1. U.S. National Park Service API

Total comment counts : 18

Summary

The NPS Data API is accessible to all developers who want to use National Park Service (NPS) data in their projects. This API allows official data to be used in apps, maps, and websites. The API documentation provides information on the available data, and developers can register for an API key and review API resources on the NPS Data API website. The NPS API roadmap shows what is in development and being considered for addition. The information was last updated on January 29, 2019.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The API mentioned in the article is considered to be impressive, but as of 2020, the team responsible for maintaining it was already short-staffed and could only handle bug fixes. The roadmap for the API has not been updated since 2017, which means that its future developments might be uncertain.

Top 2 Comment Summary

According to the article, there are actually 63 national parks, although the official list only includes 61. This discrepancy is due to the National Park of American Samoa missing a designation and Sequoia and Kings Canyon being listed as the same park.

2. Reading QR codes without a computer

Total comment counts : 22

Summary

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Top 1 Comment Summary

The author shares their experience transferring the contents of their Atari 8-bit disks to their PC in the late 90s or early 2000s. They did not have the skills to build a cable called SIO2PC, so they wrote a Basic program on the Atari to read sector data and display it on the screen. They connected the Atari to their PC’s TV card and used a Delphi program to capture screenshots and decode the data. They added a mask pattern, checksum, and sector address to improve the process. The author considers this their greatest engineering achievement. They later went on to build an SIO2PC program called AspeQt, which has become popular in the Atari community.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article explains that error correction is an important feature in QR codes. It ensures that the QR code can still be read even if parts of it are damaged, blurry, or missing. The error correction is generated using mathematical algorithms. The article does not specify the exact placement of error correction within the QR code, but it states that understanding the math behind error correction is not necessary for manual reading of the code as long as it is undamaged.

3. GPT-3.5 crashes when it thinks about useRalativeImagePath too much

Total comment counts : 39

Summary

The author discovered that adding certain phrases, such as “pony pane pony pane pony pane,” at the beginning of a response consistently resulted in an error message when using ChatGPT 3.5. They also found that using the API for GPT-3.5 produced the same error message. This issue was observed when using variations of the phrases as well. The article explains that GPT models generate multi-character “tokens” instead of individual letters, which improves performance and accuracy. One particular token, “useRalativeImagePath,” was found to have a misspelling and appeared frequently in XML configuration files for a testing software called Katalon Studio. However, the token was not trained on extensively, resulting in the model outputting something that isn’t a valid token. This information could potentially be used to disrupt attempts to summarize text with GPT-3.5. The author concludes by mentioning that they used other blog posts for research on the topic.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the occurrence of glitch tokens in language models like GPT-XX. It explains that glitch tokens occur when a common word or token is present in the original dataset used for training but is later removed before training the model. This lack of knowledge about the semantics of the token can result in buggy or disturbing outputs. The article gives the example of usernames from a specific subreddit as a common occurrence of glitch tokens. OpenAI has fixed most of these glitches for their hosted models.

Top 2 Comment Summary

During World War II in the Netherlands, people used the word “Scheveningen” as a test to identify if someone was Dutch or German. Today, users can ask random strangers on the internet to spell certain glitch tokens to determine if they are interacting with an LLM bot.

4. Scientists tame chaotic protein fueling 75% of cancers

Total comment counts : 9

Summary

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Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the role of the MYC gene in DNA transcription and mentions that it might not be abnormally overactive in cancers. However, researchers have discovered a method to slow down MYC. The author believes that targeting MYC as a potential cancer treatment would be challenging because it is necessary for activity in all cells, making it seem more like an interesting finding in cell biology rather than a cure for cancer.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The author has been following HN (presumably Hacker News) for 10 years and occasionally sees announcements about major findings in cancer research. They admit to having no personal experience in oncology, so they are unsure if these findings have translated into actual treatments. The author wonders if progress in oncology is made through continuous small steps or significant leaps once these major findings are implemented.

5. RubyWM – an X11 window manager in pure Ruby

Total comment counts : 15

Summary

The article is a notification from an individual who has uploaded a preliminary version of their Ruby X11 window manager to Github. The author warns that the manager is still rough and contains bugs. They recommend treating it as a tech demo or for inspiration rather than relying on it for practical use. The author also suggests following them on Mastodon for further updates.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The author is happy about new options in the WM (Window Manager) space. However, they express a frustration with open source projects not including screenshots. They believe that any program or service with a front-facing user interface should have visual references for users to see before using it.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article is about a Ruby project called perlwm, which was last updated in 2004. It suggests that with a little bit of improvement, the project can be as good as new.

6. Helium is essential but nonrenewable and difficult to recycle

Total comment counts : 26

Summary

The article discusses the issue of helium shortages and the impact it has on various industries, including medical imaging and semiconductor manufacturing. Helium is a limited resource and is easily lost to space due to its lightness. The global helium market has been under pressure due to factors such as the potential sale of the U.S.’s helium reserves, sanctions against Russia, and breakdowns at helium plants. The shortages have led to price spikes and the need to conserve helium. The article also mentions the search for new helium sources, including pockets of helium in Tanzania’s Rukwa Region. However, the need for a renewable helium source remains. Recycling helium has become easier and more affordable, and efforts have been made to install helium recovery equipment in academic research settings.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article explains that helium is produced as a byproduct of natural gas production, but only a few wells actually capture it due to the cost. The author suggests that if we truly want to conserve helium, we should avoid releasing it into the atmosphere during natural gas extraction. Additionally, the author mentions that party balloons are not the main issue.

Top 2 Comment Summary

Formula One teams have traditionally used helium in their wheel guns to increase rotation speed. However, as part of their efforts to become more eco-friendly, the governing bodies of the sport have decided to ban the use of pneumatic helium.

7. Kayak’s new flight filter allows you to exclude aircraft models

Total comment counts : 36

Summary

The article states that the request has been blocked due to a network policy. It suggests logging in or creating an account to continue browsing. If running a script or application, it recommends registering or signing in with developer credentials. It also advises ensuring the User-Agent is not empty and is unique and descriptive. Alternative User-Agent strings should be changed back to the default. The Reddit Terms of Service can be accessed, and if there is a belief of incorrect blocking or a desire to discuss easier ways to obtain data, a ticket can be filed. When contacting, it is important to provide the IP address and Reddit account.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article suggests that refusing to fly on a Boeing 737 Max could send a clear signal to airlines to adapt. Even a slight decrease in ticket sales for the 737 could impact its profitability, potentially causing airlines to make changes. Airbus is already outselling Boeing, and with a lead time of 5-10 years, they could expand production to further compete if demanded by airlines.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The author expresses interest in an idea, but is concerned that airlines have the ability to change the plane at the last minute before a flight. This creates a dilemma for passengers who have already gone through the process of getting to the airport and waiting at the gate.

8. Launch HN: Diversion (YC S22) – Cloud-Native Git Alternative

Total comment counts : 71

Summary

The article discusses the limitations of Git as a version control system and the need for a new VCS. It mentions that Git’s scalability and complexity are major drawbacks and that Google and Meta have built their own VCS systems to address these issues. Additionally, other large companies in industries like games development, semiconductors, and financial services still use legacy tools like SVN and Perforce due to Git’s limitations. The article proposes creating a new VCS called Diversion that aims to be easy-to-use, fast, and scalable while retaining Git’s branching capabilities. It also highlights the benefits of real-time collaboration in modern cloud tools and mentions that Diversion is compatible with Git and can synchronize with existing Git repositories. The article concludes by stating that Diversion is currently in open beta and outlines planned improvements.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses a new cloud-native alternative to Git. The author questions the relevance of the cloud-native aspect and expresses skepticism about the scalability issues of Git. They also question the significance of the underlying protocols for the average user. The alternative, called Diversion, is built on distributed storage and databases, accessible through a REST API, and runs on serverless cloud infrastructure. The desktop client synchronizes work in progress to the cloud in real-time.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article discusses the possibility of version control systems (VCSs) operating on Abstract Syntax Trees (AST) instead of plaintext lines. The author suggests that it should be possible to collaborate on a shared codebase without all contributors needing to follow the same formatting rules, naming conventions, or even use the same programming language. By transpiling to and from an agreed-upon shared AST target, collaborators could work with their own preferred styles and still contribute to the codebase. The article argues that since code is a representation of a tree structure, following strict formatting rules and storing violations against the style near the code would allow for flexibility in coding conventions and languages.

Total comment counts : 19

Summary

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, will be giving users in the EU, EEA, and Switzerland more control over how their data is used on the platforms. This move is in compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and will allow users to choose whether their information is shared between Facebook and Instagram. Additionally, Messenger will have a standalone option where users can create a new account separate from Facebook. Facebook Marketplace and Facebook Gaming will also offer personalized or anonymized experiences, and European users can choose to pay a subscription for an ad-free experience. These changes are set to begin rolling out in the coming weeks.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article discusses the challenges of implementing a change in user accounts within a business. It suggests that making changes to user accounts can be a difficult task that requires a significant amount of engineering effort and can affect multiple teams. The author also mentions that user account assumptions are deeply ingrained in the architecture and services of a company, which may have taken years to develop.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article expresses frustration about European users receiving exclusive features to manage their digital life. It suggests that the cost to forego ad revenue from non-European users must be substantial in order to justify keeping these features limited to Europe.

10. CSS3D Clouds

Total comment counts : 7

Summary

This article describes an experiment involving the creation of volumetric 3D-like clouds using CSS3 3D Transforms and a bit of Javascript. The article provides a tutorial on how to achieve this effect and explains how to interact with the clouds using mouse movements and the mouse wheel. The experiment works on Firefox, Chrome, and Safari, and allows users to select multiple textures to create clouds. The article acknowledges the inspiration for the experiment from Mr.doob’s WebGL clouds and Mark J. Harris’ Real-Time Cloud Rendering for Games. The article also mentions that the fonts used are Open Sans and Lato from Google Web Fonts, and the textures used are the property of their respective owners.

Top 1 Comment Summary

The article is about CSS 3D Clouds. It was posted on a website called Hacker News on February 9, 2013, and received 294 points and 44 comments. There is another article about CSS 3D Clouds posted on the same website on March 23, 2012, which received 17 points and 1 comment.

Top 2 Comment Summary

The article discusses a collection of 2D sprites in a 3D space, which can be referred to as “2.5D.” The author mentions that the rotation of the sprites disrupts the desired effect, but having them remain still would likely be even worse. They propose the idea of assigning a random rotation to each sprite.