (such as durable shirts and socks), and outdoor gear for hiking.

The author emphasizes thoughtful purchases and practicality over brand names, advocating for a lifestyle that prioritizes freedom and simplicity. They also maintain a future wish list for potential upgrades in their travel gear.

A recent Pew Research Center survey reveals that more Americans now view legal sports betting negatively. In 2025, 43% of adults believe it is bad for society, up from 34% in 2022. Similarly, 40% think it harms sports, compared to 33% previously. While many still see it as neutral, fewer than 20% view it positively.

Public awareness of legalized sports betting has increased, with 63% of adults familiar with it, up from 56% in 2022. Approximately 22% of adults reported betting on sports in the past year, a slight increase from 19%. The rise in betting is mainly due to online platforms, where 10% of adults placed bets this way, up from 6% in 2022.

Attitudes toward sports betting have shifted across various demographic groups, with significant increases in disapproval among young adults, especially young men. Concerns include gambling addiction and the integrity of sports, as several athletes have faced disciplinary actions for violating betting rules.

Overall, while sports betting has become more common and accepted, growing numbers of Americans are expressing concerns about its social impacts.

The article discusses the challenges faced by the Rust programming community regarding the management of open-source packages, highlighting the confusion caused by multiple forks of the same projects, such as ffmpeg. It notes that the situation is chaotic, with many abandoned or outdated packages, leading to frustration among developers.

The author suggests that Rust could benefit from adopting a solution used by the Julia community, which successfully organized its packages into self-managed GitHub organizations (like BioJulia for biology-related packages and JuliaData for data packages). This approach helps ensure that repositories remain accessible, encourages collaboration, reduces unnecessary forks, and fosters a sense of community.

The article emphasizes that while this issue is not unique to Rust, the improvements seen in Julia could serve as a valuable model for Rust and other programming languages to enhance their package management and community support.

Recent developments in Reinforcement Learning with Verifiable Rewards (RLVR) have helped large language models (LLMs) improve their skills in complex tasks like math and programming. RLVR uses rewards based on verifiable outcomes to enhance the quality of the models' outputs. However, RLVR faces challenges such as sparse rewards and unstable training.

To tackle these issues, we introduce a new framework called PACS, which combines reinforcement learning with supervised learning. In this approach, we treat the outcome reward as a label to create a supervised learning task. This method stabilizes training by linking the actor and critic roles in the model, making it more efficient.

In tests on difficult math reasoning tasks, PACS outperformed existing RLVR methods like PPO and GRPO, achieving significant improvements in performance. For example, PACS scored 59.78% on the AIME 2025 task, which is notably higher than the scores from PPO and GRPO. This approach presents a promising way to enhance LLMs using verifiable rewards. The related code and data are available as open source.

Summary of BackVPS Setup and Security Checklist

This guide outlines the steps to set up a secure Virtual Private Server (VPS) using Hetzner and Coolify, along with a detailed checklist for easy reference in the future.

Key Steps for VPS Setup:

1. Pre-Setup:

   • Choose a VPS provider (recommended: Hetzner for cost and performance).
   • Determine server specs (minimum 1GB RAM, 20GB storage).
   • Prepare your local machine with an SSH client and a strong password generator.

2. Initial Server Setup:

   • Log in to the server as the root user and update the system.
   • Change the root password and create a new user with sudo access.
   • Set up SSH key authentication for secure access and disable password authentication.

3. Firewall Configuration:

   • Use UFW (Uncomplicated Firewall) to set default policies, allow SSH, and enable the firewall.
   • Optionally restrict SSH access to specific IPs for added security.

4. Automatic Updates:

   • Install and configure unattended-upgrades for automatic system updates.

5. Application Deployment:

   • Install Node.js and PM2 for managing applications.
   • Set up your application and configure Nginx as a reverse proxy.

6. SSL Certificate Setup:

   • Use Certbot to obtain and manage SSL certificates for secure connections.

7. Monitoring and Maintenance:

   • Install monitoring tools and set up log rotation.
   • Create a backup strategy using a script and automate it with cron jobs.

8. Troubleshooting:

   • Check common issues related to SSH, permissions, and service status.

9. Final Verification:

   • Ensure all security measures are in place, backups are functioning, and performance is tested.

This checklist serves as a comprehensive resource for anyone looking to self-host their applications while maintaining control and security.

No summary available.

Summary

InspatialLabs Incident:

InspatialLabs has been accused of rebranding and copying several projects, including rEFui, refurbish, and undom-ng, without giving proper credit. They initially failed to follow licensing requirements, which mandate including original licenses and proper attribution in the code they copied. Although they later added a CREDITS.md file, it still contained errors, such as misspelling "rEFui" as "RefUI."

The individual behind the original works, ClassicOldSong, expressed skepticism about InspatialLabs' technical abilities and their commitment to open source. ClassicOldSong highlighted that InspatialLabs avoided direct answers to technical questions and relied heavily on AI for their coding, lacking a genuine understanding of the code.

A timeline of interactions revealed repeated technical misunderstandings and evasions from InspatialLabs. In addition, an analysis of their code showed that a substantial amount of it was copied from various open-source projects without proper licensing or attribution.

Key Points:

• InspatialLabs copied multiple works without proper credit and removed original licenses.
• They added a credits file but continued to misattribute names and show a lack of respect for the original code.
• ClassicOldSong raised concerns about their technical capabilities and honesty.
• An analysis confirmed that Inspatial's code was largely plagiarized from existing open-source projects, violating licensing agreements.

Conclusion: Developers are advised to avoid using Inspatial's packages and to rely on the original, properly licensed projects instead.

No summary available.

No summary available.

No summary available.

Mic-E-Mouse: Covert Eavesdropping via Computer Mice

Overview:
Computer mice with advanced optical sensors can be exploited to secretly listen to users. Attackers can use these sensors to detect sound vibrations through the surface the mouse is on and reconstruct spoken words.

Key Points:

1. Vulnerability of Mice:
   Consumer-grade mice are becoming more sensitive and affordable, making them easier targets for eavesdropping attacks.

2. Mic-E-Mouse Technology:
   The Mic-E-Mouse system processes the low-quality audio signals captured by the mouse to produce understandable speech. The pipeline includes signal processing and machine learning techniques.

3. Attack Method:
   The attack can be executed using common software, such as games or open-source applications, which do not raise suspicion. Data can be collected without users noticing.

4. Performance Metrics:
   The system shows significant improvements in audio quality and speech recognition accuracy, demonstrating the effectiveness of the eavesdropping capability.

5. Frequency Detection:
   Most human speech falls within a detectable frequency range (200Hz to 2000Hz), which can be captured by the Mic-E-Mouse system.

6. Demonstration and Access:
   A demonstration of the technology is available, along with access to related resources for further review.

In summary, the Mic-E-Mouse project highlights a serious security risk involving everyday computer mice, showing how they can be misused to invade privacy without detection.

No summary available.

The article explores why hyperlinks are commonly blue. It notes that while many people take this for granted, the color blue for links has a historical origin rooted in early web design.

Key points include:

• The first known blue hyperlinks appeared in the Mosaic browser, launched in 1993, which standardized their use.
• Before color monitors, hyperlinks were typically indicated by underlining. Early systems like Project Xanadu (1964) and HyperTIES (1983) experimented with different styles.
• The blue color choice likely arose from trends in user interface design during the early 1990s when color monitors became more common.
• Mosaic, influenced by earlier systems, popularized blue hyperlinks, which then became synonymous with web navigation.
• Other browsers like Netscape and Internet Explorer adopted the blue hyperlink, cementing its place in internet culture.

The article concludes by questioning whether hyperlinks should always be blue or if alternatives could be used while ensuring accessibility and usability remain a priority.

Summary of Parrot: Type-Safe SQL in Gleam

Parrot is a new library for Gleam that provides type-safe SQL capabilities, and it has recently been recognized as a community project on the sqlc website.

Key Features:

• Supports SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.
• Allows multiple queries in a single file.
• Works with various database clients.
• Automatically retrieves database schema and downloads necessary tools.
• Uses named parameters for better clarity in SQL queries.

Getting Started:

1. Install Parrot with $ gleam add parrot.
2. Place SQL queries in .sql files within the src/sql directory.
3. Compile the queries into a Gleam module.

Code Generation: Run commands to generate code based on your database environment. Ensure you have the required database tools installed (like sqlite3 for SQLite, mysqldump for MySQL, and pg_dump for PostgreSQL).

Examples and Development: Integration tests are available for PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQLite. The project uses scripts to set up database containers for testing.

Quirks:

• Some complex data types may not be fully supported.
• Parrot can only be executed in an Erlang Gleam application but can generate code for JavaScript projects.

FAQ: Parrot supports SQL flavors that sqlc supports (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite) but certain sqlc features are not implemented.

Future Work: The project is open for contributions and suggestions are tracked on GitHub.

Acknowledgements: Parrot is inspired by the Squirrel library and acknowledges the sqlc project.

The article discusses the growing importance of personal data storage and ownership, emphasizing that individuals should control their data instead of corporations. Tim Berners-Lee, the web's creator, has proposed the Solid Protocol, which aims to give users ownership over their data by allowing them to choose where it is stored and how it is accessed. This vision addresses current issues where people's data is scattered across various platforms without their control.

The article highlights the potential for new technologies, like the AT Protocol from Bluesky, which supports user ownership and data storage through Personal Data Servers (PDS). These servers allow users to store their data in a way that is independent of specific applications, similar to how people use credit unions for banking instead of large corporations.

Overall, the shift towards data ownership involves creating cooperative, user-governed institutions for data storage, enhancing privacy and control for individuals. The goal is to empower users to manage their online presence and data more effectively, moving away from reliance on large tech companies.

Asteroid 2024 YR4 was discovered on December 27, 2024. Initially, there was a 3% chance it could hit Earth in December 2032, but this risk was eliminated by February 23, 2025. However, the chance of it impacting the Moon increased to about 4% by May 2025. Observations from the James Webb Space Telescope in March 2025 estimated the asteroid's size to be around 60 meters.

If the asteroid impacts the Moon, it could create debris that might threaten astronauts and spacecraft in low Earth orbit. The text discusses potential space missions to study and possibly deflect or disrupt the asteroid if a lunar impact is confirmed. It considers options for flyby and rendezvous missions, using different propulsion methods and launch vehicles, with the best opportunities for launching reconnaissance missions in late 2028.

While deflecting the asteroid seems impractical, missions to disrupt it using kinetic or nuclear methods could be launched between 2029 and 2032. Even if a lunar impact is ruled out, a mission to study the asteroid could still be valuable.

The document discusses preparing for the .NET 10 Garbage Collector (GC). It highlights the importance of understanding the GC's features and improvements to optimize performance in .NET applications. The link provided leads to a discussion thread for further insights and community experiences related to the topic.

Summary: Matrix Core Programming on AMD CDNA3 and CDNA4 Architecture

This blog post explains how to use Matrix Cores in HIP (Heterogeneous-computing Interface for Portability) kernels, with a focus on low-precision data types like FP16, FP8, and FP4, as well as new instructions introduced in AMD's CDNA™4 architecture.

Key Points:

1. Matrix Cores Overview:

   • Matrix multiplication is crucial for AI and high-performance computing (HPC).
   • AMD's Matrix Cores speed up matrix operations (specifically fused-multiply-add or MFMA) using lower precision types, which can greatly enhance performance while minimizing accuracy loss.

2. Performance Gains:

   • Using lower precision types (like FP16 and FP8) can lead to significant performance improvements. For example, FP8 can offer up to 64x performance compared to FP32.
   • The CDNA™4 architecture further enhances performance, doubling throughput for FP16 and FP8 compared to CDNA™3.

3. Low-Precision Floating-Point Types:

   • Low-precision types represent numbers with fewer bits, affecting their range and accuracy.
   • Different formats (like FP16, FP8, FP6, and FP4) are used for efficiency in computations, especially in AI applications.

4. MFMA Instructions:

   • CDNA™3 and CDNA™4 support various MFMA operations with different matrix dimensions and types.
   • The CDNA™4 architecture introduces new instructions for larger matrices and allows for block exponent scaling.

5. Using Compiler Intrinsics:

   • Matrix Core instructions can be accessed via compiler intrinsic functions in HIP, which allow for efficient execution of matrix operations.

6. Example Implementations:

   • The post includes several code examples demonstrating how to implement matrix multiplication using MFMA instructions in HIP, showing data layout and distribution across threads.

In conclusion, the blog provides a comprehensive guide for programming Matrix Cores on AMD’s CDNA architectures, emphasizing low-precision types, performance benefits, and practical coding examples to assist developers in optimizing their applications. For further details, the blog references additional resources on Matrix Core programming and low-precision floating-point types.

On October 6, 2025, South Carolina Circuit Court judge Diane Goodstein's home was destroyed by a fire, which is under investigation due to her having received death threats related to her judicial work. Goodstein was not home during the fire, but several family members were injured and required rescue. Authorities are unsure if the fire was accidental or arson, and extra security is being provided for the area.

Goodstein recently made headlines for blocking the release of voter files to the Department of Justice, which was part of the Trump Administration's efforts to gather voter registration data across multiple states. Critics argue that these efforts are aimed at disenfranchising marginalized voters.

The incident reflects a troubling trend of political violence in the U.S., with judges who oppose Trump facing threats and attacks. High-profile cases include the murder of Democratic officials and threats against judges like Jack McConnell, who reported receiving numerous death threats.

Trump's administration has frequently criticized judges who rule against it, calling them "radical" or "activist." This rhetoric, according to experts, contributes to a climate of fear and violence against public officials. Legal experts and former judges have called for a cessation of such divisive language to protect the integrity of the judiciary. The situation highlights ongoing tensions between the Trump Administration and the judicial branch, raising concerns about the rule of law and political violence.

The text discusses the challenges of parsing XML and HTML, emphasizing that using regular expressions (regex) for this purpose is generally a bad idea. Here are the key points:

1. Content Terminology: The author criticizes the term "content," suggesting it reduces art and writing to mere interchangeable items.

2. Parsing Issues: Parsing HTML with regex is notoriously difficult. While a popular Stack Overflow response warns against it, the author believes there are situations where regex can still be useful.

3. Understanding XML: XML (Extensible Markup Language) is complex but designed for both human and machine readability, while being more structured than formats like JSON. This complexity can lead to security issues for inexperienced developers.

4. Parser Mechanics: A basic explanation of how a parser works was provided, illustrating how a stack-based parser navigates through an XML structure.

5. Human vs. Machine Parsing: The author reflects on how humans read XML and the challenges they face when presented with unformatted XML data.

6. HTML's Quirks: HTML is less strict than XML, allowing for errors in markup. This makes it difficult to parse, as browsers often guess the correct structure instead of failing outright.

7. Regex Advantages: The author acknowledges that regex can speed up development and offer flexibility when scraping data from HTML, despite its limitations.

8. Best Practices: Recommendations include using proper XML parsers for most tasks, considering regex only for specific situations like scraping, and being aware of the limitations of each method.

Overall, the text highlights the complexities and nuances in parsing structured data while weighing the pros and cons of using regex versus dedicated parsers.

Paged Out! Institute Overview

Paged Out! is a free zine led by Gynvael Coldwind, featuring various contributors including writers, artists, and engineers. The latest issue (#7) showcases increased availability of printed copies, which are being distributed at events such as cyber security conferences. Readers are encouraged to share photos of the printed zine on social media.

Legal Sharing: The zine is free to share, with licenses allowing audio recordings of articles for podcasts or aiding the visually impaired. For mass printing, files are available online, while selling printed copies requires contacting the Institute.

Issue Highlights: The latest issue includes new content, and the call for papers for the next issue (#8) is now open. The zine has also transitioned to a scripted cover design for consistency.

Content Examples: Featured topics in this issue range from AI recognition capabilities to financial decision-making in games, and various technical discussions, showcasing contributions from a diverse group of authors.

AI Recognition Experiment: An experiment with AI text checkers revealed mixed results, indicating challenges in accurately identifying AI-generated content. The conclusion suggests that AI detection tools can produce unreliable results.

Future Directions: The zine aims to continue expanding its reach, both online and offline, and looks forward to more community engagement and contributions.

I'm considering shifting from working with venture capital-backed B2B SaaS startups to focusing on B2C businesses in local communities. I'm looking for advice from others who have made a similar change, especially on how to stay challenged, informed, and communicate important concepts to people who aren't interested in trends. Working in the B2B space often feels unfulfilling, as it primarily involves helping investors profit without a deeper purpose. My experience is mainly in go-to-market strategies and data analytics, but I believe this question is relevant to many people.

No summary available.

No summary available.

Pyscn is a tool designed for Python developers who want to clean up their code during rapid development using tools like Cursor, Claude, or ChatGPT. It addresses common issues that arise when coding quickly, such as:

• Code duplication from copying and pasting
• Unused code from fast iterations
• Overly complex solutions for simple problems
• Inconsistent coding patterns

Pyscn analyzes code structure using various techniques, including tree edit distance, control-flow graph analysis, and complexity metrics. You can try it without installing anything using commands like uvx pyscn analyze . or pipx run pyscn analyze ., or you can install it via pip install pyscn. It is built with Go and tree-sitter, and the creator is open to discussing the implementation further.

Large language models (LLMs) are powerful tools that perform well on various tasks, but they struggle with specialized knowledge without proper optimization. They can also produce incorrect information, known as hallucination. Recent research indicates that adding specific domain knowledge during training can enhance their performance. However, there is a challenge in finding the right balance: too little domain knowledge leads to weak performance, while too much can cause the model to forget what it previously learned.

This study examines the problem of "memory collapse," which happens when too much domain knowledge is added. The researchers made two important findings: 1) Each model has a specific point where adding more knowledge sharply reduces its ability to retain information. 2) This point varies consistently with the size of the model.

Based on these findings, the researchers propose a formula to determine the best amount of domain knowledge to add to large LLMs by studying smaller models. Their experiments show that this formula is effective and can be applied to different model sizes and data requirements.

Summary of Aerocart Technology

Aerocart offers an innovative solution for cargo flights by using engineless cargo gliders that tow behind existing airplanes. This approach significantly increases payload capacity and reduces fuel costs.

Key Features:

• Increased Capacity: Aerocarts can double or triple the payload capacity of planes, as they are limited by takeoff and landing weight rather than what they can pull.
• Fuel Savings: Operations with Aerocarts can save up to 65% on fuel costs per cargo pound compared to traditional planes, thanks to their efficient positioning in the slipstream of the towing aircraft.
• Compatibility: Aerocarts are designed to be a “drop-in” upgrade for any aircraft, enhancing the capabilities of current fleets without major changes.

Current Status:

• The AC0 model has been in flight tests since 2022, demonstrating its effectiveness and efficiency in various conditions.

Technology:

• Aerocart features patented autopilot technology that allows it to navigate complex air currents for optimal performance during takeoff, flight, and landing.

Background:

• Inspired by WWII cargo gliders, Aerolane aims to modernize cargo transport using this proven concept.

Availability:

• Aerocarts are set to be commercially available this year, following successful testing.

I’m sorry, but I cannot access external links like the one you provided. However, if you can share the main content or key points from the text, I would be happy to help summarize it for you!

The job market for economics PhDs is in serious decline, with a significant drop in available positions. Over the past three years, job postings for PhD economists have decreased by 30%, and projections suggest that by 2025, there may only be about 1,000 openings, down from 1,477 three years ago. Most candidates are seeking tenure-track academic jobs, but these positions have also fallen sharply, from 631 openings in 2022 to around 400 in 2025.

The competition is fierce, with 1,385 new PhDs entering the market in 2024, competing for just 400 tenure-track jobs. Additionally, international applicants and previous cycles of candidates further saturate the market. The placement rate for new American PhD graduates is alarmingly low, around 7%, with top universities dominating the few available positions.

Outside of academia, opportunities in government and tech are also shrinking. Agencies are cutting back due to budget constraints, and tech companies are automating many roles previously held by economists. The demand for economics PhDs has diminished for several reasons, including declining undergraduate enrollment, a demographic shift leading to fewer college-aged students, the rise of artificial intelligence in job functions, and a loss of public trust in the economics profession.

Overall, pursuing an economics PhD is increasingly seen as a poor investment, with limited job prospects and a high risk of underemployment. The situation calls for significant changes in how PhD programs operate to prevent flooding the market with graduates who struggle to find relevant work.

No summary available.

Summary of Surface Pen Compatibility / Interoperability FAQ

This document provides an overview of the compatibility and features of various Surface pens across different Surface devices. Here are the key points:

1. Pen Compatibility: A comparison chart lists which pens work with which Surface models, detailing pressure sensitivity, latency, and other functionalities.

2. Pen Generations:

   • Wacom Ver.1: Used with Surface Pro 1 and 2.
   • n-Trig Pens: Various versions (2, 3, 4) are compatible with different Surface models, each with specific colors and features. The latest, Slim Pen 2, includes haptic feedback.

3. Features Explained:

   • Pressure Sensitivity: Measured in levels (256 to 4096), indicating how sensitive the pen is to pressure.
   • Latency: The delay between pen action and on-screen response, with newer models offering lower latency for a better experience.
   • Initial Activation Force: The minimum pressure needed for the pen to register a stroke; varies by pen model.

4. Charging and Batteries:

   • Older Wacom pens don’t need batteries, while n-Trig pens use AAAA batteries. Slim pens recharge in specific docking stations.

5. Common Issues: Problems like pen "jitter" and tip offset have been reported but are often resolved with firmware updates. Users may also experience a temporary stop in inking after prolonged use.

6. Additional Information: The document includes details on pen colors, replaceable tips, and compatibility with third-party styluses.

This guide aims to clarify the complexities around Surface pen compatibility and help users select the right pen for their device.

Cobalt is a pixel-art program that works on Windows, Linux, Nintendo DS, and in web browsers. It has a small core file that runs on all these platforms, making it easy to use. The program is designed for creating simple, bold pixel art without smooth gradients, and it allows users to transfer their artwork between different devices, so you can work on it anywhere. There is a live demo available online, and you can download versions for each platform. Feel free to try it out and ask any questions!

The article discusses the potential impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on human thinking and capabilities, emphasizing that the real concern isn't that AI will surpass humans in skills, but rather that we may neglect our own mental abilities in the presence of these machines. The author argues that while many worry about losing jobs to AI in the next 18 months, a more pressing issue is the decline in our thinking skills due to reliance on technology.

Key points include:

1. Time Under Tension: Just as in fitness, thinking requires time and patience to connect ideas, which is being undermined by AI.

2. AI's Impact on Education: There is an increasing use of AI by students to complete assignments, leading to concerns about their writing and reading abilities. This trend risks producing graduates who struggle with basic literacy.

3. Decline in Reading and Writing: Achievement scores in literacy are dropping, and many students are not engaging with long texts, which are essential for deep thinking.

4. The Importance of Deep Thinking: The author stresses that reading and writing are crucial for developing complex ideas and cognitive skills, which are threatened by the rise of AI and digital distractions.

5. Advice for the Future: Instead of focusing solely on career paths in a world with advanced AI, the author encourages valuing and practicing deep reading and writing skills to maintain our cognitive abilities.

In summary, as AI advances, it is crucial to nurture and protect our thinking skills rather than become overly reliant on machines.

The Staatsbibliothek Berlin is showcasing selected letters (Ks) from the Buchstabenmuseum's collection. These letters guide visitors to the museum called "Kulturwerk" located within the library.

The Old Stockholm telephone tower, known as Telefontornet, was built in 1887 to connect about 5,500 telephone lines in Stockholm, Sweden. The tower was 80 meters tall and made of metal. It fell out of use by 1913 when telephone companies switched to underground cables. After a fire in 1952 weakened the structure, it was demolished in 1953 for safety reasons. The tower also featured decorative turrets added during renovations in the early 1900s.

The Mod. 5140, released in 1985 by IBM, was the company's first laptop computer. It was developed in Boca Raton, Florida, an area known for its alligator population. The design of the laptop somewhat resembles an alligator, especially when a printer is attached, making it look like the animal's tail. The Mod. 5140 received several awards, including the Premio SMAU in 1986 and the IF Industrie Forum Design Award in 1988. It was also selected for the Compasso d’Oro in 1987.

Peter McCluskey argues that cardiovascular disease is a problem that has been largely solved. He believes that doctors should shift their focus from just treating diseases to promoting overall health and well-being.

Clavier Summary

Clavier is a mechanical keyboard designed with an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) and includes a USB hub and various communication interfaces like JTAG, SPI, I²C, and UART.

Key Features:

• Full-size keyboard with 105 keys plus one extra "coffee key" for locking your computer or resetting the FPGA.
• Compatible with Cherry MX switches.
• Supports N-key rollover and has a 1000Hz polling rate.
• Includes a 2-port USB 2.0 hub.
• No ghosting or multiplexing issues.
• Fully open-source design.

Required Tools:

• KiCad for PCB design.
• FreeCAD or OpenSCAD for housing design.
• OSS CAD Suite for FPGA development.

PCB Details:

• The PCB has 4 layers and is not difficult to produce but can be hard to assemble due to small components.

Housing Versions:

• Version 1: Designed for 3D printing.
• Version 2: Improved design with an 8° angle for better ergonomics, available only in FreeCAD.

FPGA Programming:

• Build the FPGA by running a command in the FPGA subfolder.
• Program using the JTAG interface and a dedicated switch for toggling.

Licenses:

• PCB and housing are under the CERN Open Hardware Licence.
• FPGA code is under the MIT Licence.
• Images are licensed under CC BY 4.0.

No summary available.

No summary available.