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Automated summaries of top Hacker News stories written by a large language model.
Meta AI releases Code Llama 70B
Meta AI has just released Code Llama 70B, a groundbreaking new software that is set to revolutionize the world of coding. This innovative tool utilizes artificial intelligence to streamline the coding process, making it faster and more efficient than ever before. With Code Llama 70B, developers can expect to see a significant increase in productivity and accuracy. This release is generating a lot of buzz in the tech community, with many experts praising its potential to transform the industry. Controversy surrounds the use of AI in coding, with concerns about job displacement and ethical implications. However, Meta AI is confident that Code Llama 70B will ultimately enhance the coding experience for developers.
Oxide Computer releases distribution of illumos intended to power the Oxide Rack
The Oxide Helios project is a distribution of illumos that is designed to power the Oxide Rack. It consists of several consolidations of software, including tools for assembling boot images, build scripts for packages beyond the core OS, a zone brand for Omicron components, and more. The project aims to provide a complete operating system package for the Oxide Rack. The author mentions that not all consolidations are currently available to the public, but they are working on making them accessible. The project also provides instructions for building the operating system packages and installing them. (Summary based on 37% of story text.)
Philips stops U.S. ventilator sales over faulty devices; Cut 7,600 jobs in 2023
Dutch health technology company Philips has announced that it has stopped selling ventilators and sleep apnea breathing-assist machines in the United States as part of a settlement agreement with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This comes after the company recalled 5.5 million of its first-generation DreamStation sleep apnea devices due to the discovery that the sound-dampening foam in the machines could crumble and enter users' airways. The recall has cost Philips hundreds of millions of euros, and the company has set aside 363 million euros for damages and to address the consent decree. Philips also revealed that it cut over 7,500 jobs last year, nearly 10 percent of its workforce, as part of its efforts to reduce operating costs. The company reported a loss of 463 million euros in 2023 but stated that it was on a path back to profitability in the fourth quarter.
The Twins Obsession
The article discusses the fascination and complexity surrounding twins. It begins by describing a famous photograph taken by Diane Arbus in 1966, which captures the eerie and uncanny presence of identical twins. The photograph reportedly inspired Stanley Kubrick's depiction of twins in "The Shining." The article then delves into the history and mythology of twins, highlighting their significance in various cultures and their impact on our understanding of personhood and identity. The Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart is mentioned, which found striking similarities in the lives of separated twins. The article also introduces two books on twins, one focusing on their representations and the other exploring the philosophy of twin identity. The author, Helena de Bres, aims to challenge the gothic and horror movie associations with twins and instead present a more nuanced understanding of their experiences. The article concludes by discussing the author's personal relationship with her twin sister and the benefits and complexities of twinhood.
The Farmers Had What the Billionaires Wanted
A mysterious company called Flannery Associates, controlled by Jan Sramek, has been buying up farmland in Rio Vista, California, sparking controversy and rumors among the town's residents. It was later revealed that Sramek, backed by Silicon Valley billionaires including Michael Moritz, Reid Hoffman, and Laurene Powell Jobs, planned to build a city in the agricultural region. Sramek recently filed a proposed ballot initiative to seek permission from voters for the project, which aims to amend an "orderly growth" ordinance protecting Solano County's farms and open space. The initiative promises new roads, investment in downtown areas, and a fund to help residents buy homes. The project has faced opposition from groups concerned about the destruction of farmland. (Summary based on 57% of story text.)
China's first natively built supercomputer goes online – with unknown specs
China Telecom has announced the completion of the country's first supercomputer built entirely with Chinese-made components and technology. The Central Intelligent Computing Center, located in Wuhan, is designed for AI and can train large language models with trillions of parameters. While China has previously built supercomputers using domestic hardware and software, this achievement marks a significant milestone for the country's tech industry. However, specific details about the supercomputer's performance and specifications are scarce. China's decision to keep its supercomputers out of the TOP500 list is believed to be due to fears of attracting more U.S. sanctions. The use of solely Chinese technology demonstrates China's commitment to technological independence, even if it means sacrificing cutting-edge Western hardware for slower domestically-made components.
Flathub: One million active users and growing
Flathub, a popular app store for Linux, has reached a significant milestone with over one million active users. The platform has served a total of 1.6 billion downloads of over 2,400 apps and their updates. Flathub's growth can be attributed to several factors, including the availability of popular apps like Firefox, Google Chrome, and Spotify, as well as the introduction of verified apps, which assures users that their favorite apps come directly from the developers. The inclusion of Flathub as the default app source for the Steam Deck's desktop mode has also contributed to its usage. Flathub is now the preferred app store for Linux, and its grassroots adoption across the Linux desktop ecosystem is proof of its success. The platform is looking forward to further developments, including payments, improved documentation, and curation of apps.
Svelte Native: The Svelte Mobile Development Experience
Svelte Native is a unique mobile development framework that utilizes NativeScript to build mobile applications. Unlike other frameworks like React Native and NativeScript-Vue, Svelte Native shifts the majority of its work into a compile step during the app building process. This approach allows Svelte to surgically update the native view widgets when the app's state changes, rather than relying on virtual DOM diffing. This results in a more efficient and performant mobile development experience.
What I Talk About When I Talk About Query Optimizer (Part 1): IR Design
The article discusses SQL query optimizers and their design patterns. It begins by introducing the concept of a query optimizer, which is a database component that optimizes the execution plan of queries. The author explains that different databases have various methods for optimizing queries, such as rewriting the AST or dynamically rewriting during query execution. The article then delves into the concept of Intermediate Representation (IR), which is used in compilers for different programming languages. In the context of query optimizers, IR serves as a structural representation of SQL statements. The article also discusses the design of SQL IR, including the use of relational algebra and the representation of SQL AST as a recursive tree structure. The author emphasizes the importance of using best engineering practices when designing SQL IR and provides an example of building a simple SQL IR using Rust. The article concludes by mentioning that subsequent articles will cover optimization rules and algorithms. (Summary based on 19% of story text.)
Python types have an expectations problem
The author discusses the issue of type annotations in Python and how they differ from other languages. They explain that while type annotations in languages like TypeScript and PHP catch type errors at compile time or runtime, respectively, Python's type hints do not have any effect at runtime. The author highlights the expectation mismatch that arises from this difference and suggests that Python type hints should be treated as comments for external tools rather than a working part of the language. They mention the existence of an official syntax for type comments, but note that it is not widely used or as versatile as type annotations.
Paintings of the Traditional Porcelain Process
The web content discusses the influence of Western trade on Chinese painting and porcelain production during the 18th century. It highlights the unique blend of Chinese and Western styles that emerged from the dialogue between Western merchants, artists, painters, and porcelain producers in Guangdong province. The content mentions the existence of Export Paintings that depict traditional Chinese porcelain-production techniques, which were based on illustrations from the Qianlong reign. These paintings, although flawed and with different titles and characters, provide interesting details of porcelain production and serve as examples of cross-cultural exchange. The content also mentions a set of Guangzhou Chinese export paintings from the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Coding on Copilot: 2023 Data Suggests Downward Pressure on Code Quality
The article discusses the impact of AI-assisted development, specifically focusing on GitHub Copilot, on code quality. The author mentions that over 50% of developers adopted AI-assisted development in 2023 but highlights that there hasn't been much discussion about how the use of AI affects the composition of code. The author analyzes four years' worth of data, including 150 million lines of code, to determine the influence of AI assistants on code quality. They find an increase in code churn and a decrease in code reuse, which raises concerns about maintainability. The article concludes with suggestions for managers to maintain high code quality despite these challenges.
It turns out NASA's Mars helicopter was much more revolutionary than we knew
NASA's Mars helicopter, Ingenuity, has made groundbreaking achievements during its time on the red planet. Firstly, it has proven that powered flight is possible on other worlds, which is a significant development in the field of space exploration. Secondly, Ingenuity has demonstrated the use of commercial, off-the-shelf parts in space missions, which has the potential to revolutionize the way NASA and other space agencies explore and settle the Solar System. The thin Martian atmosphere posed challenges for Ingenuity's design, but the use of commercially available components has yielded impressive results. NASA officials compare Ingenuity's impact to that of the Wright Brothers' first flight, envisioning a similar transformation in space exploration.
The Apple Vision Pro's Missing Apps
The Apple Vision Pro, a new headset with ultra-high-resolution displays and immersive audio, is being touted as a replacement for traditional home theaters. Om Malik, a technology observer and investor, believes that the Vision Pro's primary function is media consumption on the go. He compares it to the iPod, which revolutionized personal music listening. Malik argues that the Vision Pro will appeal to those who have grown up watching videos on smaller screens, such as iPads and smartphones. However, there is controversy surrounding the device, as Netflix has decided not to launch an app for it, which is seen as a snub to Apple. (Summary based on 61% of story text.)
Show HN: WhisperFusion – Ultra-low latency conversations with an AI chatbot
WhisperFusion is a project that aims to enable seamless conversations with an AI chatbot with ultra-low latency. It combines the capabilities of WhisperLive and WhisperSpeech by integrating Mistral, a Large Language Model (LLM), on top of the real-time speech-to-text pipeline. The project differentiates itself by optimizing both the LLM and Whisper to run efficiently as TensorRT engines, ensuring high-performance and low-latency processing. Additionally, WhisperSpeech uses torch.compile to speed up inference and make PyTorch code run faster. The project provides a pre-built TensorRT-LLM docker container for easy setup and interaction with WhisperFusion.
New Class of Life Has Been Found in the Human Digestive System
Researchers have discovered a new class of virus-like objects in the human digestive system. These objects, called Obelisks, are made up of genetic material with no detectable sequences or structural similarities to other biological agents. The Obelisks are named after their rod-like structures formed by twisted lengths of RNA. The researchers found almost 30,000 different Obelisks in 10 percent of the human microbiomes they examined. Different types of Obelisks were found in different areas of the body, suggesting they may be colonists of human microbiomes. The Obelisks also contain codes for a new class of protein called Oblins. However, their impact on bacterial hosts and means of spreading between cells are still unknown.
Microsoft cancels Blizzard survival game, lays off 1,900
Microsoft has canceled the survival game that Blizzard was working on and has laid off 1,900 employees. The game, which was announced in January 2022, did not have a title yet but was intended for PC and console. The layoffs come a few months after Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The company stated that some of the employees working on the canceled game will be shifted to other promising projects in the early stages of development. The layoffs affect 8.64 percent of Microsoft's gaming division. This news follows a series of tech layoffs in the industry.
Viewing Illegal Streams: No Cautions, Fines or Arrests Say GM Police
The article discusses the response of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding enforcement measures against suppliers, distributors, and consumers of illegal streaming services. GMP revealed that two people received cautions and two people were arrested for distributing or supplying illegal streaming services in 2021, and one person was arrested in 2022. However, GMP did not disclose any arrests, cautions, or fines for simply watching illegal streams during the five-year period from 2019 to 2023. The article highlights the contrast between the low number of enforcement actions and the estimated 3.9 million people in the UK who watched live sports via illegal streams in 2022. The author suggests that the lack of arrests for watching illegal streams contradicts the fear-based anti-piracy campaign in the UK.
Lubricate Your Keyholes
The article on practicalbetterments.com discusses the importance of lubricating keyholes to save time. The author acknowledges that the time spent researching and acquiring keyhole lubricant may outweigh the time saved from optimal key insertion. However, they argue that certain moments, such as rushing to the hospital or needing to use the toilet, make the seconds saved from lubricated keyholes valuable. The author conducted a test and found that lubricating the keyhole reduced the time it took to insert a key by an average of 2.442 seconds. They provide instructions on how to lubricate keyholes using dry graphite powder lubricant.
How we had our Nectar Points stolen, and this is how yours will be too
The author woke up one morning to find that their Nectar Points had been stolen. They contacted Nectar, who seemed unsurprised and said they would investigate and refund the stolen points. The author then discovered that it was very easy to access anyone's Nectar account due to flaws in the website's security. By trying random strings of numbers, they were able to find valid Nectar card numbers and create online accounts for them. They also found that it was possible to generate valid barcodes, which could be used at Sainsbury's checkout terminals. The author shared their findings in a YouTube video, which led to BBC Radio 4 running a story on the issue. Many people in the comments section of the video reported having their points stolen as well. The author acknowledges that sharing this information may be seen as irresponsible, but they wanted to highlight the lack of security in Nectar's systems.
Process Spawning Performance in Rust
The author discusses their investigation into the performance of process spawning in Rust on Linux. They explain that they were benchmarking the speed of spawning processes in their distributed task runtime called HyperQueue. They found surprising performance bottlenecks when spawning a large number of processes on an HPC cluster compared to their local laptop. The author explores the differences in syscalls used for process spawning, specifically clone3 vs clone, and attributes the performance difference to the version of glibc being used. They also mention the use of the POSIXSPAWNUSEVFORK flag and the impact of memory allocation on the performance of fork. (Summary based on 45% of story text.)
Negotiate your salary with a little philosophical backup
This article discusses how to negotiate a salary raise using philosophical principles. It advises against being jealous of colleagues, threatening to go on a work-to-rule campaign, seeking pity, bragging about one's merits, and flattering the HR director. Instead, the article suggests emphasizing one's results, availability, and team spirit, and highlighting future commitment to the company. The author emphasizes the importance of rhetoric and avoiding certain pitfalls in order to successfully negotiate a salary increase.
Show HN: A protocol for sharing knowledge via semantic lookup with use in LLMs
The Semantic Lookup Protocol is a project on GitHub that enables users to share their writings and allows others to search for semantically similar text. The protocol involves the client sending a JSON request to the server with a query and maximum number of results, and receiving a response with a list of outputs. The project includes two demos, one that requires access to the ChatGPT API for text lookup and chatbot interactions, and another that allows for text lookup without the API. The project emphasizes flexibility and suggests that additional input parameters can be added to enhance the protocol's functionality.
Show HN: CLI for managing Mutter monitor configurations
The mcm (Monitor Configuration Management) project is a command line utility for managing Gnome monitor configurations. It allows users to save and apply monitor configurations easily. The purpose of this project is to provide a simple and efficient way to manage monitor configurations in the Gnome desktop environment. It can be used to solve the problem of manually adjusting monitor settings every time they change. The author mentions that this project differentiates itself from others by planning to support other desktop environments, such as KDE Plasma, and by offering features like a Gnome indicator extension for visually saving and applying monitor configurations. Additionally, the project aims to provide various distribution packages for easy installation.
Disney 'Cracks Down' on Mickey Mouse 'Steamboat Silly' Pirates
The famous "Steamboat Willie" cartoon, Mickey Mouse's first appearance, has entered the public domain, allowing it to be copied, remixed, and monetized. However, Disney has issued takedown notices to remove the cartoon from YouTube and other platforms, although they were later retracted. While the original Mickey Mouse footage is now free to use, later iterations of the character remain protected. The confusion arises with the "Steamboat Silly" short, which includes footage from "Steamboat Willie" and could potentially trigger automatic content recognition systems. The controversy surrounding the public domain status of Mickey Mouse and the enforcement of copyright protection by Disney remains to be seen.
Why Walmart pays its truck drivers 6 figures
Walmart pays its truck drivers six figures because they are crucial to the company's retail dominance. Walmart relies on its trucking workforce to ensure that its stores are well-stocked and that products are delivered on time. The company employs around 14,000 truck drivers and offers competitive compensation packages, including high salaries, home time, paid vacation, and good health insurance. Walmart's focus on supply chain and distribution has been a key factor in its success, and the company has invested in its own distribution and trucking networks to better serve its customers and manage costs. Walmart has recently implemented a program that allows associates to become truck drivers, tapping into its own talent pool. However, some truck drivers argue that Walmart should raise its pay to attract and retain experienced drivers. The trucking industry is divided on the issue of a truck driver shortage, with employers claiming a shortage while researchers suggest that better wages would lead to a more stable workforce. Overall, Walmart's investment in its truck drivers reflects the importance of distribution in its operations and its commitment to serving customers effectively. (Summary based on 94% of story text.)
Why focus on AI meeting transcripts if the real problem is bad meeting prep?
The article on www.meetrics.ai argues that instead of focusing on AI meeting transcripts, the real problem lies in bad meeting preparation. The website offers an integrated three-step guide that is embedded within your calendar to ensure preparedness and confidence in every meeting. This guide uses AI-defined objectives and smart agenda settings to enhance focus and efficiency. By adopting this approach, the article claims that you can consistently achieve your meeting goals and have a more productive and efficient meeting experience.
Dr Strangelove turns 60 today
As Stanley Kubrick's satirical masterpiece Dr Strangelove turns 60, the mystery behind the inspiration for the film's central character remains. Rumors have circulated for years about who the real-life Dr Strangelove was, with physicist Edward Teller being a popular candidate due to his work on the atomic and hydrogen bombs. However, Teller vehemently denied any connection to the character. Other possibilities include mathematician John von Neumann, nuclear strategist Herman Kahn, German rocket scientist Wernher von Braun, and foreign policy expert Henry Kissinger. Kubrick never clarified the character's origins, leaving the true identity of Dr Strangelove a mystery. The film remains a powerful satire on the politics of nuclear war.
Linus Torvalds flames Google kernel contributor over filesystem suggestion
Linus Torvalds, the creator of Linux, has criticized a Google contributor over suggestions regarding filesystems. The debate centered around the use of "inodes," which are unique identifiers for metadata on a filesystem. Torvalds argued that inode numbers are no longer necessary or unique descriptors in modern filesystems. The exchange became heated, with Torvalds using strong language and expressing frustration. However, the debate eventually calmed down, and Torvalds offered suggestions for a better approach. The incident highlights the importance of maintaining a respectful and productive workplace environment on the Linux Kernel mailing list.
The Intellectual Rot of the Industrially Necessary University
The article discusses the intellectual rot of the modern university and compares it to the medieval Church. The author shares their personal experience in academia and highlights the success of Claudine Gay, a highly accomplished individual. However, the author argues that the problem lies not with Gay or individuals like her, but with the system of university administrators and faculty. They criticize the role of higher education in modern society, which they believe has transformed from an investment good into a consumption good. The author draws parallels between the modern university and the medieval Church, pointing out cultural elitism, economic rapaciousness, and intellectual rot as common criticisms. They also mention the Protestant Reformation as a catalyst for change in the Church. (Summary based on 82% of story text.)