1. Is something bugging you?
Total comment counts : 71
Summary
The article discusses why a startup remained in stealth mode for over five years before releasing its product. The startup wanted to build something great before releasing it and was fortunate enough to attract talent, customers, and investors during this period. The article also mentions the startup’s previous company, FoundationDB, and how the new product, Antithesis, is a continuation of that story. It explains the challenges of building a fault-tolerant distributed database and the difficulty of testing and validating such a system. The startup used a fully-deterministic event-based network simulation to test its database and found and fixed all the bugs before release. The article concludes by stating that the database was highly reliable and only had one or two reported bugs from customers.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article discusses the concept of a “10x” or “50x” developer, stating that it is often misunderstood to mean someone who works long hours and eventually burns out. Instead, the author argues that true productivity comes from individuals who can implement innovative ideas that others haven’t considered, resulting in the ability to deliver working software in a much shorter timeframe. The author also emphasizes the positive impact this can have on a small engineering team, giving them the productivity equivalent of a team 50 times its size.
Top 2 Comment Summary
This article is being praised as an exceptional introduction post. It provides information about the people involved and what they have accomplished. It also explains how the current project is a result of their previous work and emphasizes their desire to solve a common problem. Additionally, it mentions some well-known teams who have already utilized their product. The article is well-written and has an appealing landing page.
2. Stable-Audio-Demo
Total comment counts : 36
Summary
The article discusses a website called Stable Audio that may not function properly on Safari and recommends using Google Chrome for the best experience. The website provides code to reproduce and evaluate the Stable Audio model, which can generate variable-length and long-form stereo music at a high quality of 44.1kHz. The model is capable of generating both music and sound effects in stereo. The article also mentions certain prompts used for a qualitative study, including descriptions of songs with specific instruments and sounds such as mandolin strumming, whistling, and flutes and percussions playing together, as well as a commercial music piece with a groovy piano melody and various elements. The article includes audio examples for comparison between the ground truth recording and the reconstruction by the autoencoder, showing that the autoencoder reconstruction is close to the original recording.
Top 1 Comment Summary
Ed Newton-Rex, the person responsible for building Stable Audio, quit shortly after its release due to concerns about copyright and the training data used. Following his departure, Newton-Rex has founded Fairly Trained, which can be found at https://www.fairlytrained.org. For more information, refer to https://x.com/ednewtonrex.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article warns that a website may not work well on Safari and suggests using Google Chrome instead. It also mentions the dominance of open-source browsers compared to Internet Explorer. The author requests someone to create an animated GIF button that says “Best viewed with Google Chrome” for Chrome.
3. The Catalogue of UK Entrances to Hell (2002)
Total comment counts : 27
Summary
error
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article discusses a location that leads to Crystal Palace (High Level) railway station, which is an abandoned place. The author expresses a belief that there may be infernal forces at play in that area.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article discusses a random yet coherent text that mentions Satan’s heat-image and the birth of all insects inside a metal door on Earth.
4. Neural network training makes beautiful fractals
Total comment counts : 21
Summary
The article is a blog post by Jascha Sohl-Dickstein. It serves as a platform for sharing unconventional or unfinished ideas and results that are not suitable for academic papers. The author invites readers to provide feedback and includes contact links for further discussion.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article discusses an experiment involving learning rates in deep learning models. The author argues that the results of the experiment are counterintuitive because the learning rates used are unusually large. They suggest that in a normal setting, smaller learning rates are typically used, and in this case, the models appear to converge. The author concludes that while the experiment is interesting, it may not accurately represent real-world deep learning scenarios, where convergence is more dependent on luck rather than hyperparameters.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article discusses the similarities between the computation of fractals and the training of neural networks. It explores the boundary between hyperparameters that lead to stable and divergent training in neural networks and finds that this boundary exhibits fractal properties. The article includes animations that show the fractal boundary.
5. Abandoned villages of Hong Kong
Total comment counts : 18
Summary
Photographer Stefan Irvine has captured images of abandoned villages in Hong Kong, highlighting a lesser-known aspect of the bustling city. The villages, which existed before Hong Kong’s colonial period and were left behind as people sought better working opportunities in urban areas, have been reclaimed by nature. Irvine’s project, documented in his book “Abandoned Villages of Hong Kong,” explores the reasons behind the abandonment and features personal essays from individuals connected to these villages. Irvine faced challenges such as deteriorating infrastructure and aggressive village dogs during his exploration. Despite the majority of the villages being deserted, Irvine discovered that some still had inhabitants.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article mentions that Korea and Japan have abandoned places, with Japanese ones being covered extensively on YouTube. A recommended channel is Tokyo Lens, known for his calming voice and style. The article provides links to several favorite videos, including “This Man Lives in an Abandoned Japanese School,” “I Spent 72 Hours in a Japanese School Abandoned in the Mountains,” “Why Was This Japanese Village Abandoned?”, and “Inside a Free Tiny House in Japan.” There is also a playlist link provided for more related content.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article is about the author’s experience of visiting an island in Hong Kong to search for their great grandfather’s grave. The author and their father walked through tall hillside grass to reach clusters of abandoned graves and looked for their ancestor’s tombstone. As it started to get dark, the author suggested turning back due to the deserted and eerie atmosphere of the island.
6. Visual calculus
Total comment counts : 13
Summary
The article discusses visual calculus, an approach to solving integral calculus problems that was invented by Mamikon Mnatsakanian. Mamikon devised his method in 1959 while an undergraduate and first applied it to find the area of a ring (annulus) given the length of a chord tangent to the inner circumference. His method involves an alternate construction of the ring using constant-length tangents that are translated so their points of tangency coincide. This results in a circular disk of known radius and easily computed area. Mamikon’s theorem states that the area of a cycloid can be calculated by considering the area between it and an enclosing rectangle. The article explains how the tangents used to generate the cycloid can be clustered together to form a circle. The area of the cycloid is then found to be three times the area of the generating circle.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article emphasizes the need for caution when using visual proofs. It highlights the example of the “missing square puzzle” to illustrate that just because something looks right visually, it doesn’t necessarily mean it is correct. The article also mentions other examples such as curves that appear to change direction or converge but actually do not, as well as situations where something looks continuous but is undefined at a specific point. The article suggests that visual proofs can be helpful in understanding concepts and considering potential solutions, but they should not replace the need to do the actual mathematical calculations and derivations to verify their validity.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article suggests that many difficult problems can be solved using a certain method, even without extensive calculations. However, it is criticized for lacking specificity, lacking credible sources, being overly descriptive and subjective in its language.
7. Non-code contributions to open source
Total comment counts : 26
Summary
The article highlights the importance of non-code contributions in open source projects. It features the story of Sarah Rainsberger, a mathematics teacher who became an open source contributor while building a choir website. Rainsberger initially wanted to learn JavaScript and web development but ended up becoming involved in the Astro project by contributing code and eventually becoming the documentation lead. The article emphasizes that open source projects require more than just code contributions, including documentation, localization, marketing, design, testing, and community management. Non-code contributions are crucial in explaining the project’s functionality, attracting users, and supporting its adoption. They also provide opportunities for individuals to develop technical and non-technical skills and build portfolios in fields such as technical communications, graphic design, and user experience design. The article encourages people of all skill levels to get involved in open source and highlights that understanding a project thoroughly is essential before making meaningful code contributions.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The author, who maintains a small library, emphasizes the importance of external contributions to the quality of the manual. They also highlight how the manual has greatly contributed to the usability of the entire project. The author shares their personal experience of being a new user of libcurl and how the tutorials and API documentation helped them quickly implement FTP upload and address potential issues with thread safety. The article concludes by stating that documentation is crucial and just as important as the code and test suite itself.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The author of the article desires the following things: plenty of screenshots, a lengthy and detailed README.md file, tutorials, reference materials, design documents, architecture diagrams, and mental model documents that explain the thought process of the authors.
8. Wall found at bottom of Baltic Sea ‘may be Europe’s oldest megastructure’
Total comment counts : 18
Summary
Researchers have discovered a stone age wall off the coast of Germany’s Baltic coast, which may be the oldest known megastructure built by humans in Europe. The wall stretches for nearly a kilometer and consists of smaller stones connecting larger boulders. It was likely constructed over 10,000 years ago by hunter-gatherers and may have served as a driving lane for hunting herds of reindeer. The wall’s stones are estimated to weigh more than 142 tonnes. The site is submerged in water and was likely submerged 8,500 years ago due to rising sea levels. Researchers plan to revisit the site to further investigate the purpose of the wall and search for artifacts.
Top 1 Comment Summary
This article discusses a research paper that analyzes the origin of a structure called the “Blinkerwall.” The paper includes diagrams of the wall and a discussion on whether it could have been created by natural processes. The authors conclude that while a natural process is not ruled out, there are unanswered questions and some processes are deemed highly unlikely. The authors also mention an observation of the structure that cannot be explained by natural processes, leading them to consider an anthropogenic origin. The article provides a link to the full paper for more information.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The mentioned article discusses a sci-fi novel by Stephen Baxter called “Stone Spring” which revolves around a prehistoric megastructure, a dyke built to prevent flooding in an area known as Doggerland in the North Sea. The article’s author highly recommends reading the book and its two sequels.
9. Git tips and tricks
Total comment counts : 16
Summary
The author discusses their recent experiences speaking about Git and finding that many developers are unaware of certain features or updates. They highlight that there is a generation of developers who exclusively use Git and did not have to switch from other version control systems like SVN or CVS. The author plans to write a series of three articles covering interesting aspects of Git for intermediate to advanced users. The topics mentioned are “Oldies but Goodies,” “New Tricks,” and “Fun with Branches.” The author concludes by expressing their excitement in exploring the surprises Git has to offer.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The author admits to recently learning a lot about the large repository features that Microsoft and GitHub have added to Git over the years. They note that it can be difficult to find a comprehensive source that describes all the additions. The author also mentions engaging in discussions with the Mercurial team about their use of Rust to improve speed. They are considering creating a third edition of their book, Pro Git, and invite readers to share any other Git-related insights they have learned the hard way or would like to know about.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The article expresses a desire to use git in the simplest way possible, without needing to learn any advanced tricks. The author appreciates those who enjoy using git, but for them, it is just a tool they need to use in order to push their code and continue working.
10. Home Assistant: Three years later
Total comment counts : 28
Summary
The author shares an update on their experience with Home Assistant, a software they use with a Raspberry Pi to integrate devices from various manufacturers. They prefer Home Assistant because it allows them to avoid being locked into specific ecosystems like Apple, Amazon, Philips, or Google. They continue to use Node-RED for automations and the Home Assistant Cloud service for secure remote access. They have shifted their approach to automation, aiming for subtlety and simplicity rather than flashy effects. They prioritize devices that work locally without relying on the internet, as they have found cloud-dependent devices to be unreliable in the past. They express cautious optimism about the future of local-focused home automation standards like Matter.
Top 1 Comment Summary
The article argues against the use of cloud services, emphasizing the potential heartache that can be avoided by not relying on someone else’s infrastructure. The author expresses concern about the functionality of their home being dependent on the Internet and highlights the absurdity of simple tasks like turning on a lightswitch having to rely on internet connectivity.
Top 2 Comment Summary
The author shares a similar experience with Home Assistant, citing the lack of stability around device changes as a challenge. However, they also express excitement when everything works properly. They express hope that Matter, a new technology, will prioritize local-first functionality. The author also mentions their difficulty in combining mechanical and digital solutions, particularly wanting light switches that accurately reflect the state of the lights controlled by their server.