Jane Street barred from Indian markets as regulator freezes $566 million (cnbc.com | comments) The Indian financial regulator has prohibited the U.S. trading firm Jane Street from participating in Indian securities markets, freezing $566 million amid claims of manipulation related to the Nifty 50 index. Jane Street's entities are barred from any trading activities, directly or indirectly, involving securities.
Volvo delivers 5,000th electric semi with little fanfare (electrek.co | comments) Volvo has delivered its 5,000th electric semi truck, which has collectively logged over 100 million miles. This positions Volvo ahead in the electric commercial vehicle sector amidst intense competition.
Colombia seizes first unmanned narco-submarine with Starlink antenna (france24.com | comments) Colombian authorities have seized an unmanned drug smuggling submarine equipped with a Starlink antenna off the Caribbean coast. While no drugs were discovered onboard, officials suspect this could indicate a trial run for automated cocaine trafficking operations.
The War on the Walkman (pessimistsarchive.org | comments) The Sony Walkman, a symbol of the 1980s, represents a nostalgic era of music ownership before the shift to streaming services. The piece highlights how the Walkman's original appeal was rooted in personal ownership and convenience, contrasting it with today's digital rental culture.
What a Hacker Stole from Me (mynoise.net | comments) The text titled 'What a Hacker Stole from Me' appears to be an unfinished HTML document without meaningful content regarding specific theft or hacking incidents. Instead, it consists largely of coding elements and layouts associated with web design, lacking coherent narrative or insights.
A non-anthropomorphized view of LLMs (addxorrol.blogspot.com | comments) The piece presents a critical perspective on how discussions around AI alignment and safety often attribute human-like qualities to large language models (LLMs), arguing that this anthropomorphism clouds rational understanding and leads to misconceptions about their capabilities and limitations.
LLMs should not replace therapists (arxiv.org | comments) Research critically assesses the potential of large language models (LLMs) to replace mental health providers, emphasizing major shortcomings. Findings reveal LLMs like GPT-4 show stigma towards mental health issues and inappropriate responses in therapeutic contexts, underscoring the necessity of human characteristics in therapy, including empathy and interpersonal relationships.
The first time I was almost fired from Apple (engineersneedart.com | comments) In a candid recounting, the author shares their challenging early experiences as a graphics engineer at Apple during a turbulent time for the company. Tasked with adapting a legacy Color Picker project for new PowerPC architecture, the engineer navigates technical obstacles, learns from peers, and ultimately finds creative fulfillment in developing intuitive color pickers, reflecting on the culture of innovation at Apple.
Stop killing games and the industry response (kronis.dev | comments) A European Citizens' Initiative titled 'Stop Destroying Videogames' has gathered over a million signatures in response to game publishers disabling online features that render purchased games unplayable. The initiative calls for publishers to keep games functional, even after services are discontinued, while facing resistance from the gaming industry citing economic concerns.
AI is coming for agriculture, but farmers aren’t convinced (theconversation.com | comments) Despite significant investments in high-tech agricultural systems, many farmers remain hesitant about adopting artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Farmers express a demand for solutions that are not only advanced but also practical, adaptable, and dependable, reflecting their skepticism toward overly complex tech innovations.
Nobody has a personality anymore: we are products with labels (freyaindia.co.uk | comments) In a world increasingly dominated by predefined social identities, the idea of individuality is eroding, suggesting that people are becoming mere 'products' labeled by societal expectations rather than being recognized for their unique personalities. This observation raises concerns about the implications for genuine self-expression.
Why English doesn't use accents (deadlanguagesociety.com | comments) English distinguishes itself from languages like French by traditionally lacking accent marks, which serve phonetic purposes. This absence simplifies spelling and writing, but it can lead to ambiguities in pronunciation and meaning. The discussion raises interesting points about how language evolution impacts communication.
I don't think AGI is right around the corner (dwarkesh.com | comments) In a critical examination, the author argues against the notion that Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) is imminent, highlighting that continuous learning remains a significant challenge. This piece delves into the limitations faced in the development of AGI, emphasizing the complexities of creating truly intelligent systems.
Async Queue – One of my favorite programming interview questions (davidgomes.com | comments) David Gomes reflects on a favorite programming interview question centered on asynchronous queue management—a concept critical for developers navigating concurrent processing. With over 500 iterations of this question facilitated in interviews, he unpacks the reasoning and methodology behind its selection, exploring its applicability in a tech-driven workforce.
More than 1 in 5 Show HN posts are now AI-related, get > half the votes/comments (ryanfarley.co | comments) AI-related Show HN posts now make up over 20% of submissions, but receive fewer than half the average votes and comments. An analysis using Hacker News data reveals a significant rise in AI content among posts, indicating a shift in user engagement. The author expresses frustration over perceived low-quality submissions and a decline in meaningful self-promotion on HN.
Overthinking GIS (2024) (scottsexton.co | comments) Scott Sexton's 'Overthinking GIS' reflects on the significance of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in modern cartography, positing it as a transformative advancement. The piece discusses the intricate challenges of data downsampling in GIS, illustrating its potential with nuances drawn from the author's experiences in the field.
Take Two: Eshell (yummymelon.com | comments) Charles Choi reflects on his evolving experience with Eshell, a shell interface for Emacs. Initially unimpressed, he now finds it integral, noting how he substitutes traditional shell tasks with Emacs modes like Dired and Magit. He emphasizes understanding Elisp to leverage Eshell's full potential, blending shell commands with powerful Elisp functions.
The Force-Feeding of AI on an Unwilling Public (honest-broker.com | comments) The piece critiques the rapid and often forceful integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into everyday life, characterizing the trend not as genuine innovation but as a form of coercion against public will. It raises concerns regarding the implications of such developments on society and individual autonomy.
Are we the baddies? (geohot.github.io | comments) The author critiques modern capitalism's reliance on manipulation through algorithms and psychology, questioning the ethical implications of tech interventions in daily life. They express concern about the inevitability of exploitation in society, suggesting traditional democratic reforms may be ineffective against systemic issues driven by corporate greed.
Bitchat – A decentralized messaging app that works over Bluetooth mesh networks (github.com/jackjackbits | comments) Bitchat is a decentralized messaging application designed to operate over Bluetooth mesh networks, enhancing communication even in areas with limited or no internet connectivity. This innovation leverages local device communication to facilitate real-time messaging, offering users increased privacy and reliability compared to traditional messaging systems.
Show HN: I wrote a "web OS" based on the Apple Lisa's UI, with 1-bit graphics (lisagui.com | comments) Andrew Yaros has created a web-based operating system inspired by the Apple Lisa's user interface, featuring 1-bit graphics. The platform incorporates a graphical user interface (GUI) reminiscent of the original Lisa, aiming to evoke nostalgia while functioning as a modern application. Users can access it through a browser.
Toys/Lag: Jerk Monitor (pcarrier.com | comments) After upgrading to a 240 Hz monitor, the author, Pierre Carrier, investigated latency issues with his wireless mouse. He created a tool that measures frame delays and pointer event timings to confirm the impact of switching USB ports, learning that even with high DPI settings, occasional missed pointer updates occur.
Speeding up PostgreSQL dump/restore snapshots (xata.io | comments) Recent improvements in PostgreSQL's pgstream snapshots have significantly accelerated bulk data loads and complex schema operations. This upgrade is designed to enhance data backup and restore processes, catering specifically to scenarios demanding faster data handling.
Corrected UTF-8 (2022) (owlfolio.org | comments) Corrected UTF-8 proposes essential modifications to the UTF-8 encoding to rectify design flaws. These changes eliminate overlength encodings, exclude C1 controls and surrogate characters, and remove the upper limit on codepoints. The new encoding aims to enhance security and ensure future compatibility in text representation.
Functions Are Vectors (2023) (thenumb.at | comments) Understanding functions as vectors allows the application of linear algebra to complex problems in infinite-dimensional vector spaces and functional analysis, particularly in machine learning and image processing. The article emphasizes prerequisites in linear algebra, calculus, and differential equations.
Hannah Cairo: 17-year-old teen refutes a math conjecture proposed 40 years ago (elpais.com | comments) Hannah Cairo, a 17-year-old prodigy, has successfully refuted a mathematical conjecture that has puzzled experts for 40 years. Her work challenges established theories and has garnered significant attention in the mathematics community. Experts are analyzing her findings, which could reshape parts of mathematical theory.
Get the location of the ISS using DNS (shkspr.mobi | comments) Terence Eden's blog post covers how to locate the International Space Station (ISS) using Domain Name System (DNS) techniques. It highlights the intriguing aspects of DNS, emphasizing its ability to instantly distribute location data. The piece illustrates DNS as a practical tool beyond its typical association with web servers.
July 5, 1687: When Newton explained why you don't float away (multiverseemployeehandbook.com | comments) On July 5, 1687, Isaac Newton published the *Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica*, providing crucial explanations of gravitational theories, from why apples fall to why planets remain in orbit. His work revolutionized our understanding of physics and laid the foundation for modern science, still applied today by institutions like NASA.